INDIAN RAILWAY STANDARD CODE OF PRACTICE FOR PLAIN, REINFORCED

AND PRESTRESSED CONCRETE FOR GENERAL BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION

(CONCRETE BRIDGE CODE)
7.
REINFORCEMENT
AND
7.1.3.3 Tolerance on placing of
PRESTRESSING TENDONS
ReinforcementUnless otherwise
specified by the engineer, reinforcement
7.1 Ordinary Reinforcement- Any
shall be placed within the following
reinforcement, which is bent, should not
tolerances:
be rebent at the location of the original
bend. Where the temperature of steel is
a) For over all depth 200mm or
below
50C, special precautions may
less: 10mm
be necessary such as reducing the
b) For over all depth more than
speed of bending or with the engineers
200mm: 15mm
approval, increasing the radius of
bending.
The cover shall, in no case, be reduced
by more than one-third of specified
7.1.1. Straightening,
Cutting
&
cover or 5mm whichever is less.
Bending- Reinforcement shall be bent
7.1.3.4 Sufficient precast concrete
and fixed in accordance with the
procedure specified in IS: 2502 and shall
spacers shall be provided as shall, in
the opinion of the engineer, be
not be straightened in a manner that will
necessary
to
maintain
specified
injure the material. All reinforcement
shall be bent cold.
concrete cover to the reinforcement and
preventing displacement before and
7.1.2 Special precautions like coating of
during the placement of the concrete.
reinforcement bars shall be taken for
These spacers shall be accurately fixed
reinforced concrete elements exposed
to the reinforcement to ensure that they
to severe and very severe exposure
will not be displaced during placement,
conditions.
tamping or vibrating of concrete. The
7.1.3 Placing All reinforcement shall
composition of concrete of spacer
be placed and maintained in the position
blocks shall be same as that of
shown in the drawings.
surrounding concrete.
7.1.3.1 Crossing bars should not be
tack-welded
for
assembly
of
reinforcement unless permitted by the
engineer. At all intersections, reinforcing
bars shall be securely bound together
with 1.6mm dia mild steel wire in
accordance with IS:280 or with approved
reinforcement clips. The free ends of the
binding wire shall be bent inwards. For
aggressive environment, galvanized
binding wire shall be used.
7.1.3.2 All steel fabrics shall be lapped
two meshes unless otherwise shown on
the drawing and securely bound to the
supporting bars with 1.6mm dia mild
steel wire (IS:280) or approved
reinforcement clips. The free ends of the
binding wire shall be bent inwards.
Proper cutting pliers shall be used and
the wire binding and tying shall be done
as tightly as possible.

7.1.3.5 Binding wires, used for binding /

fixing reinforcement bars, shall be
Galvanized Iron wires.
7.1.4 Welded Joints or Mechanical
Connections Welded joints or
mechanical
connections
in
reinforcement may be used with the
approval of the engineer but in the case
of important connections, test shall be
made to prove that the joints are of the
full strength of bars connected.
7.1.4.1 Welding of mild steel bars
conforming to IS:432(Part I) may be
permitted with the approval of the
engineer. Welding of mild steel
reinforcement shall be done in
accordance with the recommendations
of IS:2751. All welders and welding
operators to be employed shall have to
be qualified by tests prescribed in IS:
2751. Inspection of welds shall conform

INDIAN RAILWAY STANDARD CODE OF PRACTICE FOR PLAIN, REINFORCED

AND PRESTRESSED CONCRETE FOR GENERAL BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION
(CONCRETE BRIDGE CODE)
to IS:822 and destructive and nondevices, bottlenuts or couplings (see
destructive testing may be undertaken
15.9.6.5).
when deemed necessary. Joints with
7.1.4.6 Reinforcement temporarily left
weld defects detected by visual
projecting from the concrete at
inspection or dimensional inspection
construction joints or other joints shall
shall not be accepted.
not be bent during the period in which
7.1.4.2 Welded joints may be permitted
concreting is suspended except with the
in cold worked bars conforming to
approval of the engineer. Where
IS:1786 provided that the carbon
reinforcement bars are bent aside at
construction joints and afterwards bent
equivalent calculated from the chemical
back to the original positions, care
composition of the bar is 0.4% or less.
Welding of the cold-worked bars may be
should be taken to ensure that at no
done
in
accordance
with
the
time is the radius of the bend less than 4
recommendations of IS:9417. When
bar diameters for plain mild steel or 6
bar diameters for the deformed bars.
cold-worked bars are welded, the stress
at the weld should be limited to the
Care shall also be taken when bending
back bar to ensure that the concrete
strength of mild steel bars without coldaround the bar is not damaged.
working.
7.1.4.3 Butt welding between the ends
of a bar in line, whereby the stress is
transferred across the section, is to be
allowed for mild steel bars only.
7.1.4.4 Welded joints should not be
located near the bends in the
reinforcement. Wherever possible, joints
in the parallel bars of principal tensile
reinforcement should be staggered. The
welded joints may preferably, be placed
in regions of low stresses.
7.1.4.5 Bars may be joined with
mechanical devices e.g. by special
grade steel swaged on to bars in end to
end contact or by screwed couplers or
using bottle nuts, if permitted by the
engineer. Patented systems with
approved use shall only be permitted to
be used on production of test results
showing the adequacy of the device to
the satisfaction of the Engineer- In
charge. The effectiveness for such joints
shall invariably be proved by static and
fatigue strength tests. Such joints should
preferably be located at sections where
the bending moment is not more than 50
percent of the moment of resistance and
such joints should be so disposed that
at any section not more than 50% of the
bars are connected by mechanical

7.1.4.7 No concreting shall be done until

the reinforcement has been inspected
and approved by the Engineer.
7.1.5 Protective Coatings: - In order to
offer adequate resistance against
corrosion reinforcement bars shall be
provided
with
suitable
protective
coatings
depending
upon
the
environmental
conditions.
The
recommended coatings are as under: Aggressive Environment Non
(Severe, Very severe and aggressive
Extreme)
environment
(Mild
and
Moderate)
Important
Minor
and major bridges
bridges
and
structures

All structures

Cement
Polymer
Composite
Coating

Cement
Polymer
Composite
Coating

Truncated
Inhibited
Cement Slurry

Or

Or

Fusion
Bonded
Epoxy
Coating.

Inhibited
Cement
Slurry
Coating.

INDIAN RAILWAY STANDARD CODE OF PRACTICE FOR PLAIN, REINFORCED

AND PRESTRESSED CONCRETE FOR GENERAL BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION
(CONCRETE BRIDGE CODE)