Ineco, together with Córdoba and Granada Universities, is part of the consortium that will investigate over the next three years how to improve the maintenance of railway bridges using smart technologies. This is one of the projects selected in the call promoted by the Agencia Estatal de Investigación (State Research Agency), dependent on the Ministry of Science and Innovation of the Government of Spain.

Up until now, the methodologies for extending the useful life of bridges through structural health monitoring (SHM) are still in an incipient state. The Smart Bridges project will delve into the development and application of these SHM methodologies, the use of smart sensors, the energy autonomy of the long-term monitoring system and the structural forecast and data-based maintenance decision-making.  

As use examples, some critical high-speed railway bridges in Spain will be identified to compare their original designs with their current load scenarios and develop an SHM system. Thus, the security systems of these structures will be strengthened, and, at the same time, their operating and maintenance costs will be reduced

Ineco began conducting rail bridge inspections in the 1990s. Thanks to this project, the company's extensive expertise in this area is combined with the latest technology to provide innovative solutions that optimize the use of infrastructure to continue moving towards safe, sustainable and connected mobility.