Composite Engineering

  • Civil Structures & Bridges

Civil Structures & Bridges

Our portfolio of projects ranges from complete engineering of FRP pedestrian and cycle bridges to resolving weight issues on existing bridges, e.g. aerodynamic fairings or structural add-on walk-ways.

Advantages of FRP for bridges include:

  • maintenance reduction
  • extended life
  • Transport and installation cost savings
  • reduced loads on foundations
  • designable coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE)
  • Freedom of form for architectural feature projects

We offer FRP engineering for composite bridge builders and as subcontractors to main consultants in engineering projects.Please browse the references below and call us to discuss your project or any technical issue that we may assist to resolve.

Track Record

  • Rhyl Harbour Bridge
    Rhyl Harbour Bridge, Rhyl, Wales, UK

    Problem: Cycle bridge required to have lifting decks to allow harbour access to marine traffic. Light weight required to reduce lifting mechanism cost. Shallow spans to permit lifeboat access below without opening bridge.

    Solution: FRP bridge which is virtually maintenance free and able to be lifted with minimal power consumption compared to a metal equivalent.

    Download (PDF)

  • Skypath
    Skypath, Auckland, New Zealand

    Problem: Auckland harbour bridge has not provided any walking or cycling access since 1969. Auckland wanted to add pedestrian and cycle traffic without impacting vehicle traffic flow.

    Solution: Addition of a light weight composite tunnel attached to the side of the existing bridge.

    Download (PDF)

  • Bradkirk Rail Bridge
    Bradkirk Rail Bridge, Blackpool, UK

    Problem: High maintenance cost of existing steel bridge reaching end of life. Limited road access for crane. Increase in clearance for future electrification meant taller, heavier piers hence bridge had to be lighter than previous steel spans.

    Solution: FRP bridge which is virtually maintenance free, can be lifted into place over night preventing costly rail closures. Spans weighed 1.6 tonnes versus 16 tonnes for steel.

    Download (PDF)

  • Whitestone Bridge Fairing
    Whitestone Bridge Fairing, The Bronx, New York

    Problem: Bridge deck was reinforced to avoid aeroelastic instability (galloping) seen on Tacoma Narrows bridge in 1940. This caused additional stress on main cable stays not designed for in 1939.

    Solution: Steel trusses on the side of bridge were replaced with FRP aerodynamic fairings. This plus other replacements saved 6000 tons, or 25% of load on cables.

    Download (PDF)

  • Expo Bridge
    EXPO Bridge, Lisbon, Portugal

    Problem: Three pedestrian bridges were needed to cross two roads and one rail line. Client wanted to reduce the amount of foundations needed plus having the ability to install the bridges with minimal disruption to busy city traffic. 

    Solution: A mixture of Carbon and Glass epoxy composite resulted in a bridge that weighed 6.2 tonnes for each 30m span.

    Download (PDF)

Rhyl Harbour Bridge

Skypath

Bradkirk Rail Bridge

Whitestone Bridge Fairing

EXPO Bridge