Pavement Maintenance & Reconstruction August/September 2015

How to Buy a Diaphragm Pump

Pavement Awards Entries Due Oct. 1

How to Let Sweeper Wear Parts Work for You

Page 32

Page 6

Page 38

PAVEMENT MAINTENANCE & RECONSTRUCTION www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

INTRODUCING

Intelligent Compaction

SPECIAL REPORT

Page 26

Why Stripers Should Charge for Surface Preparation Page 50

Finesse Paving:

Delicate Work in a Michigan Sculpture Garden Page 12

PAVING Logistical Paving:

Preservation Paving:

Page 16

Page 22

How to Fix an Airport Runway

How to Work with Thin Overlays

August/September 2015

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CONFIDENCE INSIDE EVERY PRODUCT We understand that you are perceived, in part, by the products you install. GemSeal® pavement products and our people are the most consistent in the industry. Our solutions will make your business stand out because we help you perform at your best, with results that exceed expectations on every jobsite. With nearly 60 years of experience researching, developing, and sourcing superior pavement preservation products, GemSeal is the most trusted name in the industry.

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Contents

August/September 2015

■ ON THE COVER

■ FEATURES 12 When Paving is a

Delicate Matter

Superior Asphalt paves delicate trails around a Michigan sculpture garden.

16 How to Fix an

Airport Runway

Planning, jobsite logistics and crew support land Summers-Taylor a NAPA award.

Paver operator Tom Nevers, owner of Precision Asphalt Maintenance, Inc., Slinger, WI, uses Carlson Paving Products’ CP75 commercial class paver to place 75 tons of hot mix asphalt in a 3-in. lift on a Germantown, WI, driveway.

The paver features a 74-hp Cummins Tier 4i engine, an electrically heated EZC813 screed with standard paving width of 8-13 ft., and screed-mounted controls. Photo courtesy of Carlson Paving Products, Tacoma, WA.

Leading Your Employees in the “Dog Days” and Beyond

6 Hot Mix

65 NAPSA Report

Are We On Track?

65 WSA Update

Trending Up: Municipal Sweeping

Pavement Awards due Oct. 1

8 This Just In

66 PCTC Column

Sealcoating Study Moves Ahead

Select New Products and Upgrades

67 Technology Update

Big Blowers Can Ease Pavement Preparation

10 NPE Notebook

Labor a Focus at 2016 Expo

42 Pavement Profit Center

68 Contractor Snapshot Hartz Sealcoating

56 Marketlink Classified Ads

69 Advertiser Index

64 Your Business Matters

70 Tailgate Talk

Maximize Your Bottom Line

6

Vol. 30, No. 6 August/September 2015

with Thinlays

Thin asphalt overlays are gaining momentum in the industry and need to be treated differently than typical overlays.

26 Intelligent Compaction

■ DEPARTMENTS 4 Editorial

22 How to Work

Motivating Down the Stretch!

Can Improve Your Bottom Line

The latest IC technology can help contractors save time, reduce fuel consumption, improve job quality and increase their ROI.

32 How to Buy a

Diaphragm Pump

Consider more than initial pump cost when making your selection.

38 Contractors’ Choice How to let sweeper wear parts work for you.

Special Report 50 Why stripers should charge for surface preparation.

68

Published and copyrighted 2014 by AC Business Media Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher.

Subscription policy: Individual subscriptions are available without charge in the U.S. only to pavement maintenance contractors, producers and government employees involved in paving or pavement maintenance; dealers, and distributors of pavement maintenance equipment or materials; and others with similar business activities. Complete the subscription form at www. forconstructionpros.com or use your company letterhead giving all the information requested. Publisher reserves the right to reject nonqualified subscribers. One year subscriptions for nonqualified individuals: $35.00 U.S.A., $60.00 Canada and Mexico, and $85.00 all other countries (payable in U.S. funds, drawn on U.S. bank). Single copies available (prepaid only) $10.00 each (U.S., Canada & Mexico), $15.00 each (International). Pavement Maintenance & Reconstruction (ISSN 1098-5875), is published eight times per year: January, February, March/April, May, June/July, August/September, October/November, December. Periodicals postage paid at Fort Atkinson, WI and additional entry offices.

POSTMASTER: Please send change of address to Pavement, PO Box 3605, Northbrook, IL 60065-3605. Printed in the USA. Canada Post PM40612608. Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to: Pavement Maintenance & Reconstruction, PO Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2.

PAVEMENT MAINTENANCE & RECONSTRUCTION is proudly supported by these associations:

www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement • PAVEMENT • August/September 2015 3

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Editorial

By Allan Heydorn

Leading Your Employees in the “Dog Days” and Beyond

I

n the midst of the “dog days of summer” you’re pushing to get in as many days as you can and as many hours in those days to keep your customers happy and get their work done. Plus, you want to get that revenue in your pocket because much of that post-Labor Day revenue falls to the bottom line.

There’s no question contractors push to get through the end of the season.

In Tailgate Talk (page 70), Pinnacle Development Group’s Brad Humphrey discusses the importance of keeping employees fresh and motivated through the season and offers eight tips to help make that happen.

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At the upcoming National Pavement Expo, Jan. 27-30 in Charlotte, NC, we’ve asked Brad to bring his “Boot Camp Plus: Taking the Next Step in Leadership” to NPE attendees. And because this Boot Camp is more intense, NPE has devoted an entire day to it – so it takes place on Jan. 26 as a

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• PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Your Reputation.

You put it on the line every day.

© 2015, Elgin Sweeper Company

Don’t risk it with unreliable equipment.

As a contractor, you never know where the road ahead leads - millings, construction sites, permeable pavement, general municipal sweeping. One thing is for sure, you need a sweeper you can count on and a company that backs it up. Elgin Sweeper products are reliable work-horses, with nationwide factory trained dealers for service, parts and training – day in and day out.

Elgin sweepers can help boost your business and your reputation. For a demo or to learn more, call your Elgin dealer or visit elginsweeper.com.

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Hot Mix

Murren named CFO, Soule named President at Ennis-Flint

Ennis-Flint, Thomasville, NC, has named Michael Murren CFO and Matt Soule President, Americas.

Murren, who has 30 years’ experience in the financial area, will manage the financial aspects of Ennis-Flint’s organization and will be based out of the Thomasville, NC headquarters.

Soule, who previously held the role of CFO, will focus on managing the day-to-day activities of the North American operations. Building upon his comprehensive financial knowledge, Soule will also play a key role in strategic planning and development as Ennis-Flint continues global market expansion, offering products and services to the traffic safety industry.

Both Murren and Soule will report directly to Steve Vetter, CEO.

Commercial Drone Usage Rules on to Next Step The comment period has closed on a proposed Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) framework of regulations that would allow routine use of certain small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). The framework is designed to maintain flexibility to accommodate today’s aviation system and future technological innovations.

Pavement Awards Deadline is October 1!

Entries are still being accepted for the 2016 Pavement Awards, sponsored

by Pavement Maintenance & Reconstruction, according to Amy Schwandt, publisher. She said awards will be presented in the following categories: • Alan Curtis Industry Service Award • Pavement Contractor of the Year Award • Pavement Sweeper of the Year Award • Pavement Hall of Fame • Pavement Parking Lot Paving Award • Pavement Paving Award (non-parking lot)

NiteHawk Open House Helps Disabled Vets A June Open House at NiteHawk Sweepers, part of the Alamo Group, introduced more than 150 people to the manufacturer’s new 28,000-sq.-ft. complex (bottom, right). The 1.7-acre facility, which is twice the size of the original location, will serve as the company headquarters and will manufacture Raptor and Osprey sweepers as well as alternative fuel systems. NiteHawk used the open house opportunity to raise money for Disabled American Veterans (www.dav.org) by selling special NiteHawk/DAV apparel.

The new NiteHawk facility is located at 19713 58th Place S., Kent, WA. ■ In front of the NiteHawk’s camouflage sweeper (which raised $1500 for DAV) are (from left) Tracy Day, President, NiteHawk Sweepers; Bob Anderson, President, DavidsonMacri Sweeping; Robert Lougee, DAV; Bill Centers, U.S. Navy Rear Admiral, retired; Ron Robinson, CEO and President, Alamo Group; Jeff Leonard, Vice President, Alamo Group.

The FAA’s proposed safety rules are for small UAS (under 55 lbs.) conducting non-recreational operations.

The rules limit flights to daylight and visual-line-of-sight operations. The rules also address height restrictions, operator certification, optional use of a visual observer, aircraft registration and marking, and operational limits • Pavement Sealcoating & Striping Award (Large Job) • Pavement Sealcoating & Striping Award (Small Job) • Pavement “Good Neighbor” Award The 2016 Pavement Awards recipients will be announced at the 2016 National Pavement Expo in Charlotte, Jan. 27-30.

For more details, including specific evaluation criteria, and to enter visit www.ForConstructionPros.com/ PavementAwards. Deadline for entries is October 1.

designed to minimize risk to other aircraft as well as people and property on the ground.

Proposed limitations include: • A small UAS operator must always see and avoid manned aircraft. If risk of collision, the UAS operator must be the first to maneuver away.

• The operator must discontinue flight when continuing would pose a hazard to other aircraft, people or property.

• A small UAS operator must assess weather conditions, airspace restrictions and the location of people to lessen risks if he or she loses control of the UAS. • A small UAS may not fly over people, except those directly involved with the flight.

• Flights should be limited to 500 feet altitude and no faster than 100 mph.

• Operators must stay out of airport flight paths and restricted airspace areas, and obey any FAA Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs).

A 60-day comment period ended in April. ■

6 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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NPE Notebook |

By Allan Heydorn, Editor For details and to register visit www. nationalpavementexpo.com.

Labor a Focus of National Pavement Sessions to offer insights on hiring, Expo 2016 worker classification, safety and more

N

ational Pavement Expo’s 2016 fourday conference program offers a handful of sessions designed to help contractors and their team leaders make sure their employees are the company asset they need to be.

an update on key legal issues including tort liability and implications for worker’s compensation litigation.

You’ll take home proactive solutions for improving jobsite safety where permanent and temporary workers are present.”

“Temporary and Contingent Workers: The Weak Link in Your Safety Chain?” Friday, Jan. 29, 8:00-9:30 a.m.

Among the new employeerelated sessions is “Temporary and Contingent Workers: The Weak Link in Your Safety Chain?” presented by attorney Adele L. Abrams.

Abrams, who bills herself as “The Safety Lawyer,” says the paving and pavement maintenance and construction industries have seen a steady increase in the use of temporary and contingent workers.

But she says these workers get injured and killed at rates much higher than permanent employees, and the use of these short-term workers raise a variety of other legal issues.

As described in the session description, Abrams “will discuss the new US Department of Labor/OSHA enforcement focus on temporary/contingent worker safety and health, issues involving recordkeeping, worker training, PPE, and communication with temporary agencies and union hiring halls. Plus you’ll get

“Hiring and Developing Your Labor Force,” Wednesday, Jan. 27, 3:00-4:30 p.m.

Another timely issues is the finding, hiring and retention of quality workers. Associated General Contractors estimates that the construction industry lost more than 2 million skilled workers since 2006. That combined with more than 1 million workers expected to retire within 10 years has already caused concern for contractors – and the problem is expected to only get worse.

But Randy Larson, Purpose Contracting Asphalt, has made it a point to tackle the labor issue and in “Hiring and Developing Your Labor Force” Larson “will walk you through the process he uses to find, hire and develop the employees he wants in his company.

You’ll learn advertising tips, resume insights, and how (and where) to conduct the interview, how you can always be ‘trolling’ for new hires – and you’ll learn how it’s all worked. And once you’ve found the right

person, you’ll learn what that first day on the job should be like to make that person a long-term hire.”

But perhaps the most intriguing part of the session will be Larson’s outlining of an apprenticeship approach that Purpose Contracting has used to great success – and it’s an approach that any company can easily implement to find new hires.

Night Work: Tips to Aid Workers, Tips to Help Managers, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 3:00-4:30 p.m.

And then there’s night work.

This has always been in issue for sweeping contractors whose operators sweep parking lots when the rest of us are catching a few winks. But more and more customers are expecting contractors to work in the dark – and that requires special efforts by both managers and workers.

Bill Davis, Circadian Technologies Inc., who will present “Night Work: Tips to Aid Workers, Tips to Help Managers,” knows that contractors who work at night face issues of safety and liability, performance, morale and absenteeism. And that can affect a company’s profits as well as an operator’s life away from work.

In what Davis describes as a “solutions-oriented session,” contractors will learn specific steps to take to reduce the impact night work

Registration Open for NPE 2016 Registration for conferences and the exhibit floor for National Pavement Expo, Jan. 27-30, 2016 in Charlotte, NC is now open at www.nationalpavementexpo.com.

In addition to viewing descriptions of the more than 50 conference sessions (and the new Pre-Conference day-long Boot Camp Plus, “Taking the Next Step in Leadership,” presented

by Brad Humphrey, Pinnacle Development Group), contractors can view the exhibit floor plan, which is updated regularly as new exhibitors sign up.

Hotel registration also is open through official housing company, onPeak. Hotel rooms are limited and can be reserved through the website, by calling 800967-6163 or by sending an e-mail to NPE@onpeak.com.

has on workers. “Shiftwork policies and practices will be discussed and you’ll be introduced to new research that will affect how you manage your night operators.”

In addition, Davis will outline what management can do – and what workers themselves can do – to improve night worker’s onthe-job experience as well as their life away from work. ■

10 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Paving

By Jessica Stoikes, Associate Editor

Paving

When is a Delicate Paving trails around a renowned Michigan sculpture garden proved no easy task for Superior Asphalt

Y

ou normally wouldn’t connect a serene sculpture garden with intense asphalt paving, but when Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, MI sought to upgrade their 158acre campus, they called in Superior Asphalt, Grand Rapids, to do the work.

As one of the nation’s most significant sculpture and botanic experiences, Meijer Gardens includes Michigan’s largest tropical conservatory, five indoor theme gardens, outdoor gardens, nature trails and a boardwalk.

