II. Compare the structure made of steel and concrete. Begin your sentences in the following way

I suppose/consider/think that the bridges made of steel are more expensive than those made of reinforced concrete.

a) lighter b) more graceful c) faster d) easier in construction e) less sophisticated

f)  more widely used g) more modern.

 

III. Read and translate the following attributive groups.

Spandrel wall, spandrel wall construction; box-girder beam, bridge box-girder beam, bridge reinforced concrete box-girder beam; building technology, bridge building technology, bridge reinforced-concrete building technologies, arch bridge reinforced-concrete building technologies.

 

IV. Read and translate the text.

Robert Maillart (6 February 1872 – 5 April 1940) was a Swiss civil engineer who revolutionized the use of structural reinforced concrete. All Robert Mail­lart's bridges were works of art. His break-through came with the 51m (167ft) span Rhine Bridge at Tavanasa in 1905. It was the arch concrete bridge. Robert Maillart had been concerned by the cracking which appeared after completion in the spandrel walls of the Zuoz Bridge so he re­duced the length of the arch halves with slender details of concrete, on which the span rested with great lightness and grace.

Here for the first time there was the reasonable combination of beauty, practicality and economy.

In subsequent bridges, the varied conditions of site and purpose acted as a continual stimulus to Maillart’s rich imagination. On some bridges he introduced slender verti­cal links between arch and deck or designed a con­tinuous box-girder beam instead of an arch, support­ing it on thin splayed concrete details.

The Salginatobel Bridge near Schiers was the top of his career. It was completed in 1930 span­ning a very steep gorge. It has the longest executed span although it was only 90m (295ft).

 

V. Answer the questions.

1. Why can Robert Mail­lart's bridges be called a break-through in bridge building technologies?

2. Look at the pictures of different structures and try to explain the reason of their variety.

3. What was the longest executed span of the Maillart’s bridges?

4. What was the reason of Maillat’s bridges grace?

VI. Decide if it is True or False?

1. Robert Maillart was a Swedish civil engineer who revolutionized the use of structural concrete.

2. Robert Maillart had been concerned by the cracking of the concrete.

3. To avoid cracking he increased the length of the arch halves with slender details of concrete.

4. Different conditions of site and purpose became the stimulus for Maillart’s rich imagination.

5. Salginatobel Bridge near Schiers was completed in 1930 span­ning a very deep river.

 

VII. Read the text about Maillart’s successor in bridge-building.