Skip to main content

Removing runway rubber

When Dubai Airport contacted Waterblasting Technologies it faced a number of challenges.
February 20, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
When Dubai Airport contacted Waterblasting Technologies it faced a number of challenges.

One was finding a waterblasting system that would operate successfully in the 42º-52ºC daylight heat of the summer and also to find the fastest and most productive waterblasting system because of very limited runway closure time.

Chemicals, shotblasting and other waterblasting equipment had been tried on the runways, but eventually engineers and management chose the Stripe Hog SH8000T manufactured by 362 Waterblasting Technologies.

The system, which can be built on a variety of truck chassis, uses needle sharp water jets to quickly remove all types of roadway and airfield marking paint as well as runway rubber deposit build-up.

According to the company the Dubai airport runways is probably the most challenging rubber removal environment in the world with an average of 800-plus movements a day with summer-time peaks of 1,100/day and an average of only 5-10 days of rain each year.

"With the ability to remove runway rubber deposits on average of 1,672m²/hour and the ability to operate in the extreme heat without breaking down, the SH8000T became the product of choice for the Dubai airport," says Waterblasting Technologies, which also offers the SH8000T or the new SH8000R with optional, on-board water recycling.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Fast repair for key Cairo road
    July 14, 2015
    Fast repair of Cairo’s busy urban highway has been achieved using paving equipment. And MOBA levelling technology played an important role in ensuring finish quality met requirements. Cairo is Egypt’s fast-growing capital city, with an estimated population of around 20 million living in its catchment area. The city’s fast growth rate however has placed enormous demands on its infrastructure, with transportation creaking under the strain. An increasing numbers of people use the roads in and around Cairo ev
  • Meeting the challenge of desert runway resurfacing
    February 8, 2012
    Ferocious daytime temperatures can provide a tough challenge to construction firms working in desert conditions in Egypt's south. Despite the high daytime temperatures however, Egyptian contractor Orascom has managed to complete an airport project on budget and ahead of schedule, while meeting the client's tight specifications.
  • Meeting the challenge of desert runway resurfacing
    April 13, 2012
    Ferocious daytime temperatures can provide a tough challenge to construction firms working in desert conditions in Egypt's south. Despite the high daytime temperatures however, Egyptian contractor Orascom has managed to complete an airport project on budget and ahead of schedule, while meeting the client's tight specifications. The firm has just completed the project to revamp Suhag Airport in the south of the country. This airport now features a new runway, taxiways and aircraft hard standing, as well as n
  • Brokk offers painless bridge work
    February 10, 2020
    Peter Bigwood* makes the case for using remote-controlled demolition machines to demolish bridge decks