Last year when the Gardens began constructing an addition to their museum, a world-class Japanese garden, they called Superior Asphalt to resurface all of their existing parking lots.

12 August/September 2015

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Matter

They reached out to Superior again this year to expand their parking lots and resurface all of the pathways throughout the sculpture gardens and around the Japanese garden. The paths, most with 12 years on them, needed to be structurally and aesthetically upgraded. Meijer also needed the garden to look top notch for the opening of the Japanese garden as they entered a whole new level of presentation.

“Due to our history with Superior, we hired them again to top coat one more lot and resurface all of our Tram paths throughout the park in anticipation of the opening of our new Richard and Helen DeVos Japanese Garden,” says Ken Wenger, vice president of fixed operations and facilities at Meijer Gardens. “Due to rental and event obligations, we only had four days open to complete the work. May 18-19 for Lot D and May 26-27 for all of the tram paths, so the schedule was tight.”

The parking lot project addressed 160 parking spaces; the two mile long

■ As one of the nation’s most significant sculpture and botanic experiences, Meijer Gardens includes Michigan’s largest tropical conservatory; five indoor theme gardens; outdoor gardens, nature trails and a boardwalk. Getting equipment through there was no easy task.

tram path was an average of 18 ft. wide.

“Our challenge was that we are open 362 days a year and we try to not interrupt our guest’s visits at all,” Wenger says. “The parking lot was easy in that we have other lots to use, but the tram path affects our trams and walking guests. We were able to minimize the interruption in the park to six hours as Superior recognized our mission and did their very best to expedite the work.”

Communication is Key As you can imagine, maneuvering paving equipment around delicate flowers and sculptures would resemble several bulls running around in a small china shop.

Superior relied on communication with the staff at Meijer Gardens to ensure that

• PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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the work they were doing achieved the needs of the museum.

Rick Browley Sr., superintendent of operations, estimators Dave Van Putton and John Alonso, and Wenger worked together to set up a plan of attack and mapped out the areas to be paved.

Every detail was worked out prior to paving day.

“Most of the landscaping was done prior to our arrival,” says Rick Browley Jr., paving crew chief with Superior.

“Our estimators walked the path with Ken Wenger and pointed out any low branches that might be a problem for the trucks and paver to maneuver. All trimming had to be conducted by the Meijer Garden staff. The paving crew had someone walk ahead to make sure the trucks could maneuver safely and without interruption.”

Trucks loaded with asphalt had to slowly back their way down the path one at a time to the paver. The truck would have to exit the path completely before another could back its way up to the paver.

The paving crew utilized one BlawKnox Ingersoll Rand 5510 Paver on the job.

“The equipment used addressed the entire width of the path in one pass,” Wenger says. “No seams appeared and the final product looks great.”

Superior also used Caterpillar tandem vibratory rollers to complete compaction. The 3- and 5-ton rollers were chosen for the lighter operating weight.

“We did not want too heavy of a roller because the base underneath the pathway was unpredictable,” Browley Jr. says. “Too much compaction on this job was not ideal.”

“The pathway mix was not only selected for aesthetics, but to enhance the overall walking experience of the patrons,” Nate Voriganti, lab supervisor and quality control manager at Superior says.

Superior chose to use their 5E1 mix on this job. “This is one of our finer looking mixes,” Voriganti says. The mix

used has 15% recycled asphalt pavement (RAP). The mix is considered a fine, sandy mix with 3% air voids.

“5E1 creates a smooth surface and remains the rich looking black color for a longer period of time.”

Superior Asphalt was able to design and create the best mix possible at their Caledonia, MI plant, which opened

■ Estimators walked the path and pointed out any low branches that might be a problem for the trucks and paver to maneuver. All trimming had to be conducted by the Meijer Garden staff. The paving crew had someone walk ahead to make sure the trucks could maneuver safely and without interruption.

Aesthetic Mix Selection A standard 13a and 36a modified mix was used for the parking lot area. The mix that was selected for the pathway however, had to be a bit different.

■ “The equipment used addressed the entire width of the path in one pass,” Ken Wenger of Meijer Gardens says. “No seams appeared and the final product looks great.” www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement • PAVEMENT • August/September 2015 13

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Paving in 2010. This plant represents the first new asphalt manufacturing facility to be constructed in Michigan, on a newly permitted site, in 24 years.

“The addition of our hot mix asphalt (HMA) manufacturing facilities has allowed us to be in complete control over the quality of asphalt materials we supply to our paving crews and ultimately our customers,” Jeff Kresnak, owner of Superior says. “Our ability to pave driveway to highway, pathway to roadway, pothole to parking lot, makes us a unique paving company.”

Through constant communication, and respect for the job at hand, the completion of this project went smoothly and without delay.

“Our communication was timely and efficient addressing weather and schedule,” Wenger says. “They listened to our needs and made it happen. We continue to be impressed with the work ethic and

■ The park is open 362 days a year and Meijer did not want to interrupt guest’s visits. Through communication, Superior was able to minimize interruption in the park to just six hours.

sense of urgency displayed by Superior.

Part of it is the nature of the industry but I know of only a handful of companies that can accomplish one full years’ worth of work in only half a year.

“We have received numerous compliments about how nice the property looks. Patrons are appreciating a much smoother surface to walk on while enjoying the beautiful gardens.” ■

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Airport Paving

By Allan Heydorn, Editor

How to Fix an

Airport Runway Planning, jobsite logistics & crew support land SummersTaylor a NAPA award

A

ll contractors have worked under tight deadlines at one time or another, but last year’s runway rehabilitation

by Summers-Taylor Inc., Elizabethton, TN, of Tri-Cities Regional Airport was an extreme case. Summers-Taylor did such a great job on the twoweekend project that the contractor was recognized by the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA) with a 2015 Quality in Construction Award.

And while many contractors do work on airports, the nature of this job required a large, experienced contractor operating full-force during two 61-hour weekends. Even then, because of the narrow work windows and an unexpected weather delay, the outcome of the job was uncertain until the crew pulled off the site for the final time.

“This project was unique because the airport is big enough to have a good size runway but not big enough to have the redundancy of a second runway to keep it open while we did the work,” says Grant Summers, fourth generation president of Summers-Taylor Inc. The job centered on the

8,000-ft.-long, 150-ft.-wide Runway 5-23, which had a number of issues including surface cracking and drainage problems that needed to be taken care of through milling and overlay. In addition, Summers-Taylor corrected drainage issues and milled and paved taxiways, constructed 25-ft.-wide paved shoulders on each side of the runway, and adjusted 350 runway lights.

Ultimately Summers-Taylor crews placed 53,000 tons of mix over the two 61-hour weekends.

The project was a year in the planning and Summers says they needed all that time to orchestrate the tight logistics the job required. Had they missed the deadline either weekend, the contractor would have been subject to a penalty of $10,000 for every 15 minutes it was late – a potentially catastrophic hit on the project’s profitability.

“It certainly had the potential to be a profitable job, but basically it was going to be either good for us or really bad,” Summers says. “If we got done what we planned to get done, then it was going to be good. But if not then we were going to be paying liquidated damages of about $1 million a day and obviously we didn’t want to do that.”

Summers says the contractor has done a number of jobs under tight schedules – bridges and night work, for example – “but nothing like this with

■ Four paving crews operated in two shifts of 12 hours each. Each crew used a Roadtec 190 paver and Roadtec 2500 shuttle buggy, which was kept fed by 850 trucks delivering hot mix to the site nonstop throughout each weekend.

such significant liquidation damages, with the demands and specifications which the FAA requires. It was a certainly a challenge,” he says.

But Summers-Taylor knew how to tackle it.

A turnkey highway & heavy contractor, Summers-Taylor was started in 1932 and today employs 350 people and operates four hot mix plants and six concrete plants to serve its road, commercial and airport work. The contractor “sticks pretty close to home,” working in eastern Tennessee, western North Carolina and southwestern Virginia.

“Our crews were all very

excited to do a great job,” Summers says. “We explained how this was really a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we just said ‘let’s show people what we can do’.”

16 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Airport Paving “Both weekends we started at 7:00 p.m. on Friday and 9:00 a.m. Monday we had to be off because there was a plane scheduled to land at 9:05 Monday morning,” he says. “On the final Monday, we pulled off the site and a plane landed almost immediately.”

Redundancy & Shoulders First Summers says the contractor began planning for the work a full year out.

He says the complexity of the work combined with the narrow working window, tight FAA specifications and potential penalties required even more thorough and detailed preparation than the contractor normally makes.

One of their decisions was to begin work on the shoulders months in advance of the weekend shutdowns.

But even then Summers-Taylor crews had access to the airport only five hours a night starting at midnight, so even that work had to be well coordinated.

Shoulder construction required cutting 2 ft. deep alongside the runways then filling the cuts with stone and lowering 350 lighting cans beneath grade. Lighting cans were each marked with a GPS coordinate so the cans could be located once paving was done. Then the shoulders were paved with a 3-in. surface course 25 ft. wide during the weekend shutdowns.

Another key part of the planning was to create redundancies at the jobsite. “The amount of risk involved required that we create redundancies.

We couldn’t afford to shut down at all,” Summers says.

■ All rollers were vibratory (though not always used in vibratory mode) to provide added redundancy in case any roller went down.

Six rollers were on the job at all times, three for each paving train.

And the first backup was in hot mix asphalt production. Summers-Taylor ran the job out of two plants, both set up about a mile from the airport.

“The quarry we’re in is right next to airport and our flagship plant is there.

We also moved a portable drum plant next to our flagship location,” he says.

“That enabled us to run trucking from the same place and it also meant we were able to use the same aggregate throughout the job and that helped us with consistency.”

He says both plants ran nonstop for 50 hours each weekend, producing an average of 300 tons per hour (portable plant) and 350 tons per hour. Two other Summers-Taylor HMA plants – in Watauga, TN, (20 miles away) and Greeneville, TN, (40 miles) – were ready to go in case Summers-Taylor needed mix from another source.

In addition to backup HMA plants, Summers-Taylor readied backups for every piece of equipment on the job.

The subs hired also had backups for their equipment. Summers-Taylor had its mechanics on site with a variety of the more common replacement parts, and its dealers were at the ready to provide whatever else was needed.

Milling to Specification Because of the tight timeline, SummersTaylor front-loaded the schedule to get as much work done the first weekend as possible. “The plan always was to do all the milling and install all the base the first weekend, then pave the surface course and the shoulders the second weekend,” Summers says. “It turned out it was a good plan because we got unlucky with a weather front moving in from the Gulf the second week that cost us 12 hours. Luckily we had more fluff built in for that second week.”

He says a 200-person Summers-Taylor team swarmed the airport job starting at 7:00 p.m. Friday that first weekend, with milling the first step. Milling was done on the runway, on taxiway joints and on some areas of the taxiways that were cracked and past their serviceable life. They also milled across a smaller Runway 927 to make it easier to tie the two runways together.

“The taxiways were milled where areas were cracked and past their serviceable life, but mainly we just milled enough to make them flush with the runway,” Summers says.

Summers-Taylor relied on a milling subcontractor, Delta Contracting Co.,

■ Early focus on milling set the stage for the remainder of the job, ensuring not only that the quality was there and specs were met, but easing and speeding production. “Getting the milled surface correct was a very important aspect because once you do that you can just get on with the paving and you’re all set,” says Grant Summers.

“Otherwise you’re always chasing grade. We got a high degree of accuracy from the GPS mills in front.”

18 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Airport Paving Paris, TN, which operated five Wirtgen 210 mills that cut 7 ft., 2 in. wide – just about a perfect overlap for milling a 150-ft.-wide runway. He said the mills were staggered with a slight overlap.

“The width just worked out with 7 ft., 2-in.-wide mills covering the entire 150ft, width of the runway in four passes of the whole milling train,” he says.

Summers says using five of the same machines provided a consistency that helped the project.

Three mills – each equipped with GPS – lead the way and two remaining mills followed to clean up the joint areas. The three GPS mills enabled Summers-Taylor to bring the grade to the appropriate specification.

Summers-Taylor also brought in milling specialists Banks Construction, who used the Topcon system to provide an even greater degree of milling accuracy. Banks managed the satellite, base station and lasers, leapfrogging down the runway ahead of the mills to help mill operators know their targets.

And a surveyor followed right behind the mills to verify that the tolerances were achieved.

One area with drainage and cracking issues required 6 in. of milling, but for the most part pavement was milled 4 in. deep. Summers says the early focus on milling set the stage for the remainder of the job, ensuring not only that the quality was there and specs were met but easing and speeding production.

“Getting the milled surface correct was a very important aspect because once you do that, you can just get on with the paving and you’re all set,” Summers says. “Otherwise you’re always chasing grade. We got a high degree of accuracy from the GPS mills in front.”

Playing Catch-up Once the milling was well underway the paving began. Crews placed a 2.5-in. binder course over the project the first weekend, then placed a 1.5-in. surface course the second weekend (slightly thicker in areas milled 6 in.)

Summers-Taylor opted to run four paving crews in two shifts of 12 hours each. Each crew used a Roadtec 190 paver and Roadtec 2500 shuttle buggy, which was kept fed by 850 trucks delivering hot mix to the site nonstop throughout each weekend. Planning, organization of the trucking, and use of the shuttle buggy and experienced crews enabled Summers-Taylor to keep up with the combined plants production of 650 tons per hour.

“On the second weekend we did add a third paving crew out there to pave taxiways to catch up,” Summers says. “That’s about the only major adjustment we had to make as a result of the rain.”

He says a standard roller operation using Caterpillar and Hamm rollers

■ Strategic use of lighting enabled the crews to easily work through the weekend nights.

was used, a three-roller rolling pattern leading with the breakdown roller followed by a vibratory roller and a static finishing roller. All rollers were vibratory (though not always used in vibratory mode) to provide added redundancy in case any roller went down. Six rollers were on the job at all times, three for each paving train.

Summers-Taylor staggered the two pavers a few hundred feet apart so they weren’t crowding each other. Pavers were set up using fixed screed extensions to pave 15 ft. wide “because that gives us perfect multiples to pave 150 ft. wide.”

