Fuji Electric Helps Make the BEAST a Reality
| The Bridge Evaluation and Accelerated Structural Testing (BEAST) lab, located at Rutgers University in Piscataway, NJ will provide valuable data and insight into the degradation of bridges due to environmental and maintenance factors in a matter of weeks or months instead of years or decades. Fuji Electric’s VG Drive plays an integral role in the facility, powering the winch that propels the truck chassis over the bridge deck.
Designed and constructed through a collaborative effort between Applied Research Associates (ARA) and Rutgers University’s Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation (CAIT), the project spanned 5 years from start to finish, beginning with the design phase in 2009 and completing construction in the spring of 2014. The laboratory provides a condensed view into the effects that the environment and heavy traffic have on full-scale bridge decks, providing data that can be used to influence future bridge materials and maintenance products. |