Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge:

Temporary Stay Cables

Considerations for Design, Testing,
Installation and Inspection
by

Michael Schwager, P.E.

Schwager Davis, Inc.
Presented at

2010 PTI Technical Conference

Fort Worth, Texas

Project Description

1,060 foot span cast in place concrete segmental twin

arch bridge with precast segmental columns

SDIs Scope of Work

Fabricate, furnish and install post-tensioned rock

anchors in the arch skew backs

SDIs Scope of Work

Fabricate, furnish and install post-tensioned rock

anchors in the stay anchor blocks

SDIs Scope of Work

Furnish post-tensioning materials, equipment and

technical assistance for precast columns, temporary
towers and bent caps

SDIs Scope of Work

Furnish temporary stay cable system and provided

technical assistance and inspection services

Contract Stay Cable Layout

Backstay Cable Geometry

Access for installation & Stressing

Revised Stay Cable Layout

Removed Lower Cables

Brought all Cables to tower top
Re-routed Backstay Cables
Lowered Forestay Connection

Stay Cable Design Considerations

More critical in many ways than permanent stay cables

Permanent stay cables
Long term Fatigue
Corrosion
Temporary stay cables
Large load variations (wedge bite)
Angle change due to sag from load variation
Temporary construction obstacles
Constructability

Additional Testing

Strand fatigue and wedge testing

Cyclical loading with high angle change
(2 Million cycles)
Critical Anchorage Testing
Swaged anchor with adjustable ring nut
Post-Blocking equipment
Strand Installation equipment

Load Transfer Strand to Anchorage

Machined Anchor Heads / Wedge Design
Post-Blocking Device

Installation Challenges

Forestay Lower Anchorage

Dampeners

Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge