Bridge abutments

Bridges are an essential element of any country’s transportation network, and to keep it healthy, the ability to built and repair bridges quickly is vital. Steel sheet piles offer an accelerated bridge construction method that minimizes the impact to the network.

Bridges are built to span physical obstacles to provide a passage over such obstacle. Designs of bridges vary greatly depending on the function of the bridge and the nature of the terrain where the bridge is constructed and anchored.

Bridge abutments have two primary functions

• support the vertical loads of the bridge: the abutments must be able to withstand significant vertical forces from the bridge superstructure,
• act as a retaining wall for the soil that supports the access way to the bridge.

Hot rolled steel sheet piles have several advantages when used in the design and construction of bridge abutments

• faster execution time than any other alternative,
• steel sheet piles can be installed in advance of other works,
• no previous excavation for foundations is required,
• steel sheet piles have immediate load-bearing capacity,
• steel sheet piles can be easily made aesthetically pleasing.

Abutments formed from sheet piles are most cost-effective in situations when a piled foundation is required to support the bridge or where speed of construction is critical.

In some cases, a steel sheet pile wall would be needed as a temporary structure, for instance to keep the excavation dry. A sheet pile wall can be designed to fulfill both temporary and permanent design criteria, reducing the overall cost and execution time.