ForestNB

Healthy forests, quality products

Growing a Future for Our Communities

  • Newsroom
    • Forest NB News
    • Newsletter
    • Media Releases
    • Upcoming Events
    • Videos
  • About Us
    • Our Values
    • Members
      • Member Directory
    • Chairman’s Message
    • Executive Director’s Message
    • I Am 1 of 24k
  • Resources
    • Ask ForestNB
    • Healthy Forest Partnership
    • Forest Info
    • Teachers
  • Contact Us
  • 2022 Industry Forum
  • English
  • Home
  • People & Products
  • Forestry & The Economy
  • Community & Sustainability
  • Jobs & Training
    • Available Jobs In Forestry

Forest Industry to benefit from Fredericton start up CanCross’ portable bridge design

June 20, 2016 By Admin

13441750_10157013394500453_1436699654_o
Photo courtesy of CanCross. Front row: Casey Glenen. From left to right: Cameron Arsenault, Scott Allen, Joshua White, Thomas Bird.

A group of recent University of New Brunswick graduates is developing a solution to the New Brunswick forest industry’s issue with crossing culverts and waterways in the woods.

CanCross, a Fredericton based infrastructure start up consisting of five graduates of UNB’s engineering program, is in the final stages of patenting their Rapid Modular Spanning System design.

The process began when the group teamed up for a project as part of the Technology Management and Entrepreneurship program at UNB.

CanCross’ goal was to design a portable and versatile bridge that could be used for forestry, road washouts, disaster relief and construction. Similar to the Bailey bridge, originally developed during the Second World War enabling allied troops to cross waterways on the battlefield, CanCross’ product comes in pre-built units that are connected at the job site.

“I kind of try to describe it as Lego pieces that go side-by-side and span a single or double lane,” Cameron Arsenault said.

An excavator is the only piece of large-scale equipment that’s required to install CanCross’ bridge – a major advantage over other models like the Bailey bridge.

Having pre-built modules saves time and money during the installation process. “The big thing for us is trying to install as quick as possible,” Arsenault said. “To do that we try to get as much of it as we can in one piece.”

CanCross’ portable Rapid Modular Spanning System reduces environmental impact than other traditional models that may be difficult to remove.

The idea came from a discussion between the group and a contractor earlier in the year. “We took his idea on as a project because he’s not an engineer so he couldn’t stamp the bridge,” Casey Glenen said. “He designed one but it wasn’t up to code, so we took it from an engineer’s stand point and redesigned it.”

Tracy MacDonald, a professional engineer, mentored the group in the project’s early development stages, offering guidance and helping them set up meetings with potential stakeholders.

Stream crossings were the initial market for the team’s design, so they consulted the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DTI). This meeting opened the door to other applications for their product as well. The department suggested the bridge could be placed over weight-restricted culverts, enabling more efficient harvesting by the forest industry.

“Forestry companies could increase their loads up to maximum capacity, saving them a lot of money in shipping costs and saving the environment because it takes more trucks off the road,” Scott Allen said.

Arsenault believes timing was everything in the early stages of turning CanCross’ vision into a reality.

“It’s one of those situations where necessity is the mother of innovation,” he said. “For going over streams, I was debating whether or not that was a good opportunity. But when this presented itself, it showed there was a big issue [with weight-restricted culverts].”

As CanCross puts the final touches on their bridge’s design and ties up logistical loose ends around patenting, the group is now exploring manufacturing options.

With the closure of the Picadilly mine near Sussex this past January – leaving 430 people jobless – the group believes they can create employment opportunities in the region. They’re also looking to create manufacturing jobs in other regions of Atlantic Canada where industry has declined.

It’s an exciting time for the CanCross crew, but it hasn’t exactly been a stress-free process reaching this point.

“It’s been scary because most of us have turned down jobs and we see our friends out working at different companies, we’re taking this big risk,” Allen said. “But we’re having so much fun with it and we’re actually seeing results come from it. It’s better than working for a company in my opinion.”

In the next few weeks the team is aiming to finish the design and ensure the geotechnical aspects of their product are sound.

For now, they say building connections is the name of the game. “This past month has been business oriented,” Glenen said. “We’ve had a lot of meetings with people I never thought I’d talk to in my life.”

Filed Under: Commentary, Forest NB News, People & Products Tagged With: CanCross, Forestry, Fredericton, New Brunswick, start up, UNB, UNB engineering

Get The ForestNB Newsletter

Select list(s) to subscribe to


By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: ForestNB, 1350 Regent Street, Fredericton, NB, E3C 2G6, http://forestnb.com. You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact

Recent News

Forest NB Working to Address Labour Force Gaps

March 7, 2022

CFFO Announces Christopher Lee Memorial Scholarship

February 25, 2022

Employment Opportunity -Executive Assistant

January 18, 2022

Economic Recovery and Climate Change: Forest Sector Contributions to a Low Carbon Economy

September 27, 2021

Celebrating the 24 000 Employees

September 7, 2021

Our Members


acadian
jamer
forest safety
gnt
wr
urquhart
remsoft
national
cain
brunswick valley
toromont
port of belledune
liebherr
hub
envirem
waska
seacoast
maibec
marwood
savoie
chaleur-Forest-Products-3-locations-2
garant
crabbe
tompkins_logo
delco_logo
goguen_logo
twinrivers_logo
nafp_logo
avgroup_logo
arbec_logo
alpa_logo
ysclogo
primematerial_logo_white-1
FPL_LOGO_COLOUR-1

Copyright © 2022 Forest NB | Forêt NB