New Orthotropic Bridge Deck: Design, Fabrication and Construction of the Shenley Bridge Incorporating and SPS Orthotropic Bridge Deck

The Structural Division of The Canam Manac Group Inc. has constructed the first steel bridge utilizing an orthotropic steel deck that incorporates the Sandwich Plate System (SPS) technology. The SPS orthotropic bridge deck was supplied and fabricated by the Solicor Division of The Canam Manac Group Inc. Intelligent Engineering (IE) has developed and patented the Sandwich Plate System, in which two metal plates are bonded to a solid elastomer core. The elastomer provides continuous support to the plates and precludes local plate buckling and minimizes the need for stiffeners. The flexural stiffness and strength of the sandwich plate is tailored to meet particular static and dynamic structural requirements by selecting appropriate thickness for each sandwich element. SPS replaces conventional stiffened metal plates in maritime, offshore and civil engineering structures. For the covering abstract of this conference see ITRD number E211395.