Category: Structural Design

Navigating the Structural Challenges of Mid-rise Wood Construction

Embarking on the construction journey of multi-family wood structures opens doors to sustainable, cost-effective, and efficient possibilities. However, achieving success in this realm requires a thorough understanding of structural integrity and compliance with specific regulations and building codes. While the International Building Code (IBC) governs construction in the US, each state/locality may have additional amendments… Read More »

What Is Bridge Scour? Why Should You Care?

The most common cause of bridge failures is from floods scouring bed material surrounding bridge foundations. What is scour? Simply put, scour is the engineering term for the erosion of soil surrounding a bridge foundation (piers and abutments). Bridge scour occurs when fast-moving water around a bridge removes sediment from… Read More »

How Much Weight is Too Much for a Bridge? Engineers’ Ratings Have the Answer

In mid-May of 2018 a driver crossing a bridge in the Town of Lafayette in Chippewa County, Wisconsin, noticed something was wrong with the bridge. Town officials quickly saw the problem – the bridge had a major crack in the deck, and a pier pile holding up the bridge had buckled, causing the bridge to… Read More »