The National Highway Institute (NHI)
901 N. Stuart Street, Suite 300
Arlington, VA 22203
www.nhi.fhwa.dot.gov
Training Update
by Lilly Pinto
Instruction for Bridge Inspectors Improved
As the Nation's bridges age and experience increased use
from year to year, the need to improve and maintain them becomes more critical.
A key component to ensuring that bridges remain safe and functional is a
properly trained workforce of bridge inspectors.
To ensure that the workforce meets the Federal requirements
and stays up to date on the latest practices, the Federal Highway
Administration (FHWA) and National Highway Institute (NHI) continually develop
and refresh course content. The recent introduction of a course titled Fracture
Critical Inspection Techniques for Steel Bridges (FHWA-NHI-130078) is an
example of how NHI strives to incorporate current practices and emerging
technologies for bridge inspectors.
Fracture Critical
Inspection Techniques for Steel Bridges is an important course because "the
consequences of failure of a fracture critical member [of a bridge] are
potentially very severe," says Thomas Everett, team leader of the Bridge
Programs Team in FHWA's Office of Bridge Technology. "It is important that
inspectors have the skills needed to identify fracture critical members and
recognize problems before they become a safety concern."
Fracture Critical Inspection Techniques for Steel Bridges
Fracture Critical Inspection Techniques for Steel
Bridges is a 3.5-day course that focuses on popular types of nondestructive
testing (NDT) equipment -- equipment used for in-place examination of material
for structural integrity without damaging the material -- and a case study of a
bridge inspection plan. The first day of training provides an overview of NDT
methods and an introduction to fracture critical members, which are bridge
components that are subject to stress and potentially could lead to failure of
the structure. The second day features demonstrations of various NDT techniques
such as dye penetrant, magnetic particle, ultrasonics, and eddy current, and
hands-on training sessions. Days three and four focus on inspection procedures
and reporting on common fracture critical members, as well as a case study detailing
the preparation of an inspection plan for a fracture critical bridge.
"This training will help inspectors evaluate bridges more
thoroughly and will provide them with additional knowledge of how structures
work and what can happen when they don't work," says Bill Drosehn, district
bridge inspection engineer for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation,
which hosted the pilot session of this course.
The course is geared toward public and private sector bridge
inspectors, supervisors, project engineers, maintenance engineers, shop
inspectors, shop foreman, and others responsible for shop fabrication and field
inspection of fracture critical steel bridge members. All participants should
have prior field experience in bridge inspection and possess a thorough
understanding of bridge mechanics and safety inspection procedures.
Participants who do not meet the prerequisites can take an introductory course,
Safety Inspection of In-Service Bridges (FHWA-NHI-130055).
New and Updated Bridge Inspection Courses
NHI recently released several other new or updated
courses that offer training on current inspection techniques and practices.
Bridge
Inspection Refresher Training (FHWA-NHI-130053A). This 3.5-day
course, designed to refresh the skills of practicing bridge inspectors, is
based on the Bridge
Inspector's Reference Manual (FHWA-NHI-03-001) and offers additional
topics, such as fiber reinforced plastic, inspection of truss gusset plates,
structure inventory and appraisal overview, and common National Bridge
Inventory miscodings.
Safety
Inspection of In-Service Bridges (FHWA-NHI-130055). This 2-week
course, also based on the Bridge
Inspector's Reference Manual, provides training on the safety
inspection of in-service highway bridges. The session covers the advantages and
disadvantages of material inspection equipment and component- and element-level
data rating. Once completed successfully, this course can fulfill the training
requirements of the National Bridge Inspection Standards.
Underwater
Bridge Repair, Rehabilitation, and Countermeasures
(FHWA-NHI-30091A). This 2-day course provides training on techniques for
selecting and executing repairs to bridge elements that are underwater. The
primary goal is to enable design engineers to select, design, and specify
appropriate and durable repairs to submerged bridge elements.
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| A bridge inspector conducts ultrasonic tests on a steel bridge. |
Lilly Pinto is a contractor for NHI.
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