Materials

An asphalt plant upgrade has helped boost long-term efficiency for a producer in southern Germany. The firm, Fiegl, based in Bavaria, invested in a new asphalt mixing plant four years ago. More recently, the firm also replaced the plant’s baghouse. The retrofit has since helped lower the plant’s emissions, noise output and fuel consumption. The time frame for the retrofit was tight because it was important to avoid lengthy downtime and production outages in mid-season. This meant that the changeover had to

Nearly a decade on from when Singapore’s Formula 1 (F1) track was first laid, Shell Bitumen’s high-performance binder, Shell Cariphalte, has been selected once more for resurfacing works. The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) sets stringent standards for the performance of its tracks, which are made even more challenging given Singapore’s climate. The road surface must remain constant, despite temperatures of up to 30oC and humidity levels above 70%. The 5km Marina Bay Street Circuit, wh

A Chinese road builder is planning to add recycling capabilities to its existing asphalt-mixing plants to meet new environmental guidelines. Another benefit of this approach is that the firm will also be able to substantially reduce its costs CSCEC Road & Bridge is a highly successful business in China and utilises Ammann Uniglobe Asphalt-Mixing Plants for its operations. The firm says that the results have been impressive and during one key road expansion project, one of its Uniglobe plants produced 700

Automated road repairs, using 3D printing, could save money and vastly reduce disruption, and researchers are already showing it’s possible - Kristina Smith reports 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

Construction materials group Boral and truck manufacturer Iveco have launched an aggregate surfacing truck in Australia. The Boral FMAS - Forward Moving Aggregate Spreader – will make the method of spray seal road construction in Australia much easier, according to the two companies. Until now, the process involved road crews working with reversing trucks that applied the aggregate through an elevated tipper body, increasing the safety risks to workers. To improve safety and maximise visibility, th

Nearly a decade on from when Singapore’s Formula 1 (F1) track was first laid, Shell Bitumen’s high-performance binder, Shell Cariphalte, has been selected once more for resurfacing works. The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) sets stringent standards for the performance of its tracks, which are made even more challenging given Singapore’s climate. The road surface must remain constant, despite temperatures of up to 30oC and humidity levels above 70%. The 5km Marina Bay Street Circuit, which

Italian pump manufacturer CIFA recently celebrated its 90th birthday with a special edition vehicle-mounted pump and a restyling of the company’s museum at its headquarters. The company, based in Senago, northern Italy, produced a special edition of truck-mounted pumps in three models, K42L, K45H and the new K47H, which will be introduced in the standard Carbotech series at a later date. CIFA says that the K47H model is the longest and lightest pump on the market and remains within the European legal limi

A German concrete producer, Thomas Beton, is boosting its operating efficiency by using the latest plants. The firm is now producing high-quality ready-mix for a range of projects in North Germany. Thomas Beton is strengthening its local presence and produces concrete at 26 facilities across the German states of Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg, Bremen and Lower Saxony. Producing materials closer to operating sites helps lower transportation distances and reduce logistics costs for its clients. When the firm w