Skip to main content

Runway rebuild for Detroit airport

A US contractor has employed equipment from Guntert & Zimmerman to help carry out a runway rebuild at Detroit Metro Airport The busy airport handles around 30 million passengers/year and the project had to be carried out in a tight timeframe as a result, with the paving crew working 16 hours/day to meet the schedule. Ajax Construction has been using its G&Z S850 paver for the work, which was needed as the existing concrete surface on runway 4L/22R had suffered from an alkali silica reaction (ASR). The
January 25, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
Equipment from G&Z has been used to rebuild a runway suffering from alkali silica reaction
A US contractor has employed equipment from 225 Guntert & Zimmerman to help carry out a runway rebuild at Detroit Metro Airport

The busy airport handles around 30 million passengers/year and the project had to be carried out in a tight timeframe as a result, with the paving crew working 16 hours/day to meet the schedule.

Ajax Construction has been using its G&Z S850 paver for the work, which was needed as the existing concrete surface on runway 4L/22R had suffered from an alkali silica reaction (ASR). The 3km long by 46m wide runway had to be replaced, using a total of 170,438m3 of PCC concrete. The 457mm of crushed aggregate base for the concrete runway was retained however as the base for the new concrete surface. The paver was used along with texture cure equipment from 218 GOMACO and Guntert & Zimmerman for the project as well as 2122 Trimble stringless machine control technology, so as to ensure the surface would meet the tight specifications of the runway project.

The runway was closed for the work and the old concrete was milled out to a depth of 432mm, along with 75mm of the 228m bituminous base underneath, leaving the 457mm crushed aggregate base untouched. Paving was carried out in multiple passes to a width of 5.7m, with 510mm dowel bars also being used. The project also called for full depth reclamation of the asphalt shoulders and their aggregate base structures, and their replacement with new layers. New 127mm deep asphalt shoulders were constructed on top of 228mm aggregate base structures on either side of the runway, along with underdrain improvements to optimise water removal after heavy rain showers.

Other work included installing new, high efficiency LED runway lighting for the resurfaced runway as well as new markings and security fencing.

There is still a portion of the work for the airport to be carried out in 2017 and this will involve additional paving for some taxiways and parking areas.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Volvo CE upgrades key asphalt paver models
    December 13, 2018
    Volvo CE is upgrading its key asphalt paver models with the addition of its latest generation technology. The company is now fitting the sophisticated EPMIII electronic pavement management system to its new generation P6820D. This machine is also equipped with the new PaveAssist package, which allows real-time monitoring of machine parameters. The P6820D replaces the earlier C series machine, with power from the latest generation Volvo D6 engine rated at 140KW, and which meets the Stage IV/Tier 4 Final em
  • Aggregate Industries lightens the load for the Acton Swing Bridge
    October 2, 2018
    Aggregates Industries recently lightened the load for the 73m-long bow string truss Acton Swing Bridge in England. When opened in 1933, it was the first floating swing bridge in the UK – floating on a pontoon. The 84-year-old bridge, which is cared for by the Canal & River Trust charity, carries the busy A49 road over the River Weaver Navigation, in the county of Cheshire. A recent €1.7 million complete refurbishment included strengthening works to the underside of the bridge as well as improvements to its
  • Versatile, accurate asphalt paving machines
    February 28, 2012
    A north German paving contractor is now relying on Vögele pavers for all of its operation. Gröschler is a group of four construction companies in northern Germany. The jobs Gröschler undertake for their customers range from narrow cycle paths to wide highways and it now has six Vögele pavers in its fleet, the tracked SUPER 1300-2, SUPER 1600-2, SUPER 1800-2 and SUPER 1900-2 pavers, as well as two wheeled SUPER 1603-2 and SUPER 1803-2 pavers. One job took the Gröschler team to Versmold, 30km west of Bielefel
  • Degaroute skipline markings
    May 6, 2016
    Of the 8,050km of tollway roads in the United States, the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority manages 460km of them As part of the maintenance programme for this network of five highways, the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority has partnered with Applied Research Associates to manage and monitor the performance of all their pavement marking programmes, providing recommendations for striping projects.