Terra Lago Bridge

Early in 2004, Gary Williams of SunCal Companies contacted Commercial Shotcrete, Inc. (CSI), to assist him with the design of a bridge for a project his organization was developing in Indio, CA, called Terra Lago

Slope Stabilization Using the Shotcrete Grid Beam System in Japan

Continuous grid beam structures made of shotcrete have been used for over 30 years in Japan to stabilize natural and man-made cut slopes. This slope stabilization structure, generally called œGrid Beam, is widely applied in Japan. It was used in more than 4600 slope stabilization sites in Japan in the year 2002 alone. The Grid Beam system is often used independently to protect slope surfaces from erosion, or used as a supporting structure, combined with ground anchors or soil nails to stabilize the slope against failures. The area surrounded by the beams is often revegetated to improve aesthetics and harmonize the installation with the surrounding environment (see Fig. 1). Due to the geometric flexibility of this system, the concrete beams can easily follow the undulations of natural slopes and maintain good contact with the surface.

Quality Management of Shotcrete in North America

As for all construction materials, a proper program of quality management should be implemented in shotcrete construction to protect the owner™s investment. This article briefly examines typical shotcrete Quality Management (QM) practice in North America. QM can be considered to be comprised of Quality Assurance (QA) and Quality Control (QC) functions.

Advantages of Using Shotcrete for Arch Culverts

A rich structures have been used in various forms of construction for thousands of years. The earliest arch structures date back to ancient times when crude arch prototypes were constructed by building a corbelled arch in which projecting elements from a wall rose in steps to meet at the center. The Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans all used the arch for various types of structures, including sewers, aqueducts, bridges, and ornamental architectural buildings such as palaces and churches. The fact that many of these ancient structures are still standing today is a testament to the durability and structural integrity of this design. Fast-forward 2000 years to modern construction practices, and the benefits of the arch design are still as valuable, relevant, and practical as ever.
Various Uses for Arch Culverts
Among the many modern-day uses of arch culverts are culverts, storm drains, bridges, cut and cover tunnels, pedestrian and equestrian underpasses, golf cart crossings, underground vaults and reservoirs, and environmentally sensitive wash-crossing structures. These types of crossings can be constructed on spread footings and without concrete inverts, thereby maintaining the natural integrity of the wash bed. Detailed engineering studies have verified that arch culverts will have a similar life cycle to comparably reinforced concrete box culverts.
Benefits of Arch Culverts
The advantages of using shotcrete arch culverts over traditional formed and poured concrete box culverts, concrete pipe, and corrugated metal pipe are as follows.

History of Shotcrete in Seismic Retrofit in California

The widespread use of structural shotcrete actually began long before the first appli-cation was made. Its rise was politically motivated and its continued development dictated by the occurrence of earthquakes. Responding to a school fire in the 1920s, the Los Angeles School Board directed that all future school buildings be constructed of masonry. However, masonry of the day was not reinforced, and several hundreds of these buildings were destroyed or damaged in the great Long Beach earthquake of 1933. Fortunately, the quake occurred in the early morning hours when the schools were unoccupied; had it been during the day, hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries would have likely resulted.