Not convinced the park bridge needs all that prefab steel

They're putting up that walking bridge over in Riverside with sections made in a shop. Folks act like factory pieces are always stronger, but watching it go together, the field connections seem like a weak spot. What's wrong with trusting a crew to fit and bolt on site?

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3 Comments

anna_grant7mo ago

Shop welds beat field bolts any day.

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matthew7036mo ago

Wait, did you just ignore the whole point about field fit? @anna_grant, a perfect shop weld is useless if the pieces don't line up right on site... that's the whole reason for field bolts sometimes. You can't just weld a bad fit. The shop can't plan for every problem out in the real world. A good field crew with bolts can fix those problems on the spot. A pretty weld in a factory doesn't mean much if the structure is fighting itself.

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hill.casey7mo ago

Aren't we making too big a deal? Plenty of bridges built on site with bolts have lasted decades. Look at the old railroad trestles, they're still standing. Sure, shop welds are neat, but field crews know what they're doing. Is a perfect factory weld always better than a good field fit? Sometimes the worry is just for show.

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