Originally Published in FIU Magazine Spring 2017
Building better bridges An FIU professor is leading the nation’s efforts to make infrastructure safer By Alexandra Pecharich | Photo by Doug Garland ’10
Building better bridges An FIU professor is leading the nation’s efforts to make infrastructure safer By Alexandra Pecharich | Photo by Doug Garland ’10
F
IU has designated five university
to his credit, the chair of the Department of
program in 2006. Azizinamini was the
programs as “preeminent,” a recognition
Civil and Environmental Engineering boasts
principal investigator leading an initiative
of high-caliber, collaborative work that
a long history of impacting his field, first by
that resulted in his developing the definitive
generates unique learning opportunities,
working in industry and then spending two
government guide for enhancing the service
pioneering research and meaningful
highly productive decades at the University of
life of bridges through design, construction
engagement with the external community
Nebraska, Lincoln, before landing at FIU
and maintenance.
while expanding the university’s financial
in 2011.
base. This is the first in a series of articles that explores these programs in greater depth.
Nebraska’s state bridge engineer Mark
His expertise: building bridges fast.
Traynowicz praises the past work between his
“The best way I can describe him is
professional staff and Azizinamini as key to
as an innovator,” says Monica Starnes, a
“[elevating] Nebraska as one of the leaders in
When Atorod Azizinamini stood in the White
senior program officer at the Transportation
bridge design and bridge engineering in the
House in 2015 to be honored as a “Champion
Research Board of the National Academies
country. With his help, through research, he
of Change,” he formally accepted a title that
of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. She
put us on the map.”
many agree has described him for years.
worked with Azizinamini when Congress
With four patents and more than 200 articles
established a $232 million highway research
Azizinamini shows no sign of slowing down in his drive to make impactful changes that
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benefit society — nor can the nation afford to
Then in 2013, the U.S. Department of
mobility and work zone fatalities (resulting
Transportation put out a call to universities in
from more than 67,500 related crashes in
More than 25 percent of the country’s
a move to build increased collaboration with
2013 alone), not to mention financial losses to
600,000-plus bridges are older than the
the Federal Highway Administration and the
local businesses and commuter frustration.
50 years for which they were optimally
American Association of State Highway and
designed. Data from the 2016 National
Transportation Officials.
let him.
Bridge Inventory indicates that nearly
“We heard that the secretary of
56,000 bridges are “structurally deficient”
transportation wanted new ideas, new
— deemed safe for travel but in need of
innovations, something that can solve the
renovation or replacement — and another
problems and the challenges we have with
74,000-plus are “functionally obsolete”
the transportation system,” Azizinamini
— inadequate for current traffic demands
says. He prepared a winning $4.5 million
or unable to accommodate oversized or
proposal (and earned the federal designation
emergency vehicles.
“University Transportation Center”) around “accelerated bridge construction.” ABC, as
Full speed ahead
it’s known, uses cutting-edge techniques
“If you didn’t have alternative technology, that would be something,” he says, “but we have the solutions.”
New ways of doing business Those solutions include alternatives to what has been, until recently, standard construction practice. Instead of closing down a major artery for months at a time to demolish an existing bridge and erect a new one in its place, state departments of
Azizinamini arrived at FIU with the goal
that minimize onsite construction to produce
transportation are increasingly looking at
of establishing a federally funded center to
environmentally friendly bridges that are safer
ABC. Options include constructing an entire
make aging infrastructure safer. The university
and longer lasting than those built under
bridge off-site and transporting it whole to its
quickly provided $50,000 in seed money to
traditional methods.
designated location for installation; building
jumpstart the effort. Fellow faculty, industry
Azizinamini understands well the negative
a bridge alongside an existing one and then,
professionals and a growing number of
impacts associated with traditional bridge
following demolition of the older structure,
graduate students signed on.