Ski poles (50 ft.) with sonic sensors were used for joint matching.

Summers says that coordination of the milling trucks and stockpiling trucks was a challenge and a lot of planning went

into the logistics, scheduling and routing of trucks into, through and out of the airport. Specific entrances and exits had to be used and thus, traffic patterns had to be followed so milling trucks and mix delivery trucks didn’t get in each other’s way – or in the way of working crews.

And trucks had to be routed so they didn’t cross any recently paved areas.

Once the trucking plan was set, the contractor held multiple coordination meetings to make sure trucking ran smoothly and on schedule. SummersTaylor brought in the primary trucking subcontractor, Claiborne Hauling, to help with logistics and even to direct truck traffic on site.

“We had a number of people working essentially as air traffic controllers for 80 to 90 trucks because that was something that could easily get out of control if it isn’t taken care of,” Summers says. He says the contractor conducted multiple coordination meetings with the “traffic controllers,” who were upper level management with the company. “We relied on superintendents and others who we felt could handle a fast-paced operation,” Summers says. “They did a great job.

“This was definitely an allconsuming job and was pretty much all hands on deck, so we didn’t do other work during those weekends.

During the weekend we pretty much had the whole company out there.”

Only 25% of each crew changed shifts at any one time so the work never stopped. “While crews were scheduled 12 hours on and 12 hours off, by the second week some crew members were working 14, 16 and even 18 hours a day because we knew and they knew we had to finish the job on time,” Summers says. Company management caught some shut-eye for an hour or so in the cabs of trucks.

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime project that we want to be able to point to.

This is definitely a marquee job for us,” Summers says. “We’re real proud of all our guys and the vast amount of work with the high level of quality needed.

They did a great job.” ■

20 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Paving

By Jessica Stoikes, Associate Editor

How to Work with

Thinlays

Thin asphalt overlays, designed specifically for preservation of existing pavements, are gaining momentum in the industry and need to be treated differently than typical overlays

A

s owners are continually trying to do more with less money, contractors are faced with the challenge to move away from new construction and shift towards cost-effective pavement preservation.

This is not a new phenomenon.

You’ve been preaching pavement preservation to your customers from day one as a means to extend the life of their asphalt investments. Preservation treatments should correct cracking, rutting and raveling. These treatments should also seal the surface to prevent intrusion of water and air.

But the most important quality of a

preservation treatment is that it needs to last. Long life allows the pavement manager to lower life cycle costs and optimize the performance of the entire pavement network.

However, most preservation treatments can only do so much. They do not add structural life to the pavement and once the pavement begins to fail beneath the surface, your customer is in trouble.

Enter the age of the overlay: Placing asphalt over what’s already on the ground to correct surface problems, add structural life and preserve the pavement.

“Pavements often fail because of cracking that starts at the bottom of the pavement layer,” says John Hickey from the Asphalt Pavement Association of Oregon. “That cracking works its way to the surface over time, which results in structural failure. If you increase the thickness of the pavement layer, the stresses at the bottom of the layer will be less. Increase the thickness enough, and the stresses will be small enough that they won’t cause cracking at the bottom.

The result is a perpetual pavement that will never fail from the bottom up.”

Thin asphalt overlays designed specifically for preservation, better known in the industry as thinlays, can be used

What Thinlays Do: • Improve ride quality • Reduce distresses • Maintain road geometrics • Reduce noise • Lower life cycle costs • Provide long lasting service life • Expected performance: 10 years or more on asphalt • If placed before extensive rehab required, fatigue life will be extended

to build a perpetual pavement 1 in. at a time, adding structural life with each inch.

Before the thinlay, most customers saw overlays as too costly of a pavement preservation treatment. As a response, the industry developed overlays that were thinner and more economical.

When to Use a Thinlay Thinlay treatments are meant to preserve pavements in fair to good condition, and timely application is the key to optimal success. According to pavement design principles, adding a 1-in. overlay on an existing 4-in. pavement designed for 20 years, can double the fatigue life.

22 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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The principles also show that a second 1-in. overlay placed on top of the first can double the fatigue life again, extending the fatigue life of the pavement to significantly more than 50 years.

“This holds true only if the overlay is done in time, meaning the structural integrity of the pavement has not reached a point where it is compromised beyond help,” Hickey says.

This means there are certain situations that prove better for thinlays than others. A pavement is a candidate for a thinlay if it has: • A raveling chip or seal or a worn slurry seal • Minor longitudinal/transverse cracking • Shallow rutting ≤ 0.5-in.

• Top-down cracking • Block cracking (must seal first) • Less than 20% moderate fatigue cracking (spot repair prior to Thinlay) • Limited vertical clearance or curb reveal Before completing a thinlay, the area must have a stable foundation. If there is poor drainage, those areas need to be addressed before paving.

As with any preservation treatment, the surface must be clear of dirt and silt

before application. A uniform tack coat must also be applied as it is essential for helping to create a bond between the existing surface and the newly applied asphalt surface.

If the existing surface is near the upper limits for cracking and rutting, milling may be required to achieve a uniform surface for the thinlay to be placed on.

Paving a thinlay can also be tricky as cooling can be an issue. Pavements become more difficult to compact as they cool and the paver can move quicker with thinner lifts. According to the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA), 1-in. of asphalt cools two times faster than a lift that’s 1.5-in. thick. For thinner lifts, NAPA recommends making sure the contractor has enough rollers on site to keep up with the paver.

“Thinlays will cool faster than a thick pavement layer, which means you need to have rollers right behind the paver,” Hickey says. “The bottom line is that once the pavement is on the ground, there needs to be enough rollers to keep up with the paver.”

Hickey says warm mix technology can also be used to help with compaction. And during compaction, you also should not use your roller on vibratory

mode if the lift is less than 1-in.

NAPA cautions that customers should have realistic expectations when it comes to thinlays. On roads, for example, only a 40-60% improvement in ride quality is expected.

“Thinlays may provide only a 40-60% improvement in ride quality, but that is compared to a 0% improvement in ride quality with other preservation treatments,” Hickey says.

“Although not as perfect as complete reconstruction, these treatments are much better than other preservation treatments.”

What to Mix The mix designs for thinlay applications are made specifically for pavement preservation. Aggregate gradations allow placement as thin as ¾-in. Binders and gradations are selected to optimize flexibility, durability and rut resistance.

The thinlay mix design criteria for preservation are generally: • Nominal max aggregate design =/< 1/3 lift thickness (for ¾-in. lift use ¼-in. or smaller mix) • Binder selected to optimize crack resistance (softest binder that passes rut test), polymers for highest demand areas

■ To keep costs down even further for customers, thinlay mix designs can include recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) and recycled asphalt shingles (RAS) and can be produced with warm mix technology to further enhance sustainable qualities. www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement • PAVEMENT • August/September 2015 23

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Paving

Annual Cost of Preservation Treatment 6,000 Annual Cost, S/lane-mile

• RAP and RAS combined with softer base binders to provide optimum value • Air voids (3.5-4%); Voids in Mineral Aggregate (VMA), 15-17%, Binder Replacement (35% max); avoid low VMA, high-dust mixes • RAS (5% max) Research has shown that the finer gradations used in thinlays are resistant to rutting and result in an impermeable pavement surface, which reduces the need to seal a thinlay.

To keep costs down even further for customers, these mix designs can include recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) and recycled asphalt shingles (RAS).

The National Center for Asphalt Technology and NAPA conducted research to develop high-performance and high recycle content thinlay mixes.

These mixes were designed to be placed as thin as ¾-in., provide excellent crack resistance and maximize recycled content. Softer binders were used to improve crack resistance and to offset the stiffening effects of the RAP/RAS. They found that softer binders in conjunction with higher RAP/RAS ensures

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rut resistance and durability.

“In fact, using the softer binders with higher RAP/RAS contents produced mixes with better durability in lab tests than the control mixes,” Hickey says.

Thinlays share many of the benefits seen in overlays and inlays: extended pavement life, smoother ride, an improvement in pavement strength, enhanced safety and responsible use of natural resources through reuse and recycling.

Microsurfacing

Thinlay

■ Thin overlays on asphalt are almost always the most cost effective pavement preservation treatment.

National Asphalt Pavement Association

However, be sure to evaluate the job at hand prior to recommending a thinlay to your customer and, as with any preservation treatment, be sure they understand what a realistic result will be for the thinlay. ■

Where Not to Use a Thinlay While thinlays can be a great tool for extending the life of a pavement, there are times when they should not be used. If there is already extensive patching and failures on the pavement, or the area is structurally deficient, a thinlay will not be of benefit to the pavement.

They should also be avoided when these circumstances are present: • Widespread deep rutting > 0.5 in. deep • Surface cracks wider than 3/8 in.

• Areas of extensive, deep (> 4 in.) patching (at > 20% the pavement is probably structurally inadequate) • More than 20% by area of the section has moderate to severe alligator cracking • Areas where layer debonding or subsurface stripping is suspected • Areas of severe bleeding/flushing (these need to be milled first)

■ While thinlays can be a great tool for extending the life of a pavement, there are times when they should not be used. If there is already extensive patching and failures on the pavement, or the area is structurally deficient, a thinlay will not be of benefit to the pavement.

24 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Intelligent Compaction

By Jessica Stoikes, Associate Editor

■ Many IC technologies use pass mapping to show where a roller has been on the mat and which areas still need attention.

Intelligent Compaction Can Improve Your Bottom Line The latest IC technology can help contractors save time, reduce fuel consumption, improve job quality and increase their ROI

I

ntelligent Compaction (IC) has been a buzzword in the construction industry since the 1980s. At that time, contractors were mainly using the technology to track and document their compaction efforts on the soil side. It wasn’t until the early 2000s that the US started adopting the technology for asphalt compaction due to a

push by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).

The push for this type of technology came as a result of under-performing pavements and a growing need for documented quality assurance.

“Asphalt pavements are designed to last a specific number of years,” says Fares Beainy, research engineer emerging technologies at Volvo Construction Equipment. “However, construction involves several stages that would shorten the designed life span if not performed properly. Compaction is the last and one of the most important phases that needs to be properly executed to ensure quality of the constructed pavement.”

This is exactly what IC helps contractors accomplish. The latest trends in IC

■ IC works by outfitting vibratory rollers with instrumentation that’s fed to a documentation and feedback control system that processes compaction data in real-time for the roller operator.

remove the guesswork from compaction, help contractors save time and money and also ensure pavement performance through quality documentation.

Real-Time Results One of the main benefits of equipping your rollers with IC technology is that that machine is giving you immediate feedback on your compactive efforts.

“The IC system removes the guesswork in asphalt and soil compaction since it gives you real-time information,” says Tim Hoffman, product manager,

26 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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heavy compaction at Atlas Copco. “It also tests the entire compacted surface, verifying the quality of compaction and maximizing operator productivity to ensure compaction quality.”

Real-time data allows for an immediate response to fix any problems before compaction is complete and the mat is compromised.

“IC systems can save contractors a considerable amount of time since they no longer need to do manual readings, and that can equate to a lot of labor costs over time,” Hoffman adds. “IC systems alert operators once they achieve optimal compaction, so they can continue moving through the project without slowing or stopping for workers to take and interpret samples. Also, because the system helps ensure operators reach the optimal stiffness on every square inch of the project, there is minimal risk of premature failures, which saves contractors costs associated with repairs.”

“The main reason why IC was developed is because we wanted to find out what the roller was actually measuring on the fly, and the operator could see if there were problems right away vs. waiting until someone came out and took a test to see how well things were getting compacted,” says Tim Kowalski, Hamm applications support manager at Wirtgen Americas.

“The biggest benefit to that is being able to see what you are doing in realtime and not just hoping you are doing the right thing while compacting,” Kowalski continues. “This system will help any operator do a better job.”

Better Jobs = Bonuses It’s no secret that contractors are driven by job bonuses. The possible incentive of gaining a monetary bonus with the use of IC is just another reason to equip your roller fleet with the technology.

“By giving the roller operator critical information — to know when spec densities have been achieved and to know when to stop compacting — this can most definitely lead to achieving maximum bonus on projects that pay bonuses for achieving specified densities,” says John Hood, director of sales, heavy

■ Atlas Copco’s intelligent compaction system is ideal for both asphalt and soil applications. Its touch-screen interface is also easy to navigate, keeping the operator’s attention on the worksite and the surroundings.

IC Lays a Healthy Base IC was initially developed to be used on soil compactors and the technology has progressed immensely since then; but a good pavement always starts with a solid base.

“IC, from a general perspective allows the machine operator to better understand his process,” says Dann Rawls with Caterpillar Inc. “In the past without IC, the operator was somewhat flying blind relative to the compaction process.

Now with the IC system, he has several options on what information is available, and how that information relative to the process is presented for use.”

Since 2006, Caterpillar has been offering IC technology on their soil compactors. These systems feature the Caterpillar Proprietary MDP (Machine Drive Power) measurement method, and improved machine integration.

“On our basic system, we present the operator with a running indication of the IC measurement value, much like the speedometer in your car or truck. This measurement value on pad foot and tamping foot soil compactors is the Caterpillar proprietary MDP method, and on smooth drum vibratory machines, we offer the option of an accelerometer based CMV (Compaction Meter Value) measurement method, or MDP.”

The MDP measurement method addresses some of the short comings of the Accelerometer-based measurement systems. With the accelerometerbased system, the machine must have a vibratory system and have that system active in order to generate a measurement value. In earthworks construction, there is a high percentage of cohesive soils that typically do not respond well to a vibratory compaction process. These soils are compacted by a kneading process with a pad foot or tamping foot machine.

“MDP essentially turns the machine into a real-time proof roller,” Rawls says.

“This gives the operator an indication of the relative stiffness of the soil by measuring the amount of power the machine is using to roll over the surface and converting that to a 0-150 value that is displayed to the operator, and if equipped, mapped and recorded for on board viewing and off board analysis.”

