The BMA contracted the British company Mott Macdonald and Thai companies Epsilon and P & Cigna to perform the preliminary survey and designs. Bidding on the project began in 1996, but was halted due to the 1997 Asian financial crisis. The project was revived in 1998 and was awarded as a lump-sum turnkey contract to a joint venture consisting of the Canadian company Buckland & Taylor Ltd., the China State Construction Engineering Corporation, Switzerland-based company BBR Systems Ltd., and the Bangkok-based PPD Construction Co., Ltd. The bridge's design was provided by Buckland & Taylor; its engineers Jorge Torrejon and Don Bergman served as project manager and chief engineer for design, respectively. Both had previously worked on the Alex Fraser Bridge in Vancouver, which was the world's longest cable-stayed bridge for five years following its completion in 1986. Construction of the bridge was carried out by the China State Construction Engineering Corp. BBR Systems supplied and installed the cables, and PPD Construction designed the viaducts. London-based Yee Associates served as architect, and Scott Wilson Kirkpatrick (Thailand) provided design management and site services.