Pre-Stressed Concrete Bridge Beams
Structural concrete, well known for its strength, durability and versatility. These properties enhance structural elements manufactured as prestressed concrete. Pre-stressed concrete bridge beams have become the preferred option for a wide range of bridge spans and types.
Developments in structural design, material strength and manufacturing have enabled pre-stressed concrete bridge beams for use in significantly greater spans.
Shay Murtagh Precast not only manufactures high quality pre-stressed concrete bridge beams, but with our experienced and agile design, manufacturing and transportation teams are able to serve as a valuable resource at all facets of planning, design, manufacturing and construction.
Shay Murtagh Precast Concrete Bridge Beams are ideal for
- Road Bridges
- Rail Bridges
- Foot Bridges
- Any building or infrastructure or highway application incorporating long span
Shay Murtagh Bridge Beams
At Shay Murtagh we manufacture a wide range of precast concrete bridge beams, including U-Beams, Y-Beams, T-Beams, Box-Beams, W-Beams, and several edge beam variants. These beams are designed for diverse applications across medium and long-span road and rail bridges, commercial developments, and marine structures. Each beam type offers structural and construction efficiencies, such as integrated edge details, rapid assembly, minimal onsite formwork, and enhanced load capacity for parapet and service integration.
U-Beam
Typical Application: Medium and long span highway, rail and pedestrian bridges. Long spans in car parks or other building applications with large beam centers. Advantages: Convenient provision for services. Robust torsional resistance for skewed decks and other high torsion members.BOX-Beam
Typical Application: Short and medium span highway, rail and pedestrian bridges. Long spans in car parks or other building applications. Solid slab decks in bridges or civils and building applications. Advantages: Corresponds to the shallowest deck depth for structures with tight structural depth limitations.Y-Beam
Typical Application: Medium and long span highway, rail and pedestrian bridges. Long spans in car parks or other building applications with large beam centers. Advantages: Lightest prestressed beam option for medium and long span bridges. Readily accessible for inspections during the life of the structure.T-Beam
Typical Application: Short and medium span highway and rail bridges and civils / buildings applications. Advantages: Lightest prestressed beams. Economical for shorter spans, providing efficient load transfer with reduced material usage. Well-suited for applications where beam depth is a constraint, offering practical construction and ease of installation in smaller-scale structures.W-Beam
Typical Application: Medium / long span highway, rail & pedestrian bridges. Long spans in car parks or other building applications with large beam centers. Advantages: Often the most economic option for medium & long span bridges. Convenient provision for services. Robust torsional resistance for skewed decks & other high torsion members. Suited to decks with larger beam centersM-Beam
Typical Application: Provides a voided slab deck for medium and long span highway, rail and pedestrian bridges and for civils and building applications. Advantages: Provides a closed slab type soffit for medium and long span bridges. Offers enhanced structural efficiency by reducing dead load through voids while maintaining strength.Standard beam depths range from 300 mm up to 2300 mm, accommodating a variety of span and loading requirements. Typical deck construction includes permanent formwork options, in-situ concrete slabs (generally C32/40 or higher), and detailed reinforcement layouts tailored to project needs. All beams are produced using high-grade, prestressed concrete, ensuring durability, high strength, and minimal maintenance. Lifting and installation procedures are engineered for safety and efficiency, with typical strand layouts and lifting anchorages provided for each beam type.
Our bridge beams are compliant with Eurocodes and industry specifications, supporting bespoke engineering for project-specific requirements.
Shay Murtagh Precast pre-stressed concrete bridge beams are manufactured in a dedicated facility ensuring factory quality with engineered tolerances by personnel that have up to 40 years of experience in pre-stressed concrete operations.
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Shay Murtagh Precast are proud to have worked on some of the biggest infrastructure projects in both Ireland and the UK.
Our qualified design team work with major contractors to develop value engineering solutions.

