FIBERGLASS BRIDGE AND BOARDWALK SYSTEMS

Presented by Dustin Troutman

214 Industrial Lane, Alum Bank, PA 15521 1

www.creativepultrusions.com  814.839.4186  Toll Free: 888.CPI.PULL  Fax: 814.839.4276
 WHY FIBERGLASS PEDESTRIAN BRIDGES?

• Limited Access - Light weight components can be carried to remote sites

• Ease of assembly at site – Typical installation takes 1 to 2 days with volunteer labor
• Sustainable structure – 50+ year design life
• Very low maintenance requirements
• Strength to Stiffness Ratio – 10x Typical wood and steel bridges exhibit 2x.
• Designed by Structural Engineers, to nationally recognized standards specific, to
your location and requirements
• Sealed calculations and drawings for your state

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MADE by the PULTRUSION PROCESS
1. Resin and glass fiber 2. The resin is initiated by the
reinforcements are combined thermal decomposition
and formed into the shape of process. The initiator is heated
the die on a continuous until a chemical bond
process. dissociation produces two
radicals. The chain continues
Rovings
to build until the monomer is
Guide Plate
Resin Impregnator used resulting in a cured resin.
Surfacing Veil

Forming &
Pulling
Curing Die
System*
Cut-Off Saw

Continuous
Strand Mat
Preformer

*Caterpillar Pullers (shown)

or Reciprocating Pullers

4. Pultruded profiles are cut to 3. The profiles are pulled

length during the continuous through a die.
manufacturing process.

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 MATERIAL PROPERTIES

Average Tensile Strength (psi)

70 000

60 000

50 000
TENSILE STRENGTH
40 000

30 000

20 000

10 000

0
Pultruded Profiles Steel Grade 50 Aluminum 6061- Treated Wood
T6 (Select)

• Superior Tensile Strength/Stronger than 50 ksi Steel

• Linear Stress/Strain Curve with Little to No Yield
• Superior Tensile Strength/Stronger 6061-T6 Aluminum

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MATERIAL PROPERTIES
50
45
40

ULTIMATE (KSI)
35
30
DENSITY 25
20
15
10
5
0
WHITE PINE ALUMINUM STEEL A-36 STAINLESS STEEL PULTRUSION PULTRUSION PULTRUSION
6061-T6 304 STANDARD CUSTOM ALL ROVING
STRUCTURAL CONSTRUCTION

MATERIAL
• 75% Lighter than Stainless Steel
• 25% Lighter than Aluminum

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SUPERIOR DURABILITY OVER A LONG SERVICE LIFE

• Estimated Service Life of 80+ years

• The theory is based on the Arrhenius principle used by Litherland
et al. in 1981 and Vijay and GangaRao in 1991. (Litherland et all,
have correlated their data with naturally weathered samples of about 10 years.)

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WALKER RANCH
SAN ANTONIO, TX
Span: (6) 75’-0” x 6’-0”

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ALBERTA, CANADA
Span: 60’-0” x 4’-0”

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BAILEYS BAY
BERMUDA
Total Span: 500’ (8 bridges)

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WOODSTOCK EQUESTRIAN PARK
DICKERSON, MD
Span: 20'-0" x 8'-0" / 40'-0" x 8'-0"

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MONTGOMERY PARK
MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD
Total Span: 80’-0” x 6’-0”

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POINT BONITA LIGHTHOUSE
SAN FRANCISCO, CA
Total Span: (1) 70’-0” x 4’-6”
(1) 35’-0” x 4’-6”

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WASHINGTON DEPT. OF
NATIONAL RESOURCES
Total Span: 85’-0” x 5’-6” x 54”

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GIBBONS CREEK
WASHOUGAL, WA
Span: 110’-0” x 6’-0”

(1) 70’ x 4’-6” (1) 35’ x 4’-6”

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HYATT ISLANDIA
SAN DIEGO, CA
Span: 65’-0” x 6’-0”

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TUALATIN WILDLIFE REFUGE
SHERWOOD, OR
Span: 80’-0” x 6’-0”

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DESIGN OPTIONS - ALLOWABLE STRESS DESIGN

Uniform Live Load: 85 psf

Vehicle Load: As required or AASHTO standard H-5 truck
Wind Load: 25 psf, over entire vertical surface of bridge
Seismic Load: Per standard building codes (IBC,ASCE, or UBC)
Allowable Stress Design Approach
– Tension 2.5
– Compression 2.5
– Shear 2.5
– Bending 2.5
– End Bearing 2.5
– Connections 3.0
Snow Load: ASCE 10 loading requirements- sustained snow load conditions shall be
evaluated for time dependent effects

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DESIGN OPTIONS - ALLOWABLE STRESS DESIGN

Materials: Characteristic design strengths per ASTM D7290

– Tension ASTM D638
– Compression ASTM D6641
– Shear (In-plane) ASTM D5379
– Shear (Interlaminar) ASTM D2344
– Young’s Modulus ASTM D6641 & D638 (Taken as the mean of the lessor of the
two)

