Method Statement for Bridge Bearing Replacement — UK
A free, National Highways and Network Rail-aligned method statement for UK bridge bearing replacement — covering the jacking sequence, Category 3 temporary-works check, possession working and the deck-uplift sign-off the project engineer actually asks for.
UK (RAMS) example document — Two-Storey Rear Extension — 14 Birchwood Lane, Reading. Client: Mr & Mrs A. Whitfield (Private Client). Site: 14 Birchwood Lane, Reading, RG1 5JT. Scope: Construction of a two-storey rear extension (6.4m × 4.2m) to an existing semi-detached dwelling. Works comprise breaking out of existing rear elevation, trench-fill foundations to 1.0m, traditional cavity blockwork to first floor, pre-stressed concrete lintels, timber roof structure with natural slate finish, plus alterations to existing rear wall to form structural opening with rolled steel joist (RSJ 203×102 UB23). Works programmed over 9 weeks with a peak site team of 6 operatives. Hazards assessed: Manual handling — blocks, lintels, plasterboard, Working at height — independent scaffold & roof structure, Buried services strike during excavation, Collapse of excavation / trench wall, Hand-arm vibration (HAVS) — breaking out, drilling, Silica dust — cutting blocks, brick, concrete, Vehicle/pedestrian segregation — narrow domestic street.
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Built around recognised UK method statement structure — hazards, controls, sequence, PPE and sign-off. Ready for competent-person review.
Bridge bearing replacement is one of the highest-consequence civil engineering activities on the UK network — a 1981 collapse during bearing jacking on a Welsh road overbridge killed two operatives and triggered the rewrite of what is now CIRIA C654, and the same root causes (under-sized jacks, no lock-off, missing Cat 3 check) appear in nearly every Rail Accident Investigation Branch and Highways England incident review since. The 2019 prosecution of a tier-one contractor following a deck slip during a bearing change at an A14 bridge (£300k fine, HSE notice E305519019) is the most cited recent example. This page sets out what a defensible UK bridge bearing replacement method statement looks like in 2026 — temporary works, jacking, monitoring, possession — with a free editable template.
When is it required?
Bridge bearing replacement on any UK adopted highway, rail or canal structure needs a written method statement before any jack is delivered to site. National Highways' GG 101 and the Network Rail NR/L2/CIV/003 manual both require submission of the MS, the temporary works design (Cat 3 check), the jacking sequence, the proof-load test certificates and the appointed-person/CSE sign-off 4–6 weeks before the possession. Under CDM 2015 the principal contractor must include it in the construction phase plan, and BS 5975:2019 (temporary works) classifies bearing jacking as Category 3 — independent design check by an engineer not involved in the original design.
What a good one looks like
A strong bridge bearing MS runs to 25–60 pages and names every specific. It identifies the bearing (e.g. 'Mageba LASTO-Block LB 600x600x100 elastomeric replacing original 1976 Andre rocker'), the jacks (e.g. '4 x Enerpac CLRG-3006 300-ton hollow-plunger, proof tested 30/04/2026, certs in appendix B'), the lift increment (typically 2mm with 0.5mm tolerance), the locknuts and packing detail, the Category 3 designer (e.g. 'Atkins, ref TWD-2026-A14-BR12 rev C, signed by Chartered Structural Engineer'), the proof-load values, the deck strain-gauge monitoring (Geokon VK4500 or equivalent) and the abort criteria. It links to the possession plan and the COSS/lookout brief on rail jobs.
Bridge Bearing Replacement hazards & controls
The site-specific hazards a bridge bearing replacement MS must address, with the controls that take residual risk to an acceptable level.
| Hazard | Persons at risk | Controls | Residual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deck slip or uncontrolled drop during jacking | Jacking crew, anyone under deck | Cat 3 independent check of TWD; jack capacity ≥150% of calculated deck reaction; mechanical lock-nuts engaged at every increment; load cells on every jack with continuous read-out; abort if any jack drifts >5%; exclusion zone under deck, marshal on radio | Low |
| Working at height — bearing shelf access | Crew | Independent scaffold or MEWP per TG20:21 / IPAF; harness clipped to engineered anchor (not handrail); rescue plan with second MEWP standby; daily pre-use check signed in scaffold register; no work in winds >17 mph at deck level | Low |
| Live traffic above or alongside (highway) | Crew, motorists | TM signed per Chapter 8; full closure or contra-flow agreed with NH; impact protection vehicle (IPV) where lane open within 1.2m; no jacking under live trafficked lane — possession or full closure mandatory | Medium |
| Live rail — adjacent line open (Network Rail) | Crew, train crew | Possession booked through PICOP; COSS for any open-line working; lookout posted with whistle and warning horn per NR/L2/OHS/019; ZTW (zero-tonnage warning) on jack reaction zones; no plant within 3m of running edge without isolation | Medium |
| Hydraulic injection injury from high-pressure hoses | Jack operator | Hoses and couplings rated >700 bar working; visual check pre-shift; nitrile or leather gloves; no hand on hose during pressurisation; first-aid card naming injection injury and the nearest A&E pre-briefed | Low |
| Manual handling — bearings 80–400 kg | Crew | Hi-ab or A-frame gantry for any bearing >50 kg; never manual carry on shelf; tag lines on suspended loads; banksman on every lift; lift plan in appendix C signed by Appointed Person | Medium |
| Asbestos — pre-1985 mastic, jointing compounds, packing | Crew | R&D survey for any pre-1985 structure; if mastic suspect — stop, sample, do not disturb; UKATA-trained operatives only; HSG264 controls | Medium |
| Lead in pre-1990 paint stripped during shelf preparation | Crew | Pre-work paint test (Hammett tube or XRF); shrouded surface prep with H-class extraction; FFP3 + Tyvek; air monitoring per CLAW 2002 if >0.05 mg/m³ likely; bloods baseline + 12-weekly | Medium |
Step-by-step sequence
- 1
1. Pre-mobilisation & Cat 3 sign-off
TWD issued, Cat 3 check completed by independent engineer, jacks proof-load certified within 6 months. Possession or TTRO confirmed. Briefing pack issued 7 days pre-start. Possession Owner / Engineer's Rep signs MS into the CPP.