Rawls says the next step is a factory fit GPS mapping system featuring autonomous level accuracy allowing the operator to understand his coverage and geo reference the IC values. The final step is a full featured system with full RTK (Real Time Kinematic corrections) enabling centimeter level accuracy and the ability to wirelessly transmit data to the cloud for data analysis.

www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement • PAVEMENT • August/September 2015 27

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Intelligent Compaction equipment at BOMAG Americas, Inc. In addition, many federal and state agencies are beginning to require that contractors use IC technology on jobs.

“Yes, some jobs require an IC system,” Beainy says. “In addition, any contractor who is working on a project with a density specification and pay factor can benefit from the ability to get direct reporting on density calculations.

In-process and final density data is an important quality control metric. In addition, specifications that include Percent Within Limits (PWL) incentivizes close control of final density.”

Currently, IC technology is mandatory in approximately 20 states. However, in other states that do not require IC, having a reputation of success with the technology might be a unique selling proposition while competing against other contractors.

“IC systems can put contractors ahead of their competition and maximize their crews’ productivity,” Hoffman says. “More and more agencies consider contractors that are using IC systems because it contributes to a quality product and helps get projects done faster by enhancing operator productivity with its mapping capabilities.

“The sooner a contractor gains experience on the technology, the more proficiency he or she will have while bidding on future projects that might require intelligent compaction on rollers, such as airport runways or in states where the technology is mandatory.”

“If a contractor develops a reputation for delivering quality compaction results, and IC helps with this, then it is entirely possible for contractors to win more bids,” Hood adds.

Comparatively, if the technology can help you avoid penalties, all the more reason to implement IC. “These job bids are in millions of dollars and penalties can add up,” Beainy says. “This is related to reducing penalties caused by missing target densities. The return on investment could be quicker than one might think.”

More Productivity with Pass Mapping We know that under-compaction of an asphalt is bad; it leads to poor density numbers and an asphalt that will fail prematurely. Similarly, over-compaction of the asphalt can be just as detrimental to the success of the job, plus it is a waste of the operator’s time and your

■ Volvo IC offers pass mapping, temperature mapping and data storage features; Volvo IC with Density Direct includes real-time density mapping technology.

■ Offering easy operation, Economizer offers real-time material stiffness feedback to optimize compaction results.

money. IC puts a stop to that with pass mapping.

“Having that real-time information is critical to achieving compaction densities in as few passes as possible, saving time, fuel and money,” Hood says. “Achieving spec densities is temperature dependent, so rolling the asphalt in the desired temperature range allows the compactor to achieve densities in the prescribed number of passes. Having real-time density data allows the operator to know where more compaction is needed to reach spec densities and, more importantly, when to get off the section to prevent over compaction.”

Many IC technologies use pass mapping to show where a roller has been on the mat and which areas still need attention.

“Real-time pass mapping and relative stiffness data optimize operator effectiveness,” Hoffman says. “Pass mapping shows operators where they already made enough passes for optimal stiffness until the entire surface has been completed.”

This real-time temperature data allows the operator to stay within the compaction time window before the

28 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Intelligent Compaction asphalt material is too cold to compact.

“Pass mapping gives the operator the ability to track his progress and make sure of full compaction coverage of the pavement,” Beainy says.

“Pass mapping helps in the consistency of passes that should help the contractor get a more uniform compaction and density across the mat,” Kowalski adds. “More data equals more consistent rolling patterns that can reduce the number of passes and achieve more consistent densities across the mat, giving better rideability that translates into bonuses for the contractor.”

more economically, the contractor could bid a project lower to win more projects, which equals more money.”

Another means to save both fuel and time is by providing high-quality roadways that would last longer. “A longer life for a roadway means less road maintenance, which means less fuel consumed on the job, and by vehicles in traffic jams,” Beainy states.

Up to 20% Fuel Savings?

So what does it mean when your operators make fewer passes to achieve the desired results? Less fuel consumption, less wear on the machine and more time for them to work on other projects.

“IC has the potential to reduce the fuel consumption as it provides the operator with a quality measurement of the pavement that would allow the operator to know when the target is achieved,” Beainy says. “In some cases, they can perform a reduced number of passes and as a result consume less fuel and time.”

Many manufacturers are also implementing fuel-saving modes on their machines that can be switched on or off based on the needs of the job.

“IC systems can contribute to a reduction in fuel consumption by helping operators avoid making more passes than needed,” Hoffman says.

“The optional ECO Mode system on Atlas Copco machines also helps conserve fuel, especially with rollers featuring the rpm-management system, such as our large asphalt and soil rollers.

“ECO Mode reduces fuel consumption by as much as 20% by delivering to the roller only the amount of power that is necessary to operate at any given time,” he says. “So combining the two might have a significant impact on reducing fuel costs.”

“IC helps to achieve optimum compaction with fewer passes, so it allows contractors to be more cost efficient,” Hood adds. “By completing a project

Contractors wanting to learn more about Intelligent Compaction (IC) and wondering if the technology is a good fit for their business can find out at National Pavement Expo, Jan. 27-30, 2016 in Charlotte, NC. John Hood, BOMAG Americas, will discuss this “most important recent development in compaction.” Hood will explain how the use of vibratory rollers outfitted with a measurement system, computerized reporting, GPS mapping and even feedback controls, enables operators to monitor the compaction process in real time, making adjustments to improve density, compaction depth and even identify noncompactable areas. He’ll also discuss when the process is important to a job — and when it’s not.

“While IC equipment can potentially improve the mat and even improve crew productivity, it’s not a process that’s needed on every job – and IC rollers aren’t for every paving contractor,” according to the session description.

“In this session you’ll learn the details of IC as well as how it can benefit a paving crew – and your clients. You’ll also learn when IC rollers should be used on a job and when they might be overkill. Learn about this equipment that can potentially assist in providing outstanding compaction results – and find out if IC rollers should be part of your paving operation.”

“The Truth about Intelligent Compaction” (Session A-5) will be presented from 1:00-2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 27. For details or to register visit www.nationalpavementexpo.com.

NPE 2016 to Uncover “The Truth about Intelligent Compaction”

Easy Does It Even with all of the above benefits, contractors are still on the fence about implementation. Cost is one factor, but the complexity of the technology can seem daunting as well.

However, the IC technology of today has advanced to where it is very user-friendly. Many systems feature an easy-to-use, color touch-screen interface.

“Tablets are relatively easy to use because the operator can use their touch screen to navigate through systems or pull up multi-colored mapping data, including a weak area analysis, evib mapping, pass mapping and progress mapping,” Hoffman says.

“This helps them focus on compaction and their surroundings instead of hassling with bulky screens and button layouts.”

Operators can detach the tablet from its cradle from the operator’s platform to deter theft and to transfer data onto a PC at the end of the day. Contractors also can quickly set project parameters, including the compaction measurement value, using the touch screen, which alerts operators once they reach optimal compaction.

“The system is not difficult to learn,” Kowalski says. “We usually will have a full-day training course for not only the operator but the foreman, QC manager and superintendent. This is usually enough time to get them on their way and they feel much more comfortable about the system by the end of the day. The more they use it, the easier it becomes. This is a system that is staying around and is not going away. The benefits outweigh the initial cost of the equipment.”

“Think about it: What is the cost of guessing when optimum compaction is achieved? What is the cost of removal and replacement of material that’s been over compacted? We are trying to reach specified compaction densities without over compacting the material,” Hood says. “IC shows the operator when optimum compaction is achieved. It can prevent unnecessary extra passes, lower fuel consumption and save time and money for the contractor.” ■

30 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Sealcoating

By Dave Carson

How to Buy a

Diaphragm Pump Consider more than initial pump cost when making your selection

T

he sealcoating industry has long understood the need for reliable and robust equipment that can handle the harsh demands of daily use. Diaphragm pumps are one proven solution for sealcoaters (the other solution being piston pumps). Once you’ve decided diaphragm pumps are the system you want, it’s important to select the right pump, made of the right materials, and it’s essential you have in place proper preventive maintenance procedures. Otherwise, your company will experience increased downtime, resulting in additional labor costs and possible pump replacement. These costs erode profits and, in markets that are seasonally short, that can be catastrophic.

While some contractors make their pump purchase selection based on initial price only, the initial purchase price of a diaphragm pump can be as little as 5% of the overall cost of ownership.

When reviewing the true cost of owning any equipment, a company obviously needs to consider the purchase price (the initial investment). Other factors include: operating cost (energy used), installation and repair, availability and cost of aftermarket parts, and last and most important—the cost of downtime. Downtime is the hidden cost that won’t be found on a job estimate or submitted on an invoice. But if left unaddressed, downtime will cost much more than the pump itself, so reliable equipment selection and preventative maintenance is essential.

Pump Construction Make sure your diaphragm pump is made of material that can withstand the sealcoating industry and that will make sure the investment made in the

initial pump purchase is maximized.

The material of choice for sealcoating is aluminum construction, though pumps are available constructed of stainless steel or polypropylene. Hybrid pumps combining two construction materials are also available. Regardless if the sealer is refined coal tar, asphalt emulsion or acrylic, a pump that is compatible, cleanable and easy to repair is required.

Diaphragm pumps rely on two diaphragms moving back and forth by compressed air at a constant flow. Diaphragms are generally made of rubber or neoprene, though a higher-performance material is Hytrel, a brand of thermoplastic polyester elastomer that combines the characteristics of a highperformance elastomer and a flexible plastic. Hytrel diaphragms and balls have a wide temperature range (0°F – 240°F), with excellent durability and moderate abrasion resistance. General cycle life estimates are between 20 - 25 million cycles. A Hytrel diaphragm can be identified by its cream or tan color.

Always check the manufacturer’s chemical compatibility guide or work with a knowledgeable, value-added supplier.

Other than the diaphragm material, a key element of identifying increased reliability is the diaphragm type; dome vs. convoluted. A convoluted diaphragm can last as long as four times that of a traditional dome diaphragm, making it an obvious choice and should be considered as part of the purchasing decision.

Focus on Pump Technology Remember this: not every diaphragm pump is made the same or has the same ability to handle demanding applications.

To identify its reliability, the “heart” of the pump must be examined. The “heart” is the air motor which drives continuous cycles of the pump. There can be several correctable causes of poor performance that can be addressed with

■ While some contractors make their pump purchase selection based on initial price only, the initial purchase price of a diaphragm pump can be as little as 5% of the overall cost of ownership.

proper material selection and routine maintenance, but purchasing a brand with inferior air motor technology will increase your overall cost. There are three main issues: freezing, stalling and poor energy efficiency which are often due to an inadequate air-motor design.

Freezing. A chronic problem that causes the motor to seize up and fail, freezing occurs when compressed air expands and creates a severe decrease in pressure. As the air returns to atmospheric pressure, it turns extremely cold, freezing moisture in the air supply. This cold air causes ice particles to form and clog up the air motors internal components and muffler. The ice buildup will stall the pump, which will remain down until the ice is removed or melts.

The most effective solution is to use a pump that exhausts air from the chamber quickly. Diaphragm pumps should not allow exhaust to go through critical motor components, such as the spool valves. When this happens, the exhaust port becomes blocked with ice, causing the motor to slow down or completely stop. The most effective motor designs eliminate pump ice-up by protecting the major air valve from cold, wet, exhaust air. Internal components that divert exhaust air from the major air valve into an expansion chamber can dramatically increase pump reliability and remove the need for ice-preventive devices.

Stalling. Though diaphragm pump manufacturers often claim their product is “unstallable,” many pumps do a poor job of managing the pressure acting

32 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Sealcoating on their air valves. The best way to tell whether a pump will stall is to look at its air valve design.

Conventional valves feature a “balanced” design in which the valve is too evenly weighted. Air valves using this design often generate poor shift signals and over time, the valve centers with an equal pressure differential on both sides.

These pressures cancel each other out and the air valve does not shift, causing the pump to stall. Other pumps are susceptible to stalling during restart. When the fluid valves are shut off, pressure in the pump equalizes and can make it difficult to begin shifting the air valve again.

An “unbalanced” valve design can eliminate air valve centering. This air valve design features a large diameter on one end of the valve and a small diameter on the opposite end, creating the optimal pressure differential.

Because the valves are always partial toward one side, they do not center out and stall the pump, even under low air inlet pressures. Unbalanced valves reduce production loss and downtime by providing better shift signals and delivering faster trip-over with more flow.

Energy efficiency. Insufficient motor design also creates poor energy efficiency. In diaphragm pumps this means underperforming seals and valves. Many manufacturers utilize an O-ring configuration on spools to prevent air leakage, but this design often wears and creates a poor seal, creating air blow-by and reducing efficiency.

Blow-by is also caused by a metalto-metal lapped-fit valve design. This model utilizes a spool with a slightly smaller diameter than the bore it is in, creating a gap that allows compressed air to escape. Air leaks past the valve during operation in a dead-head condition, exhausting to the atmosphere and significantly decreasing energy efficiency.

Diaphragm pump motors can utilize a positive seal on the valve spool created

by U-cups to maximize energy efficiency. These prevent air leakage by providing a positive seal as the valve shifts.

Additionally, seal points should be made of solid materials (ceramic components are often best) where applicable to ensure longer life. Special materials,

such as over-molded sleeves, should be utilized to increase lubricity and reduce or eliminate wear in the valve mechanisms. These sorts of features can save hundreds of dollars each year per pump.

How to Decrease Downtime Proper and routine maintenance will provide a tangible payback for the time invested. Even doing the “little” things such as flushing out the pump and hose lines, while removing dry sealer or other debris, will help maximize the bottom line. Sealer left to dry within the pump can gum up the ball check-and-valve seat or even harden the diaphragms, limiting their ability to flex. Debris built up in the lines can eventually cause headaches, from diaphragm rupture to valve check issues, limiting peak performance.

Most brands offer repair kits for both the wet-end and air-end side of the pump. As rule of thumb, review the pump manual for complexity and get costs for the recommend spare part kits.

Brands that have focused on their airmotor design to be repairable often have less-expensive kits consisting of mainly O-rings and U-cups; other kits are two to three times more expensive and include major components like the air-motor housings and spools.

When repairing either the air-end or wet-end it is recommended to replace all parts in the kit, making the pump close to an as-new condition. The nominal amount saved by replacing only some parts in the kit will quickly dissolve as pump repair requirements increase.

