MCEER And Calspan Partner For Full-Scale Bridge Test

Buffalo, N.Y. -- Listen up America -- Buffalo's snow and its four-season climate are beautiful!

That's the message that researchers at MCEER, the University at Buffalo's Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research, and Calspan, Western New York's global leader in independent aviation and transportation testing, have for the rest of the nation.

The two internationally renowned organizations plan to capitalize on the region's much-maligned climate through a unique partnership and testing program that will subject two full-scale bridges and their advanced protective technologies to a full range of naturally occurring environmental and climatic conditions, as well as earthquake vibrations.

The purpose of the partnership and the studies are to combine the talents of both organizations to meet effectively the nation's growing needs for the intelligent renewal and improved resilience of its infrastructure, in this case, bridges, from natural-occurring phenomena and extreme events. In a 2009 Report Card for America's Infrastructure, the American Society of Civil Engineers assigned an overall grade of "D" to our nation's infrastructure. The report also noted that "more than 26 percent, or one in four, of the nation's bridges is either structurally deficient or functionally obsolete."

The MCEER-Calspan partnership will leverage the infrastructure-research skills of MCEER, a national center of excellence dedicated to improving the disaster resilience of engineered structures, with the testing expertise of Calspan Corporation, internationally recognized for its rich heritage of innovation and proven excellence in technology and science.

"This partnership puts each of our organizations into exciting new worlds," said Andre Filiatrault, Ph.D., MCEER director and professor of civil, structural and environmental engineering at UB. "There is a tremendous synergy in the ability of Calspan to apply its testing expertise to develop full-scale experimental capabilities that enable MCEER to test large infrastructure components, such as roads and bridges, under multiple hazards including earthquakes and other extreme events."

Filiatrault also noted that Calspan's Ashford facility near Springville, N.Y., provides ample acreage to conduct such full-scale tests, as well as a wide array of naturally occurring weather conditions to expose infrastructure test specimens to the natural elements.

"Structural engineers traditionally have sought solutions to infrastructure problems in the confines of a laboratory," he added. "Calspan's Ashford Facility provides an opportunity to test new technologies and infrastructure remedies in the great outdoors, where they will have to perform over time and in varying climatic and other conditions."

Thomas Pleban, executive vice president of Calspan, said that the new relationship not only has the potential to enhance Calspan's current test capabilities, but will also benefit Western New York as a whole, by making it the world's premier destination for full-scale infrastructure testing.

"Calspan is enthused about this new partnership, because it gives us the opportunity to work with world-renowned MCEER, and provides Calspan the opportunity to enlist UB for synergistic engineering assistance as Calspan broadens its business base, both in the U.S. and internationally," said Pleban.

Filiatrault said that the aging infrastructure in the U.S. is reaching a critical point.

"As infrastructure approaches the end of its lifespan, it becomes increasingly susceptible to tremendous damage, especially during extreme events," he said. "Our nation needs to renew its infrastructure, but how shall we go about it? Do we simply replace the old with the new, or do we rebuild it more intelligently so that it is designed and built to withstand multiple hazards throughout its lifetime? The MCEER-Calspan partnership will focus on finding ways to protect our growing population and way of life by renewing and preserving our infrastructure through the development and validation of the most innovative and cost-effective methods available."

The initial focus of the partnership is the development of a full-scale bridge test at Calspan's 700-acre Ashford facility. The Ashford facility, about 35 miles south of Buffalo, will enable MCEER researchers to subject two adjacent single lane bridges equipped with state-of-the-art seismic isolation technologies, to harsh, real-world conditions -- and earthquake vibrations.