Tennessee Bridge built with G/Flex

A sustainable solution for aging infrastructure

-  Mark Morrison

On the surface, the span looks like any of the thousands of small, narrow two-lane bridges across America. This new, high-tech bridge in Morgan County, Tennessee uses G/flex® Epoxy in a fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composite material deck embedded with fiber optic sensors. It replaced a damaged, decades-old concrete crossing which, like thousands of low-volume bridges across the nation, was structurally deficient and outdated.

According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, about 8 percent of the more than 617,000 crossings in the U.S. are structurally deficient and need repair. FRP composites offer a low-cost, low-maintenance option. The new structure in Tennessee demonstrates the benefits of composite materials for bridgework.

Due to the use of technologically advanced materials, including G/flex, the bridge deck system requires less installation time, conserves energy and construction costs, and has a 100-year lifespan.

"This composite bridge has already made a positive impact on Morgan County," said Highway Superintendent Joe Miller, who added that local officials were looking for a low-maintenance crossing that could be installed fast and at a lower cost than a traditionally built span. "We have numerous bridges within the county and hundreds across the state that are in need of repair and could benefit from this technology."