Department of Public Works and Highways
Regional Office No. XII
D AY 2
Seminar on Bridge
Management, Maintenance
and Repair/Rehabilitation
Presented by:
MASTOR MASHUD II J. IBRAHIM
TOPIC:
PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED IN THE
ASSESSMENT OF BRIDGE
PROJECTS AND RECOMMENDED
MEASURES/SOLUTIONS
(CASE STUDY)
Pier
Abutment
Superstructure
Important Qualities of Bridge Inspector
1. A bridge inspector must be a careful worker. You
must always look at a bridge carefully and fill in the
inspection report form carefully. It is better to be
slow and careful.
2. A bridge inspector must be a safe worker. You must
be in good health and fit, so you can climb over
parts of a bridge safely. Safety is very important
and you must never take unnecessary risks.
3. A bridge inspector must be a responsible person. A
good inspector can help prevent road accidents
and keep the roads open to traffic.
Problems Encountered in the Assessment
of Bridge Projects and Recommended
Measures/Solutions:
1. HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT
a. Presence of Informal Settlers
b. Political Intervention
Recommended Measures/Solutions:
a. Require police assistance for the safety of inspector
b. Strictly enforce the existing rules regarding Road Right of Way
2. LACK OF EQUIPMENT/APPARATUS
a. Difficulty in the execution of assessment on bridge bottom parts.
b. Unable to evaluate structural integrity of concrete.
c. Bridge structure located in rivers, swamps with deep waters.
Recommendations:
a. Provide/Procure, rent equipment necessary in the conduct of
bridge assessment i.e. bridge truck, micro cover meter, pundit,
crack detection, microscope, rebound hammer, flash light,
measuring tape, wire brush, waterproof pencil/pen or paint for
marking concrete or steel, camera, boat or barge, etc.
Problems Encountered in the Assessment
of Bridge Projects and Recommended
Measures/Solutions:
3. IMMINENT DANGER/HAZARD TO INSPECTORS
a. Traffic Restriction – during inspection you will be walking on the bridge and
its road approaches looking at details of the bridge.
Recommendations:
a. Always walk in the direction so that you are facing the coming
vehicles.
b. Do not conduct inspection if under the influence of alcohol (or
any medication which impairs alertness or causes drowsiness).
c. Carry with you signs such as SURVEY IN PROGRESS or
DANGER.
d. Wear bright colored warning jacket.
b) Dangerous Places/Access Difficulties
1. Inspection of bridge at dangerous places such as high up or near
deep water enclosed spaces such as box girder.
Problems Encountered in the Assessment
of Bridge Projects and Recommended
Measures/Solutions:
Recommendations:
a. Take someone along (perhaps a diver) to make you are safe.
b. Always carry a rope and safety harness with you. Use them if you
have to go into dangerous place.
c. Do not go into dangerous places without an assistant.
d. Make sure that the manhole cover have been off for a long time
to let fresh air in before you go in and always have someone
standing outside, so that you can call to him for help.
3. The officer who will undertake inspection is not familiar with the
site.
Recommendation:
a. Conduct reconnaissance survey to familiarize the
bridge site.
Problems Encountered in the Assessment
of Bridge Projects and Recommended
Measures/Solutions:
4. CHEMICALS
Some of the chemicals used in timber treatment can be dangerous. If you
make holes during the inspection of timber bridge, these should be filled with
timber preservative. Chemicals such as Pentachlorophenol (PCP) or coal-tar
epoxy creosote can be used but they are harmful to people, animals and fish.
Recommendations:
a. Take care no to get the chemicals onto your skin.
b. Wash off any accidental splashes of chemicals at once.
c. Do not smoke: some of the chemicals catch fire easily.
d. Try not to spill chemicals into the water – they will kill the fish.
e. Do not leave the chemicals where children or animals can touch them.
Many children die every year because chemicals are left around.
f. Do not let any chemicals, liquid gases or dust get into your nose or
mouth or eyes. If it does by accident, wash it out as quickly as you can.
5. DOCUMENTS/REFERENCES – Bridge Details and History
CASE STUDY
The transition bridge was constructed in Quezon City for more than 13
years ago and became a very useful one for the commuters plying that route
from south to north and from east to west bound area. On the last condition
inspection, it shows that no physical defects was observed/stated on the
existing bridge structure.
