United For Infrastructure Week 2026

Infrastructure Week 2026 On-Demand Webinar: How Steel Bridges Maximize Transportation Investment

Topics: News
May 22, 2026

During Infrastructure Week 2026, the Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance (SSSBA), in cooperation with the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) and the American Galvanizers Association (AGA), sponsored a webinar aligned with the week’s focus on strengthening U.S. infrastructure through practical, cost-effective solutions.

The webinar, “How Steel Bridges Maximize Transportation Investment,” highlights how resilient steel bridge design can help agencies extend infrastructure dollars while improving long-term performance, durability, and reliability.

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What the Webinar Covers

The discussion focuses on how steel bridge solutions support key Infrastructure Week themes, including:

  • Maximizing federal transportation investment
  • Resilient design for extreme weather, flooding, and seismic conditions
  • Long-term lifecycle value and reduced maintenance needs
  • Corrosion protection strategies, including galvanized steel systems
  • Policy considerations such as the Highway Trust Fund and Buy America provisions

Together, these topics reinforce how practical design and material choices can improve infrastructure performance nationwide.

Featured Speakers

  • Brett Smith, Senior Director of Government Relations at the American Iron and Steel Institute, serves as the liaison between AISI member companies from the domestic steel industry and the U.S. Congress and federal agencies. Of particular focus for Brett are policy issues regarding energy/climate change, transportation/infrastructure and workplace health and safety. Brett has a Master of Public Policy degree from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Notre Dame
  • Michael Barker, Ph.D., Professor, Civil & Architectural Engineering at the University of Wyoming, received his BS and MS degrees in Civil Engineering from Purdue University and his PhD from the University of Minnesota. He is a professor of Civil & Architectural Engineering at the University of Wyoming and the director of education for the Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance. His primary research pertains to steel bridges, experimental testing, bridge design specifications, bridge field testing, high- performance steel and reliability analyses of structures.
  • John Krzywicki, Marketing Director at the American Galvanizers Association, has worked for the AGA for ten years, starting as a corrosion engineer and later promoted to marketing director. His strong engineering background provides him with the technical knowledge necessary to effectively communicate design, performance, and sustainability considerations when using hot-dip galvanized (HDG) steel.

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