Reused Materials Save Money on Oregon Bridge Construction

When the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) replaces bridges or busy highways, the agency often requires contractors to install a temporary detour bridge to keep traffic moving. Reusing concrete box beams on these temporary structures has resulted in big savings for Oregon taxpayers, according to a news release from the Oregon Bridge Delivery Partners.

When CH2M HILL Constructors completed new bridges on the Coast Fork Willamette River, the 88 prestressed concrete box beams that made up the detour bridge were no longer needed. Along with its subcontractors, CH2M HILL designed three other detour structures so they could reuse the beams, using 48 beams on the Getting Creek Bridge detour, 24 on the Roberts Creek Bridge detour and eight on the Tunnel Mill Race Bridge detour. Eight beams are still available for other projects.

Because each beam is worth approximately $6,300, reusing 80 of them reduced the cost of the contractor’s bid by $500,000, which ultimately saved money for the bridge program and taxpayers.

“We are always on the lookout for ways to design a project so that we can get more than one use out of a temporary structure,” says John Dudasch, regional operations manager for CH2M HILL. “Recycling is a good ultimate destination for things that no longer serve a purpose, but reusing construction materials is even more cost-effective and environmentally friendly.”