- Ferdinand Arnodin
Ferdinand Joseph Arnodin (
October 9 1845 -April 24 1924 ) was a Frenchengineer and industrialist born in Sainte-Foy-lès-Lyon and deceased in Châteauneuf-sur-Loire inLoiret . Specialising in cableway transporters, he is regarded as the inventor of thetransporter bridge , having been the first to patent the idea in 1887 [Troyano, L.F., "Bridge Engineering - A Global Perspective", Thomas Telford Publishing, 2003] . However, the first such bridge was in fact designed byAlberto Palacio , with Arnodin's help.9 of the 18 known examples may be attributed to him. Three of them still exist. They use the technology of both
suspension bridge s andcable-stayed bridge s. Arnodin built a great number of second generationsuspension bridge s at the turn of the 20th century and he also restored and consolidated a number of old first generation suspension bridges (before 1860): the aprons were reinforced and the old wire cables replaced by spirally-wound double torsion steel wire ropes, often with addition of a cable-stayed bridge (known structural modification under the name of “Système Arnodin”). His factory (for the production of prefabricated metal sub-structures) was established in Châteauneuf-sur-Loire. Vestiges of this factory were still visible a few years ago, and the chimney could still be seen, half ruined, between the Loire and railway.The Loire Fleet Museum, at Châteauneuf-sur-Loire, shows memories of these workshops: an old model of the Nantes transporter bridge, a section of steel wire rope manufactured by Arnodin and photographs.
Major works
*
Puente Colgante , 1893, still in use
*Bizerta/Brest Transporter Bridge , 1898
*Rouen Transporter Bridge , 1898
*Rochefort-Matrou Transporter Bridge , 1900, still in use
*Nantes Transporter Bridge , 1903
*Marseilles Transporter Bridge , 1905
*Newport Transporter Bridge , 1906, still in use
*Bordeaux Transporter Bridge , never finished
*Sidi M'Cid Suspension Bridge ,Constantine, Algeria , 1908, 160 m spanReferences
External links
* [http://www.newport.gov.uk/stellent/groups/public/documents/report/n_008952.pdf Newport Transporter Bridge—an historical perspective]
*
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