MANAGING BRIDGE MANAGEMENT

In Northern Ireland the Roads Service, an Agency within the Department of the Environment, has sole responsibility for the management of all public road bridges. With a total of approximately 6392, there is a considerable volume of information to be managed. The effective management of these bridges depends on the proper management of the relevant information. In 1998 Roads Service developed in-house a Microsoft Access based Bridge Management System. This paper traces the development of the system, from its inception to the current state of successful operation. The thought processes behind the development, highlighting hardware and software issues that had to be overcome to produce an integrated system are discussed. This paper will hopefully guide others who are considering developing their own systems. For the covering abstract see ITRD E106406.