A new partnership between 4019 Bentley Systems and the 6881 American Association of Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO) looks set to yield significant cost benefits for the US. This memorandum of understanding (MOU) will see AASHTO and Bentley align to extend AASHTO’s Bridge Management software with Bentley’s InspecTech package. As a result, bridge inspection processes in the US will become more efficient, more accurate and also see major budget reductions. CEO Greg Bentley said, “In the US we spend about US$1 billion/year on bridge inspections. What does that tell you about our bridges?”
Bentley said that the improved 3D modelling capability of the firm’s software will optimise inspection procedures, introducing efficient data recovery and ensuring that information is also of a high standard. At the Verrazano Narrows Bridge in New York State, the use of the InspecTech package helped trim inspection costs while providing data security. Just four sensors were required on the bridge instead of 20 using earlier generation technology, as the package was able to precisely pinpoint the best monitoring locations and also provide accurate modelling of bridge performance.
Following the agreement between Bentley Systems and AASHTO, the software specialist will serve as the developer of the new version of the AASHTOWare BrM package (previously Pontis 5.2). Bentley said that integrating the Inspectech package offers benefits and said, “It’s potentially something we’ll expand to AASHTOWare.”
AASHTO represents highway and transportation departments in the 50 US states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico and the MOU provides a framework for the incorporation of Bentley’s integrated InspectTech modules for advanced bridge inspections, mobile applications, and 3D models with AASHTOWare Bridge Management (BrM) software. With InspectTech software modules offered through AASHTOWare, transportation agencies will have access to a comprehensive system providing options that span advanced bridge inspection to capital planning, and offering efficient information mobility. The MOU also establishes Bentley as the contract developer of a substantially enhanced version of AASHTOWare BrM (Pontis 5.2). Bentley’s further support of this new end-to-end transportation asset management system will extend to options for training, customisation, and software-as-a-service hosting.
The new system will improve efficiency and risk-based decisions in sustaining transportation infrastructure while helping agencies to proactively address the requirements of the U.S. Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) that went into effect on October 1st, 2012. MAP-21 calls for the deployment and use of 3D information modelling, while also requiring new data requirements for bridge and tunnel inspection and asset management, at the level of structural and related elements.
AASHTOWare BrM will continue to undergo a major upgrade through work being done via contract by Bentley under the direction of an AASHTO task force and committees comprising US state department of transportation (DOT) representatives. As a result of work to be completed under this MOU, the InspectTech advanced inspection modules will now be available through AASHTOWare to improve AASHTOWare BrM’s existing inspection interface. Users will be able to have functionality for complete inspection reviews and workflow, inspection scheduling and planning, email alerts, plans of action, records archive and management, credentialing, underwater details, fracture critical forms, and more.
In addition InspectTech’s new mobile applications will support AASHTOWare BrM and allow more efficient field-based data collection and review. InspectTech’s 3D/Complex bridge module will be integrated with AASHTOWare BrM to give transportation agencies the option to conduct detailed 3D-model-based inspection. And InspectTech’s maintenance management module will be integrated with AASHTOWare BrM to provide transportation agencies the option of identifying and planning for needs, as well as assigning needed resources and tracking the work on those needs through to completion. With AASHTOWare BrM’s new web-based architecture and InspectTech’s existing web architecture, the combined solution can be offered reliably to entities around the world in a SaaS format.
Bentley said that the improved 3D modelling capability of the firm’s software will optimise inspection procedures, introducing efficient data recovery and ensuring that information is also of a high standard. At the Verrazano Narrows Bridge in New York State, the use of the InspecTech package helped trim inspection costs while providing data security. Just four sensors were required on the bridge instead of 20 using earlier generation technology, as the package was able to precisely pinpoint the best monitoring locations and also provide accurate modelling of bridge performance.
Following the agreement between Bentley Systems and AASHTO, the software specialist will serve as the developer of the new version of the AASHTOWare BrM package (previously Pontis 5.2). Bentley said that integrating the Inspectech package offers benefits and said, “It’s potentially something we’ll expand to AASHTOWare.”
AASHTO represents highway and transportation departments in the 50 US states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico and the MOU provides a framework for the incorporation of Bentley’s integrated InspectTech modules for advanced bridge inspections, mobile applications, and 3D models with AASHTOWare Bridge Management (BrM) software. With InspectTech software modules offered through AASHTOWare, transportation agencies will have access to a comprehensive system providing options that span advanced bridge inspection to capital planning, and offering efficient information mobility. The MOU also establishes Bentley as the contract developer of a substantially enhanced version of AASHTOWare BrM (Pontis 5.2). Bentley’s further support of this new end-to-end transportation asset management system will extend to options for training, customisation, and software-as-a-service hosting.
The new system will improve efficiency and risk-based decisions in sustaining transportation infrastructure while helping agencies to proactively address the requirements of the U.S. Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) that went into effect on October 1st, 2012. MAP-21 calls for the deployment and use of 3D information modelling, while also requiring new data requirements for bridge and tunnel inspection and asset management, at the level of structural and related elements.
AASHTOWare BrM will continue to undergo a major upgrade through work being done via contract by Bentley under the direction of an AASHTO task force and committees comprising US state department of transportation (DOT) representatives. As a result of work to be completed under this MOU, the InspectTech advanced inspection modules will now be available through AASHTOWare to improve AASHTOWare BrM’s existing inspection interface. Users will be able to have functionality for complete inspection reviews and workflow, inspection scheduling and planning, email alerts, plans of action, records archive and management, credentialing, underwater details, fracture critical forms, and more.
In addition InspectTech’s new mobile applications will support AASHTOWare BrM and allow more efficient field-based data collection and review. InspectTech’s 3D/Complex bridge module will be integrated with AASHTOWare BrM to give transportation agencies the option to conduct detailed 3D-model-based inspection. And InspectTech’s maintenance management module will be integrated with AASHTOWare BrM to provide transportation agencies the option of identifying and planning for needs, as well as assigning needed resources and tracking the work on those needs through to completion. With AASHTOWare BrM’s new web-based architecture and InspectTech’s existing web architecture, the combined solution can be offered reliably to entities around the world in a SaaS format.
