Vital design for a bridge over troubled waters

PUNE, NOV 15: In a landmark project aimed at equipping the nation to deal with disaster situations efficiently, the Research and Developmen...

PUNE, NOV 15: In a landmark project aimed at equipping the nation to deal with disaster situations efficiently, the Research and Development Establishment (Engineers), Dighi has designed and developed a multi-span military bridge Sarvatra’.

The concurrent engineering pilot project which was mooted for the first time in association with nine prominent industry partners will be launched by A P J Abdul Kalam, scientific advisor to the union defence minister at the three day international seminar on Emergency bridges’ slated to be held at the establishment premises from November 21.Speaking to mediapersons here yesterday, M R Joshi, director of R&DE (Engrs) said the system was ideal for use during battles as well as during disasters like earthquakes or floods.

P K Venkatesan, who was closely associated with the project, said that the Rs 23 crore project, which was initiated in the middle of 1993 with indigenous computerised technology, has now been completed with at least six fully-functional vehicles. The first such vehicle will be flagged off by Kalam following which the vehicles will be ready for user trials, he explained.The system has two versions – in 15 metres and 20 metres.

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According to Joshi, the multi-span bridging system could also range between 75 metres to 100 metres which would require at least three hours for installation. Each span which ranges between 15 metres to 20 metres required 20 minutes for installation. The minimum height of the bridge is two metres and could exceed six metres. Following the launch, the vehicles will be ready for user trials, Joshi explained. Walchandnagar Industries, BHEL, Dantal Hydraulics, Tata Electric Companies, Oscar Equipments, Binny Engineering Ltd, Oilgear Towler Polyhydron Ltd, L&T, McNeil and Badawe Engineers are the industry partners associated with this project, Joshi said. What makes this project unique is the effective integration of the skills of every industry thus realising the concept of concurrent engineering, he added.

Bridging an info-gap

In the first revolutionary project of its kind, detailed information on all the five lakh rail and road bridges in the country will soon be accessible at a flick of a button. The Indian Institution of Bridge Engineers (IIBE), Mumbai, a premier professional institution in the field of bridge engineering nationally and internationally, has plans to set up a national database on various bridges in the country.

Revealing the plans, M C Bhide, honorary secretary and director general of IIBE, said that currently information on bridges was scattered. Should the information be stored in a proper database, the authorities could detect defects and rush to the respective bridges in case of emergencies in order to prevent any possible disaster, he explained.

The Public Works Department, Maharashtra, has already begun to compile all available information on the rail and road bridges in the state, he said.