Case Studies

Aghnananagh Bridge Refurbishment

TEAM

Civil & Structural team

Sector

Related Services

PSDP, Health & Safety Management

People To Contact

Overview of service

Offaly County Council appointed ORS in March 2021 to provide Civil & Structural, PSDP and Employers Representative services for the required refurbishment of Aghnananagh Bridge at Rahan in Co. Offaly.

The original bridge span was approximately 6m across the Silver River in Rahan, located approximately 8km northwest of Tullamore.  

The bridge was in a poor state of repair with corrosion to the secondary riveted pressed steel troughing and primary steel beams, which formed the bridge’s main deck, to an extent which merited significant refurbishment works. In addition, abutments were cracked below the beam bearings. 

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Farran Mullingar
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ORS prepared a Structural Options Report to consider suitable, feasible alternatives ranging from partial to complete replacement of the entire structure with various forms of construction in concrete and steel.

The solution agreed upon was a partial replacement of abutments and replacement of the deck with a precast beam and screed solution with a steel parapet to maximise visibility. This solution provided a robust bridge construction with inherent durability, partial re-use of abutments, and using a precast deck would negate the need for scaffolding or formwork to be erected over the Silver River, thus mitigating construction health and safety risks. 

Construction was completed in January 2022 with road surfacing works carried out on approach and across the concrete deck and with the installation of steel road safety barriers and steel parapets across the bridge before the road was reopened to traffic.  

Group 4987

Castleforbes 3
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Project challenges

Sustainability

To limit the impact of construction in the river channel, retain as much of the existing structure as possible and adopt a sustainable approach to the design, the design included the re-use of part of the existing abutments and concrete scour protection measures as

permanent formwork for footings to new concrete abutments. Similarly, material from the part of the original stone abutments was available and re-used as low-grade backfill below the approaches to the bridge. 

Leads

Key Contacts

  • David Mc Cormack Director
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    David McCormack

    Director

  • Mark Heslin Civil Structural Lead
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    Mark Heslin

    Associate and Civil & Structural Engineering Lead

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