Lessons from failures – West Gate Bridge 1

Abstract

Historically, failures have played an important role in advancing engineering knowledge and providing lessons for the future. Many engineering failures have been followed by a public enquiry such as a Royal Commission, with terms of reference intended to determine the causes of failure and how such failures can be avoided in the future. The reports of public inquiries have a number of advantages over case law on failures, even though they may not be as well-known after the passage of time. West Gate Bridge in Melbourne was procured in the 1960s in the “traditional” way by the Employer engaging consultants to prepare the design for construction by the construction Contractor. However, the bridge collapsed during construction, with substantial loss of life. The Royal Commission into the collapse identified the “technical” causes, and highlighted those contractual matters which were contributing factors. Chapter 20 reviews the contractual issues highlighted by the Royal Commission, as well as by an English enquiry into the collapse of the Milford Haven bridge. It is suggested that that some of these issues had been identified 60 years earlier in the Quebec Bridge Royal Commission report.