- 2
2. Site set-up & TM/possession take
TM or possession taken at start of shift per signed-off plan. Exclusion zone barriered. Welfare and isolation point established. RFI bridge between site and possession control opened.
- 3
3. Bearing shelf preparation
Existing surfacing/coverings removed, shelf cleaned, packing positions surveyed and marked. Lead/asbestos check completed before any abrasive prep. Jack positions chalked.
- 4
4. Jacks placed, lock-nuts engaged, load taken
Jacks placed on engineered packing per TWD. Hoses connected and pressure-tested at 50% rated. Initial lift to lift deck off existing bearing (typical 2mm) with load-cell read-out at each increment. Lock-nuts wound up after every increment.
- 5
5. Old bearing removal
Old bearing released, gantry-lifted to lay-down area. Shelf inspected for cracks, voids, water damage. Engineer's hold-point — Resident Engineer signs before new bearing placed.
- 6
6. New bearing installation & deck lower
New bearing positioned per setting plan with pre-set offsets for thermal movement (typical ±20mm at 12°C). Deck lowered in 2mm increments with continuous strain-gauge read-out. Final load transfer verified by 3-point check on each jack.
- 7
7. Reinstatement, hand-back & records
Jacks struck and removed. Mortar pads / grout per spec (typical Sika Grout 212 or Conbextra HF). Cure time respected before hand-back. As-built submitted to NH or NR within 28 days. MS, TWD, Cat 3 check, jack certs, monitoring log bundled to the structure's AMIS or Eclipse record.
Replacement of 4 elastomeric bearings, A14 overbridge BR12 (Cambridgeshire)
A tier-two civils sub-contractor on a National Highways scheme produced a 42-page MS for the replacement of 4 elastomeric bearings on a 1976 single-span concrete overbridge over the A14. Key entries: 4 x Mageba LASTO-Block LB 600x600x100 replacing original Andre rockers; 4 x Enerpac CLRG-3006 300-ton hollow-plunger jacks (calculated max reaction 218 tonnes, jacks rated 300 tonnes — 1.38 factor, on the boundary so an Atkins Cat 3 check rev C signed by Chartered Structural Engineer revised the lift increment to 1.5mm); load cells (Vishay BLH GMM2 200-ton) on every jack; deck monitoring by Geokon VK4500 strain gauges at 8 positions, sampled at 1 Hz; possession taken 22:00 Saturday to 05:00 Monday under TTRO; full carriageway closure with diversion via A1307 (NH ref STT-A14-BR12-2026); two Highways England traffic officers on standby. Lift achieved in 8 increments of 1.5mm with lock-nuts wound up between each. Old bearings out 02:40 Sunday, new bearings in 06:50 Sunday, deck reset 11:20 Sunday, lock-off 12:10 Sunday, hand-back 04:50 Monday. Zero abnormal strain readings. NH structures team accepted the as-built into AMIS within 3 weeks. The MS, the Cat 3 check pack, the jack certs and the monitoring log were the four documents NH audited.
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Common mistakes that get a bridge bearing replacement MS rejected
- ·Under-sizing the jacks against the actual deck reaction — calculated reactions in original drawings often exclude 30–60 years of overlay self-weight
- ·Skipping the Cat 3 independent check because 'we've done bearings before' — every recent prosecution has cited a missing or token Cat 3
- ·Lifting in single big increments rather than 2mm steps — the moment a deck moves more than 5mm you lose control of redistribution to adjacent bearings
- ·Forgetting the lock-nuts between increments — a hose failure mid-lift then becomes a deck drop
- ·Possession booked but the COSS/PICOP role not actually filled by a competent person on the day
- ·No monitoring of adjacent bearings — they will take load redistribution and need to be in the read-out, not assumed inert
Frequently asked questions
Is bearing jacking always a Cat 3 temporary works?
Under BS 5975:2019, any temporary support of a permanent structure under load is Cat 3 — independent check by an engineer not in the design team. Bearing jacking always sits in Cat 3 because the deck is the load and a failure of the jacking system is a structural failure.
Do we need a possession on a road bridge?
Not always a full possession, but always at minimum a TTRO and usually a full lane closure under the lift footprint, with impact protection if any lane stays open. National Highways will rarely approve jacking with live traffic in the bridge envelope.
How long should the proof load certificate on the jacks be in date?
Industry good practice is 6 months for a load-bearing jack on a structures job. NH and NR specs usually demand 12-monthly minimum but most tier-one contractors apply the tighter 6-month rule because of the consequence of failure.
Who signs the bearing MS off?
The principal contractor's Temporary Works Coordinator (TWC), the independent Cat 3 designer, the resident engineer (NH) or PICOP (NR), and the lifting Appointed Person if cranage is involved. The MS is not work-ready without all four signatures.
What's the typical lift increment?
2mm per stroke is the conservative norm. For sensitive structures (post-tensioned decks, integral bridges, structures with damaged shelves) the Cat 3 designer often reduces this to 1.5mm or 1mm with mandatory lock-off between each increment.
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