Features

High performance markings are among the safety products used to guide traffic safely, but they must be tested and checked. Patrick Smith reports. Road construction zones, zebra crossings, tunnels and areas with frequent fog are particular focal points with regard to road user safety. This is why manufacturers, authorities and contractors are always eager to use innovative road markings and special studs or, where necessary, lane control devices to assist both drivers and pedestrians in all conditions, parti

This year has seen a wide array of innovative additions to the asphalt paving market - Mike Woof reports. The worldwide asphalt paving market is both competitive and complex, with an array of important players jostling for position. At the same time, paving controls have taken a great leap forward with the development of accurate 3D systems that can use a combination of laser and GPS positioning. Leica Geosystems, Topcon and Trimble have all introduced new packages for the asphalt paving sector and these

Both soil and asphalt compaction technologies will see key advances in 2010, writes Mike Woof. With each phase of regulations coming into force for engine and noise emissions, as well as operator vibration, manufacturers have been forced to improve, upgrade and update their compaction machines.

Trimble is widening its portfolio of Connected Site survey solutions for the field and office. These upgraded tools allow surveyors to collect, share and deliver data faster to improve accuracy, efficiency and productivity.

The first motorway connecting the cities of Hyderabad-Bangalore will be approximately 600km long, with three lanes in both directions. It will represent an important change in India as the country will benefit from a fast and greater flow of communication, transportation and commerce networks, which up until now have been carried out mainly by sea.

A huge project in Oman will see a proposed new terminal at Muscat International Airport, which has been budgeted at US$1.17 billion, completed by 2014. It will have the capacity to handle 12 million passengers annually, and further expansions planned by The Ministry of Transport and Communication in three subsequent phases will ultimately boost the airport’s capacity to 48 million passengers annually by 2050.

Work is continuing to upgrade Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA), India's largest airport in Mumbai, the country's largest city.

In the US, state DOTs are preparing for the upcoming reauthorisation battle in a tough economic and political climate. Set to expire by the end of the year, the bill is a critical funding source for many transportation projects in the US. However transportation officials in the US are facing a tough battle as the political and economic climate has changed considerably since the last reauthorisation was passed, shortly after President Obama's inauguration in January 2009. Since then, the recession has contin

Leica Geosystems is offering a broad spread of new packages and hardware that will deliver improved performance to users. The firmware 2.0 product is said to add powerful new capabilities to the Leica ScanStation C10, the industry's most popular 3D laser scanner for as-built and topographic surveys. This further increases the productivity and versatility of the fully integrated, cable-less ScanStation C10. A new Setup facility lets users take advantage of known survey points and backsighting, while remote,

Personnel using Spectra Precision FOCUS solutions can now benefit from a more robust set of tools. This field software provides a wide array of tools to cope with an array of survey and construction projects. One key new feature is the LandXML Road support for laying out engineering and road profile elements, as this can improve dataflow and efficiency on site. In addition, external data streaming for the output of measurement and positional data from Survey Pro in an XML output means that data can be adapt

The UK's Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) is now offering an updated version of its Driver Profiler package. Called Driver Profiler 20:20, this package is designed to assess whether a driver is a low, medium or high-risk by measuring psychometric, demographic and behavioural factors that influence safety. Using the package allows firms to identify drivers in need of further training and make informed decisions as to what is required. The system makes it possible to target specific train

Bentley Systems remains bullish with a healthy financial performance and continued investment in research and development, reports Mike Woof. The State Geological Institute of Dionyz Stur in Slovakia won an award in the Bentley Systems Be Inspired event's geotechnical category for an innovative project to log and analyse an area of the country's geology. As a leading player in the construction software sector, Bentley Systems is benefiting from growth in infrastructure investment worldwide. And despite the

Today’s highways require high performance materials, and this means rigorous testing as Patrick Smith reports Highways are under greater pressure than ever today and asphalts have to grant high performances in order to withstand traffic and meet the standards. Studying the plastic permanent deformations in hot mix asphalt (HMA) is very important to obtain useful information for mix designers as an appropriate mix design will reduce the formation of unevenness on road surface. To investigate the effect of mi

The second major phase of a north-south motorway in Poland is well underway. It will reduce congestion and improve safety as Patrick Smith reports Before the whistle blows to herald the start of Euro 2012, Poland's main seaport Gdansk will boast new roads, a new airport and a new stadium. The historic city in the north of the country on the Baltic coast will be one of the venues for football's 14th European Championship, being co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine.