Heavy Constuction Weekly

In This Issue...

ACP News • Top Stories • Job Story of the Week • Feature Content • Featured Product

ACP News

VIRTUAL CONFERENCE ON FIELD MOBILITY AND PRODUCTIVITY, GREEN CONSTRUCTION, BIM, SAFETY

See and hear construction field personnel and executives from Berry, Cianbro, Skanska, and more talk how field software, Tablet PCs and wireless connectivity are being used to deliver jobsite productivity, Green construction, Field BIM™ (BIM in construction), and Safety.

Click here to register for these FREE online September events

Sponsored by AT&T, Motion Computing, Reed Construction Data and Vela Systems.

Top Stories

Fighting High Fuel Prices
At a time when escalating fuel prices continue to rock the construction industry, Colorado is considering a big cutback in drilling for oil and natural gas. Colorado Governor Bill Ritter has said he is trying to strike a balance between the energy needs of consumers and protecting Colorado's landscapes, water and air, public health, and wildlife. Although more public input will be forthcoming, new anti-drilling regulations are set to be in.....(read more)

Alliance Calls for Infrastructure Investment on 3,000 Projects Totaling over $18 Billion and Creating 750,000 jobs
As the Democrat and Republican Conventions get underway, the Alliance for Improving America's Infrastructure is calling on Senators Barack Obama and John McCain as well as Members of Congress to support a new economic stimulus package to provide funding for the country's crumbling highways, bridges and transportation systems, potentially creating 750,000 jobs throughout the country within 90 days. "Finding solutions to America's crumbling infrastructure is an issue that.....(read more)

Caterpillar Launches Compact Track Loaders
In its first-ever web launch of a Cat product, Caterpillar announced its C Series compact track loaders. This new three-model – 279C, 289C and 299C – addition to the Caterpillar line of rubber-track loaders offers the flotation and ride of tracks with a Caterpillar-designed steel undercarriage to take on harsh applications. The new tracked machines deliver solid traction and reduced wear on sites with sticky, rocky soils. According to Caterpillar, the fully suspended steel.....(read more)

Job Story of the Week

Shortages Delaying Paving Projects
Shortages of asphalt and its key ingredients threaten to delay up to $275 million in Colorado summer paving projects, the Denver Post reported July 14. The shortages are affecting 34 of the Colorado Department of Transportation’s paving projects statewide, said CDOT spokeswoman Stacey Stegman. In metro Denver, projects affected include the resurfacing of Interstate 25 between Santa Fe Drive and West Sixth Avenue; the repaving of Colorado Boulevard between.....(read more)

Feature Content

Focus on Asphalt sponsored by U.S. Construction Outlook

U.S. Construction Outlook 2008-2009

The U.S. Construction Outlook 2008-2009 provide thorough and in-depth analysis of the forecasts for the next two years in the construction industry. Gain access to key economic and industry indicators with analysis written by Reed Economists.

The U.S. Construction Outlook 2008-2009 provides an overview of the U.S. economy, including employment, interest rates, gross domestic product ("GDP"), foreign trade, and construction starts. In addition, it provides historical data and key forecasts with respect to all categories of construction (i.e., residential, commercial, industrial, institutional and engineering).

Click here to learn more about the U.S. Construction Outlook 2008-2009.

User–Friendly Automation

If you want to earn state payment bonuses for smooth asphalt paving, it’s better to be good than lucky. And to be good, your paving crew has to be patient enough to follow best practices, maintain a steady speed, and not "push the envelope" to the breaking point.

That’s the gospel according to the paving and construction managers at P.J. Keating Co., and they have the smoothness numbers to prove their point. In fact, Keating can consistently pave surface asphalt mats with International Roughness Index (IRI) numbers that are one-fourth to one-third of the upper spec limit set by the Massachusetts Highway Department.

Keating owns nine Caterpillar asphalt pavers — all fitted with Topcon System 5 Sonic Averaging Systems (SAS) for automated pavement depth control. The Lunenburg, MA-based contractor manages a total of seven paving crews and has been using non-contact skis to automate its asphalt pavers since 2000 according to Construction Manager Mark Pillsbury.

Consider this example of Keating’s smoothness performance. In paving a surface friction course on a 5.8-mile stretch of Interstate 1-95 near New Bedford, MA, the contractor’s IRI numbers ranged from just 28.4 inches of deviation per mile to 37.5 inches per.....

Click here to read the rest of the story.