University of Bradford

Bersche - Rolt have a joint research and development agreement with the department of civil engineering at the University of Bradford.

In 1994 tests on brick arches were carried out by the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, at the University of Bradford. These showed that by reinforcing the soffit or intrados of the arch with steel strips the strength and in service performance of the arch could be significantly increased.

Further research at the University of Bradford has been carried out to investigate different arrangements of reinforcement and installation techniques to aid design and construction.

The research has shown that retro-reinforcement installed in the direction of arch span (i.e. longitudinally), can increase the in-service performance of the arch and its strength by up to 50% depending on the depth of fill, the geometry of the arch, the condition of the masonry and the amount of reinforcement. The provision of transverse reinforcement can also improve the load distribution characteristics and the robustness of the bridge.

Bersche – Rolt is funding an ongoing programme of research at the University of Bradford to:-

• Identify the behaviour of the arch structure and how it interacts with the fill material before and after it has been reinforced
  
  
• Identify the optimum arrangement of reinforcement and develop the equipment and techniques for the installation of the reinforcement
  
  
• To minimise the environmental impact and to ensure that the highest possible standards of safety are achieved at all times

The research is carried out in an open manner with regular discussions with bridge owners.
The information gained from the research is made available to practising bridge engineers through seminars and papers published in learned society journals and patents apply to protect relevant inventions.

We believe that this ongoing programme of testing is unique as it involves the construction of numerous arches and this enables the test engineer to understand and predict how a masonry arch will behave depending on the form of construction and type of loading.

Masonry Panel Tests

Another testing programme deals with the preformance of reinforced brick panels and there again this is a large scale continueing test programme which is intended to provide information on the preformance of a wide range of bricks and masonry constructed using lime and various strengths of sand cement mortars.

Physical testing provides practical information about the behaviour of the steel and masonry when subjected to loads and the bond characteristics and strengths of these materials

In 2004 a specific test was designed by engineers at the University of Bradford to check the Bersche-Rolt lintel complied with a design and performance requirement of the British Standard 5628 : Part 2

The test information concluded that the Bersche-Rolt reinforcement did comply and the report was published in 2004

Masonry reinforcement has been used for many years to stitch cracks in bridges, tunnels and other buildings, but only in the last ten years has it been used on a large scale to form masonry beams as an alternative to underpinning.

Bersche-Rolt have been at the forefront of the development of masonry reinforcement and it is essential that our clients are provided with as much information as possible.

Presentations and seminars

As well as the work at The University of Bradford the Bersche-Rolt technical manager gives in house talks at our Birmingham offices or on clients premeses. These sessions include a slide show and can be tailored to suit the subject that most interests each audience.

Computer Modelling

The information provided by the testing programmes is used to produce computer programmes that model the behaviour of the arch. By running the physical and theoretical development programmes together it's possible to check and authenticate the information resulting from the modelling programme.