Skip to main content

Composite bridge awards

The American Composites Manufacturers Association (ACMA) has announced its Awards for composites excellence (ACE) at the COMPOSITES 2010 event. The awards were presented in a number of categories, with two awards gone to composite bridge structures.
February 8, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
The 1505 American Composites Manufacturers Association (ACMA) has announced its Awards for composites excellence (ACE) at the COMPOSITES 2010 event. The awards were presented in a number of categories, with two awards gone to composite bridge structures. The most creative application award was presented to AEWC Advanced Structures & Composites Center, 1507 University of Maine, Orono, Maine, for its Bridge-in-a-Backpack, a hybrid composite-concrete bridge combining the benefits of advanced composite materials and concrete. The concept offers a cost effective, long-lasting, and easy-to-erect bridge technology. This lightweight, corrosion resistant system for short-to-medium-span bridge construction uses FRP composite arch tubes that act as a stay-in-place form, structural reinforcement, and environmental protection for concrete fill. The lightweight arches can be placed quickly by hand. The infinite possibility award was presented to 1509 Harbor Technologies, Brunswick, Maine, for its hybrid composite beam (HCB), a new structural member developed for use as a girder in bridges and other structures. This is comprised of a shell, compression reinforcement and tension reinforcement. The shell consists of a fibre reinforced polymer box beam. The compression reinforcement consists of concrete, pumped into a profiled conduit (generally an arch) within the beam shell, while carbon, glass or steel fibres anchored at the ends of the compression reinforcement provide the tension reinforcement. The HCB combines the strength and stiffness of concrete and steel with the lightweight and corrosion advantages of composite materials.

Related Content

  • Peri’s formwork and shoring solution for the “East End Crossing”
    July 6, 2016
    Pylons almost 90m high are a striking feature of a new cable-stayed East End Crossing bridge over the Ohio River in Louisville, Kentucky state in the US The pylons are characterised by their complex shapes and massive legs and cross beams. Peri provided a comprehensive overall concept for its construction – consisting of a planning solution with perfectly matched formwork, climbing, shoring and scaffolding systems along with extensive on-site support. With a Peri solution, the construction crew were a
  • Winning formula for formwork
    July 19, 2012
    An unusual application of formwork took place recently in France, while formwork using one particular engineering construction kit was used for the first time in Poland. Guy Woodford reports An 80m long wild game underpass is an innovative feature of the Route Nationale 88 (RN 88) expansion in south-west France. For construction of the arched underpass tunnel, a PERI tunnel formwork carriage using VARIOKIT engineering construction kit was used. Thanks to the equipment’s easy handling, along with pre-assembl
  • Korean bridge construction poses challenges
    April 5, 2012
    On South Korea's southern coast, an innovative highway sea crossing is providing many engineering challenges The new Busan-Geoje crosses from South Korea's second city to its biggest island and is slightly shorter than the 12km of the country's famous Incheon project. In addition the main cable stay bridge for the Busan-Geoje project has a 475m span rather than the 800m of the Incheon central span. However the 8.2km Busan-Geoje project faces perhaps greater technical challenges and also includes a second b
  • Formwork innovations help bridge building
    July 7, 2015
    A series of formwork developments are helping with challenging bridge construction projects around the world - Mike Woof writes In the Polish city of Krakow, a cost-effective cable stayed bridge is being constructed using a balanced cantilever technique. The current expansion of the Krakow metropolitan railway network (KST) requires the building of a crossing of the Krakow-Plaszow railway junction. Ensuring that daily rail operations remained unaffected during the construction of the 252m long crossing w