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Jul 19, 2023

Gov. Josh Shapiro praises High Steel Structures Inc. for its work to help rebuild the I

Gov. Josh Shapiro visited High Steel Structures Inc. on Monday to praise the East Lampeter Township company for its work to help rebuild the I-95 bridge destroyed in a June 11 fatal tanker truck crash

Gov. Josh Shapiro visited High Steel Structures Inc. on Monday to praise the East Lampeter Township company for its work to help rebuild the I-95 bridge destroyed in a June 11 fatal tanker truck crash that forced the temporary shutdown of a section of the heavily traveled highway in Philadelphia.

Following a press conference touting economic development budget and bi-partisan response to the bridge collapse in Philadelphia, Shapiro and Lt. Gov. Austin Davis autographed the first girder made by High Steel Structures that will be used to repair the bridge.

Scores of High Steel Structure workers, supervisors and executives applauded as the governor and lieutenant governor signed the 104-foot steel beam, one of 16 that High Steel is making to rebuild the bridge over Cottman Avenue that collapsed in June as the result of a truck fire. A temporary fix closed Cottman Avenue but reopened I-95, a crucial highway to commerce from Maine to Florida. About 160,000 vehicles travel the structure daily, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Employees of High Steel Sturctures listen to Governor Josh Shapiro as he speaks with members of the media about the steel work High Steel Structures is doing to provide a permanent repair for I-95 in Philadelphia at the Cotton Avenue overpass after the fatal fire that closed the road in June on Monday, Aug. 7, 2023. Josh Shapiro paid a visit to High Steel Structures in Lancaster County to highlight the work Pennsylvania-based companies are doing on the permanent repair of I-95 in northeast Philadelphia. High Steel Structures – using steel from the Cleveland Cliffs facility in Coatesville – is forging the steel beams that will be used to build the permanent bridge over Cottman Avenue on I-95.

“The I-95 collapse was a tragedy, and it was also almost an economic disaster,” said Mike Shirk, CEO of the High Companies. “We know this – our red trucks are traveling that route every day delivering critical infrastructure products. Your swift action in marshaling the resources across the Commonwealth with Pennsylvania companies to rapidly deploy a temporary solution, and now make a permanent fix, made the difference.”

Shapiro said the new girders would typically take about nine months to fabricate and install. High is expediting the forging of the girders and cross frames so they should be completed in about two months. The cost to repair I-95 is between $25 million - $30 million, with the federal government providing the resources needed, according to PennDot. High Steel Structures is using steel made in a Coatesville plant owned by Ohio-headquartered Cleveland Cliffs

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PennDOT said that throughout construction, six lanes (three in each direction) will be open so traffic can continue to flow on I-95. The northbound and southbound outer bridges will carry three lanes each. Northbound and southbound outer bridge(s) construction and shift to the new bridges is expected to be complete by late 2023.

High Steel Structures is using steel made in a Coatesville plant owned by Ohio-headquartered Cleveland Cliffs.

It takes about four to five days for about a dozen workers to make the 104-foot girder, said Mike Brunozzi, plant manager. And each girder is slightly different, said Ronnie Medlock, vice president of technical services at High Steel Structures. The company employs about 350 people in its East Lampeter Township plant. High Steel Structures is making 16 girders and 56 cross frames for the I-95 bridge. The plan is to ship the girders and accompanying cross frames in groups of eight so the outer lanes and then the inner lanes can be assembled.

After the bridge’s collapse and subsequent road closure in June, Shapiro led a coordinated state, local, and federal response with the private sector to reopen the roadway safely and as quickly as possible and completed efforts to get traffic flowing on I-95 again in 12 days.

A disaster declaration allowed the state to hire Buckley Construction to oversee the project and High Steel Structures to fabricate the steel.

High Steel Structures did not have to delay other projects to pick up the emergency work because it was able to shuffle production around its facility and because a lot of the work is done well in advance, Medlock said.

High Steel Structures is currently fabricating 3,500 tons of steel for the Pennsylvania Turnpike's new Hawks Falls Bridge near Jim Thorpe, Carbon County.The new 720-foot-long skewback steel deck arch bridge will carry the Turnpike's Northeast Extension (I-496) over Mud Run in Carbon County. The project includes a single-span steel girder bridge crossing Hickory Run Road.

Governor Josh Shapiro paid a visit to High Steel Structures in Lancaster County to highlight the work Pennsylvania-based companies are doing on the permanent repair of I-95 in northeast Philadelphia. High Steel Structures – using steel from the Cleveland Cliffs facility in Coatesville – is forging the steel beams that will be used to build the permanent bridge over Cottman Avenue on I-95.

Mike Shirk, President of The High Companies, gave Governor Josh Shapiro and Lt. Governor, Austin Davis, a tour of the plant. The steel company is providing steel fabrication for the 16 beams, each 104 feet in length, that will repair I-95 in Philadelphia at the Cotton Avenue overpass after the fatal fire that closed the road in June.

Shapiro and Davis praised the workers involved in the emergency response and the permanent bridge construction.

"From top to bottom, the I-95 repair has been powered by Pennsylvania companies and Pennsylvania workers, including High Steel Industries and the workers here, who are forging that steel into 16 girders that will serve as the backbone of the permanent structure. This is what we can accomplish when we come together to tackle big challenges, when we believe in Pennsylvania workers and companies, and invest in their success,” Shapiro said. “That’s why the budget I signed into law last week includes major new investments in economic development, manufacturing, workforce training, and infrastructure repair. We can build big things again in Pennsylvania if we invest in the companies that drive innovation, the workers that power our economy, and the infrastructure that connects us all."

Mike Shirk, left, President of The High Companies, and Governor Josh Shapiro, right, listen to Lt. Governor, Austin Davis, speak with members of the media about the steel work High Steel Structures is doing to provide a permanent repair for I-95 in Philadelphia at the Cotton Avenue overpass after the fatal fire that closed the road in June on Monday, Aug. 7, 2023. Josh Shapiro paid a visit to High Steel Structures in Lancaster County to highlight the work Pennsylvania-based companies are doing on the permanent repair of I-95 in northeast Philadelphia. High Steel Structures – using steel from the Cleveland Cliffs facility in Coatesville – is forging the steel beams that will be used to build the permanent bridge over Cottman Avenue on I-95.

That was meaningful to hear for workers such as Byron Folk, 56. Folk, a utility operator who has been at High Steel Structures for 27 years, said he was proud to work on the project. Folk’s job requires him to fill in whatever role he is needed including welding and fitting. He said the girders and cross frames are small compared to some of High Steel’s other projects.

Nevertheless, he said, “we take pride in what we do.”

High Steel’s largest bridge was the four-year project fabricating steel for the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge across the Hudson River that replaced the Tappan Zee Bridge, north of New York City. It fully opened in 2018. High Steel Structures was one of three fabricators that combined to provide more than 110,000 tons of structural steel plate girders.

In 2013, High Steel Structures was awarded a fast-track contract by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to fabricate replacement steel after a tanker truck crashed on a ramp beneath the Route 22/322 overpass at the massive I-81 interchange near Harrisburg. The resulting fire damaged the bridge, which required emergency replacement. The 365-ton project included the erection of the 30 I-girders and two box girders.

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