Often overlooked when repairing the wet-end side (diaphragms, balls and O-rings) is the importance of replacing the valve seats. Kits typically do not come with the valve seats as different seat materials are provided based on specific application needs. But having your check balls and valve seats sealing properly are vital to pump performance.

If new check balls are unable to create a seal in worn-out valve seats, you will experience a reduction in flow rate, the ability to generate pressure and limited capability to pull a suction lift and/or the pump to self-prime.

Another component not to be ignored is the air quality coming into

NPE & PCTC to Offer Free Sealcoating Seminar The Pavement Coatings Technology Council (PCTC) will conduct and sponsor a free sealcoating seminar at National Pavement Expo, Jan. 27-30, 2016 in Charlotte, NC. The 90-minute session, “Talking to Property Managers about Sealcoat,” will be held from 8:00-9:30 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 29. It is free to all registered NPE attendees.

Anne LeHuray, PCTC executive director, said PCTC decided to develop a session specifically for NPE contractors to help them better “deliver the sealcoat message to property managers, including what concerns property managers might have and how best to address them.”

As part of the seminar description explains, “You’ll learn sealcoating ‘Best Management Practices’ that will improve your work in the field and enhance your reputation, and you’ll learn how to address the health and environmental issues that have dogged the sealcoating industry in recent years. You can make yourself more valuable to your property manager customers by becoming your market’s ‘sealcoating expert,’ so don’t miss this free opportunity to upgrade your sealcoating expertise.”

Contractors should sign up for the session (C-24) when registering, but will not be charged. To register or to read a complete description of “Talking to Property Managers about Sealcoat,” visit www.NationalPavementExpo.com.

the pump. Most manufacturers’ airmotor requires only clean, dry air without lubrication. Make sure air lines are bled regularly and to use a correctly sized air regulator with a filter. Filtering the incoming air will remove solid particles and extend pump operation. ■ Dave Carson is national sales manager for Burt Process Equipment, 100 Overlook Drive, Hamden, CT 06514; phone: 203287-1985; davecarson@burtprocess.com; www.burtprocess.com. Hytrel is a registered trademark of DuPont.

34 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Contractors’ Choice

By Allan Heydorn, Editor

How to Let Sweeper Wear Parts Work for You Timely replacement ensures quality sweeping & protection of your unit

W

ear parts on sweepers are viewed by most contractors simply as an annoying cost. But as manufacturers point out, those wear parts are designed to both improve the quality of the sweep and to protect the unit.

So proper management of wear parts involves monitoring, maintenance and timely replacement.

“Many of these parts are basically sacrificial. They’re designed to be replaced,” says Jim Adair, director of product management, Schwarze Industries. “When set up and used correctly and monitored with a regular maintenance program, most sweeper wear parts will be able to last their expected life or even longer.”

So you have to allow the wear parts to work for you. These parts are designed to assume abuse and to protect other more costly or more complex parts. Steve Dunning, technical training instructor, Elgin Sweeper, says to get the most value out of wear parts contractors need to replace them at the appropriate time. “By trying to save a few dollars delaying replacement of a part, you might be causing damage to another, larger or more expensive part that you may need to replace,” Dunning says.

Main and Gutter Brooms Main brooms move debris from the pavement to the conveyor or elevator where it is then carried to the hopper.

Dunning says that when new, main broom bristles are 12-13 in. long. Most sweeper manuals contain guidelines on what amount of broom wear is acceptable, but Dunning says that for optimal flicking action, Elgin recommends main broom replacement at about 6.5 in. long – the length of a dollar bill.

“Once the bristles on the main brooms of mechanical sweepers wear

■ Damaged curtains on air sweepers can cause a loss of air speed, impacting the air flow.

Worn, damaged, or improperly adjusted curtains can cause trailing of debris or reduced pickup.

to half their original length, the ability to flex properly and ‘flick’ debris is greatly reduced,” Dunning says. “A worn broom can cause trailing of debris, carry-over, and multiple passes in order to clean the surface.”

He says gutter brooms have two jobs – cleaning the gutter and moving the debris in front of the main broom.

“The length of a dollar bill is a helpful measurement tool to determine when it’s time to replace these side brooms – about 6.5 inches,” Dunning says. “If these brooms are too far out, they won’t put the debris in front of the main

broom, and you’ll see a trail of debris.

Assuring the gutter brooms are depositing the debris in front of the main broom is essential.”

Setting Broom Pressure “Down pressure of the brooms can greatly affect sweeping,” Dunning says.

“Too much down pressure can cause the brooms to “mop” the surface (pushing debris around), reducing flicking action and negatively affecting sweep quality.

As a rule of thumb, Elgin recommends setting the down pressure to the lowest setting that still picks up debris.”

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But broom pressure will need to vary depending on the work environment – sweeping millings vs. sweeping a parking lot, for example – so broom pressure needs to change too. “Setting the tensioning properly will enable you to get the longest life out of your bristles,” Adair says.

Today’s in-cab pneumatics make it easier for the operator to adjust the broom pressure – even on the fly.

That not only makes it more likely the operator will keep the pressure adjusted properly, it also extends broom life and improves sweeping quality.

But if your unit does not feature incab adjustment, Adair says the procedure to follow is: • Lower the broom onto the pavement • Spin the broom, then lift it up • View the pattern the broom left on the surface • Make adjustments accordingly When it’s time to replace brooms, it’s important that you’ve metered them so you can compare longevity. There are many different types of main brooms - tube brooms, strip brooms, wafer brooms, or cable-wrapped brooms - and it’s important that you compare the same broom types.

“When buying new brooms, make sure to compare apples to apples,” Dunning says. “Material type, bristle population (weight of the bristle material), and broom pitch (distance between bristles) are factors that affect broom performance and efficiency.”

Maintaining the Conveyor The broom’s job is to flick the debris from the pavement onto the rubber belt conveyor, where it is carried into the hopper. The conveyor requires daily inspection to check for tears, damage and tracking. Any torn or damaged belts should be replaced.

“Over-tensioning will stretch the fibers on the belt and it will break prematurely,” Adair says. “Not enough tension and it will slip and also break prematurely.”

Dunning says the conveyor belt also should be centered on the rollers and track during operation. “It’s also important to ensure that the belt cleats do not

hit the pan under the belt, as that will also damage the belt,” he says.

Because the conveyor’s job is to move debris, it’s important to clean them every day. And cleaning includes flushing the conveyor (and elevator) until clean.

“On conveyors, the most important place to clean is the lower roller, as that area typically holds debris,” Dunning says. “Using a 2-in. firehose with plenty of water is recommended. After cleaning, we recommend running the conveyor to dry it. A wet conveyor can cause sticking in some cases.”

Monitoring the Elevator While some sweepers incorporate conveyors, others feature elevators, which involve a number of squeegeetype flights on a pair of chains that squeegee the debris up the elevator pan. “The rubber squeegees must be close enough to the pan to move debris, and that requires some adjustment, as the squeegees are prone to wear,” Dunning says. “The chains also wear and stretch, which requires routine elevator adjustment. Overadjusting the chains may shorten the life of the elevator.”

Dunning says Elgin specifies a certain distance the chains should sag. “When the chains are within an inch of each

■ Open the inspection cover and regularly check the impeller to verify that it is clean and in good condition. A dirty impeller can become unbalanced. The impeller should be replaced when the vanes are worn to a knife-edge.

other in the middle, it’s time for the chain to be adjusted,” he says. “Overtightening can cause more stretching, which can shorten the life of the chain.”

Dunning says to ensure the best efficiency moving debris away from the main broom into the hopper, flights and chain sprockets should be replaced routinely. “Chain sprockets should be replaced before the teeth begin to ‘cup’,” he says. “Once sprockets begin to require frequent replacement, the chains have stretched and require replacement.”

■ The impeller is the most important part of any air sweeper. Elgin Sweeper recommends running the engine only as fast as needed to pick up the debris – in many cases, 15001800 RPM is sufficient. The slower the engine speed, the less fuel used, less carry-over of debris, and the longer the life of the impeller. www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement • PAVEMENT • August/September 2015 39

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Contractors’ Choice Dirt Shoes On each end of the main broom are the dirt (drag) shoes, made of steel, wearresistant alloy, carbide-filled or rubber.

“The shoes contain the debris in the main broom path and must be properly adjusted so the bristles fill to the edge of the shoe. They also should be adjusted to operate level and wear uniformly.

Shoes should be replaced when worn so they do not wear into their mountings,” Dunning says.

Adair, who recommends tungstencarbide shoes, adds that proper tensioning of the shoes affects both sweeping quality and shoe longevity. “You want the carbide to seal but you don’t want the shoes to carry the full weight. Proper tensioning creates the seal but reduces the weight on the shoe,” Adair says.

“That prolongs their life.”

Many contract sweepers try to extend the life of their dirt shoes by running them just a little longer than they should.

“Excessively worn or damaged dirt shoes will cause trailing and increased sweep passes,” Dunning says. “Excessively worn shoes can begin to wear into the parent material of the shoe mounting or even the pickup head itself. This may cause excessive marking of, or damage to, the street surface.”

Adair adds that allowing the shoe to wear too much could result in the failure of a larger component – rather than just of a part that is designed to wear and be replaced. “If you allow the carbide on the runners to wear too much you could get into the sweeping head itself, and that’s a more costly replacement than just replacing the carbide wear parts,” Adair says.

“Replace and adjust the pickup head shoes before they have worn through the abrasive material in the shoe,” Dunning says. “This ensures best debris pickup performance, best control of blow-out, and reduce pickup head damage.”

And when replacing drag shoes, the material you choose should be determined by the sweeping environment, cost and warranty.

“What tells the tale sometimes is the warranty,” Adair says. “Will they give you a one-year warranty because, if not, then you’re buying a drag shoe

Sweeper Maintenance

TIP #6 Use OEM parts when replacing

all the debris, especially in the corners.

Debris retains water, and water promotes rust, so cleaning the hopper is essential to ensuring a longer life for the sweeper.

curtains and flaps because OEM flaps come with pre-punched holes and a custom kit for a particular sweeper model will include all new nuts and bolts. Jim Adair recommends replacing all the hardware at the same time you replace any flaps because old hardware is liable to be rusted or weakened because of the abuse it’s taken.

TIP #3 Make sure the impeller is

TIP #7 Use proper tensioning on the

TIP #1 When cleaning an air sweeper, flush the suction nozzles with water. That will help water run through the system.

TIP #2 Open the hopper and clean out

properly flushed by directing a stream of water into the impeller intake on the hopper, or into the intake if the hopper is raised. This will clear the impeller of any carry over that can cause imbalance, reducing impeller and bearing life.

TIP #4 Because of the abrasive nature of the debris and the force it’s at when it comes into contact with the suction tubes, the hoses start wearing through and hole can be created in the hose.

Adair recommends rotating intake hoses one-quarter turn every 50 hours so the air is not concentrated on one area. Dunning says Elgin Sweeper recommends rotating hoses every 150 hours, alternating them between 180 degrees and 90 degrees, to even out the wear.

TIP #5 Don’t over-lubricate bearings.

Many people think more you lubricate the bearings the longer they will last. But Jim Adair points out that the more grease you use, the harder the hydraulics have to work because they have to push the bearings through all that grease. Overlubrication increases the temperature of the environment in which the bearings are working, which can shorten bearing life.

that’s probably not going to last a year.

And if they’re not going to last a year how much money are you investing in that part?”

Curtains & Flaps Curtains and flaps direct and control the air flow and help direct and contain debris beneath the unit. Damaged curtains on air sweepers can cause a loss of air speed, impacting the air flow; worn, damaged, or improperly adjusted curtains can cause trailing of debris or reduced pickup. So they require proper adjustment and condition.

springs so the sweeper head is level, not uneven. If spring tension on the head is uneven you will likely cause uneven wear on drag shoes, which will result in wear on the sweeper head. The end result is you will need to replace a larger, more expensive component – the sweeper head – than just the drag shoes.

TIP #8 Allow the wear parts to work for you. These parts are designed to assume the abuse and to protect other more costly or more complex parts.

TIP #9 Jim Adair says that when replacing rear flaps seek out a flap made of corded rubber which provides the greater stiffness needed for rear flaps.

TIP #10 Rely on water as a lubricant.

“Water helps the dirt shoes move freely on the ground, and helps lubricate the debris going up through the elevator on a mechanical sweeper, or the suction hoses on an air sweeper,” says Steve Dunning, Elgin Sweeper. “Water in the debris stream is extremely important for effective dust separation in the hopper.”

Adair says rear flaps need to be straight down while front flaps are more flexible and should trail back to allow the debris to come underneath. Front flaps are lighter weight and have lighter wear because there’s less tension on them against the ground. Rear flaps are stiffer and so they wear more.

Adair says that the type of sweeping dictates the wear of the flaps so contractors need to make sure to monitor wear and make adjustments as necessary especially when changing sweeping surfaces.

“Streets have a bit of a crown to them so when you switch from streets to

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■ For optimal flicking action main broom bristles should be replaced once they are worn to half their original length -- 6.5 in. or about the length of a dollar bill.

sweeping parking lots, there could be a trail behind the sweeper because of how the crown wore down the rear flap. The rear flap assumes contour of the pavement it’s going over,” Adair says. “Monitor and adjust the flap if necessary.”

Why to Use Water for more than Dust Suppression When contractors talk of lubrication, they’re almost certain to be talking grease and oil. But in the case of sweepers, at least, lubrication can mean water.

And water-as-lubricant is an often overlooked aspect of sweeper operation and parts longevity.

“People often decide they don’t need water on a particular job or in a certain environment, but using water is not just about the dust. When you add water, everything moves easier. Less friction lengthens the wear time,” Adair says.

Without water, for example, the conveyor rubs dry rubber against metal.

“It’s just like windshield wipers on a car window with no rain. There’s a lot of friction and surface tension,” Adair says.

“But if it stays wet it moves easily and reduces the wear on it.”

Plus, less friction means the hydraulics don’t have to work as hard, so they can last longer too.

