02-27-14 01-14-16 Rev. 05-16-19 Rev.

Page 1 of 5
04-13-17 Rev. 11-16-17 Rev.

ARKANSAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

SPECIAL PROVISION

JOB NO. XXXXXX

STEEL SIGN STRUCTURES

Description. This item shall consist of furnishing, fabricating, and installing steel overhead,
cantilever, tee mount, and bridge mounted sign structures, luminaire supports when specified,
and concrete or drilled shaft foundations in accordance with this Special Provision and to the
dimensions and details shown on the plans. Steel sign structures shall be installed at the locations
shown on the plans or as directed by the Engineer.

Materials. Structural steel sign support members shall conform to the following
specifications:

Angles: ASTM A709, Gr. 36 (Fy = 36,000 psi)

Plate: ASTM A709, Gr. 50 (Fy = 50,000 psi)
W-Section: ASTM A709, Gr. 50 (Fy = 50,000 psi)
Pipe: ASTM A139, Gr. C, straight-seam welded (Fy = 42,000 psi)
ASTM A500, Gr. B (Fy = 42,000 psi),
ASTM A501, Gr. B (Fy = 50,000 psi)
All grades of pipe require Heat traceability back to the original melting mill.
Z-Shapes: ASTM A709, Gr. 36 (Fy = 36,000 psi)
Shim Plates: ASTM A1011, SS, Gr. 36, Type 2, or Gr. 40
Bolts: ASTM F3125, Grade A325, Type I
Locknuts: ASTM A563 Grade DH or AASHTO M 292 Grade 2H
Washers: ASTM F436
Nuts: ASTM A563 Grade DH or AASHTO M 292 Grade 2H

In addition to material requirements, all pipe used for welded applications shall have a
maximum carbon equivalency (CE) of 0.4. All elements in the carbon equivalency (CE) equation
shall be quantified and reported in the heat analysis or the product analysis. The following
equation shall be used for determining the carbon equivalency (CE):

CE = %C + %Mn/6 + %Cu/40 + %Ni/20 + %Cr/10 - %Mo/50 -%V/10

No circumferential butt welds or helical lap splices will be allowed in any pipe sections.

All steel shall be galvanized, unless otherwise noted, in accordance with Subsection 807.19.

All main load carrying tension members greater than 1/2" in thickness shall conform to the
requirements of the Longitudinal Charpy V-notch test specified for Zone I minimum service
temperature.

Bolts, nuts and washers shall be furnished and galvanized in accordance with Subsection
807.06. Anchor bolts shall conform to AASHTO M 314, Gr. 55, with supplementary requirement
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STEEL SIGN STRUCTURES

S1, galvanized in accordance with Subsection 807.07. Nuts and washers for anchor bolts shall be
furnished and galvanized in accordance with Subsection 807.07.

Aluminum alloy surfaces contacting steel or concrete shall be thoroughly coated with a
suitable aluminum impregnated asphalt paint, approved by the Engineer, and allowed to dry
before installation.

Concrete for footings shall comply with Section 802 for Class S concrete. The Department
will perform all acceptance sampling and testing at the frequencies shown for Contractor
acceptance testing in Subsection 802.06. Reinforcing steel shall comply with Section 804 for
Grade 60.

Commercial Alternates. Subject to the approval of the Engineer and in conformance with
the requirements specified herein, the Contractor may supply steel sign support structures as
manufactured by a commercial sign structure manufacturer in place of the sign structures
detailed in the plans.

If the Contractor elects to use a commercial product, a complete set of design calculations
by a Licensed Professional Engineer, a certification by the Professional Engineer that the design
conforms to the requirements specified herein and as shown on the plans, and general details or
pictures of the proposed type of structure shall be submitted to the Engineer for review and
acceptance prior to submitting shop details.

In general, the commercial product shall be a steel truss type structure that will have an
appearance similar to the design shown on the plans including the use of a quadri-chord
horizontal truss. Multi-column end supports consisting of round pipes shall be used and the
individual members of the truss may be round pipes, angles, or other accepted structural shapes.
The column to base plate connection shall use full-penetration groove welds or a socket-type
joint with two fillet welds.

Sign supporting structures shall be designed in accordance with the design specifications
used for the plan details. Equivalent design parameters specified in the plans for sign area and
weights and maximum column heights shall be used for the design of the commercial sign
structure. Unless otherwise specified in the plans, all structures shall be designed for Fatigue
Category I and fatigue design for galloping loads may be excluded.

Materials, construction methods, and inspection shall comply with this Special Provision. If
the fabricator elects to use materials of a different strength than that shown in this Special
Provision, this information shall be included in the request for approval of the commercial
product.

Shop Drawings. Shop drawings, in duplicate, shall be submitted to the Engineer for
approval before fabrication begins. When the shop drawings have been approved, six (6) prints
shall be furnished to the Engineer. The Contractor shall be responsible for the accuracy of the
drawings even though the drawings may have been approved by the Engineer.
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STEEL SIGN STRUCTURES

Fabrication Requirements. Structure bracing members shall be cut and trimmed for proper
fit and shall be bolted or welded in correct position to chord or post members to form the
specified structural section. Each assembly shall be checked for alignment, correct shape, and
sound welds at the fabricating plant prior to shipment. The fabricator shall certify that each
complete structure shall be free of misfits or structural deficiencies prior to shipment.