Serviceability Criteria
– Deflection: Live Load (LL) deflection = L/240
– Vertical Frequency (fn): = 5.0 Hz
– Horizontal Frequency (fn): = 3.0 Hz
– Fundamental frequency, without live load, should be greater than 3.0 (Hz)

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DESIGN OPTIONS - ALLOWABLE STRESS DESIGN

Hardware: Bolted connections shall be A307 hot-dipped galvanized

Decking: Wood decking is No. 2 Southern Yellow Pine (SYP) treated according to
the American Wood Preservers Bureau or high strength fiberglass

Railings:
– Minimum of 42” above the floor deck for pedestrian and bicycle
– Minimum of 54” above the floor deck for equestrian use
– Safety rail spacing should not be greater than 4” ADA compliant

Finish: Green is recommended for park and trail bridge applications

Fabrication: Hole location and profile length tolerance of +,- 1/16”

– Profile dimensional requirements as set forth in ASTM D3917

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DESIGN OPTIONS - AASHTO
AASHTO Guide Specifications for Design of FRP
Pedestrian Bridges First Edition 2008 (AASHTO)
Uniform Live Load: 85 psf
Vehicle Load: Bridge width from 6 ft. to 10 ft.: 10,000 lb. (H-5 truck)
Bridge width over 10 ft.: 20,000 lb. (H-10 truck)
Wind Load: 35 psf, over entire vertical surface of bridge
Seismic Load: Per standard building codes (IBC,ASCE, or UBC)
Allowable Stress Design Approach: A factor of safety of (4) shall be used for
determining allowable stresses based on the ultimate strength of the FRP material
Snow Load: ASCE 10 loading requirements- sustained snow load conditions shall be
evaluated for time dependent effects

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ASTM D7290-06 WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?

Scope: Standard covers the procedures for computing characteristic values of

material properties of polymeric composite materials intended for use in civil
engineering structural applications.

The characteristic value is a statistically-based material property representing the

80% lower confidence bound on the 5th-percentile value of a specified population.

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BRIDGE END OPTIONS

Straight Ends – Standard Design

Sloped Ends – Ideal for ATV and

equestrian applications. Sloped end
can be structurally compromised
and the structure will remain stable.

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DECK OPTIONS

Heavy duty FRP deck – Ideal for wheel loads

and pedestrian traffic

Medium duty FRP deck – Ideal for pedestrian

bridges

Heavy duty SYP wood deck

3”x12” – Ideal for equestrian
and wheel loads

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FOUNDATION OPTIONS
Concrete – cast in place

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FOUNDATION OPTIONS
Helical pier, wood sills
SHIPPING METHODS
Fully assembled
Partially assembled
Prefabricated components
INSTALLATION METHODS
Fully assembled – Set in place over streambed
Partially assembled over streambed
Component assembly over streambed
COMPONENT ASSEMBLY OVER STREAMBED
COMPONENT ASSEMBLY OVER STREAMBED
X-brace assembly
Outrigger assembly
COMPONENT ASSEMBLY OVER STREAMBED
Top cord assembly
COMPONENT ASSEMBLY OVER STREAMBED
Splice plates
COMPONENT ASSEMBLY OVER STREAMBED
Safety rail assembly
COMPONENT ASSEMBLY OVER STREAMBED
Foundation connection
 E.T. TECHTONICS FIBERGLASS BRIDGES

FRP C-Channel Top Cap with FRP Square Tubing Diagonal

Clear Coat Finish for UV Protection Truss Supports
- Standard Feature
FRP Square Tubing
FRP Square Tubing (Vertical Truss Posts)
Outrigger Supports Standard 42” High
Handrail for Pedestrian
and Bicycle
FRP C-Channel
Cross-pieces (x2) Standard 54” High
Handrail for Equestrian
and Light Vehicle
Standard A307 Hot-Dipped
Galvanized Steel Hardware
Optional Upgrade: Stainless Steel Standard 3”x12” Pressure Treated #2 Southern Yellow
Pine Bridge Decking
Optional upgrade: FRP Superplank® GR205 decking
with perforated slots and anti-skid coating

Features:
• Straight-end Design with Optional Sloped-end Upgrade
• 42” or 54” High Handrail
• Standard Olive Green Color with Custom Colors Available
• Standard Stainless Steel Mounting Clips
FACILITIES OVERVIEW
Creative Pultrusions, Inc. was
established in 1973 and is located
in Alum Bank, Pennsylvania.

FACILITIES (SQ. FT) = 160,000

PRODUCTION MACHINES = 16

EMPLOYEES = 148 (August 2016)

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 QUESTIONS?

CELEBRATING OVER 43 YEARS OF PROVIDING PULTRUSION SOLUTIONS

www.creativepultrusions.com