Providing bright yet unobtrusive lighting for drivers along the one of the largest suspension bridges in the Middle East was among the prestigious projects completed by the Riyadh-based Saudi Lighting Company last year.

The cable-stayed bridge - believed to be first of its type in Saudi Arabia - spans 763 m across Wadi Laban, one of the main valleys in the Riyadh area.

Saudi Lighting Company designed and supplied 36 2,000W metal halide floodlights (ULTS) to light up the bridge. These have been mounted on two towers each of which rises to a height of 90 m from the bridge's surface.

The lighting has been arranged so as diffuse light in different directions and angles to get the required illumination levels with reasonable uniformity ratios, says Bandar Al Toaimi, marketing support manager.

The bridge is located 25 km from Riyadh at the southwest of the city. It crosses Wadi Leban at a height of 80 m, forming a section of the eastern Riyadh Ring-Road.

The SR190.57 million bridge was designed and supervised by Dar Al Handasah and constructed by Saudi Archirodon Company for the Ministry of Communication.

The 35.8 m-wide bridge is supported by around 250 cables with lengths varying between 87-420 m. Around 240 panels of precast concrete weighing between 170-250 tonnes and with an overall volume 47,500 cu m and around 8,000 tonnes of steel have gone into its construction.