American Bridge Company

Infobox Company
company_name =American Bridge Company, Inc.
company_logo =
company_type = Private
foundation = 1900
location = Coraopolis, Pennsylvania
key_people = Robert H. (Bob) Luffy, President and CEO
Michael D. Flowers, EVP Operations
N. Michael (Mike) Cegelis, SVP Marketing and Development
industry = Civil Engineering
products = bridge building
construction
marine structures
revenue = profit$328 million USD
operating_income =
net_income =
num_employees = 500
homepage = [http://www.americanbridge.net/ www.americanbridge.net] The American Bridge Company is a privately held civil engineering firm specializing in the construction and renovation of bridges and other large civil engineering projects, founded in 1900, and headquartered in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Pittsburgh.

Products and Industry Positioning

The firm has built many bridges in the U.S. and elsewhere, with [http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/S?pp/hh:@FIELD(OTHER+@od1(+american+bridge+company+)) Historic American Engineering Record this listing] (at the Library of Congress) noting at least 81. A partial listing of projects is below. The firm is listed as the "builder" of a project but may not necessarily be (and usually is not) the "designer". In most cases the bridge designer or building architect does not get to select the construction company, he designs it but then bids are let by the owners/developers. The designer and the contractor have to subsequently work together closely to get the job done.

American Bridge has also been involved in significant building construction projects such as the Sears Tower, the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building, as well as in other structural projects such as launch pads and resorts.

Significant competitors include Walsh Group, Flatiron Construction, and Skanska USA.

Related companies include American Bridge Holding Company and American Bridge Manufacturing Company, both also headquartered in Coraopolis.

History

American Bridge Company was founded in April 1900, through the JP Morgan-led consolidation of 28 of the largest United States based steel fabricators and constructors. The company’s roots extend to the late 1860’s, when one of the consolidated firms, Keystone Bridge Works, constructed the Eads Bridge, the first steel bridge over the Mississippi River, at St. Louis which is still in use today. Shortly thereafter, in 1902, the company became a subsidiary of United States Steel as part of the Steel Trust consolidation. It went private in 1987.

The company has a long and storied history. While American Bridge’s roots in steel fabrication and construction remain a strength today, the company developed broad based contracting and management resources to service complex project needs. Some of American Bridge’s most notable projects are more a testament to construction engineering know how and management abilities than to its historical strength in steel construction. The company pioneered the use of steel as a construction material; developing the means & methods for fabrication and construction that allowed it to be widely used in buildings, bridges, vessels, and other plate applications. As a result, and due to its deep financial resources, American Bridge has operated on a national and international scale from the moment of its inception.

American Bridge produced a number of ships for the United States Navy as part of the war effort during World War II. The town of Ambridge, Pennsylvania was an American Bridge Company town (thus the name "Ambridge"), and is near their current headquarters of Coraopolis, Pennsylvania. Both municipalities are located on the Ohio River near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with access to many steel suppliers, as well as to waterborne and rail transport, to allow shipment of components and subassemblies.

American Bridge has come under criticism for its role in the Discovery Land Company's 'Baker's Bay Golf & Ocean Club' in the Bahamas. American Bridge is responsible for construction activities in a highly sensitive mangrove and coral reef area of Great Guana Cay, a barrier island of Abaco. The project is now opposed by the Sierra Club, Ocean Futures Society and dozens of conservation groups around the world. The local indigenous natives of Great Guana Cay have created a powerful opposition to the construction activities, often bringing construction to a halt through the Bahamian Supreme Court and U.K. Privy Council.

Notable projects

This is a representative, not an exhaustive, list.

Bridges

*Constructed Five of America’s most notable bridges

** Silver Bridge, Point Pleasant, West Virginia (1927)
** Macarthur Causeway, Miami, Florida (1997)
** San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge, Oakland, California (1936)
** Mackinac Bridge, Mackinac Straits, Michigan (1957)
** Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, New York Harbor (1964)
*Constructed the longest concrete segmental cable stay bridge in the United States
** Sunshine Skyway Bridge, Tampa Bay, Florida (1986)
*Constructed the longest suspension bridge in South America, and one of the longest in Europe.
** Orinoco Bridge, Venezuela (1967)
** 25th of April Bridge, Lisbon, Portugal (1966)
*Constructed the world's longest arch bridge on three occasions.
** New River Gorge Bridge, West Virginia, 1977, 518 meters, (1,700’)
** Bayonne Bridge, Staten Island-New Jersey, 1932, 504 meters (1,652’)
** Hell Gate Bridge, New York City, 1916, 298 meters (978’)
*Constructed the world’s longest self-supporting continuous truss bridge.
** Astoria Bridge, Oregon, 1966, 376 meters (1,232’)
*Significant renovations of existing bridges
** Relocation of an existing Norfolk Southern vertical lift bridge from Florence, Alabama to Hannibal, Missouri (1995)
** First ever aerial spinning for additional main cables on a loaded, fully operational suspension bridge. 25th of April Bridge in Lisbon, Portugal (1998)
** First ever stiffening truss replacement on a loaded, fully operational suspension bridge. Lions Gate Bridge, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (2001)

Buildings

*Constructed the world’s tallest building on numerous occasions.
** Sears Tower, Chicago, 1974, 443 meters (1,454’)
** Empire State Building, New York City, 1932, 381 meters (1,250’)
** Chrysler Building, New York City, 1931, 319 meters (1,046’)
** Woolworth Building, New York City, 1913, 241 meters (792’)
*Constructed many other well known buildings.
** John Hancock Center, Chicago (and in Boston)
** Aon Center (formerly Standard Oil), Chicago
** Columbia Seafirst Center, Seattle
** U.S. Steel Tower, 1970
*Erected the world’s largest building by volume twice.
** Vehicle Assembly Building, Kennedy Space Center, 1964
** Boeing 747 Assembly Building, Everett, Washington, 1974
*Constructed two of the most notable domed stadium structures in the world
** Louisiana Superdome, 1974
** Houston Astrodome, 1964

Miscellaneous

*Space launch complex jacking for McDonnell Douglas Astronautics (now Boeing) (1994)
*Built bottom framework for the unique, modular room units for Walt Disney Company at the Contemporary Resort in Walt Disney World(1971)

External links

Company information

* [http://www.americanbridge.net/index.php American Bridge Company home page]
* [http://www.hoovers.com/american-bridge-company/--ID__120205--/free-co-factsheet.xhtml Hoovers fact sheet on ABC]

Projects and history

* [http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/S?pp/hh:@FIELD(OTHER+@od1(+american+bridge+company+)) HAER record of at least 81 ABC bridges/projects]
* [http://www.americanbridge.net/company/cronhist/chronological_history.htm American Bridge Company Chronological history] from the company site
* [http://www.oldeconomyvillage.org/ Old Economy Village history page] with American Bridge Company history.