Airedale Swing Bridge in Rodley, United Kingdom

Model Data

• Length: ~ 16.0 m (~ 53 ft)
• Width: ~ 10.0 m (~ 33 ft)
• Height: ~ 4.5 m (~ 15 ft)
• Number of Nodes: 460
• Number of Members: 443
• Number of Surfaces: 99

Model

3D Model

• 3D Viewer | Google
• 3D Viewer | Babylon
• Virtual Reality

Model | Airedale Swing Bridge in Rodley, United Kingdom | Closed state

Based on the BIM model, Matrix Consulting Engineers Ltd, a British Dlubal customer, created a 3D finite element model in RFEM. Using RFEM, the engineers designed the steel structure of the swing bridge and the reinforced concrete structure of the abutments.

Structure and Design

The total length of the steel bridge is about 15 m (49 ft) and the width is about 5 m (16 ft). Pylons made of rectangular tubes with guyed tension members consisting of round steel sections are arranged on each of the bridge's longitudinal girders in order to keep the vertical deformations low. S355 and S275 steel cross-sections (tension members) are used. The bridge can be rotated 90° using a manually operated rotating mechanism. When the bridge is open, the passage width for ships is about 5.5 m (18 ft).

In RFEM, the Matrix engineers analyzed the states for "bridge closed" and "bridge open". In the closed state, various load positions for vehicles and ship impacts have been set as actions.

In the following videos, you can see the mechanism of the bridge, both as an animation and in reality.

• Animation with RFEM Deformation Graphic and BIM Model
• Mechanism of Swing Bridge

Project Location