America’s bridges and the utility infrastructure they support are aging and declining at a rapid pace. The American Society of Civil Engineer’s 2013 Report Card on America’s Infrastructure (the most recent available) assigned our country’s bridge infrastructure a mediocre C+ grade. The same report gave different types of utilities scores ranging from B all the […] Read More
Designers, engineers, architects, contractors, equipment suppliers, and others who depend on bridge-related work are always on the lookout for new projects to generate revenue. This usually involves waiting for the announcement of new opportunities to come along, bidding on them, and hoping for the best. The issue: The number of opportunities in the pipeline has […] Read More
It’s the peak of bridge construction season. Your team has been at it since early spring, and it’s likely they’ll continue working at this pace until winter arrives. This is the time of year when you or your construction crew is likely to: Become complacent and less focused on safety issues Lose motivation Become less […] Read More
There have been many serious bridge disasters throughout history, most caused by things like extreme weather, fires, and collisions. Others have come about due to highly unexpected things, like a medieval battle, singing, and a celebrity clown. No matter the cause, most resulted in significant loss of life, devastating injury, and serious economic consequences, including lost utility […] Read More
Today, thousands of miles of piping, cable, and other utility infrastructure spans bridges all over the world, transferring water, electricity, cable, data, and other critical services across rivers, lakes, bays, valleys and highways. Let’s take a look at the close relationship between bridges and utilities throughout history. Simple bridges made it easier to gather supplies to make […] Read More
In this year’s contentious election cycle, there is something both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump seem to agree on: America’s bridges, highways, utilities, and other critical infrastructure are in deplorable condition and need to be repaired or completely rebuilt. They have both made campaign promises to do so. The good news? Once either plan goes into […] Read More
Are you a contractor looking to increase the amount of bridge construction your firm does? Maybe you work for a government transportation agency and need a new team of bridge specialists, or your utility company needs assistance building and maintaining utility infrastructure on bridges. Though the bridge industry is highly specialized, it actually takes a village to build a bridge. This network […] Read More
According to a report by the television news program 60 Minutes, America’s bridges are in very poor shape: “Tens of millions of Americans cross over bridges every day without giving it much thought, unless they hit a pothole. But the infrastructure problem goes much deeper than pavement. It goes to crumbling concrete and corroded steel and […] Read More
Despite major advances in bridge and roadway construction safety, it’s still very risky work. Before the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) was created 43 years ago, an estimated 14,000 workers were killed on the job every year. The number of fatal injuries has fallen from an average of 38 a day back then to […] Read More
Bridges, along with the roads, ramps, and other structures that connect to them, are now safer than ever before. Centuries of data and experience allow engineers to build bridges that are stronger and more durable than their predecessors. Nonetheless, emergencies happen. In order to protect the public, workers, and vital utility services, it’s absolutely crucial for municipalities […] Read More