specialist software

The twin cable arrangements tie into the western abutment

DRAMA IN
DA NANG
A Vietnamese cable-stayed bridge has been modelled in four dimensions, taking every stage of construction into account
in the analysis

sing Bentleys RM Bridge software to model every stage of construction

has completely changed WSP Finlands philosophy of analysing bridges,
says head of bridge division, Sami Niemel. The software allows the
engineers to work in four dimensions, taking account of the effect of time
on structural behaviour during construction of bridges, including a new
cable-stayed crossing in Da Nang. We can now accurately analyse the construction of
the bridge in a realistic, beginning-to-completion sequence, stage by stage, he says.
Da Nang city is a key commercial port on the South China Sea in central Vietnam
and is one of the countrys four main municipalities. For centuries it has been host to
visitors from around the world and is a hub in an area known for its natural beauty and
World Heritage landmarks. The city announced a design contest in 2007 for the new
Nguyen Van Troi Tran Thi Ly Bridge over the River Han.
The chosen design is by WSP Finland, with Esko Leppluoto as lead designer. It is a
concrete cable-stayed bridge with a backward-inclined tower and features striking twinspiralled back cable arrangements that tie to an open park area on the western side.
Visitors to the riverside park will pass under the bridge and from there gain access to
the main tower, where they can take an elevator running at an angled, 12 approach to
the top of the inclined tower. There, a glass-enclosed observation platform 145m over
the river will offer 360 views of the port city.
The six-lane bridge will be 731m long and 34.5m wide, with a main span of 230m.
Although designed primarily for vehicular traffic, it will also accommodate pedestrians
with two 3.5m-wide footpaths. Cantilevered construction is proposed for the main span;

w w w. b r i d g e w e b . c o m

all other spans will be cast using conventional scaffolding.

Construction of the US$100 million bridge is due to begin this year, with a 2011
targeted completion date. Although working to a tight timescale, WSP engineers have
been able to run multiple intensive analyses of the structure in every construction stage
as well as its built condition.
Features of the Bentleys RM Bridge software include linear and non-linear structural
analysis and construction engineering. WSP Finland chose the software for its accuracy
and dependability in stage-by-stage erection of concrete cable-stayed structures. It
helped engineers address a full spectrum of structural, material, performance, and
construction issues. The WSP team also used the specialised RM Bridge Addcon
application to optimise the stressing sequences of stay cables through linear and nonlinear analysis.
The team of 25 first created a space frame model for static analysis of the bridge
system and from there began a range of analyses to help optimise the structure. Design
loading and combinations were applied in accordance with AASHTO LRFD and
Vietnamese 22 TCN-272-01 bridge design specifications. Permanent loads, traffic
loads, wind loads, temperature changes and settlements were calculated, applied and
analysed. Tests and simulations helped the team plan for the effects of a host of possible
events, such as ship collisions or earthquakes: the bridge is required to withstand an
earthquake of magnitude six. RM Bridge was also used to determine and design for
creep and shrinkage over time.
WSP found the application of the softwares 4D modelling capabilities to be highly

specialist software

effective. This incorporates the time dimension in the construction engineering, allowing
engineers to model the entire cantilevered construction sequence. The stage-by-stage
analysis enabled the team to determine long-term effects on materials including creep
and shrinkage and cracking of the concrete.
This capability has categorically changed our philosophy of how we analyse bridges
for construction, says Niemel. In the past, we concentrated on calculating the final
stage the bridge in service and would then work backwards, segment by segment,
using rough calculations to estimate creep and shrinkage. You always question to some
degree whether the estimate is sufficient. RM Bridge has changed all that.
The team can now carry out accurate analysis stage by stage in a sequence
spanning from the beginning to completion. The software performs intensive
calculations that would be impossible to do by hand, he says. Using RM Bridge, I have
a high level of confidence in our design. The model can also be used in construction.
The software can perform calculations at each cross-section at any point in
construction, stating the moments and calculating the stresses, he adds. Material and
structural conditions can be analysed in real-time at any stage.
Designers used the optimisation tool in the design of stay cable tensioning. The main
span cables are in a single plane along the centre line of the bridge, while the back
cables, twisted into a wing-like arrangement, are anchored on both sides of the bridge
outside the deck, parallel to the river bank.
The cables penetrate the tower, giving the simplest force transfer from main span
cables to back span cables and to the tower. RM Bridge was used to design strength
limit states taking account of combined flexure and axial forces, shear and torsion
effects. Service limit states for maximum stress in the reinforcement were also
calculated and used for crack-width checks.
Bentley Systems says that its RM Bridge software enables users to develop and
analyse a consistent bridge model in a continuous cycle, which substantially reduces the
total engineering time required. The information is seamlessly reused, refined, and
reprocessed across the design, engineering, and construction phases, avoiding the need

Different stages of the construction can be modelled in RM Bridge.

for repeat input of information.
The software system has been designed as a comprehensive tool specifically for
bridges that can streamline analytical tasks. The software has been developed by bridge
engineers directly engaged on projects including the major long-span cable-stayed
crossings such as Stonecutters Bridge and Sutong Bridge.
RM Bridge is a family of integrated software applications developed to allow users
to solve engineering or construction problems in a single engineering environment.
Specialised applications offer analysis of cable sagging, wind dynamics, large
deflections, wind tunnel simulation, erection control, cantilevered construction,
incremental launching and rolling stock. A new tool soon to join the family is RM Bridge
Cast, for segment-by-segment casting and fitting of precast bridges

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Bd&e Issue 56 2009