Benesch assisted the South Dakota Department of Transportation (SDDOT) to develop an asset management system to use in planning for long-range needs associated with a total of 16 structures classified as major structures.
Criteria such as inspectability, predictability, critical factors, historical evidence, impact to users and frequency of inspection were assessed during the initial phases of the project. Financial risk mitigation took into consideration the timing of maintenance, retrofit and replacement tasks. The cost of bridge replacement was then compared to the savings of future maintenance costs beginning the year it is replaced.
With this information in hand, the SDDOT is able to base its decision to implement a management risk mitigation strategy on funding availability, cost of replacement and desired cash flow.