Lehigh University
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Karl H. Frank
Consultant and Professor Emeritus of The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
The Role of Quality Control in Some Notable Bridge Problems
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Friday, April 12, 2019– 4:30 pm
Location: Whitaker Lab 303, Lehigh University,5 E. Packer Avenue, Bethlehem, PA
Karl Frank is the retired Chief Engineer with the Hirschfeld Industries which he joined after 43 years at the University of Texas at Austin. He is a Professor Emeritus of The University of Texas at Austin. Prior to joining the University he worked at FHWA Office of Research where he was involved in the development of the fracture control plan for steel bridges. He currently is a consultant to the National Steel Bridge Alliance. He has 50 years’ experience in the research and design of fabricated steel. He is an active member of AREMA, AWS, NSBA, and RCSC. He has authored many of the design provision for welded and bolted connections, plate grider strength, and fatigue of welded details used in the design of fabricated steel structures. He has a bachelor of civil engineering from the University of California at Davis, and a M.S. and PhD from Lehigh University. He is an emeritus member of the Steel Bridge and the Fabrication and Inspection Committees of the Transportation Research Board. He was awarded the Raymond C. Reese Research Prize and the James R. Croes Medal from ASCE and the Life Time Achievement Award from AISC.
The Role of Quality Control in Some Notable Bridge Problems. The role of quality control in the problems that occurred in 3 major bridges will be presented. Often quality control of bridge structures is solely concerned with the quality of the contractors building the bridge. Quality control in the design office is also critical should not be overlooked. In addition, the designer needs to heed the warnings in the specifications when specifying products. A note on the plans while clearly written is also no guarantee of quality if they are not enforced during fabrication. A tale of 3 bridges illustrating the importance of the control quality from design, material selection, and through to fabrication will be presented.