construction: traffic delays, decreased
sliding in the new one; and a modular Continues
Continued
Dr. Azizinamini has done,” Traynowicz says, “is really put together a team of experts. He reached out to people across the country that are the best at what they do. I’m always impressed by that,” he says, referencing those who contribute as presenters as well as the professional staff who help run the center. “It’s just the way that he can get people together. You don’t have to be the one smartest person in the world or have all the answers, but when you can bring people together like that, you can get all the answers.” Azizinamini also gathers together federal highway administrators, state engineers, contractors, representatives of fabricating companies and academics in his role as
The folded plate steel girder system
chair of the Accelerated Bridge Construction approach that combines factory fabrication
says of research that doesn’t leave the halls
Conference, which is cosponsored by no
with minimal construction on site.
of academia. “I think why things worked so
fewer than 30 state DOTs and several federal
well [in Nebraska] is because the university
agencies. The next conference takes place
and even drives, the use of ABC nationwide
came up with these great, new, innovative
in December and will host more than 600
as well as addresses myriad issues related
ideas and we were able to implement them
attendees who participate in workshops,
to contemporary bridge making in general.
on real projects.”
listen to technical presentations and visit
The research coming out of FIU supports,
Re-funded in 2016 (with $7.5 million over
In addition to working with the state of
five years), the center continues to serve
Nebraska on several bridges, Azizinamini
as the lead institution of a consortium that
actively shared with officials and engineers the
includes four other universities (Iowa State
knowledge he and colleagues had gathered.
University, the University of Nevada-Reno,
“He went so far as to train us in what’s
more than 50 exhibitors in downtown Miami.
A profitable patent His long experience has given Azizinamini unique insight into areas of need within the
the University of Oklahoma and the University
going on in research not only at the university
field. Work he began at the University of
of Washington), each of which Azizinamini
but across the country,” Traynowicz says.
Nebraska has led to his own inventions.
invited to participate based on a particular
“We knew what we were doing, but he had
area of strength.
the latest advances and some of the most
officials gravitated almost exclusively to
current techniques.”
the use of concrete for spans of 100 feet or
At FIU, researchers are working on dozens of projects, among them studies to develop
Today Azizinamini uses a bigger bullhorn
Noting that for decades state transportation
less — a size range into which the majority
prefabricated concrete bridge railings; to
to reach a larger audience. He hosts monthly
of bridges fall — he started looking for a
establish best practices and guidelines for
webinars that attract as many as 4,000
potential alternative. “That gave me a little
demolition; to evaluate the feasibility of using
participants at a time, including folks in both
bit of a challenge,” says Azizinamini. “The
sensor technology to monitor corrosion;
the public and private sectors. In many cases,
motivation was to come up with something
and to develop a sensing system to monitor
whole departments huddle together to hear
that costs less to society, is more efficient,
soil erosion around abutments and piers
state engineers and project managers share
more economical, lasts longer.”
subjected to storm surge and sea level rise.
their experiences on specific projects. (The
From research to practice From his years of working with Azizinamini
By 2009 he had something — a folded
titles of recent presentations include, among
plate steel girder system — that industry
others, “West Virginia’s Basnettville Bridge
publications have predicted will revolutionize
Lateral Slide,” “Ontario’s Rapid Installation
the short-span bridge market.
in Nebraska, state bridge engineer Traynowicz
of Single-Span Bridges” and “PennDOT
The genius lies in bending a single steel
understands the value of getting such research
Replacement of Route 581 Bridge during
plate into a trapezoid-shaped girder (several
out to those who can best run with it.
Weekend.”) For those listening in, the chance
girders comprise the support on which a
to ask technical questions of the presenters,
deck, or the driving surface, rests), thereby
whether live or after the fact, is priceless.
eliminating the conventional use of multiple
“You can come up with these great ideas, but if you can’t get them built in the real world, they don’t really go anywhere,” he
“One of the biggest things that
plates that have to be joined by welding
(the welded seam being a potential source of
step of changing programs midstream,
bridge weakness). The system uses less steel
she scoured academic journals and trade
than do traditional steel girders, making it less
publications for inspiration. One name cropped
expensive, and the innovative open-bottom
up more often than others: Atorod Azizinamini.
