Dina Delitriana has succeeded in proving that women with multiple roles, as wives, mothers and professional workers, like herself, can win the competition in the bridge-building design world dominated by men.
By
Soelastri Soekirno
·6 minutes read
ARSIP PRIBADI
Arvila Delitriana
Only a few women work in bridge engineering design. Among them is Arvila Delitriana (50), who has produced 70 bridge designs, including a long-span arch bridge in Kuningan, Jakarta. The work is claimed to be the longest arch bridge in the world.
Not many people know, the idea behind the long span Kuningan arch bridge for the Greater Jakarta light-rail transit began at the canteen of the Ministry of Public Works and Housing in September 2017. Arvila, better known as Dina, remembered that at that time she met Ujang, a staff member of PT Adi Karya, the LRT line development contractor.
Ujang said the design of the Greater Jakarta light-rail transit (LRT) overpass made by a foreign consultant had proved to be difficult to materialize. To work on the design, it is necessary to bring in experts from abroad and import some of the materials. This will increase the cost of building the Greater Jakarta LRT line. The team that will use the design finally took a survey to Japan. However, they still did not get an answer.
At that time, Ujang asked Dina for help to find a solution. "I still remember, at that time I scribbled on the tissue at the canteen. From a brief discussion, I was then asked to make a bridge design within one week,” said Dina on Monday (20/4/2021).
From the start, Dina was aware that the construction of the LRT bridge in the Kuningan section would be difficult. Apart from the length, the bridge will be curved according to the contour of the available land. The problem is that the area does not allow the designer to build many pillars to support the bridge. This means that the bridge must be built to “float”.
Dina tried to solve the problem by designing a floating, curved bridge that was supported (by pillars) only at both ends. However, consultants from France, Japan, Korea and the UK were skeptical about the draft. They said the design was impossible to materialize.
ARSIP PRIBADI
Arvila Delitriana
Questionable
One consultant from Japan argued that the long, curved bridge was the first design in the world. There are no examples yet. There were also those who inquired, “Have [you] made bridges? That’s an arch bridge, how will it be connected later?” Dina mimicked their words.
"I was insecure when [they said] my design had never been built. There were doubts in their hearts, but I felt it was time for proof. We then argued for a long time, but I didn\'t get approval,” said Dina.
After going through long discussions and debates for six months, Dina\'s design finally got a design-worthy certification from the Bridge and Tunnel Safety Commission. After that, the bridge began to be built. "I remember very well, the process of building the bridge was two years, from September 2017 to November 2019," she said.
I only rely on the most basic civil engineering sciences and combine my experience for about 12 years in designing many bridge
She was relieved after the long-span arch bridge was developed over the intersection of Jl Jenderal Gatot Subroto and Jl HR Rasuna Said. It is 148 meters long with a curved radius of 115 meters. PT Adi Karya claims the structure is the longest curved concrete box bridge without supporting poles in the world (Kompas, 11/13/2019).
What is even more encouraging is that the bridge was built with local materials and without bringing in experts from abroad. The bridge construction method is also considered quite innovative because it is built without disturbing traffic activities underneath.
In fact, continued Dina, she did not use complicated knowledge to design the curved bridge. "I only rely on the most basic civil engineering sciences and combine my experience for about 12 years in designing many bridges," she said.
With heart
Dina\'s involvement in the world of bridge design happened unintentionally. Since Dina got married, her parents asked her not to go out often. Dina ended up focusing more on being a homemaker, especially after having children.
When her husband worked in Bandung, Dina had the opportunity to continue studying for a master’s degree at the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB). On that campus, through a chance encounter she met Prof. Jodi Firman, her lecturer while studying for a bachelors in Civil Engineering at ITB. Jodi asked Dina to help with his work. At that time, Jodi, who was a confidant of President BJ Habibie, got a lot of work designing buildings and bridges.
"I said to him, I can\'t work like an office person in general. But, Pak Jodi said it\'s OK. You can go to the office at any time,” said Dina, remembering a conversation with Jodi in 2000.
KOMPAS/AGUS SUSANTO
Aerial photo of the Jabodebek Kuningan LRT Long Span Bridge at the intersection of Jalan HR Rasuna Said and Jalan Gatot Subroto (Kuningan) in South Jakarta, Sunday (1/12/2019). Long Span Kuningan, which is 148 meters long, was built without a supporting bridge pole in the middle and is also a curved concrete box carriage bridge with the longest span in the world.
The work system is flexible, but the work target is clear, making Dina interested in following in Jodi\'s footsteps. Not only is she allowed to freely set work hours in the office, Dina even has a work space that allows her to bring her children to the office.
The project to design the first bridge she received was the construction of the Tengku Agung Sultanah Latifah Bridge in Siak, Riau, which has a center span of 200 meters with a length of 1.7 kilometers. Because she had to take part in seeing the construction of the bridge, Dina often went out of town. Often times she had to bring her child with her.
Once, while monitoring the construction of a bridge, she had to get on a small boat. In fact, it was already night and the weather was not good. Dina and the contractor staff experienced unpleasant journey. On another occasion, she also saw local residents struggling to get on rafts or boats to get to school or work.
"My heart is saddened to see it. Because there is no bridge infrastructure, they have to face the same dangers I have experienced," she said.
All the bridge designs I made with my heart
When the bridge was finished, the residents cheered cheerfully. They can freely and quickly cross to the other side with ease. Dina was touched watching this. Since then, every time she designed a bridge, her heart and mind are always on the people who are most in need.
"All the bridge designs I made with my heart because I have seen myself their [people’s] struggles which were very difficult when the bridge did not exist," said Dina.
So far, Dina has designed around 70 bridges, including the Kali Kuto Bridge (Semarang), Pasopati (Bandung) and the Halmahera Bridge, Ambon. She has succeeded in proving that women with multiple roles, as wives, mothers and professional workers, like herself, can win the competition in the bridge-building design world dominated by men.
Now, Dina is the director of the consulting company PT Cipta Graha Abadi Bandung, which Jodi founded, with several staff members including young women. She hopes the company will produce great civil engineering designers.
Arvila Delitriana
Born: Tebing Tinggi, 23 April 1970
Education:
- Bachelor at Bandung Institute of Technology (graduated 1994)
- Master degree at Bandung Institute of Technology (graduated 2003).
/https%3A%2F%2Fkompas.id%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F12%2F20191202AGS01_1575386430.jpg){kind=logo}
