Features

Reducing asphalt plant downtime
December 12, 2018
How asphalt plant control add-ons make operation easier while reducing costly downtime - *Carlos Cardenas The word downtime might as well be a curse word in the asphalt production industry. As any operator will say, unplanned plant shutdowns can end up costing a producer heavily in lost production, not to mention a line of unhappy truck drivers and asphalt customers. The key is to get ahead of the problem and spot issues before they skyrocket in severity. Fortunately, some asphalt plant manufacturers offe
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IRF data 2018: Europe sees a decrease in road expenditure and road maintenance expenditure
December 11, 2018
The IRF World Road Statistics (WRS) 2018 edition has just been released. First analysis of the data on road expenditure and road maintenance expenditure in Europe shows a decrease of 11% and 8%, respectively, for the period of 2011 to 2016. Investing in roads and their maintenance is essential for economic growth and the mobility of a region. Maintenance by itself is crucial since poorly maintained roads lead to a downfall of the road network value, resulting in higher future costs related to road safety,
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Norway’s massive Rogfast Tunnel project
December 11, 2018
The world's longest and deepest road tunnel is underway in western Norway - Adrian Greeman reports
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Help is on the way: RoadResource.org
November 29, 2018
RoadResource.org as a go-to website for surfacing information is now live, explains Doug Hogue, of VSS Macropaver When RoadResouce.org went live – quietly - in July it was the end of two years of hard work by three US associations for pavement preservation. But there was no grand party or ceremonial pushing of the “go live” button, says Doug Hogue, vice president and general manager of VSS Macropaver. “For all of us in the industry July is a busy period that left little time to celebrate on the ope
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Road repairs take to the air
November 29, 2018
Automated road repairs using 3D printing could save money and reduce disruption, reports Kristina Smith It’s the middle of the night and in the street below a team is busy carrying out repairs to the road surface. But there isn’t a human in sight. A road-repair drone has landed at the site of a crack and a 3D asphalt printer is now busy filling in that crack. A group of traffic cone drones have positioned themselves around the repair location to protect the repair drone and divert traffic around it.
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Shaking all over: controlled frequency vibration for concrete
November 28, 2018
The use of controlled frequency vibration for concrete continues to grow, writes Paul Jaworski Controlled frequency vibration (CFV) technology has been around since the mid-1990s for concrete pavement applications. The technology has seen a gradual increase in acceptance, particularly in certain applications. For the 0- to 37mm (1.5”) slump pavement mix designs, many contractors were experiencing material separation due to speeds over 8,000vibrations/minute (VPM). With the wide variability of concrete
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Soil improvement vs stabilisation: Wirtgen’s WR 250 in the US
November 28, 2018
Many invitations to tender continue to specify that the soil is to be exchanged. However, soil stabilisation is fast becoming a preferred option when it comes to ensuring the load-bearing capacity and quality of soil in preparation for road construction. The targeted addition of stabilising agents can help reduce the moisture content of soil, which is vital for roadworks. Compared to exchanging the entire soil, soil stabilisation is an economical and resource-saving method. Cost savings result from simpl
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Eurovia meets the “100% Recyclee” RAP challenge on a French motorway
November 22, 2018
Eurovia says that it has successfully paved a 1km stretch of a French motorway using 100% recycled asphalt pavement – a global first for RAP.
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On stable ground with reclaimer/stabilisers
November 6, 2018
Sophisticated reclaimer/stabiliser equipment from Roadtec has been used to provide a base for a large car parking area and industrial building in the US state of Indiana. The ground in the area is well-suited to agriculture, however this is less well-suited to construction. As a result the developer decided to use a large-scale soil stabilising approach so as to ensure that the area would make a stable base for the project. Local contractor Stabilization Services was brought in to prepare the ground. The
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Preparing a raceway with milling machinery
November 6, 2018
Contractor Continental Milling has played an important role in refurbishing the famous Pikes Peak Highway route in the US state of Colorado Working as a subcontractor for the Kiewit Corporation on the mill and overlay project, the Continental Milling crew was responsible for milling patches up to 213.4m long on the winding, two-lane highway known for its switchback turns and scenic vistas. The work was needed to prepare the route for the annual Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. Pikes Peak Highway fea
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Brazil roads repaired with Wirtgen equipment
November 6, 2018
A large milling machine from Wirtgen has been used to help repair busy roads in the vicinity of São Paulo in Brazil. The roads provide important transport connections as they link São Paulo with Santos, Brazil’s largest port. The Anchieta-Imigrantes highway system provides the main link between the metropolitan region of São Paulo and the port of Santos, the busiest port in Latin America. Construction of the Anchieta highway began in 1947, with Imigrantes following at the start of the 1970s. Today the Anch
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Stabilising ground with new plant at high altitude
November 6, 2018
XCMG recently constructed the third high-speed, stabilised soil mixing plant XC800S at high altitude on Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the world's highest and largest plateau. The installation is for a project that forms part of China’s Grand Western Development and Belt and Road Initiative. This was a part of the demand for four cost-effective, high-speed stabilised soil mixing plants. To construct such a giant equipment on the plateau presented a huge challenge as the area has a harsh environment, with low temp
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Giving credence for Clearwater revival
October 29, 2018
The Minnesota Highway 24 Bridge spanning the Mississippi River at Clearwater is not a major structure. However, it does play a key role as the 376.4m-long bridge links US Highway 10 and Interstate 94. These routes run parallel on opposite sides of the Mississippi River and connect St Cloud to Minneapolis. There was a need to replace the old bridge, built in the 1950s, as it has been designated functionally obsolete, while it featured a restricted maximum load of 36.3tonnes. The price tag to demolish and
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Tunisia road rebuild with BOMAG machines
October 29, 2018
Machines from BOMAG have played an important role in the rebuilding of an important road link in Tunisia
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Testing and striping underway for Seattle’s Alaskan Way tunnel
October 18, 2018
Crews have been working flat out on the Alaskan Way Tunnel in Seattle to install and test thousands of components and 90 interconnected systems.The client, Washington State Department of Transportation, said that Seattle Tunnel Partners began installation inside the double-deck State Route 99 tunnel in March after crews completed construction of the upper and lower roadways. STP said that testing could be complete by late September and the tunnel could open as soon as this fall after an approximate three-w
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