Low ice forces have been predicted by small scale tests and have been verified by some full scale measurements. Nevertheless, they have not gained acceptance from industry and governmental authorities because the majority of researchers have predicted much higher ice forces.

Recent findings in Canada by full scale tests indicate, however, that the ice forces on vertical structures are indeed 10 times smaller than they have been used in the design of structures in recent years. This means, that structures like bridge piers, coastal protection and offshore structures are most likely significantly over-designed.

In order to save multi-million investments in future marine constructions seven research groups (universities, research establishments and industrial enterprises) from France, Finland, Germany, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom carried out a research program with the objective to validate low level ice forces on marine structures an have:

• Evaluated existing ice force prediction methods and identification of possible reasons for the wide scatter of predicted ice forces.

• Conducted full scale measurements of forces of level ice and ridges on the Norstrømsgrund lighthouse in the Gulf of Bothnia. For this purpose novel measuring techniques were utilised. Different from previous measurements, special efforts have been made in determining the properties of the ice features (level ice and ridges) which interacted with the lighthouse. This included the fracture toughness of level ice, the strength of the consolidated and unconsolidated part of ridges and the documentation of the ice failure process.

• Developed new ice force prediction models on the basis of previous work and new full scale measurements.

• Recommended indications for design ice loads on marine structures in consultation with governmental authorities and classification societies. This could lead towards an EUROCODE on ice force.

A workshop, open to researchers and end users in Europe, was part of the dissemination of results.