Presentation of this paper will be given as part of the SHORT COURSE: Miter Gates, Rolling Gates and Operational Machinery Process Design.
The recently published PIANC WG Report No. 154 covers international mitre gate design guidance and guidelines. This presentation will summarize the current state-of-the-practice and best practices in mitre gate design and fabrication.
This presentation will provide design guidance and outline potential design issues that may be encountered during the design phase when approaching a new mitre gate design. Certain areas are also applicable to issues that may be encountered when repairing, retrofitting, or rehabilitating an existing mitre gate. With awareness of such potential issues, a more comprehensive design is expected to ease construction, lower maintenance effort, and extend the service life of the gate structure. Factors in gate design may also include proper adjustment of the gate upon installation or during service to ensure the gate is loaded properly and performs as designed. In addition to outlining general guidance, a secondary purpose of this presentation is to make designers aware of both normal and unexpected design conditions that can alter design approach, methodology, and detailing practices. In general, gates should be designed such that the failure mechanism is ductile and provides warning before failure. Various design guidelines are available including design references from several countries. Recently, there have been international efforts in standardising waterway infrastructure including lock mitre gates.
A summary of mitre gate fabrication around the world will be presented. There are quite a variety of fabrication methods depending on materials used and intended functionality and maintenance. Common fabrication challenges as well as best practices will be discussed.