Mattern & Craig provided fracture critical bridge inspection services for 19 bridge structures located within National Forests in Virginia, Georgia and Alabama.  Services consisted of the field safety inspections and report preparation for all structures in accordance with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) requirements.  Field inspections included ladder and rope/climbing access to perform “hands-on” inspection of fracture critical members.  Reports included photographs and sketches of critical areas as well as Mattern & Craig’s prioritized recommendations for repair at each bridge.  Project also involved coordination with the USFS Ranger Offices in all three states and preparation of a project-specific field safety plan called a Job Hazard Analysis (JHA).

The current National Bridge Inspection Standards (NBIS) definition for a fracture critical member (FCM) is “a steel member in tension, or with a tension element, whose failure would probably cause a portion of or the entire bridge to collapse.”

We are proud to have been selected for this work and look forward to a long term relationship with the National Forest Service throughout the Southern Region.