Sign structures shall be fabricated in accordance with this Special Provision and the
applicable provisions of Section 807. Welding shall be in accordance with the AWS D1.1
Structural Welding Code - Steel.

Visual inspection of all welds shall be made and shall include an examination of certificates
of prequalification of the welders who are performing the work and an inspection of welding
equipment and procedure. In addition to visual inspection, all fillet welds of critical members
shall be tested according to the AWS D1.1 Structural Welding Code - Steel, using the magnetic
particle method. Critical welds shall include all the connecting welds between the sign columns
and base plates and between the sign columns and the top and bottom truss supports. All
Complete Joint Penetration (CJP) Groove welds shall be tested according to the AWS D1.1
Structural Welding Code - Steel. An inspection report submitted by the inspection agency or a
qualified representative, both approved by the Engineer, including a list of any defective welds
that will require repairing, and certificates of prequalification of welding operators, shall be
submitted to the Engineer. Further weld testing may be required as directed by the Engineer and
will be at the Department’s expense, except that the Contractor shall make welded members
accessible for inspection at no cost to the State. Any welds found to be defective shall be
repaired only by re-welding.

The Contractor shall certify in writing that the welding and fabrication of the structures are
in accordance with the governing specifications.

Construction Requirements. Excavation, backfill, compaction, and disposal of surplus

materials shall be performed according to Section 801. Compaction shall be accomplished to the
extent necessary to prevent future settlement of the backfill. Disturbed surfaces shall be returned
to the original condition.

The applicable provisions of Sections 802, 804 and 807 shall govern the construction and
installation of concrete, reinforcing steel and structural steel, respectively.

Anchor bolts shall be pretensioned. Exposed anchor bolt threads shall be cleaned and
lubricated prior to installation of leveling nuts. Threads and bearing surfaces of nuts shall be
cleaned and lubricated immediately prior to assembly. Leveling nuts shall be initially installed at
the same elevation. Leveling nuts/washers shall be in firm contact with the base plate prior to
snug tightening of the top nuts. Top nuts/washers shall be in firm contact with base plate when
snug tight. Beveled washers may be required to provide firm contact. After top nuts are snug
tight, the lower nuts shall be tightened to a snug tight condition to ensure full contact is achieved.
After all nuts have been brought to a snug tight condition, bolts shall be tensioned using the turn-
of-nut method. For the turn-of-nut method, nuts shall be incrementally turned using a star pattern
until achieving the required rotation specified in Table 1-1, a minimum of 2 tightening cycles
(passes) will be required.
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Table 1-1 Nut Rotation for Turn-of-Nut Pretensioning

Anchor Bolt Diameter Nut Rotation a,b
≤ 1-1/2 inch 1/3 turn
> 1-1/2 inch 1/6 turn
a
Nut rotation is relative to the anchor bolt. The tolerance is plus 20
degrees, minus 0 degrees
b
A beveled washer shall be used if the nut is not in firm contact with the
baseplate or the outer face of the baseplate is sloped more than 1:40.

All truss field sections shall be shop assembled unless otherwise noted in the plans.

Field welding will not be permitted except upon approval in writing by the Engineer.

All sign supports shall provide a minimum vertical and horizontal clearance as shown on the
plans. To ensure proper clearances, dimensions of the structure that affect clearances shall be
verified by the Contractor by field measurements before fabrication begins.

Sign supports shall be erected so that the sign face is plumb and at right angles to the road
unless otherwise directed by the Engineer.

Subsequent to erection, any damaged galvanized coating shall be field repaired in

accordance with Subsection 807.88.

Method of Measurement. Steel Overhead Sign Structure, Steel Cantilever Sign Structure,
Steel Tee Mount Sign Structure, and Steel Bridge Mounted Sign Structure will be measured by
the unit, including foundations, complete in place. One unit consists of the structure and all Z-
bars, brackets, bolts, washers, nuts, and other hardware necessary to complete the installation and
mount the sign(s). The fabrication and installation of the signs will be paid for under Section 725
or 726.

Basis of Payment. Steel Overhead Sign Structure, Steel Cantilever Sign Structure, Steel
Tee Mount Sign Structure, and Steel Bridge Mounted Sign Structure completed and accepted and
measured as provided above will be paid for at the contract unit price bid per each for Steel
Overhead Sign Structure, Steel Cantilever Sign Structure, Steel Tee Mount Sign Structure, and
Steel Bridge Mounted Sign Structure which price shall be full compensation for furnishing,
fabricating, and installing the structure including sign framing, supporting structures, and
concrete or drilled shaft foundations; for excavation, backfill, compaction, removal and disposal
of surplus materials, and replacement of existing surfaces; for all weld testing; and for all
materials, labor, tools, equipment, and incidentals necessary to complete the work.
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STEEL SIGN STRUCTURES

Payment will be made under:

Pay Item Pay Unit

Steel Overhead Sign Structure (__) Each
Steel Cantilever Sign Structure (__) Each
Steel Tee Mount Sign Structure (__) Each
Steel Bridge Mounted Sign Structure (__) Each