Industrialized Construction of Medium Span Concrete Bridges Using Movable False Work

Abstract

Modern geometrical requirements for high capacity ground infrastructure, as highways or high-speed train lines, imply increasing numbers of long tunnels and viaducts in mountainous countries. Moreover, for the sake of the environment, only some selected construction methods are eligible for sensitive areas. Long viaducts are usually solved by means of medium span concrete viaducts. For the sake of quality and health and safety, industrialized construction methods, as launching girders or precast construction, is usually preferred. The paper will describe the pros and cons of some construction methods using movable trusses to hold in place either the formwork or precast segments, emphasizing the possibilities of reducing the critical path. New construction sequences, non-standardized structural details, static and dynamic tests, reinforcing criteria, structural response, finite element model analysis and recent already built examples will be described to illustrate the possibilities of the methods.