ATA Engineering Completes Successful Testing of Modular Bridge Design

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- ATA Engineering, Inc., is pleased to announce the successful completion of proof testing of the ARCS™ deployable bridge system.  Technologies incorporated in the ARCS bridge result from a three-year effort funded by the US Army's TARDEC (Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center). The prototype is a 7,000 pound bridge constructed from six segments of interleaved aluminum modules designed to accommodate crossing by a 30 ton vehicle over a 40 foot gap. Static testing was successfully performed up to 42 tons. The reconfigurable design addresses several shortcomings of today's temporary bridging technologies: unlike other systems that require significant logistical support to deploy and are limited to a fixed span and load capacity, ARCS can be deployed rapidly while remaining adaptable to different gap widths and loads. Fulfilling the need for a "bridge-in-a-box," a deployment-ready 80 foot bridge can be transported inside a standard shipping container.

Future development is expected to demonstrate the system's capability at spans exceeding 100 feet and for vehicles in excess of 75 tons. The use of rugged, lightweight composites to reduce the overall system weight will also be investigated. Though the bridge system was designed to provide rapidly deployable in-theater crossing capability to the military, the system has broad applicability and can provide unique temporary bridging solutions for civilian projects due to its adaptability and low environmental impact.

Headquartered in San Diego, California, ATA Engineering, Inc., is a high-value provider of analysis- and test-driven design solutions for structural, mechanical, electromechanical, and aerospace products. ATA's staff has provided advanced test and analysis solutions to manufacturers of highly engineered products for more than thirty years. In particular, ATA is widely recognized as a leading provider of structural dynamics, thermal design, modal test services, vibro-acoustics, computational fluid dynamics, and test-analysis correlation services to the aerospace and defense community. For more information, visit ATA's website at www.ata-e.com.

Disclaimer: Reference herein to any specific commercial company, product, process, or service by trade name, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or the Department of the Army (DoA). The opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or the DoA, and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes. As the author(s) is (are) not a Government employee(s), this document was only reviewed for export controls, and improper Army association or emblem usage considerations. All other legal considerations are the responsibility of the author and his/her/their employer(s).

Distribution approved for Public Release; distribution Unlimited, per AR 380-5. OPSEC Review conducted per AR 530-1 and HQ TACOM OPSEC SOP.

CONTACT:  Josh Davis, 858.480.2028, [email protected]

SOURCE ATA Engineering, Inc.