Introduction

1.1 Background
The idea of prestressed concrete has been around since the latter decades of the
19th
century, but its use was limited by the quality of the materials at the time. It
took until
the 1920s and 30s for its materials development to progress to a level where
prestressed concrete could be used with confidence. Freyssinet in France, Magnel
in
Belgium and Hoyer in Germany were the principle developers.
The idea of prestressing has also been applied to many other forms, such as:
Wagon wheels;
Riveting;
Barrels, i.e. the coopers trade;
In these cases heated metal is made to just fit an object. When the metal cools
it
contracts inducing prestress into the object.