To ensure proper state of construction, periodic inspections have to be carried out on all bridging objects. Due to assessment subjectivity in the examination process and consequently also in determining restoration measures, we decided to evaluate the influence of weather conditions at the time of inspections as well as inspectors' experience upon assessment.Visual inspections of the structures were carried out on three concrete bridges.For the purpose of the Master thesis, we have developed a method of assessment, which is a combination of Slovenian and American methods. To evaluate the influence of the inspectors' experience, the following groups of inspectors participated in our study: three final year students of master program in engineering, who were participating in this kind of inspectionfor the first time, three inspectors from Building and Civil Engineering Institute without many years of experience, as well as three experienced inspectors from the same Institute, who have performed this kind of inspections for many years. We evaluated the influence of the weather by assessing the object in dry state in sunny weather and in wet state after heavier rains. With obtained results, we found out that inspectors with less than 5 years of experience did not evaluate as strictly as inspectors from the other two groups. Within the group, inspectors with the most experience evaluated as one. When we analyzed the results, we could not find a connection between the weather and the rate of the grade.
|