May 31 2007
Material Technologies met with representatives of the Montana Department of Transportation to discuss the technical, economic, and safety advantages of its revolutionary Electrochemical Fatigue Sensor(TM)(EFS). Like many State DOTs, the Montana DOT manages many thousands of bridges.
The failure of the Hoan Bridge in Wisconsin is the most recent, high-profile bridge failure. The failure of the Hoan Bridge created devastating impacts on the local economy and was ultimately found to have resulted from an unidentified fatigue crack. Interestingly, the bridge had been inspected within weeks of its collapse. Like several other states, Montana has over 200 bridges with multiple occurrences of the problematic Hoan Bridge detail. In working with representatives of the Montana DOT, it was determined that the EFS System is the right tool to determine if the Montana DOT has similar undetected problems
"The failure of the Hoan Bridge was a very unfortunate set of events. The most saddening fact is that it could have been avoided had the bridge owner had the right inspection tools," said MATECH CEO Robert M. Bernstein. "Our EFS technology is the only technology that can immediately verify the effectiveness of repairs. The ability to growing cracks as small as 0.01 in. is clearly of great use to bridge owners."
MATECH's proprietary EFS inspection system can satisfy new bridge inspection needs set forth by the $286 billion U.S. Transportation Bill, known as SAFETEA-LU, signed into law in late 2005. The legislation requires, among others, that the Federal Highway Administration investigate and recommend technologies for the assessment of fatigue cracks in steel bridges.