The Messina Strait Bridge ─ A Challenge and a Dream

This book describes the enormous depth of work carried out since the early seventies on the Messina Strait Bridge, up to the recent award of the detailed design and construction contract. This important work has included extensive studies, concepts and design developments, with far reaching applications, which have all confirmed the feasibility of this huge endeavour and have led to the optimisation of costs and expected performance levels.

Attention is focused not only on the design itself, but also on the context for the project (e.g. historical, geological, seismo-tectonic and wind conditions; structural and mechanical properties; project management and financial aspects; and environmental considerations), and on the great challenges involved. Thus, considering the innovations and specific solutions adopted in overcoming the challenges presented by constructing a world record span of 3,300 metres at this site, it becomes clear how the Messina Strait Crossing will take its place as a masterpiece in bridge engineering history.

This book will be of interest to bridge and structural engineers, geotechnical and wind engineers, mechanical and earthquake engineers, graduate students in all these areas and all others with a broad interest in bridge design and engineering.

About the authors:

Fabio Brancaleoni
Full Professor of Structural Engineering at the Department of Structures, University of Roma Tre, Italy. Member of the scientific committee of the Taylor&Francis Bridge Structures International Journal. His research interests comprise long span bridges, bridge aerodynamics, computational mechanics, structural diagnostics, seismic engineering. He was involved in the Messina Strait crossing project since 1974, and has also carried out research or consultancy activities for the Humber, Bosporus II, Storebalt, and Stoncutters cable supported bridges. At present he is participating in the tenders for the Izmit Bay, Fehmanrbelt and Dubai Creek crossings.

Giorgio Diana
Full professor of Applied Mechanics at Politecnico di Milano. He is Director of the Research Centre for Wind Engineering (CIRIVE) and Deputy President of the Politecnico di Milano Foundation. Professor Diana has an extensive knowledge on research and design in the fields of dynamic aspects, fluid-elasticity, aero-elasticity (vibrations of bridges and structures), rotor-dynamics, vibration problems in mechanical engineering, railway vehicles dynamics and interaction between vehicle and infrastructures (bridges, viaduct, road, railroad). The results of the research and activities in these fields are reported in a wide number of papers published on International Reviews and International Conferences Proceedings.
He is recipient of the prestigious 2009 Robert H. Scanlan Medal (ASCE).

Ezio Faccioli (2008)
Full professor of Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Seismology at Politecnico di Milano and currently in the Executive Board of the International Association of Earthquake Engineering (IAEE) and Coordinating Editor of the Journal of Seismology.
From 1990 to date, he has been overall co-ordinator or team leader in several European research projects on seismic risk, soil-structure interaction and geotechnical earthquake engineering. He also was convenor of the panel that drafted Part 5 of Eurocode 8, now a European Norm. In Italy, he is currently coordinating a research project that will produce seismic hazard evaluations for a broad spectrum of PSHA applications.
Recipent of the US Earthquake Engineering Research Institute "Outstanding Earthquake Spectra Paper Award" of 2004.

Giuseppe Fiammenghi
Chief Technical Officer of Stretto di Messina S.p.A.. Member of the Engineering Register of Rome, has covered managerial positions both in public and private companies, in Italy and abroad.
In the public sector since 1989, he has been Managing Director of Italsocotec, Vice General Manager of Servizi Tecnici and Director of Spea Ingegneria Europea S.p.A. Starting 1972, spent 17 years in Italconsult S.p.A, a private company, reaching the position of Transportation Department Director. During this period he has been responsible for important projects in Africa, South America and the Middle East.

Ian Firth
Director of Flint & Neill in London, the well known long span bridge engineering consultants. He has been involved in the design, construction and ongoing operation and maintenance of major bridge spans for nearly 30 years, and has worked on many significant suspension bridges including the Tsing Ma bridge in Hong Kong and the Severn and Humber bridges in the UK. He has been special advisor to Stretto di Messina SpA throughout the drafting of the contract specifications and design criteria, and was part of the special committee which carried out the technical evaluation of the tenders received from consortia bidding for the appointment as the General Contractor.

Niels J. Gimsing
Professor Emeritus at the Department of Civil Engineering where he acted as Full Professor in Bridge and Structural Engineering from 1976 to 2005. He has participated in the design of the Storebalt Bridge and the Oresund Bridge, and from 1985 to 1993 he was a me