Request a Bridge Quote

Have a historic metal truss (or girder) bridge you would like restored? Or are you interested in relocating, restoring, and reusing one of the many available historic metal truss bridges for your crossing? Bach Steel can help! We have created the below questionnaire to help begin the process. We have provided a series of boxes to fill out, and provided some information above a number of the boxes to give you an idea of the types of questions that typically get asked during the initial discussion of a project. Fill out as many of the boxes as you can, read through all the information, and then click the submit option at the bottom of this page to send the inquiry to us, and we will get back with you shortly to get the discussion started.

Note: This page is intended to serve as both a guide and a way for you to inquire about a bridge. If you already know what you want, or just want to get in touch with us as quickly as possible, please click here for contact information to simply email or call us.

Request A Bridge Quote

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Some Additional Questions To Consider

Before sending your inquiry, consider some of the common questions that will come up when discussing a potential bridge project. If you can add any information in regards to the below items, please consider including it. You can add it to the box above, or we have provided individual boxes below each issue where you can submit additional information to us if you wish. More information is always helpful, but if you do not know the answers to any of these issues, Bach Steel can help you with that too!

Tell Us About The Dimensions of the Crossing(s)

With bridges, size matters! If you are interested in relocating and restoring a metal truss bridge for reuse, it is helpful to have information about the needed dimensions of the destination crossing. Similarly, if you are looking to restore a particular metal bridge we would be interested in knowing the dimensions of the existing bridge. Some of the dimensions we are interested in include span length of the bridge, desired roadway width, whether you are looking at a single span crossing, or a multiple span bridge with piers. Or if you are not sure about any of these, let us know, Bach Steel can help in either case.

Bridge/Project Location

We work across the United States, so please include state, city, county, etc. Or send us a Google Maps link. If you are interested in restoring a particular metal bridge, we will want to know where it is located. If you are interested in relocating and restoring a metal truss bridge for reuse, we are interested in where you need the bridge to go. We can help you find an appropriate bridge for relocation and reuse, or if you already have a bridge in mind, give us the information on the bridge. Feel free to include a link to the bridge on www.bridgehunter.com and/or www.historicbridges.org if a bridge you are interested in is listed on those websites.

Project Timeline/Deadline

This information is particularly important if you are looking to relocate and reuse a historic metal bridge, because many of the bridges that are available for reuse have a "window of opportunity" or "availability period" since they are often being offered by governments as part of project to replace the historic bridge, and as a result will not be available until the project construction commences, and will be demolished if nobody has claimed the bridge in time. However, if you have an uncertain timeline, we can also accommodate you in a couple of ways. Some bridges that are available are abandoned bridges that are generally available for an indefinite period. Still more bridges may have been dismantled and placed into storage. Another alternative, if you have some advance funding available, is to hire Bach Steel to dismantle the bridge at a time that is within the availability period and have us place it into a storage location that you specify, where it can remain until you have raised the funding needed to fully restore and install the bridge.

Desired Load Limit

This question comes up because we want to be sure the bridge will perform its intended duty safely and effectively. Different types and vintages of historic metal bridges are better suited for different load limits. For example, if you need a bridge that after restoration will support large fire trucks, bridges built after 1920 tend to be easier to restore for this use. It may be possible to use older bridges for heavy loads, but this may require some supplemental strengthening of such bridges. Even for bridges intended for pedestrian use only, we will want to know if you have a required load rating, because some load ratings for pedestrian bridges are quite high and may require additional materials, such as deck stringers for example.

Additional Notes About Project:

If there are any additional notes about the project, please include them below. Some of the typical things that will be discussed during the project (and are valuable to note if you already have an idea about them) include the following.

Paint is worth thinking about. Options for paint range from direct-to-metal, to the three coat paint system typically used by Departments of Transportation. Wrought Iron truss bridges that are not exposed to winter deicing salts are actually resistant to deterioration (similar to CorTen weathering steel) and may perform fine without paint. Its also worth noting if a bridge has old paint on it which is likely lead-containing, which will add to the project cost. Bach Steel can provide suggestions to minimize the cost of removing lead paint on a bridge. Or perhaps you are looking at a bridge that is rusty and has no paint? Don't let rust scare you away, since in some cases this means there will be no lead abatement cost, and many of the bridges we work with are wrought iron and are resistant to rust-related deterioration like section loss and pack rust.

Bridge deck surface is a question that will need to be asked at some point. Historically, metal truss bridges dating before 1915 often had timber decks, while post-1915 bridges tended to have concrete decks. Metal grate deck is another potential option. If you already have a deck type in mind, let us know. If you are unsure, we can discuss the pros and cons of different types.

Attachment

Limited to 10mb in size. Accepted file types include PDFs, Photos, and Microsoft Office Documents. You can always email us more items later. However to start the conversation, consider sending us a photo of the bridge, project location, or even include an inspection or engineering report if applicable.


Acceptable file types: doc,docx,pdf,txt,gif,jpg,jpeg,png,xls,xlsx,ppt,pptx.
Maximum file size: 10mb.