S25-41 Bridges - How We Get From Here to There NEW
Class | Available (Membership Required)
One of early humans’ first roadblocks was how to cross a river or valley when they encountered them. In the beginning, a simple log or group of stones may suffice; however, as the rivers got bigger and the valleys wider, this simple solution would no longer work. The invention of the bridge was one of mankind’s earliest structures to be built to alleviate this problem. In this course we will learn about the history of bridges and what exactly defines a bridge. We will explore the many types of bridges and what it takes to build and maintain them. We will look at some major failures and the lessons learned that have helped develop some incredible and awe inspiring structures.
Doug Hedrick is a retired professional engineer and has a 40 year career in the construction engineering field. During his career, he has been involved in the oversight of many of the major bridges built in the last 30 years in Northeast Ohio. These include the Ohio Turnpike mainline bridge over the Cuyahoga Valley, both Cleveland innerbelt bridges and most recently the new Valley View Bridge on Interstate 480.
Doug Hedrick
Doug Hedrick has been a registered Professional Engineer and Surveyor for over 40 years. His career as a Project Engineer has been in both the private and public sectors. He first began as a Project Manager for Roadway Services/Federal Express and managed the construction of multi-million dollar distribution facilities throughout the Eastern and Southern United States. Doug then switched to the public sector as the Construction Engineer for the Ohio Turnpike Commission. Doug was responsible for construction oversight for the Third Lane Widening program, the modernization of the Toll Plazas and Service Plazas and was ultimately promoted to the position of Chief Engineer. He managed the Ohio Turnpike during the Ohio Governor’s billion dollar Infrastructure Program. Doug finished his career as the Vice President of Greenman Pedersen Inc.’s Ohio operations. Doug developed GPI’s operation to the premiere construction services provider to both the Ohio Department of Transportation and the Ohio Turnpike Commission. During his tenure, GPI was selected by ODOT as the lead engineer for both Cleveland Innerbelt Bridge projects, the Valley View Bridge expansion and the new State Route 8 bridge in Akron.