And on an air unit, water reduces abrasion of particles on the impeller, tubes and hopper. Metal tubes that wear thin in spots because of the abrasive nature of debris and the force of it can be protected when the debris is wet.

“The hoses start wearing through and you can blow a hole in an area,” Adair says. “On intake hoses on air machines we recommend rotating them one-quarter turn every 50 hours so the air is not concentrated on one area continually.

And with water in there it reduces the abrasion from the particles.”

Replacing Bearings Bearings are not something that’s necessarily considered a wear part, but Adair says they should be because they are

He says bearings should be replaced

by OEM bearings “because then you know you‘re replacing them with the same bearings you had before. An aftermarket bearing might not have the same seals or the same seal on an end piece,” Adair says. “There are some nuances we’ve learned over the years to incorporate into our designs because we want the bearings to last as long as they can.”

■ Contractors who run dirt shoes even just a little longer than they should not only reduce the quality of the sweep but risk more costly damage by wearing into the parent material of the shoe mounting or even the pickup head itself.

usually maintained by the contractor.

“A lot of times the bearings wear out and it turns out over-lubrication is the cause,” Adair says. Many people think more you lubricate the bearings the longer they last. But that’s not always the case because the more grease you use, the higher the bearing temperature goes because the bearing has to work harder pushing through all that grease, and higher temperature causes the grease to fail.” He likened bearings working through too much grease to running in the ocean in waist-high water. “When you’re running in water waist high it’s difficult for you to move and you have to work extra hard to make any progress,” Adair says. “But move closer to shore and run in water that’s ankle deep and running becomes easier. It takes less effort and yet your feet still stay cool.

“Too much grease results in a lot of resistance and that increases the temperature of the environment in which the bearings are working, which can shorten bearing life.”

A Regular Maintenance Program Manufacturers stress that a regular, scheduled maintenance program is the most important factor in making sure wear parts reach or exceed their expected life. “If you’re not tracking it, you don’t know if you or your operator is doing something that’s detrimental or beneficial,” Adair says. “It pays to measure and keep track of wear part use no matter whose product you use as a replacement.

Otherwise you don’t know if you‘re getting any advantage out of it.”

While both Dunning and Adair recognize contractors like to experiment with aftermarket sources for replacement parts, they encourage checking with sweeper manufacturers because part prices are competitive.

“But if you’re switching from one wear part to another wear part and you don’t measure, you don’t know if that change in parts is giving you another 30% usage or not. Cities and contractors that do the best with their machines are the ones who measure and track the use and life of their parts. And doing it by the hour is best,” Adair says. “Then they know if there are any changes if the changes are due to the part, the operator, the machine, the product not standing up, or the type of work.” ■

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Special Report: Surface Preparation

By Steven Smith

Why Stripers Should Charge for

Surface Preparation Time-consuming service worth a charge because it extends marking life

G

etting striping to stick (and getting striping removed) is frustrating, but it can be done.

There are ways to do it easier, quicker and more reliably, so the striping or striping removal gets done right.

And I think contractors should be paid for providing the best-possible surface, either before striping or when stripes are removed.

That’s what I told the contractors who attended my National Pavement Expo session in February, “Surface Preparation: ‘Best Practices’ to Improve Your Bottom Line.” I told them, “I don’t think it’s fair that stripers are being held responsible for producing a quality stripe if they don’t have responsibility for the surface upon which their stripe is being applied. The responsibility for surface prep needs to be better defined in contracts. In fact, it should be a separate paid line item, and not considered incidental to the striping contract. Because, what is paid for and inspected will get done.”

Charge for Surface Preparation Preparing the surface to accept new markings is a service – a service that extends marking life. Therefore, striping contractors need to start charging for the surface preparation work they are now giving away.

If the surfaces are not in “ready striping condition” prior to the start of work, the customer should expect a conditioning charge. For example, if the surface has already been prepared to the right conditions to immediately accept the striper’s paint, then no additional charges would be expected.

However, if the customer’s surface requires heavy sweeping, surface repairs and/or surface profiling to open the pore structure in order to accept the paint or other applied markings, then a normal surcharge of the striper’s prep time and materials should be added to the contract.

With surface-prep practices written correctly in the specs, everyone benefits – from manufacturers selling more materials, to design engineers getting their specified products to perform its entire engineered life, and road surface owners and the public getting a much safer, lasting product.

Evaluating the Surface Profile Everyone should go into the contract knowing that before the stripe is installed, the surface should be sound, dry, clean and profiled within any of the selected surface profile textures called for on the surface profile chart (Exhibit 1). Having a porous (rather than a nonporous) surface will assure a mechanical substrate bond with the installed stripe.

As a member of the ICRI Institute and student of their concrete surface profile study, I was fascinated with their work on the Concrete Surface Preparation Profiles (CSPs) table. I wanted to see if their work on identifying properly prepared concrete surfaces can be applied to pavement striping and the growing frustration with subjective vs. objective evaluations.

■ Exhibit 1

The source of everyone’s frustration, is lack of clear guidelines for specifications, installation and inspection on how to best determine if the pavement surface is adequately prepared to accept new markings and if the old markings they removed will meet MUTCD and inspector requirements as being unidentifiable with minimal pavement scarring.

Having someone say, “I’m not accepting your work because I don’t like how it looks,” should not be acceptable.

ICRI identified 10 distinct profiles represented in molded replica pads using 10 distinct surface preparation methods on concrete. The profiles were derived from its members equipment grinders, shotblasters, scarifiers, scabblers and breakers and their work is written in their Technical Guidelines “Selecting and Specifying Concrete Surface Preparation for Sealers, Coatings, Polymers and Concrete Repair1.”

I wanted to use the same 10 point scale for the pavement maintenance industry to best help all parties know before they bid, execute and during the inspection process if the surfaces are properly prepared using a visual aid.

I began work creating each of the 10 profiles on both asphalt and concrete calling it SP (Surface Profiles) using inexpensive scarification and rotary

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erasing equipment commonly owned by stripers. I learned that most installers are unfamiliar with correctly using these machines and the proper selection of cutters and spacing patterns that can achieve each of the 10 profiles. The work is ongoing and will continue to improve methods until the SP scale is adopted for use in pavements by all parties to effectively communicate job and performance expectations.

■ Exhibit 2

The Surface Profile Chart The surface profile (SP) chart is used as a visual representation of desired surface textures, roughness, and general appearance on concrete or asphalt. Each profile has a corresponding number, ranging from SP1 (nearly flat) to SP10 (extremely rough). The surface profile is defined as the measurement of the average distance from the peaks of the surface to the valleys, as seen through a cross-section of the prepared substrate.

The creation of a surface profile can be accomplished with a variety of tools, equipment and materials, and requires a specification to select the desired SP range, dependent upon the type of overlay system and material thickness to be installed.

Having these SP numbers noted in the contract plans assures that all parties get what they expect – the stripe or repair materials to be installed, or to match the outlying surface area when the prior stripes are removed, without creating grooving or “ghost” lines.

The profile should only be prepared on a sound surface with selected equipment that will not cause the substrate to micro-crack, fracture or spall. Installing coatings or overlay materials over an unsound surface causes premature bonding failures.

Obtain the Correct Profile for Concrete or Asphalt Surfaces When new markings are applied on a new surface or re-applied over existing markings in the same location, installers refer to the contract specifications but can also turn to the marking guide

■ Exhibit 3

■ Exhibit 4

■ Exhibit 5

■ Exhibit 6

■ Exhibit 7

(Exhibit 2) and surface profile chart to help them achieve the desired surface profile range (SP#) for the selected marking material type and thickness.

For example, when installing 15 mil traffic paint on a new concrete surfaces, with an SP0-SP1 (very smooth, non-porous) profile, the first step is to remove the curing compound with a scarifier outfitted on a cutter drum with either “finish-it” steel cutters (Exhibit 3) or “strip-it” carbide cutters (Exhibit 4) in an offset fine array. The scarifier should be pulled or pushed in the opposite direction of the cutter drum rotation by walking or driving at a consistent pace.

Depending upon the overall flatness or hardness of the concrete surface, multiple passes are required to provide a uniform profile finish. Test in several spots prior to starting the work to determine the correct working travel speeds, removal depths and number of passes. Record these details in a job log.

It is important to always perform the work in one direction at the same pace, leaving a consistent profile to match the profile chart. Working the equipment back and forth (like a vacuum cleaner) will produce inconsistent finishes and not correctly open the surface pore structure to establish the best bonding strength.

Step-by-Step Surface Prep On new asphalt surfaces with an SP1 – SP2 profile, the sealer must be completely cured prior to installing the new pavement marking. If applying 15-mil traffic paint for the parking lines, and 90-mil screeded thermoplastic for the transverse stop bars and arrow symbols in the same location, follow these steps prior to striping: (1) Removal any oils, grease, surface tire marks, grime, compacted dirt and flaking paints in the areas 2-in. wider than the applied markings with the correct scarifier cutter drum that will leave the recommended SP#.

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Special Report: Surface Preparation

■ Exhibit 8

■ Exhibit 9

(2a) For preparing surfaces to hold thin paint coatings, a scarifier can be used outfitted with either a fine finish “cure-it” wire brushes (Exhibit 5) or an alternate “finish-it”steel star cutters (Exhibit 6). To achieve a fine finish, the cutters or wire brushes are positioned next to each other on the cutter drum without using spacers between each cutter assembled in an offset pattern on the cutter drum. Spacers are only used to set the removal width for the prepared surface (for example, 6-in. width for a 4-in.-wide stripe).

(2b) For preparing surfaces to hold thicker thermoplastic markings, the same scarifier can be outfitted with “flail-it” carbide cutters (Exhibit 7) assembled without spacers in an offset fine pattern on the drum. Use of these more aggressive cutters will produce the desired SP4 - SP6 profile prior to the thermoplastic application.

(3) After selecting the correct cutter drum for the application, only allow the outside edges of the cutters to contact the surface at minimal working depths at right angles and pull or push the scarifier in the opposite direction of the drum rotation (up-cut, at a consistent rate of speed that allows a consistent profile finish for traffic paint [SP1-SP3] or thermoplastic [SP4-6]).

(4) Rather than re-adjusting the cutting depth as you travel, make several passes to completely remove the existing materials and obtain the correct surface profile without surface scarring. It is important to note that when profiling on surfaces that may appear flat to the

■ Exhibit 10

eye, most are undulating and require multiple passes to prevent deep surface scarring. The deeper you go into the surface, the profile you create will be increasingly dominant by the shape and size of the coarse aggregate. To prevent micro-cracking or destabilizing the surface, shallower removal paths are recommended.

As a general rule, the surface profile coarseness depends solely on the thickness of the applied coating systems. Thin solvent and water-borne paints applied up to 15 mils as parking stalls, should have a surface profile between SP1 and SP3, depending upon the pavement surface characteristics.

Thicker materials, such as hot-applied thermoplastics and hot-melt tapes installed as transverse markings up to 120 mils, perform best when an SP4 – SP6 range is established prior to applying the stripe.

If your job requires removing existing markings prior to sealcoating or changing traffic lane patterns, it

is important that the markings should be removed in a method that does not conflict with new markings, does not cause sharpedge grooving where water can collect, nor create false ghost-lines that may re-appear in various ambient light conditions (dawn, dusk and night).

The use of a rotary eraser (Exhibit 9) is recommended over a drum-style scarifier because of its ability to provide the same surface finishes as a high pressure water-blaster without undermining the surface and without water. The rotary eraser works by controlling surface depths when selecting the right cutter and applying the oscillating side-to-side removal action similar to the way one uses a surface grinder to remove surface marks on a concrete floor or a hand buffer when polishing your car paint.

In 1983, Pave-Mark Corp., a manufacturer of thermoplastic materials and equipment, published a study (“Standard Practices for Removing Pavement Markings2”) on the effects of rotary eradication by water and mechanical methods (erasing) to demonstrate how rotation of the jets or cutting edges with a planetary disc and precise oscillating removal action affects removal of markings with minimal pavement scarring.

Porous vs. Non-porous Surface Most pavement markings fail due to their inability to properly bond with the underlying surface that might be too impermeable or too unstable to hold the marking in place.

■ Exhibit 11

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A dry-erase whiteboard is a good example of a non-porous surface where markings stay on top of the surface to be quickly wiped off on demand. Only when the whiteboard’s tough outer shell is scratched will the markings penetrate.

A white paper pad, alternatively, is a good example of a porous surface that quickly absorbs markings for a permanent bond that is difficult to remove.

If stripers install their markings on very smooth asphalt or concrete surfaces, especially in areas where there is heavy shearing of tires in stop-andgo traffic, turning lanes, or in traffic roundabouts, the bond strength of the coatings are put to a severe test.

Coatings that were applied on very

An “A-ha!” Moment Explains Why Stripes Fail Steven Smith says that when he was president of Pave-Mark during the 1980s, he experienced an “a-ha!” moment when conducting DOT pavement-marking test-deck failures for a preformed thermoplastic marking tape.

He discovered that his test-deck application failures were not due to the materials, or the way he installed them, but to what he says was “his oldschool, deep-seated habits of doing what he previously did as a striper – trying to complete the job as quickly as possible, trying only to apply just the least amount of material required on a clean but smooth surface.”

“It was this mindset and lack of surface-preparation understanding that created the failures on the test deck,” Smith says. “So, through trial and error on the very same test decks, I took a little more time getting the surface right, applied a little more material, and never got another failure.”

He says he discovered this held true on asphalt and concrete and for hot tape, thermoplastic or MMA, preformed tape, epoxy, polyurea, or traffic paint.

“When I realized that, I also realized that surface preparation does not have to be a hardship, but can be a good, profitable revenue stream for stripers,” Smith says.

smooth surfaces and that remain solely on top of the surface, like a marker on a whiteboard, allow the shearing of the tires to quickly break the coating’s bond from the pavement. Adding a surface profile is the only way to support the applied coating system with a tough mechanical bond being formed, allowing the applied material to wet into the prepared porous substrate.

