Buckland & Taylor Ltd.

The problem solvers┬áLife as a bridge engineer and designer is never dull. Peter Taylor, co-founder of Buckland & Taylor, talks to Gay Sutton about the challenges of solving modern bridge engineering problems. Bridge designers are achieving some tremendous feats of engineering, and the science of bridge design is growing fast. Take the Rion-Antirion Bridge in Greece, a structure over three kilometers in length that spans the narrowest section of the western end of the Gulf of Corinth, joining the Peloponnese with the Greek mainland.  Managed as a design-build-finance-operate project by Vinci of France, the design checking of the project was handled by Canadian bridge engineering specialist Buckland & Taylor Ltd.ÔÇ£It was a fascinating job that went on for about eight years,ÔÇØ explains co-founder Peter Taylor. ÔÇ£It was particularly challenging because the major seismic fault that lies between the Peloponnese and northern Greece runs right through the Gulf of Corinth and right through the bridge site. So we had to anticipate that any section of the bridge could move by as much as two meters in relation to any other bit of the bridge over a period of time.ÔÇØ The solution that the designers came up with was to build the bridge on piers that rest freely on a bed of gravel and were not buried in the seabed. The piers are then able to move laterally on the gravel bed, absorbing the energy of the quake. The bridge connection to the pylons is backed up with enormous dampers, like the shock absorbers on a car, only these dampers are 60 feet in length. ÔÇ£They catch the bridge and restrain it from the earthquake motion,ÔÇØ says Taylor. ÔÇ£The connections are rigid up to a certain point, but if the earthquake forces rise above that level, they collapse and have to be replaced.ÔÇØThe bridge was opened to the public in August 2004, and the companyÔÇÖs role on the project now is to review the bridge after an earthquake and determine what remedial work needs to be done, such as straightening out the piers. ÔÇ£An earthquake did in fact shake the bridge quite badly last year, and some of the connections have had to be replaced.ÔÇØThe company, which is now part of the Danish engineering company Cowi, focuses exclusively on bridge design and engineering; by contrast, most of its competitors cover a much broader market. ÔÇ£But that inevitably distracts them,ÔÇØ Taylor says. ÔÇ£Many of them are much larger than us, and from time to time their bridge engineers are pulled away to a power station or dock. That may be good for the bottom line, but itÔÇÖs not good for consistently acquiring more skill in a very complex science.ÔÇØ Since selling the company to Cowi in 1998, Taylor has remained heavily involved, working on bridge projects, mentoring young engineers and providing input on design and corporate issues. ÔÇ£People are often surprised that the original partners are still around 10 years after selling the company, and they say, ÔÇÿWhy donÔÇÖt you go on a cruise?ÔÇÖ Well, we have more fun here than we would on a cruise.ÔÇØ Fun is very much the lifeblood that flows through the companyÔÇÖs veins. Each project presents its problems and challenges, ÔÇ£and problem solving is fun,ÔÇØ Taylor continues. ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs like little boys with their Meccano sets. ThatÔÇÖs what we do.ÔÇØ The design and construction of North Arm Bridge in Vancouver, for example, was both interesting and challenging. The bridge had to be squeezed between a shipping channel, which required headroom, and the approach flight path to VancouverÔÇÖs airport, which limited the height of the towers. ÔÇ£So we had to sneak this baby between those two lines,ÔÇØ Taylor explains. The solution to the problem was to construct North AmericaÔÇÖs first extradosed bridge, which is essentially a hybrid between a girder bridge and a cable-stayed bridge, characterized by low stubby towers. Taking just over two years to build, the bridge was very cost-effective at just $45 million.The company is currently working on the superstructure design of the John James Audubon Bridge, a three-span cable-stayed bridge that crosses the Mississippi River just north of Baton Rouge. There were several particular problems on this $320 million project. ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs a difficult place to build a bridge, with the bottomless Mississippi sediments,ÔÇØ says Taylor. ÔÇ£The piles are very long and deep. And the bridge has also been designed to withstand enormous ship impact forces, from the many barge trains that move up and down the river.ÔÇØShip impacts were also an issue on the Golden Ears Bridge, another extradosed bridge, which crosses the Fraser River just east of Vancouver and is due to open in August this year. The biggest challenge on the project, however, was the combination of a very tight schedule with foundations that had to be built on mud, peat and soft material and had to be earthquake-proofed. ÔÇ£When an earthquake shakes loose sands, they liquefy and donÔÇÖt give any support to foundations. This is exactly what we found at Golden Ears; thatÔÇÖs when the difficulties started to compound.ÔÇØNot all projects are new builds, however. The company does a considerable amount of rehabilitation work on old girder and suspension bridges, many dating back to the 1930s and ÔÇÖ40s. ÔÇ£We replace the entire suspended structure with a new one that has a much more open deck, and we have to do it while keeping the daily traffic flowing,ÔÇØ Taylor says. ÔÇ£So we work at night, cut out a section, drop it down to the water and haul up a new piece, fit it all together and get it working by 6:00am. ItÔÇÖs very stimulating, because if anything goes wrong at 2:00am, you have to quickly adopt a strategy that will get the bridge open on time and safe for the public to use.ÔÇØTaylor can see huge opportunities on the horizon in Canada and the US, in South America and the Middle East, and possibly further afield in Asia. The company has recently been taking on three or four large projects at a time. ÔÇ£We need growth now,ÔÇØ he says, ÔÇ£so that we can better handle a number of simultaneous large design-build projects. After that we can look at whether we want to expand any further.ÔÇØTransitioning any company from medium to large is not an easy task, and this is part of the remit of Buckland & TaylorÔÇÖs new president, Steve Hunt, who joined the company at the end of April this year. With 26 yearsÔÇÖ experience in infrastructure in North America, he is very well equipped to lead the companyÔÇÖs expansion and broaden its horizons. ÔÇ£I think the future is interesting, but we have to stay focused. The danger is that as you get larger you become average. Managing the company to a larger size while remaining technically very sharp, a focused specialist and enthusiastic about what you doÔÇöitÔÇÖs an oxymoron, a contradiction. So that will be another challenge,ÔÇØ Taylor concludes. ÔÇô Editorial research by Sam Howard┬á