However, the bridge was exposed to extreme heat last December 26,
2005 due to fire that engulfed the squatter shanties living underneath. The
fire lasted for four (4) hours that caused damages to the superstructure of
the bridge.
The superstructure affecting heavy, medium and lightly damaged are
girders from span 1 to 6 of the bridge.
As Bridge Inspector, you are instructed/directed to assess the fire
damaged of the bridge. What will be your courses of
actions/recommendations to be undertaken to the problems
(findings/observations) that you will encounter during assessment.
Assessment Proper:
1. Conduct reconnaissance survey:
a. Familiarize the area
b. Bring necessary materials/equipment needed in the conduct of inspection
2. Clean the surface of the structure subject for inspection.
3. Conduct crack mapping on girders noted with cracks.
a. Measure the length of crack and its width at the widest point.
b. Make a sketch of the crack and include it with the report.
c. Mark and date the end of the crack
d. Take pictures
Note: Crack at the beam ends which spread up from the bearings are serious
problem.
Cracks in the concrete maybe due to externally applied
loads, external restraint forces, internal restraint forces,
differential movement and settlements or corrosion of the
reinforcement.
Alternative Course of
Defects Possible Cause Action Recommendations
Require for further
Provide immediate engineering
Crumble of temporary shoring of evaluation/inspection.
concrete H-Pile at third point of
1. Series of existing girder of the NOTE:
cracks Thermal expansion bridge for the safety of
of concrete the traveling Engineering
motorists. evaluation/inspection
consist of Senior Bridge
Engineers involved in
design and construction
of bridge.
Thermal expansion
2. Spalling of reinforcing bars -------
3. Missing Joint
Fillers at Totally burned joint Provide immediately
Expansion filler the required joint filler
Joint
Types of Cracks:
1. Hairline Crack – results from externally applied load – harmless
2. Restraint Crack – results of friction at the bearings, bonding to
already hardened concrete or by attachment to other
components of the structure.
The severity of cracking is defined as:
Hairline up to 0.1 mm condition state 0
Fine up to 0.3 mm condition state 1
Medium up to 0.7 mm condition state 2
Heavy Greater than 0.7 mm condition state 3
Engineering investigation arising from cracking of condition
state 2 or 3 would mean:
3. Determine the cause of cracking, address these causes to
prevent future cracking.
4. Repair the crack.
Engineering Evaluation Requires:
1. Thorough investigation on both affected and not affected
structures
2. Conduct non-destructive test on the affected structures:
a. Portable ultrasonic non-destructive indicating tester
b. Crack detection microscope
c. Rebound Hammer
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD CORRELATION BETWEEN
VELOCITY AND CONCRETE STRENGTH
GROUP VELOCITY STRENGTH
(m/5) (Adjectival Rating)
Above 4500 Excellent
3600 – 4500 Generally Good
3000 – 3600 Questionable
2100 – 3000 Generally Poor
Below 2100 Very Poor
Source: Philippine Nuclear Research Institute
Heavily silted due to lahar deposition. Clearance
below the bridge ceiling is now two to three meters
only.
Concrete piles of the bridge are exposed (around 1.0 to 2.0 m) due
to degradation. The Osmeña Bridge has around seventeen (17)
spans. The Bridge is close to the groundsill of ID53.
Concrete bridge collapsed last typhoon “Feria” (week of June). Two piers with 3 spans were
totally washed-out, one pier settled. Left bank scoured heavily. Riverbank degradation,
generally fine riverbed materials. The concrete bridge was originally constructed sometimes
in 1936 and was then subjected to rehabilitation, as told. The length of bridge/width of river
is around 220 m from bank to bank (abutment to abutment). Present situation the river width
was drastically reduced to about 70 m as a result of construction of baily bridge. The
situation has brought sudden changes to the hydraulic phenomena affecting the bridge
(velocity under the bridge become very strong, resulting to the bank scouring and rapid
degradation, direct water attack to the foundation, sedimentation at both banks resulting to
the spur dike effect of the foundation, etc.).
PREPARED BY: JERSON R. ODUCAYEN
