Delaware’s Indian River Inlet Bridge
Unexpected Foundation Behavior
The current Indian River Inlet Bridge on SR 1 provides a critical link on the Eastern seaboard between Bethany Beach and Dewey Beach, Sussex County, Delaware. The project site is located in the middle of the Delaware Seashore State Park. Due to severe scouring conditions experienced in the inlet adjacent to the bridge foundations, the bridge is scheduled for replacement with a new structure that will have a main span of approximately 1,000 ft./305 m. This longer main span will allow the bridge to cross the inlet without any piers in the water and provides for the future potential widening of the inlet. The bridge currently carries 16,000 to 18,000 vehicles daily.
The approach embankments and associated MSE walls (max. 40 ft./12 m. high) were constructed during spring 2006 through early 2007. Prior to construction, closely spaced 80-ft./24-m. long prefabricated vertical drains (PVDs) were installed beneath the embankment/ MSE wall footprint areas, to accelerate consolidation and strength gain of soft clay foundations soils (max. 50 ft./15 m. thick) as the approach embankments and walls were being constructed. The rate of consolidation of the soft clay foundation soil, however, was slower and the settlement projected to be greater than had been anticipated.

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From the Lab
Towards A Paperless Laboratory
Inside this Issue:

Delaware's Indian River Inlet Bridge

  • Unexpected Foundation Behavior
1
From the Lab
  • Toward a Paperless Laboratory
1
Korean Rural Research Institute
  • On the Search for Advanced Lab Systems
2
FMGM 2007
  • 7th International Symposium on Field Measurements in Geomechanics
3
Geotechnical laboratories have traditionally tracked laboratory samples with hand-written labeling systems, and recorded test data in hand-written records. These records were then used to produce hand-written reports or were manually entered into several different data-reporting programs. This approach consumed a lot of man-hours and presented many opportunities for errors. GeoTesting Express has developed and implemented a new process for sample tracking, data management and test reporting to improve our laboratory's performance. Central to this improvement is a new Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS). This system provides automated sample tracking and status updates, and eliminates the need to hand-write data and to manually enter data for report production.

This is made possible by extensive use of bar codes throughout the testing process.

GTX designed LIMS with the following
features:

  • requires one-time entry of project, sample and test information
  • uses electronic links to record data
  • displays reduced test results as soon as data become available
  • produces test reports with a consistent look in printed and electronic form

  • minimizes paper records for laboratory work

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December 2007