Implementation framework toward an integrated steel bridge information management

A practical framework which can guarantee the consistency of product data in life-cycle bridge information management, a pilot system based on the developed framework, and its application to existing steel bridges in Korea are presented. The implementation framework is composed of four sections, information model, data repository, application programs and programming interfaces. The information model which can describe the three-dimensional design shapes, the structural analyses and their results, and the detailed design and mechanical information of bridge components matching with their geometric shapes has been developed based on STEP methodology and it has been employed as a data structure of the integrated data repository. The XML technologies have been adopted to develop the application modules that assist end-users to operate the steel bridge information on the web. A pilot system adopting the framework and its application to existing steel bridges show that the suggested framework efficiently can be used to develop the information system supporting the life-cycle management of steel bridges.