Show Me the Money
Workers use cranes to place large and heavy steel girders.Copyright Utah Department of Transportation http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/f?p=100:pg:12032271040102713944::::V,T:,570
Students learn about the major factors that comprise the design and construction cost of a modern bridge. Before a bridge design is completed, engineers provide overall cost estimates for construction of the bridge. Students learn about the components that go into estimating the total cost, including expenses for site investigation, design, materials, equipment, labor and construction oversight, as well as the tradeoff between a design and its cost.
When designing large and important structures such as bridges, engineers conduct research before they even think about possible designs. To create safe and long-lasting bridges requires great attention to detail; from environmental and geology site investigations, to the requirements analysis, to the design and materials, to the total costs and timeline. The many preliminary studies to gather data are followed by a cost analysis. Engineers strive to be efficient in terms of time and money spent; their objective is to devise the safest, most suitable, and most aesthetically-pleasing design, within a specified budget.
After this lesson, students should be able to:
- List several factors that influence bridge cost.
- Describe the importance for engineers of balancing bridge cost with bridge design.