Bridging Innovation and Community Through Collaborative Design.

Lawrence Rolwes, a senior project manager with HNTB, has dedicated his career to designing safe, reliable and innovative bridges across the globe. Rolwes pulls from his vast experience to share his perspectives on bridge infrastructure, the future of design and the role collaboration plays in delivering efficient, enduring structures.

How does bridge design contribute to connectivity and sustainability?

Bridges are symbolic of connectivity, serving as prominent features that link people to what matters most—family, friends, work, education and recreation. At HNTB, we prioritize collaboration with our clients to design structures efficiently, while prioritizing safety, and ensuring reliable designs that facilitate easier inspection and maintenance.

A prime example of this commitment is our work with the West Virginia Department of Highways in Morgantown, West Virginia. We designed a new, long-span bridge over the Monongahela River to enhance access to US 119 and I-68 for the growing community.

To support WVDOH’s commitment to the community, HNTB developed both the preliminary and final designs in under four months. This work was conducted in tandem with the National Environmental Policy Act and the permitting process. By leveraging our firm's resources and closely collaborating with WVDOH, we anticipated and mitigated environmental concerns early in the design phase. This included incorporating longer spans to avoid sensitive archeological sites, maximize navigation clearance and minimize flood risks.

The result was a streamlined process with no design revisions required after the Finding of No Significant Impact was approved, enabling WVDOH to move directly to project bidding.

How should agencies approach assessing risks to ensure bridges are properly designed, built and maintained?

Considering risk as a continuum throughout the life of a structure is crucial and aligns seamlessly with a comprehensive asset management mindset. In the immediate term, risks in design and construction focus on building safety and minimizing traffic impacts. With our mature transportation system, we are often designing replacement structures or rehabilitating existing structures under live traffic. Solutions to address risks at this phase include both fabrication and construction techniques. We use prefabricated bridge elements to accelerate construction and/or make construction easier and safer. Some sites pose challenges to access, which require innovative solutions in fabrication, and in erection. For example, we are launching a 1600-ft steel girder bridge in Ohio because the crane access on the site is poor due to soil conditions and multiple railroads across the site.

Long-term risks arise from the dynamic and ever-changing environments our structures inhabit. For instance, modern structures are designed for at least 75 years of service. Many things can change in this timeframe, including the size and capacity of vessels and the weight of the trucks that use our structures. These risks are considered at the design stage to a certain degree but must continue to be reevaluated over the life of a structure.

Significant risks to bridges include vessel impact, fire and derailment. These types of events are generally considered unlikely to occur, but their consequences are catastrophic. As part of the asset management approach, agencies should be developing and maintaining risk registers for structures on critical transportation routes. This will enhance the understanding of a structure's risk profile, allowing agencies to develop effective mitigation strategies.

Equally as important to the safety of a structure is maintenance to mitigate risk in the long-term. Routine upkeep, as evidenced by turnpikes and toll facilities, extends the service life of structures. As designers, however, we also address this at the design stage. Simple details and strategies can have dramatic impacts on the serviceability of a structure. Whether specifying durable wearing surfaces to protect bridge decks or implementing strategies like internal curing to help mitigate cracking and long term deterioration in concrete decks, HNTB advises our clients on the best practices and latest developments in the industry.

We prioritize collaboration with our clients to design structures efficiently, while prioritizing safety, and ensuring reliable designs that facilitate easier inspection and maintenance. 

– Lawrence Rolwes
Senior Project Manager

How do you see the future of bridge design evolving over the next decade?

While technology already plays a significant role in bridge design, I anticipate a fundamental shift in project delivery methodologies. Current developments in the process of sharing electronic design plans promise to streamline construction by providing contractors with comprehensive, interactive models from which they can work.

Another exciting development is the concept of digital twins — a 3D model that serves as a virtual counterpart of the physical structure. This digital twin acts as a centralized repository, housing a comprehensive historical record of the project along with detailed information about inspections conducted throughout the structure's lifespan. This is an ideal tool to aid in management of long-term risks previously mentioned.

The integration of structural health monitoring technologies also holds immense promise for the future of bridge design and maintenance. By implementing these systems, we gather valuable data on how bridges respond to various environmental stressors such as temperature changes, wind and vehicular loads. Integrated with a robust asset management program, this technology will provide agencies the basis to make data-driven decisions when it comes to the prioritization of their limited maintenance funds. This wealth of data, combined with machine learning and AI, will also enhance our understanding of structural behavior and will inform future design processes, enabling us to create bridges with unprecedented levels of resilience and sustainability.

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