construction allows for easy maintenance
She sent him her research papers and made a
inspections, another cost savings. The girders
visit to Miami. The strength of her commitment
are fabricated in a plant and delivered to
and the quality of her work earned her a spot
the bridge site, where they are conjoined in
on his team, and she has been getting her
preparation for the pouring of a concrete deck
hands dirty ever since. (She studies deck
or the laying of precast concrete panels.
and slab connections.) Jahromi revels in the
CDR Maguire, a Miami-based engineering
comprehensive nature of her education under
firm owned and run by FIU alumnus Carlos
Azizinamini, who has an unparalleled grasp
Duart ’94, MS ’99, markets and distributes the
of how industry works. Upon graduation, she
steel plate girder system.
hopes to find a job with a private firm.
“The contractors absolutely love it,” says
“Some people think that civil engineering is
Duart, whose company will have overseen
only working with software and PCs, that they
production of 10 bridges using the system by
cannot go into the field, they cannot go [talk]
the end of 2017. “What they love about our
to the project manager,” she says, thrilled that
bridges is that in three hours they have the
her mentor believes otherwise. “He teaches
segments already in place.”
us how we can work as a civil engineer in the
The unique design is key. “What Dr. Azizinamini has been able to do
field, in industry.” And critical to making that leap: access to
is basically standardize bridge design, which
Azizinamini’s cutting-edge structural lab, where
of course reduces the cost,” Duart explains.
Jahromi and her fellow students can take
“It’s 99 percent pretty much standard, which
experimental concepts from the drawing board
is what’s really ideal and innovative about this
to another level.
particular product.”
“You don’t just work on the computer,” she
Duart expects to see the folded plate girder
stresses of the practical training she is getting.
system used to build 500 bridges by the close
“Whatever I can model on the PC, we can later
of 2022 and anticipates cornering 20 percent
see it in the lab using real materials [such as]
of the short-span market — or erecting 10,000
real concrete, real foam board, real rebar. We
bridges — within the next decade. FIU holds
can construct [bridge] elements in our lab to
a patent on the system developed specifically
see how they work in reality.”
for bridges longer than 60 feet, and Duart says
That full-spectrum, hands-on experience
that will translate into a financial boost for the
gives graduating students a real advantage, a
university in the tens of millions of dollars.
number of whom have scooped up high-level positions at top engineering firms, some even
Workforce of the future While spearheading research and getting it to those in the field, Azizinamini is at the same time preparing the next generation of
choosing among multiple offers. And wouldbe graduate students continue to apply at an increasing rate. That growing interest from young people
professionals. Currently eight Ph.D. candidates
bodes well at a time when Azizinamini is
work in his busy lab.
accelerating the pace of the center’s work,
Azadeh Jaberi Jahromi is one of them.
and the current U.S. administration considers
She spent a year as a Ph.D. student in the
directing greater funding to update the nation’s
civil engineering department at a university
infrastructure.
out west before recognizing that her lifelong
“It has become part of my DNA,” the
interest in bridges made that program a poor
changemaker says of the boundless cache of
match for her career goals.
ideas he plans to trot out. “I just have to do
Determined to take the risky and unorthodox
something continuously new.” n
Recognizing Excellence In late 2016 university leaders identified five standout research programs that they designated as “preeminent.” Another four with high potential are waiting in the wings. PREEMINENT Bridge Engineering Program A national leader in research related to accelerated bridge construction, an approach that minimizes bridge downtime Center for Children and Families A nationally regarded center revolutionizing treatments for childhood mental illness Extreme Events Institute A globally involved center for research, education and training in natural hazards and disaster risk reduction and management Institute for Water and Environment A collaborative of FIU’s top centers and programs focused on issues related to water and environmental threats around the world STEM Transformation Institute A multidisciplinary cooperative committed to improving educational practices that lead to more and better prepared professionals in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics EMERGING PREEMINENT Brain, Behavior and the Environment Program Health Inequalities and Disparities Program Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center Tropical Biodiversity, Sustainable Agriculture and Conservation Program
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