Category Archives: Iowa Demonstration

The SSSBA and several industry partners are building a first-of-its-kind demonstration bridge in Buchanan County, Iowa. This blog is tracking the bridge from fabrication through ribbon cutting. The bridge design was created using eSPAN140. the free web-based design tool developed by the SSSBA to provide a more cost-effective manner to quickly design short span steel bridges. (See www.eSPAN140.com to learn more about the design tool). A live webcam was put into place at the construction site and you can check out the progress in real time on this blog. If you have questions about the eSPAN140 demonstration project in Iowa, contact Dan Snyder at dsnyder@steel.org.

Improving the Grade for America’s Structurally Deficient Bridges

Posted on July 23, 2014 by Dan Snyder

As the Samples Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at West Virginia University, Dr. Karl Barth knows a thing or two about giving and receiving grades. So when he sees a C+ assigned to the condition of bridges in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Accelerated Bridge Design and Construction, Bridge Design Economics, County Bridges, eSPAN140, FHWA, Iowa Demonstration, Prefabricated Bridges, short span bridge design tools, Short Span Bridges, Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance, Steel Bridges, Superstructure, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Spotlight on the Buchanan County, Iowa Secondary Roads Department

Posted on February 14, 2014 by Dan Snyder

On January 8, 2014, employees of the Buchanan County, Iowa Secondary Roads Department found themselves the guests of honor at a dinner and reception with local officials and members of the Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance (SSSBA). The celebratory event … Continue reading →

Posted in County Bridges, Iowa Demonstration, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony for Jesup South Bridge to be Held on November 1, 2013

Posted on October 31, 2013 by Dan Snyder

We hope you’ve been following the live Webcam progress on construction of the Jesup South Bridge in Buchanan County, Iowa over the past couple of months. The existing bridge was built in 1947, had a sufficiency rating of less than 50, … Continue reading →

Posted in Iowa Demonstration, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

eSPAN140 Demonstration Bridge Deck Pour

Posted on October 24, 2013 by Dan Snyder

The Jesup South short span steel bridge in Buchanan County, Iowa is getting closer to completion due to the excellent work of the Buchanan County crew and the project sponsors. Check out the video from the live construction webcam. As … Continue reading →

Posted in Installation, Iowa Demonstration | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

eSPAN140 Iowa Demonstration Bridge Beams Set

Posted on October 2, 2013 by Dan Snyder

The beams arrived fresh from galvanizing and quality check at AZZ in Canton, Ohio on October 2 and were set on the bridge construction site in Buchanan County, Iowa on the same day. Hat’s off to the local Buchanan County … Continue reading →

Posted in Iowa Demonstration, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Quick Look at Steel Beam Fabrication Process

Posted on October 2, 2013 by Dan Snyder

The steel beams for the eSPAN140 Demonstration bridge in Buchanan County, Iowa were fabricated at the US Bridge fabrication plant in Cambridge, Ohio. This 30-second video clip offers a quick look at various parts of the steel beam fabrication process. … Continue reading →

Posted in Iowa Demonstration, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

3-D Model of Buchanan County, Iowa Bridge

Posted on September 25, 2013 by Dan Snyder

Check out this 3D Model of the Buchanan, Iowa bridge that was developed by US Bridge when detailing the bridge. It’s known as “BrIM”, Bridge Information Modeling.  According to Dennis Gonano of US Bridge, the BrIM was converted from AutoCAD … Continue reading →

Posted in Bridge Design Economics, Iowa Demonstration, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Buchanan County Demonstration Bridge Schedule

Posted on September 18, 2013 by Dan Snyder

Please note that this schedule is estimated and subject to change. Watch the demonstration bridge construction. Click here to view the video from the live webcam. Fabrication: Aug 27 – Sept 17: Fabrication at US Bridge including hole drilling and … Continue reading →

Posted in Iowa Demonstration | Leave a comment

Demonstration Bridge News Articles

Posted on September 17, 2013 by Dan Snyder

Check out the news articles about the demonstration bridge in Iowa.      Montnly Newsltter – November 2013      LocalNews_RibbonCuttingNovember 1, 2013      Modern Steel Construction (PDF) – November 2013         Engineeing News Record (special section – September 2013 Iowa DOT … Continue reading →

Posted in Iowa Demonstration | Leave a comment

Creating the Buchanan County Bridge Design with eSPAN140

Posted on September 10, 2013 by Dan Snyder

Among the first steps that Buchanan County Engineer Brian Keierleber took in the development of the new bridge in Jesup, Iowa was to create a design using eSPAN140, the free design tool from the SSSBA.   He entered information about the … Continue reading →

Posted in Iowa Demonstration | Leave a comment