T C Rowan fabricates and installs steel footbridges and access bridges across Banbury and the surrounding counties, built to your structural engineer’s design in our own workshop. We cover the footbridge and access-bridge range: pedestrian and footbridges, estate and parkland bridges, farm and agricultural access bridges, and vehicle access and walkway bridges. Bridge span and load capacity are always set by a structural engineer; we fabricate and install the steelwork to that design, and keep the whole job under one roof, in-house drawing office, our own Banbury workshop and our own erection team. That single line of responsibility, from fabrication drawing to the bridge lifted into place, is what removes the gaps where steelwork projects usually go wrong.
What steel bridges we fabricate
We build fabricated steel bridges at footbridge and access-bridge scale, sized to your structural engineer’s calculations rather than to a guess.
- Pedestrian and footbridges for footpaths, watercourse crossings, drainage ditches and development access, in mild or stainless steel to suit the setting
- Estate and parkland bridges for private grounds, gardens and landscaped schemes, where the bridge is seen and the finish matters as much as the structure
- Farm and agricultural access bridges for tracks, ditches and field crossings, fabricated for the loading your engineer specifies
- Vehicle access bridges and walkway bridges for site access, plant crossings and elevated walkways, again to the engineer’s design and load case
- Decking, handrails, parapets and balustrades fabricated as part of the bridge package, so the safety steelwork is detailed by the same team that builds the structure
Because bridges are fabricated structural steelwork, this work sits within our in-house capability alongside our structural steelwork and wider steel fabrication services. Where a bridge ties into platforms, stairs or elevated access, our industrial access steelwork covers the walkways and handrail systems that connect to it.
Engineer’s design, our fabrication
A steel bridge stands or falls on its loading, and that is engineering, not something we invent. The structural engineer sets the span, the design loads and the section sizes; we fabricate and install the steelwork to that design.
Our drawing office takes the engineer’s scheme and produces the fabrication and connection drawings, confirming sections, welds and bolted details before any steel is cut. We coordinate directly with your engineer so the fabricated bridge matches exactly what has been calculated and approved. If you do not yet have a design, we can carry out a site survey to capture the real crossing, levels and access, then work with your engineer to firm up the steelwork. We do not quote spans, load ratings or capacities ourselves, because those are the engineer’s to certify.
How a bridge job runs with us
Every bridge follows the same controlled sequence, so you always know what happens next.
- Survey and design coordination. We start from the engineer’s design and our own site survey of the crossing, capturing real spans, levels, bank conditions and access for lifting.
- Fabrication drawings. We produce and issue fabrication and connection drawings for approval, agreeing sections, finishes and details with you and your engineer before steel is ordered.
- BS EN 1090 fabrication. The bridge is cut, drilled, welded and finished in our Banbury workshop under BS EN 1090, with the execution class the design calls for, then protected with primer, galvanising or paint to suit an outdoor life.
- Delivery and installation. Our own erection team transports and installs the bridge, plans the lift and access, and bolts the final connections, with on-site welding where a joint has to be finished in place.
That continuity is the point of using one fabricator from drawing to installation, covered in detail on our on-site installation page. The people who drew and welded the steel are the people lifting it into position, so site queries get solved in minutes rather than by RFI over weeks.
Larger and specialist bridges
Within the footbridge and access-bridge range we fabricate vehicle access bridges and heavier walkway structures, always to the engineer’s loading. For larger or specialist bridges, we fabricate and install the steelwork as part of a coordinated package with your structural engineer and groundworks or civils team. You get a single point of responsibility for the steel, drawing to installed structure, without us claiming to certify a design that belongs to the engineer. Tell us the crossing and the brief, and we will tell you honestly what sits within our fabrication and installation capability.
Materials, finish and standards
We fabricate bridges in mild steel and stainless steel only. Mild steel is the workhorse for the primary structure, strong, weldable and cost-effective, then protected for an exposed outdoor life with galvanising, primer or paint as the setting needs. Stainless steel is specified where corrosion resistance or a clean visible finish is the priority, such as estate footbridges and exposed handrails.
T C Rowan is CE approved and fabricates to BS EN 1090 execution standards, with welding carried out by qualified, coded welders and material traceability available on request. We are a family-run, fully insured fabricator with our own workshop and our own erection team, so design detailing, fabrication and installation all sit under one roof. See examples of completed work on our projects page, or request a quote or free site survey to talk through your bridge.
Frequently asked questions
What types of steel bridges do you make?
We fabricate footbridges and access bridges in steel: pedestrian and footbridges, estate and parkland bridges, farm and agricultural access bridges, and vehicle access bridges and walkway bridges. Each is built to your structural engineer’s design in our own Banbury workshop and installed by our own team. We work at footbridge and access-bridge scale rather than major highway or motorway structures.
Do you design the bridge or fabricate to my engineer’s design?
Span and load capacity must come from a structural engineer, so the bridge is designed by your engineer and we fabricate and install the steelwork to that design. Our drawing office produces the fabrication and connection drawings from the engineer’s scheme, coordinating with them so the steel that arrives on site matches exactly what has been calculated and approved.
Do you install the bridge on site?
Yes. Our own erection team installs the bridge, so the same firm that drew and welded the steel is the firm that lifts it into place and bolts the final connections. That single line of responsibility, from fabrication drawing to installed bridge, closes the gaps where steelwork projects usually go wrong. Site access and lifting are planned before we leave the yard, covered on our on-site installation page.
What about larger or vehicle access bridges?
We fabricate and install vehicle access bridges within the footbridge and access-bridge range, again to your engineer’s design and loading. For larger or specialist bridges we fabricate and install the steelwork as part of a coordinated package with your engineer and groundworks team, giving you a single point of responsibility for the steel without claiming to certify a design that is the engineer’s to specify. Contact us with your crossing and brief and we will confirm what fits our capability.