R.A. Smith National – a multi-disciplined civil engineering and surveying firm – Brookfield, Wis., has received an Outstanding Highway Construction Award from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, and a Top Projects of 2011 award from “The Daily Reporter,” for the Highland Road Bridge project over I-43 in the city of Mequon, Wis. R.A. Smith National provided construction management and inspection services for the project.

The Highland Road bridge is a six-span structure that spans four lanes of divided interstate and a mainline track of the Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR). The project included the replacement of the existing deck supported on concrete girders; the addition of decorative railing on top of a fieldstone-look, stained parapet wall; and the construction of outside bicycle lanes to serve the many bicyclists in the region.

The project was completed under a compressed schedule to meet the needs and requirements of Concordia University and the Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR). The UPRRs requirements included a four-week review and approval period for the deck removal system and associated demolition work above a mainline track. At the City of Mequon’s request, the project was completed one year prior to the inaugural season of a new Northwoods League baseball team based at Concordia University. The Highland Road Bridge project was successfully constructed in a two-month timeframe, June to August 2011, avoiding the closure of Highland Road when Concordia University was in session.

The Highland Road project is one of 30 projects that will be recognized at “The Daily Reporter” Top Projects awards dinner on May 3 at The Garage at the Harley-Davidson Museum, Milwaukee, Wis.

Historic and offering simple elegance within a beautiful setting, a bridge with its design history lost is finding renewal through 3D laser scanning.

Privately owned, the historic bridge spans time as well as a portion of the Wisconsin River. The bridge services as the only access onto Belle Island in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. The existing structure was made up of two, 75-foot spans, and included decorative railing and lighting. No record drawings of the existing bridge could be found.

R.A. Smith National laser scanned the entire bridge, including the abutment walls on both ends, and created a full-color, registered point cloud deliverable that was used by Olson & Nesvold Engineers in the replacement bridge design process. This enabled the design team to very accurately obtain vital dimensional information on the existing structure, as certain structural components and the overall aesthetics of the original bridge needed to be incorporated in the replacement design.

Additional challenges included steep, heavily vegetated slopes which made obtaining sufficient setup locations very difficult.

A topographical survey was also performed for a 75-foot area around each end of the bridge.