Several key highway construction innovations will be unveiled at the Intermat show

Several key highway construction innovations will be unveiled at the Intermat show. Road construction technology will form a major part of the Intermat exhibition, with major manufacturers such as Ammann, Bernardi Impianti, Caterpillar, the Fayat Group, GOMACO, Roadtec, Volvo and the Wirtgen Group all unveiling new technologies. Improved roadway performance is vital to ensuring longer life highways, minimised maintenance needs, reduced congestion and improved safety and several new systems will help boost q
February 23, 2012 Read time: 4 mins
Volvo's prototype L220F Hybrid wheel

Several key highway construction innovations will be unveiled at the Intermat show

Road construction technology will form a major part of the 242 INTERMAT exhibition, with major manufacturers such as 6791 Ammann, 169 Bernardi Impianti, 178 Caterpillar, the 2779 Fayat Group, 218 Gomaco, 1252 Roadtec, 2394 Volvo and the 364 Wirtgen Group all unveiling new technologies. Improved roadway performance is vital to ensuring longer life highways, minimised maintenance needs, reduced congestion and improved safety and several new systems will help boost quality, while minimising environmental impact.

The latest asphalt plant systems from firms such as Ammann, 1250 Astec, Bernardi Impianti and Fayat will help increase the volumes of recycled materials and reduce the need for fresh aggregate. More advanced controls can help asphalt producers use larger quantities of recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) in the mix as well as to deliver better quality product. Meanwhile the development of advanced warm mix technologies allow asphalt producers to reduce emissions and fuel consumption while supplying materials that allow increased time for transport and use.

The paving machines now come with more sophisticated controls and screeds and are also benefiting from advanced GPS-based machine control systems from 265 Leica Geosystems, 2122 Trimble and 342 Topcon. German firm 1228 MOBA is offering an innovative solution to paving quality in the shape of its sophisticated PAVE-IR system. This monitoring technology can be mounted on the rear of the screed and detect segregation of the mat in real time. The system checks the thermal profile of the mat as it is paved and this data can be viewed in real-time and also stored for analysis later on. Matching the information with GPS co-ordinates allows the contractor to generate a complete picture of a roadway during paving, identifying potential trouble spots early on.

Hybrid team wins Volvo Technology Award

Six engineers behind the technology used in Volvo's L220F Hybrid wheel loader have received the Volvo 2009 Technology Award.

The prize was presented for the team's development of what Volvo says is the world's first commercially viable hybrid solution for heavy vehicles. A prototype L220F Hybrid wheel loader will be on show at Intermat.

The team was behind the development of I-SAM (the Integrated Starter Alternator Motor), a combined starter, generator and drive motor.

Volvo says that when used as part of a parallel diesel-electric hybrid system it has the potential to reduce fuel consumption in wheel loaders by up to 50%, and up to 20% in trucks. This not only reduces fuel costs but also provides significant environmental benefits through lower emissions of carbon dioxide. The quiet and emission-free electric drive also improves environment conditions in the vehicle's surroundings.

The engineers, Anders Kroon, Jerker Lennevi, Joakim Lindström, Lars Carlhammar, Peter Jönsson and Christer Ehn, from different parts of the Volvo Group took part in the development of the I-SAM, and were represented at the prize ceremony at the Volvo Group's annual meeting in Sweden.Material segregation and uneven thermal gradients in the mat are two major causes of early roadway failure. Being able to identify these issues in real-time and take action will allow the contractor to prevent the need for costly reworking. The client will also be able to benefit in the shape of roadways that perform to specification and last longer, with fewer delays for subsequent repairs.
The latest compaction machines can compact asphalt more homogeneously, with new measurement and documentation capabilities due to the use of GPS receivers. The systems can record the number of passes and determine the mat temperature over an area of asphalt being compacted. These use the information to produce a priority map with colour codes that show the roller operator where to drive the machine. This allows for better compaction results even at the edges of an asphalt area. Various systems are being offered by leading compaction equipment firms such as 172 Bomag and 228 Hamm, with the promise of more to come.

Should the surface layer need to be removed, several new milling machines are being introduced. BOMAG and Volvo will both unveil new milling machine lines that offer higher comfort and higher performance than before. Vibration damped platforms and improved cutter and cutter drum designs ensure higher accuracy and productivity, while allowing the operator a more comfortable working environment. Better visibility of the cutting area allows accuracy to be further increased while improved maintenance access reduces downtime.

Using the latest cold milling technologies alongside a milling machine allows for further cost benefits to the contractor and client. According to Roadtec, payback times for its new cold milling train system will be particularly short and allow in-situ refurbishment of highway pavements cost effectively while providing a long life surface.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • High performance, high mobility of wheeled pavers
    February 14, 2012
    New generation wheeled pavers aimed at use in territories such as the UK, Italy, South Africa and Southern Germany are now coming to market. Pavers in these countries are often expected to be driven from one part of a site to another or for short distances, which is why the additional mobility of the wheeled machine is preferred in many instances over similarly-sized tracked models. This preference for wheeled units comes in spite of the greater stability offered by tracked machines. BOMAG, Caterpillar and
    Read More
  • Innovations in asphalt surfacing will deliver improvements
    June 20, 2017
    The first few months of 2017 have seen a flurry of new model introductions in the asphalt paving sector for both European and North American paving types - Mike Woof writes. Developments are being seen in both European and North American asphalt paving machines. The latest equipment will help boost productivity and quality for asphalt paving work, while many of the new machines also offer increased versatility. Innovations in telematics meanwhile are helping to ensure that new generation asphalt pavers also
    Read More
  • New milling and stabilisation technology is coming to market
    May 29, 2013
    An array of new developments in the market for road recycling and stabilisation machines as well as milling equipment is now on offer - Mike Woof reports. Major new developments are being seen in the sector for road recycling and stabilisation equipment, as well as milling machines. New models are coming to market that benefit from the latest low emission engine technology to meet the increasingly tough European and North American requirements.
    Read More
  • Asphalt paving design advances
    June 15, 2012
    A diverse array of advanced paver designs is now being offered in the asphalt paving sector – Mike Woof reports With the World of Asphalt and INTERMAT 2012 events having both taken place in recent months, a series of innovations have been introduced for the asphalt paving market. Developments have come to market that widen the array of both US and European asphalt paving systems and all the major manufacturers have developed new pavers and materials feeders to meet the latest emissions requirements. Demand
    Read More

Highlighted Content