hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Third International Bridge Seminar

Understanding Staged Construction
Integration of staged construction and time
dependent effects into the design of bridges
Andrew Hodgkinson

A brief history
Staged construction is not new

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

A brief history
Engineers have been using staged construction to
build bridges for centuries

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Staged Construction
Engineers must assess the significance of staged
construction on the final forces and deflections in the
structure.
Time dependant effects of creep and shrinkage must
be taken into account through idealised models e.g.
CEB-FIP78, CEB-FIP90, ACI etc.
Checks of adequacy of the structure during
construction may also be required.
Determination of precambers to ensure correct final
structure geometry is often needed.
Can be utilised to alter and optimise force distribution
in structures
hewson consulting engineers
civil, structural and bridge engineering

Bridge Construction Methods

The most common bridge construction methods include:
Composite beam and slab (precast or steel beams)
Full Cantilever Method (FCM) integral or bearings
Span by span insitu or precast
Incrementally launched

or a combination of these methods

Greatly influences the final force and stress distribution

throughout the deck
hewson consulting engineers
civil, structural and bridge engineering

Bridge Construction Methods

Composite Methods

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Bridge Construction Methods

FCM Method

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Bridge Construction Methods

Full span or Span+1/4 method

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Bridge Construction Methods

Incremental launching

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Analysis Methods
Methods have developed over time
Engineers have been used to developing a series of analysis
models for the significant construction stages and combining the
results.
Creep redistribution idealised using hand calculated upper/lower
bound creep (f) factors.
Prestressing usually idealised as manually calculated equivalent
loads
Many bridge designers have developed spreadsheets in an
attempt to make the analysis more efficient.
Nothing wrong with these methods as they have served us well over
many years but there are now alternatives
hewson consulting engineers
civil, structural and bridge engineering

Analysis Methods
balanced
cantilever

Cantilever
Dead load
BMD

In-situ stitches

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Analysis Methods

As-built BMD

Instantaneous
BMD

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Analysis Methods
Over time the bending moment distribution creeps from the as-built
condition towards the instantaneous condition.
Masbuilt
Minstant

Final
BMD

M final M asbuilt (M instant M asbuilt) . 1 e f

hewson consulting engineers
civil, structural and bridge engineering

Integrated Analysis Method

A method by which all construction stages, all loading
(including prestress) and time dependant effects (where
applicable) are integrated into a single analysis
Results require no post-processing to combine separate analyses
Calculation of creep/shrinkage automatically based on actual
construction time-line
Combination with in-service static and dynamic loadings on
structure can be undertaken within the analysis
Iterations to achieve economic design are quick to implement.
A greater level of accuracy is achievable.
Precambers readily determined

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 1 Composite Precast Beam and Slab

N6 Galway to Ballinasloe PPP Scheme ST26

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 1 Composite Precast Beam and Slab

N6 Galway to Ballinasloe PPP Scheme ST26

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 1 Composite Precast Beam and Slab

N6 Galway to Ballinasloe PPP Scheme ST26

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 2 Insitu PT voided, top-down

M3 Clonee to North of Kells PPP Scheme S20

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 2 Insitu PT voided, top-down

M3 Clonee to North of Kells PPP Scheme S20

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 2 Insitu PT voided, top-down

M3 Clonee to North of Kells PPP Scheme S20

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 2 Insitu PT voided, top-down

M3 Clonee to North of Kells PPP Scheme S20

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 2 Insitu PT voided, top-down

M3 Clonee to North of Kells PPP Scheme S20

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 2 Insitu PT voided, top-down

M3 Clonee to North of Kells PPP Scheme S20

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 3 Curved FCM Bridge on bearings

Johor Ramps

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 3 Curved FCM Bridge on bearings

Johor Ramps

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 3 Curved FCM Bridge on bearings

Johor Ramp A

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 4 165m FCM Bridge integral piers

Coastal Highway from Johor Bahru to Nusajaya Bridge 2

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 4 165m FCM Bridge integral piers

Coastal Highway from Johor Bahru to Nusajaya Bridge 2

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 4 165m FCM Bridge integral piers

Coastal Highway from Johor Bahru to Nusajaya Bridge 2

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 5 Concrete Cable Stayed Bridge

Bonny River Cable Stayed Bridge, Nigeria
overall length 930m with 350m
main span
single plane of stays
diamond pylons

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 5 Concrete Cable Stayed Bridge

Bonny River Cable Stayed Bridge, Nigeria

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 5 Concrete Cable Stayed Bridge

Bonny River Cable Stayed Bridge, Nigeria

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 6 Concrete/Steel Cable Stayed Bridge

New Wear Bridge, Sunderland

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 6 Concrete/Steel Cable Stayed Bridge

New Wear Bridge, Sunderland

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Example 6 Concrete/Steel Cable Stayed Bridge

New Wear Bridge, Sunderland

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

Concluding thoughts
Integrated analysis can save time (and money) where
staged construction is important
Accurate analysis of structure deflections and required
precambers
Efficient analysis provides opportunities for design
refinement
Careful implementation needed to ensure that active
elements, boundary conditions and loads accurately
represent each construction stage
Not to be treated as a black box careful checking of
results is needed.

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering

A final word of warning

hewson consulting engineers

civil, structural and bridge engineering