All about beams

The last time I wrote about the bridge project, I zoomed right through the stage where the beams were constructed. So, to make up for that, here's a list of facts (and a few photos) about the beams:

- 28,000 pounds of cement (280 bags of powdered cement) were used in the creation of each beam.

- There are 110,000 pounds of concrete (mixture of cement, sand, and gravel) per beam.

- Each beam has strength to withstand 5000 pounds per square inch.

- To achieve 5000 psi (pounds per square inch) we brought two different types of chemical additives down from the states, to add to the concrete mixture. One additive was a water reducer, the other was a plasticizer. We also incorporated three different sizes of sand and gravel in the mixture, which helped us reach our psi goal.



- Before the beams were poured, six different concrete mixtures were created in 8" long, 4" diameter tubes and sent to the states (in suitcases) for psi testing by an engineering firm.

- Each beam contains 10,000 pounds of rebar.





- It took 50 man hours of welding to create the "weldments" (the welded racks of rebar which held the long pieces of rebar in place) and continuous 80' pieces of rebar inside of each beam.

- Each beam contains 12 pieces of 1 1/4" rebar, 9 pieces of 1" rebar, and 12 pieces of 3/4" rebar.

- Each beam will span 72'.

- The total weight of each beam is 120,000 pounds.

- It will take two cranes to lift each beam into place, because in Honduras we can't hire a crane large enough to lift one of these beams by itself.

- There will eventually be 12 beams in total. So far, 9 are completed.

- The process of pouring each beam took approximately 5 hours, though the prep work per beam took days of welding and setting the wall panels (forms) in place. Even carrying the 80' long pieces of rebar from the welding shop through the river to the other side where the beams were poured was a major task!

And that's all I have to say about the beams. Unless you have questions?