Parametric modelling of bridge railing

This thesis was commissioned by WSP Finland Ltd, a construction company with a strong tradition of bridge projects in Finland and abroad. The purpose was to improve WSP's bridge design capabilities by generating a parametric model that can create four distinct types of DK H2 bridge rails from a single parametric file. The created file employs a parametric algorithm for modelling bridge rails elements in a design soft-ware programme as well as for generating and analysing the model in Tekla structural analysis software application. Parametric modelling is an essential approach utilised in architecture, engineering, construction, and operations, and incorporates many features that have rendered previously impossible ideas and designs feasible. Consequently, this thesis uses parametric modelling to create a parametric model that can generate a variety of (sparse, dense, slatted, or mesh) bridge railings. The parametric model contains numerous options and features, allowing complete control of the model. The aim of the thesis project was to provide a parametric model that could be used in future projects at WSP to save the time and effort manual modelling requires. Grasshopper and Rhino algorithmic modelling software programmes are used to model bridge railings with parametric modelling and then the elements of the bridge rails on the Tekla Structures software are displayed through the Tekla live plugin. The design of the bridge rail modelling in this research is based on instructions issued by the Finnish Transport Agency