Markings applied on unstable surfaces that are poorly bonded, peeling or flaking will fail. Dirt, oil, films, rubber, paint, coatings, cure, sealer, unsound asphalt or concrete and other materials that will interfere with the adhesion or penetration of any sealer, coating or marking material must be removed.

They can be removed with a scarifier outfitted with an outfitted cutter drum assembly that can also produce the desired SP1 – SP10 profile range suitable for the new marking material.

To prepare for the profile, the installer uses the profile photo chart as a visual guide to match the existing surface conditions, and then prepares the surface using the equipment selection and cutter selection guide (Exhibit 12) to best determine the appropriate equipment and cutter tools to create the desired surface profile.

If the operators are not familiar with achieving all 10 surface profiles with their equipment, they can participate in available training programs through associations and manufacturers.

Getting the surface preparation specs clearly defined beforehand – and separated from the striping portion of the contract – is extremely important.

It assures that the work will be properly completed and the installed stripe will perform for its entire engineered service life.

To get customers who have always considered the prep portion to be part of the job to now start paying will be challenging – but it is in everyone’s best interest. Clear specs will benefit all parties – from the striper being better able to estimate job costs (since preparation will be defined), to the customer who will be more knowledgeable on the cause-and-effect relationship with surface conditions before striping, and the

motorist who will benefit from having a safer and longer-lasting surface.

The Equipment You Need Most of the surface preparation and traffic-line removal work can be accomplished using common equipment that stripers already own. For example, drum-style scarifiers (Exhibit 8) create the surface profile through vertical cutting action, while rotary-style eradicators (“erasers”) (Exhibit 9) offer better cut-depth control with the same rotation as water-blasters.

The term “grinder” is not a correct terminology; in both processes, with the selection of the right cutter type and set-up pattern array on the drum with an up-cut removal (scarifier) or side-toside removal process (erasers), all traces of removed markings can be removed, leaving the surface approximating the contiguous surface, with the SP profile pads as a guide. It is important to note that any remaining surface shadowing on a non-grooved surface will normally fade and blend in with the surrounding oxidized surface over time.

A grinder (Exhibit 10) is actually a rotary process with abrading stones where diamonds applied under the right frictional force against a hard surface to wear away the pastes, fines, coatings and aggregates at a uniform rate with minimal or no profile.

A scarifier is a drum-style removal process producing rough to smooth parallel striated patterns depending upon cutter selection and array for removal of hard surfaces, brittle or soft coatings requiring multiple passes when removal depths are greater than 1/8-in. The scarifier is best used when preparing the right surface profile or for groove-inlay patterns to recess stripes into and/or below the surface.

A rotary eraser is a combination grinder (abrasion) and scarifier (impact) method using fine-to-coarse cutter tips leaving a bevel-edge coarse to smooth surface pattern without sharp-edge grooves dependent upon exposure time and oscillating sweeping pattern performed. The eraser is best for removing old pavement markings that are not reapplied in the same location. A rotary

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Special Report: Surface Preparation eraser will not cause deep surface scars where water can accumulate or pond. Erasing leaves the remaining surface approximating the contiguous surface (SP1 – SP6 profile pattern) with only surface shadowing that fades over time.

Collecting Dust and Debris When using any dust producing equipment like scarifiers or rotary erasers, it is important to provide a positive means to control airborne dust with use of a dust collector (Exhibit 11) attached to the removal equipment. Accumulated piles of debris on the surface or from the right of way as a result from the removal operation shall be collected and disposed of in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local regulations. ■ Steven Smith is president of SMITH Manufacturing, which designs and builds surface-preparation equipment for striping contractors. SMITH Manufacturing offers a free surface-prep workbook and training through its website, smithu.com.

■ Exhibit 12

References: (1) ICRI Technical Guidelines No 10.2R-2013 © International Concrete Repair Institute 2013 (2) Standard Practices for Removing Pavement Markings by Rotary Erasing © Pave-Mark 1983

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www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement • PAVEMENT • August/September 2015 57

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CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

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2002 GMC T7500 New Mark Longline Thermo Striper

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2007 GMC MRL 6 Box Grinder Truck Excellent Condition, Ready to Work

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• Exc. cond. under CDL used diesel, auto trucks with arrow board and attenuator. $34,000 • Used EDCO walk behind line removal grinders, all sizes

• 3M 380 4" White and Yellow Tape, new in box, large quantity available, ½ price • Large quantity of 12" Durable White Tape, ½ Price

We buy used equipment and will take trade-ins.

58 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

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www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement • PAVEMENT • August/September 2015 59

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CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

Reid Manufacturing, LLC. 155 Evelyn S. Wade Blvd.

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Made to put your Money in your bank!

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• 500 Gallon Round Tank with agitator • Kubota Turbo Power 40+ HP • Large Manway with Sandbag Split, 24x30 • All Hydraulic Controls • 30 Gallon Fog & Wash Down System • Three Sizes to Meet Your Needs: DR200 Leader, DR350 General, DR500 Turbo Pro 500

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10221 51st St NW, Gig Harbor WA 98335 Larry Raymond • 253-312-4229 • rlaraymo@gmail.com www.doubleimpact2.com/index.htm

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60 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

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www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement • PAVEMENT • August/September 2015 61

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CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

Billings, Montana (406) 248-2463 New & used performance engineered pavement marking, removal & saw cutting equipment - truck mounted & palletized.

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62 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

FOR SALE 2005 & 2006 Schwarze A7000’s • New Fan Liner • Regenerative Air • All New Intake Sweeper • Hopper and Door Seals • New Fan Shaft & • Ex-City Units, Ready to Bearings, New Flaps, Sweep!! P.O.R.

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ForConstructionPros.com/directory www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement • PAVEMENT • August/September 2015 63

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Your Business Matters

By George Hedley

Two Strategies to Maximize Your Bottom Line Estimate accurate general conditions and charge for all change order work

M

aximizing profit must be a top priority right along with getting your projects completed on-time. Setting aside a little time to focus on increasing your net profit will boost your bottom-line and allow you to make a lot more money.

When you’re too busy working on the jobs, scheduling crews or doing work tasks, you don’t take or have enough time to focus on finances, financial tools and strategies which can help you hit your goals. Consider implementing these two proven strategies to maximize your bottom-line and grow your bank balance.

Accurate General Conditions General conditions in construction include the onsite administration, supervision, temporary facilities, temporary protection and soft costs required to get your projects built. Estimating accurate general conditions for projects can be a simple task when the estimator is accountable to get it right. Most estimators use unit prices which are rarely checked against the actual final job costs.

For example, creating a budget for temporary toilets seems easy. An eight-month job should cost eight times $100 per month = $800. But when the field superintendent sees there are 40 men on the job, more than one toilet and more than one servicing a week is required. This might increase the job cost by $200 per month, adding up to lots of lost cash.

The estimator’s number one job and accountability is to calculate an accurate estimate of what it will cost to build each project. After every job, he (or she) must look at the actual job costs to see if he miscalculated or under estimated any of the project line items. Before you price every job, the estimator should get with the project manager, field superintendent or foreman to determine what will be required to run the project. Make sure

you are charging the right price for: • Manager, superintendent and vehicles • Project photos, sign, as-built drawings • Temporary facilities, utilities: trailers, toilets, electricity, water etc.

• Temporary barricades, site lighting • Safety, first aid, access roads etc.

• Water quality control, dust control etc.

• Trash, cleanup, final punch-list etc.

Charge for Change Orders Change orders are written documents amending the original contract agreement between parties memorializing an additional or changed scope, price, time, schedule, terms, or work item.

Most often they require additional money for the additional work.

If you had $10 for every extra work item your company did without a signed change order before the work was performed, could you have retired years ago?

When your customer asks for extra work, why is it so hard to get it in writing?

Everyone knows the contract requires signatures on change orders prior to starting extra work. But when you postpone getting a formal approval for extra work until days, weeks or months after the event occurred, you have no leverage with your customer. And when you have no leverage, your customer is in a great position to settle or offer a reduced discounted price with you, change their mind or decide the additional work wasn’t really extra and should have been included in the original contract.

To avoid this problem, present a complete cost breakdown for every proposed change order your customer requests in advance of starting the work.

Use a standardized format, cost template and rate sheet to make sure you include everything the additional work actually costs. Every time extra work is performed, the following costs occur: • Management to process paperwork

■ Contractors needs to make sure they are charging the right price for everything prior to starting a job or a change order request.

FreeDigitalPhotos.net

• Supervision of the work • Accounting to process the payment • General condition costs • Liability insurance • Overhead and profit Don’t shortchange your company by not asking for everything you deserve. I see most change order requests presented as labor, materials and hard costs plus a markup without extra required soft costs for the many items listed above.

If your company does $5,000,000 in annual sales of which $250,000 is performed as change orders or on a costplus basis, not charging for everything you spend can cost you as much as $25,000 or more per year in lost revenue or net profit for things that you actually had to pay for. ■ George Hedley works with contractors to build profitable growing companies. He is a professional business coach and bestselling author of “Get Your Construction Business To Grow & Profit!” available at www.HardhatPresentations.com. To get his free e-newsletter, be part of a BIZCOACH program, or get a discount for online classes at www.HardhatBizSchool.com, e-mail GH@HardhatPresentations.com.

64 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Are We On Track?

W

ere you at National Pavement Expo 2015 in Nashville? For those that were in attendance, you know that it was a fabulous training event. During NPE and more specifically on Friday, January 30th, NAPSA held our annual membership meeting.

The meeting was facilitated by our new NAPSA President, Sylvia Richards of Asphalt Enterprises in Raleigh, NC. Richards is truly passionate about NAPSA and is actively working to accomplish goals on behalf of our membership. It is her belief that if you participate in NAPSA, you will find your “NAPSA Nugget.” A NAPSA Nugget is that piece of information that you find invaluable. It could be as simple as a single marketing idea or as numerous as everything exchanged in the “Best Practices” workshop, but each NAPSA Nugget that you reach out and take, works together to create NAPSA GOLD! NAPSA’s benefits continue to grow each year, with out newest being the NAPSA Classifieds. Our list of membership benefits continue to grow. We focus on items of value to our power sweepers such as our safety poster series and educational webinars.

NAPSA’s goals are creating and maintaining value. A major service that we have been working on for the past year is our new Certified Sweeper Operator (CSO) program. We are very excited about this program and are currently gathering content to further develop the units that your operators will participate in, in order to accomplish the certification. The benefit to you as a contractor will be enhanced professionalism, solid training and financial gain through better insurance rates among other things. Keep your eyes open for information as it is shared, but we anticipate our first track to be available beginning 2016.

NAPSA members receive immediate return on their investment through our partnerships and savings programs.

We have everything from office supplies to Baldwin filters and search engine optimization services. The savings offset any investment almost immediately.

In addition to the bottom line savings that members receive, each member is listed on our contractor locator. This locator gets more than 3,000 visits a month and we continue to enhance our search engine optimization so that we drive customers to our members.

Visit the NAPSA website today and see what benefits there are for you. Don’t miss out on participating in the power sweeping industry’s professional trade association. ■ NAPSA is a nonprofit association made up of 200+ contract sweepers, service providers and sweeping equipment dealers, manufacturers and suppliers. NAPSA is dedicated to providing beneficial support to the membership and enhancing services to the sweeping industry. If you would like more information on NAPSA, please contact the headquarters at (888) 757-0130 or by e-mail at info@powersweeping.org.

Trending Up: Municipal Sweeping

A

s a part of assisting representatives of a city in Texas with coming up with an RFP for sweeping, I spoke to a number of high-level representatives of US sweeper manufacturers. Several points emerged from these two processes should be of interest to Pavement readers.

For one, there is an increasing movement by public works departments to contract out their city street sweeping, either completely or in part. For sweeping contractors, this points to an increased likelihood that an unsolicited proposal to take over in-house sweeping may now receive a better reception than in times past.

It also means the same contractors — if they currently do street sweeping or are looking to enter that segment of the industry — should make sure they’re on the bid list for all of the municipal agencies in their market area.

In addition, more cities are now recognizing that sweeping can make a significant difference in stormwater runoff pollution compliance. This has several implications.

For one, in the future expect fewer awards to be based exclusively upon bid price. Also, the contractor review process will probably include a member of the municipal agency’s stormwater team. These are people who have become informed via reading the studies, comparisons and relative abilities of the different types of sweepers available at WorldSweeper.com and elsewhere.

To compete as a contractor, you will need to be up-tospeed on this topic. Expect increased consideration given to contractors who are educated and can “talk the talk.”

If you want to be, and/or remain, competitive in the arena of street sweeping, you need to become an expert in this area of the industry. My prediction is that those who are able to provide value-added information to the street sweeping proposals they receive will find an increasingly warm reception as time goes by. ■ WSA contributor Ranger Kidwell-Ross has been providing information to the power sweeping industry since 1988. He is editor of WorldSweeper.com, an information resource for power sweeping, as well as founder and executive director of the World Sweeping Association. For more information about WSA visit www.WorldSweepingPros.org or contact Kidwell-Ross at director@worldsweepingpros.org.

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NIOSH Funded to Study Sealcoat Applicators

T

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he National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has received approval to study the levels of occupational chemical exposure among sealant applicators. NIOSH shared its draft study plan with PCTC and asked for comments. PCTC wants to make sure that the study follows the many protections the federal government has put in place to protect workers who are asked to be part of these kind of studies, and also wants to ensure that the study produces scientifically valid and supportable data and conclusions. PCTC has asked NIOSH to set up an advisory committee, with representatives from NIOSH, technical experts and industry representatives (PCTC) to work through issues before and during the study.

NIOSH is not involved in making workplace rules.

Instead, it collects data about how work gets done to evaluate ways to improve health and safety in the workplace.

For the study of asphalt pavers that started about 10 years ago, NIOSH partnered with the National Asphalt Pavement Association as well as with representatives of pavement workers to look at the working environment of paving crews. PCTC has asked NIOSH for a similar arrangement.

