Abstract

The conceptual design of bridges is a critical task with the need to assess feasible schemes, not to hinder creative work, but to avoid appealing aesthetic concepts outside feasibility constraints. Ongoing bridge failures, often during the construction of innovative designs, underscore the need to re-emphasise safety and design fundamentals when pursuing aesthetic designs. The inability to provide timely reasonable cost estimates likewise leads to later embarrassing surprises. Public confidence in the bridge engineering profession suffers. This paper is not about the numerous aids to facilitate aesthetic concept development. It attempts to promote bridge conceptual design that is amenable to control. Well-reported historic failures, focusing on pioneering bridges and novel and elegant designs, are reviewed for retrospective insight and current relevance. The repeated findings of loss of control in the design and/or construction process suggest the benefit of forward risk assessment, value engineering and constructability analysis, at concept, for both structure soundness and cost estimation, especially for major signature structures. The necessity for critical independent review is accentuated. The conceptual and aesthetic design of evolving bridges demand excellent multidisciplinary engineering capability and foresight.

摘要

桥梁的概念设计是一项关键任务，需要评估可行的方案，不是为了阻碍创造性工作，而是为了避免在可行性限制之外吸引人的审美概念。不断发生的桥梁故障，通常是在创新设计的建造过程中，强调了在追求美学设计时重新强调安全和设计基础的必要性。无法及时提供合理的成本估算同样会导致后来令人尴尬的意外。公众对桥梁工程专业的信心受到影响。本文不是关于促进审美概念发展的众多辅助手段。它试图促进易于控制的桥梁概念设计。报道的历史性失败，专注于开创性的桥梁和新颖优雅的设计，审查回顾性洞察力和当前相关性。设计和/或施工过程中失控的反复发现表明，前瞻性风险评估、价值工程和可施工性分析在概念上对结构稳健性和成本估算都有好处，尤其是对于主要标志结构。批判性独立审查的必要性得到强调。不断发展的桥梁的概念和美学设计需要出色的多学科工程能力和远见。批判性独立审查的必要性得到强调。不断发展的桥梁的概念和美学设计需要出色的多学科工程能力和远见。批判性独立审查的必要性得到强调。不断发展的桥梁的概念和美学设计需要出色的多学科工程能力和远见。