As envisioned, the study will be conducted over the course of several years, and involve about 14 field surveys. Each field survey will consist of at least 12 worker-days (for example, 3 workers sampled over 4 consecutive days). Initially, NIOSH wants to conduct a pilot study to make sure it has the right equipment and procedures that can be used to make the process relatively painless on companies and pavers as well as to ensure the data collected are reliable and can be repeated. Participation in the study by companies and workers is voluntary.

The multigenerational experience of many in the sealcoat business leads PCTC to believe that the study proposed by NIOSH could be an important step in documenting that sealcoating is a responsible and safety-conscious industry.

NIOSH is hopeful that the pilot study can be conducted before the end of the 2015 season. Once the study plan has been approved, NIOSH plans to issue a fact sheet for distribution to sealcoat companies. NIOSH hopes that 14 to 20 companies will volunteer to participate.

PCTC will sponsor a free sealcoating seminar, “Talking to Property Managers about Sealcoat,” at National Pavement Expo, Jan. 27-30 in Charlotte, NC. The free session (C-24) will run from 8:00-9:30 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 29. For details visit www.nationalpavementexpo.com. ■ For more about PCTC visit www.pavementcouncil.org.

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66 August/September 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Pavement Technology

By Paul Syracuse

Big Blowers Ease Pavement Preparation High-powered attachment speeds paving, sealcoating & striping

W

hether you’re paving an asphalt overlay, sealcoating a parking lot or applying pavement markings to any pavement surface, one of the keys to success is a clean surface on which to work. On small jobs, walkbehind or backpack blowers can work, in some cases attachment brooms can do the job, and sometimes even large mechanical or vacuum truck-mounted sweepers can be used.

There’s a middle ground between smaller, less-powerful units and large equipment. Recently, that middle ground is dominated by large high-powered blowers that can be attached and pulled to clean large pavements.

Bigger Blowers, Bigger Power Prior to sealcoating, all surfaces must be dry and free of dust and debris to make sure the sealcoat adheres as designed.

When attempting to sealcoat large parking lots, the walk-behind and backpack blowers become labor intensive, add to the overall cost of the project and create worker fatigue. The larger blower units available today have up to 10-15 times the power of backpack blowers and 3-5 times the power of most walk-behind blowers. Walking is eliminated and safety concerns are reduced dramatically.

Backpack blowers average around 850 -1000 CFM (cubic feet per minute). Walk-behind blowers range from 1500 – 3500 CFM and the larger towable or attachment blowers range from

5000 – 18,000 CFM. Be cautious about CFM output ratings because certain companies will use that figure as a sales tool and not effectiveness. Always ask yourself “how many CFM’s does it take to move debris off of a parking lot?”

Every application is different. Always demonstrate equipment prior to purchase. If a company will not provide demonstration, find one that will.

■ Blowers such as the Buffalo Turbine Mega can be attached to a variety of equipment contractors already own to dry pavement prior to sealcoating, paving or striping.

Attach to What You Own The large, tow-behind blower units are being pulled around the site by garden tractors, four-wheelers, utility vehicles, pick-up trucks or even mounted to line driver units. Some models have a directional shoot that allows the exhaust nozzle to be positioned 360° in any direction and offer special nozzle options that will maximize the effectiveness of the blower. At least one popular blower unit used on larger sealcoat or paving jobs is hydraulically powered. Every large paving, sealcoat or highway project has some skid steer-type vehicle on site which can use a number of different power attachments. Most of these blower units can be attached to skid steers.

Prior to paving or sealcoating, a blower unit can be attached in minutes and

■ High-powered blowers can be attached to a variety of smaller transports and effectively prepare pavement for paving, sealcoating or striping. Rumble strip grinding, race track and airport surface maintenance all have uses for blower units.

the surface can be cleaned in a more productive manner. If a hydraulic unit isn’t available, a 3-point hitch tractor model will accomplish the same task.

Airports Need Bigger Blowers Because of a steady stream of incoming and outgoing flights, maintenance on airports is time critical. However, foreign object debris cannot be left behind on runways or taxiways. Blowing instead of using rotary brushes accomplishes both requirements. In some cases cleanup time is reduced to less than half the time.

Grinding off old painted lines on runways and re-striping also requires a quick turnaround process. Using, for example, a line driver, line driver attachment and a powerful blower unit that is designed to adapt to the line driver significantly reduces the amount of equipment required on site. Certain blower units can be converted over to a mister which can be used with the curing process of concrete.

Planning the best technique for the paving or pavement maintenance job is critical. There are tools like powerful blower units readily available to help. ■ Paul Syracuse is General Manager of Buffalo Turbine, LLC, Springville, NY, a manufacturer of turbine blowers and misters in the construction, paving, sealcoating, dust and odor control, race tracks and other industries. Visit www.buffaloturbine.com or contact paul.syracuse@buffaloturbine.com; (716) 592-2700.

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Contractor Snapshot

By Jessica Stoikes, Associate Editor

Reputation Yields Growth & Success Cincinnati's Hartz Sealcoating thrives through honesty, courtesy and a job well done ■ Owners, Chuck and John Hartz

T

wenty years ago, Chuck Hartz filled his pickup truck up with 55-gal. drums of sealant and started sealing driveways and parking lots in the Cincinnati area.

After seeing success and a growing customer base, he invested in sealcoating equipment and a crew that would help the company grow even more without the physical toll. In 2002, Chuck’s brother John joined the company and together they have built a business that has grown from residential work in a few small communities to almost half the Cincinnati area, and the entire Cincinnati area and beyond for commercial customers.

“Our residential customers account for 40-50% of our work and have led to growth in work for small businesses, large commercial accounts and for commercial property managers,” John Hartz says.

“Word of mouth has been our main avenue for growth, a foundation that established our reputation which we continue to build upon and reinforce with every customer.

We’ve also grown through our website, Angie’s List and in the past we had relied heavily on direct mail, though less more recently,” he says.

Building a business reputation in a large city is never

easy. In an industry sometimes known for broken promises, careless work, and fly-by-night companies, Hartz Sealcoating has been different.

“If we’re going to be honest, we need to admit that in many ways the paving industry has a not-so-great reputation based on years of un-met customer expectations,” he says. “Hartz Sealcoating has decided to meet the challenge of changing that reputation head on.”

Employees are Key To begin that change, Hartz hopes to overcome what he says is the single biggest challenge that seems ubiquitous across the industry: finding good employees.

“We feel that by treating people well, it will cause good people to flock to us.

This will solve any need for more employees and subsequently make more satisfied customers that will have our name on their lips,” Hartz says. “The big secret we will reveal to our competitors that we hope will help change our industry is this: We aren’t competing for work; we’re competing for employees! Start treating people well – with respect, honesty and love – and growth and success will be banging down your door!”

Hartz Sealcoating also

educates its customers on what they are buying.

“Our employees, customers, vendors, partners and competitors all know that we act out of our concern for people and their individual needs and circumstances.

Thanks to guidance from Cincinnati-based At Work On Purpose and Transformational Leadership, we work to be a light to our custom-

“We, as a company, have pre-agreed to certain ways that we want to treat each other and made it a priority with our employees. We do our best to establish relationships in which they know they can count on us for more than industry-related things.”

In an industry where contractors often diversifying to stay competitive, Hartz says future growth of the com-

“We aren't competing for work; we're competing for employees! Start treating people well...and growth and success will be banging down your door.”

-John Hartz, Hartz Sealcoating

ers that sheds truth on their asphalt situation and gives them honest information so that they can spend their money most wisely – even if we don’t end up benefiting financially," he says.

Hartz also provides potential customers with a list of repeat clients to further reinforce that they are a business that isn’t going anywhere.

pany will continue to come from asphalt maintenance.

“We have no plans or desire to begin paving or extending ourselves beyond our core competencies. We have been methodical and controlled with our growth and plan to continue that strategy. The Good Lord willing we will continue to enjoy the adventure and lots of success!” ■

68 August/Sepetmber 2015 • PAVEMENT • www.ForConstructionPros.com/Pavement

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Advertiser Index

Published by AC Business Media Inc.

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Able Industries B & E Seal Coat Products Inc. Bomag Buffalo Turbine Carlson Paving Products Inc. Caterpillar Inc. Cimline CMI Equipment Sales Inc. Copperstate Hose Crafco Inc. Elgin Sweeper Company Gem Seal Pavement Products Highway Safety Group Johnston North America Keystone Engineering K-M International Kut-Rite Mfg. LaserLine Mfg. Inc. LeeBoy M-B Companies Inc. MRL Equipment Company Inc. Neal Neyra NPE Quik Pave Products Inc. Ram Commercial Road Science Seal-Rite SealMaster SOY solv Unique Pavement Preservation Solutions Weiler Wirtgen America WRT *This index is provided as a service.

The publisher does not assume liability for errors or omissions.

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ADVISORY BOARD: ACI Asphalt Contractors Inc., Maple Grove, MN: Jim Bebo Asphalt Enterprises, Raleigh, NC, Sylvia Richards Site Services Inc., Highland, IN: Randy DeVries Eosso Brothers Paving; Hazlet, NJ: Tom Eosso T&N Asphalt Services, Salt Lake City, UT: Nick Howell Asphalt Contractors Inc., Union Grove, WI: Robert Kordus Capitol Sweeping Service, South Windsor, CT: Thomas Kuhns Robert Liles Parking Lot Service, Tyler, TX: Robert Liles Asphalt Restoration Technology Systems, Orlando, FL: Connie Lorenz Custom Maintenance Services, Shippensburg, PA: Michael Nawa Parking Lot Maintenance, Lake St. Louis, MO, Todd Bruening Pioneer Paving, Albuquerque, NM: Don Rooney The Rabine Group, Schaumburg, IL: Gary Rabine Rose Paving Co., Bridgeview, IL: Alan J. Rose Petra Paving, Hampstead, NH: Chris Tammany Miktom Parking Lot Maintenance, Papillion, NE: Mick Vinckier Young Sealcoating Inc, Lynchburg, VA: Steve Young ASSOCIATION REPRESENTATIVES: Asphalt Sealcoat Manufacturers Association: Keith Ryan, Quality Emulsions Pavement Coatings Technology Council: Anne LeHuray, Executive Director

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Tailgate Talk

By Brad Humphrey

Motivating Down the Stretch!

D

id you watch the Belmont, to see for the first time in 37 years a horse by the name of American Pharaoh, and smile as you saw that beautiful “athlete” pull away “down the stretch.”

“Down the stretch!” It’s symbolic of the last portion of a race requiring everything left in the individual or team, every ounce of strength and focus, to finish strong. Whether it’s a horse race, the bottom of the 15th inning of a baseball game, or the last few weeks and months of a construction season, the desire to “give it all” is needed to achieve success and even greatness.

As we begin our final “down the stretch” of the pavement maintenance season, we too need to prepare our minds -- and the minds of our workers -- to be strong, take a big breath, and stay focused to the end. History teaches most contractors that the final stretch can be either the most profitable time of the year -- or the costliest.

To help re-energize your leadership and workers down the stretch, consider a few little “pump up” efforts to exercise at your company.

• Be more visible. This is easy for the smaller contractor who may actually lead his crew personally, but any contractor can extract just a little more energy, focus and job quality when he shows up more often to the jobsites.

• Be more positive. Look, crazy things happen when people are weary. When engaging your workers on the jobsite or back at the shop or yard, ask them about their families, their health etc. Thank them for their efforts, encourage them when they’ve just finished another long day or worked through a weekend.

• Be more giving. Sure, you can sprinkle around a few $50 or $100 dollar bills, but give more. Down the stretch buy

lunches, have donuts at the shop more often, hand out some restaurant coupons or gas cards.

• Be more prepared and plan more regularly. As the mind goes, so goes the heart, mind and actions. You need to increase the amount of effort placed on preparing and planning for successful job completions. The tendency for many field leaders and workers is just to get to the job quickly so we can get done. Track your call backs, rework, and the number of “hot truck runs” you’re making to make sure the guys have what they need and what they forgot to load.

• Be quick to follow-up. If you’re not doing it already, increase the number of times you follow-up with your leaders, suppliers etc., to make sure that what was planned for, what was ordered, and what is supposed to be executed is in fact happening. No more, “I assumed you were going to do” this or that. Following up on questions, requests and “I thought you were going to do it,” will reduce the number of mistakes and ultimately save you a lot of money.

• Be helpful. OK, late in the season is not the time you can afford an equipment breakdown. You might consider bringing in part-time or contractor mechanics to work at night oiling, greasing and tightening up all that needs to be maintained. Even tired and weary workers, realizing all that needs to be completed, will appreciate equipment that is dependable. And they’ll especially appreciate that they aren’t the one ones doing the equipment checks and maintenance after a long day in the field.

• Be upbeat…have some fun! Come on, we work in the greatest industry in the world. Nothing better than working outside, producing visible results and

making money. Enjoy the final stretch and allow your workers to enjoy it as well. Get to the shop early in the morning and spend some time visiting and joking around with your troops.

Let them know how much you appreciate them and their efforts.

• Be hospitable. Don’t be shy about having a few dinners provided for your workers and their wives or significant others. Come on, spending a few hundred dollars at a restaurant or sports establishment is well received and appreciated by your workers. Always plan to have that end-of-the-year event at a favorite restaurant in the area.

The end of any season is mixed with emotions. Some workers just want to get done and some want the season (and paychecks) to continue. Even if your season is truly 12 months, most crews do tend to get a little tired late in the year. Read your workers and know them well enough to plan some fun things for them near the end of the year or season.

Down the stretch is just as critical for you, the owner or senior leader. Get your rest, plan your strategies to keep your troops up and motivated so they can give you their best!

Take a big breath, put your head down, and reach out their just little bit more as you finish strong down the stretch.

Here’s to finishing strong! ■ Brad is President of Pinnacle Development Group, consulting firm that specializes in the construction industry. See more of Brad’s advice for contractors by reading The Contractor’s Best Friend, also an AC Business Media service to the construction industry. For more information about Brad’s company, go to www.pinnacledg.com.

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CARLSON PAVING PRODUCTS, INC. an Astec Industries Company Write in 37 on card or key in ForConstructionPros.com/10072346

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www.sealmaster.net Write in 38 on card or key in ForConstructionPros.com/10074572

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