Features

Utility machines with standout efficiency and cutting-edge cab design have come onto the market during the first few months of 2013. Guy Woodford looks at some of them. Case Construction Equipment and New Holland Construction have brought out what they claim are the market’s first Tier 4 Final emissions standard midi-excavators. The CX75C SR and CX80C models from Case are said to offer more performance power and greater operator cabin comfort than previous models. Tier 4 Final standards are said to have bee

Work on the Presidio Parkway, a new breathtaking and eco-friendly southern approach road to San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, has entered its crucial second and final phase. As Guy Woodford reports, the vital US$1 billion project has overcome legal as well as environmental challenges to stay on course for its expected 2016 completion Just after 9pm on Friday April 27, 2012 a large public crowd looked on excitedly as a fleet of more than 40 R&L Brosamer and Ferma Corporation deployed hydraulic demolition h

The Russian government is considering revising standards and technologies of roadbuilding in the country, writes Eugene Gerden. The aim is to accelerate implementation of one of the major public projects in the transport industry of Russia in the coming years: expansion of the road network from the current 900,000km to 1.3 million km by 2030 as part of the current Russian State Transport Strategy. According to a recent study, conducted by analysts of the Presidential Head Control Directorate, maintaining th

*Zeina Nazer, secretary general of ITS-Arab, introduces the rapid evolution of Intelligent Transport Systems in the Middle East and North Africa and talks about the special challenges and opportunities this represents, both for the industry and her organisation. Over the past six years, ITS-Arab has focused on promoting Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) at the policy and decision making echelons, while developing ITS specifications at a project design level throughout the Middle East and North Africa (MEN

The 17th IRF World Meeting & Exhibition, to be held November 9-13, 2013 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is set to be an event that any industry professional can benefit from in numerous ways. The World Meeting’s strength lies in its solid foundation of eight components, each interlocking and with and building off of the others. Executive sessions will feature standard presentations by industry experts, followed by questions and answers in a panel format. The technical sessions, driven by the yearlong call for paper

Turkey is benefiting from new motorway and bridge projects constructed along the BOT model - Gülay Malkoç. Looking at Turkey’s economic development, road construction plays a crucial role. The investment in Turkey is becoming increasingly attractive for both local and foreign investors. There are significant huge road investments and projects being made in Turkey at present, compared with EU countries where the roads need mostly repair and maintenance. According to the approach of Turkey’s Ministry of Trans

The use of sophisticated machine control technology has helped halve the schedule required for a road contract – Jeff Winke. By using the latest machine control systems on the equipment fleet, a US contractor has managed to halve worker hours, machine time and overall costs. “We chopped 50% off the contract schedule,” said Jim Swenson, licensed professional land surveyor for Oregon Mainline Paving based in McMinnville, Oregon. “The project was completed a year ahead of the two-year schedule,” he explained.

From density tests on a Mongolian gold mine project to an all-singing, all-dancing asphalt tester, Kristina Smith reports on some of the latest new products in materials testing. Perhaps understandably, nuclear density gauges can present contractors with some order to move them at all. “One of the problems with nuclear soil gauges is the restrictions on movement,” said John Lamond, Manufacturing. “If you are a contractor projects cross-border, it’s a real challenge to move a nuclear density gauge around.”

A leading WIM system manufacturer is playing a key role in efforts to reduce the number of overloaded trucks costing developing economies around the world billions of dollars in accidents and damage to roads, while another company has won a major contract in South America. Guy Woodford reports. The prevalence of overloaded trucks on the road networks of developing countries and the accidents and structural damage they cause wastes valuable, limited resources in some of the world’s poorest economies, diverti

In the Intelligent Transportation Systems world, the concept of managing roadway or transportation corridors is not new. Smart Corridor concepts have existed for some time, such as the Santa Monica Smart Corridor system from the 1990s. Across the world, a new emerging model for operating roadway transportation networks called integrated corridor management (ICM) has emerged. This is particularly true in California, where several new ICM projects have or are being deployed. There is a new paradigm for corrid

The latest formwork solutions are enabling some tough bridge-building projects to be delivered in South America and Europe, while the world’s largest construction equipment show is seeing the merits of other cutting-edge formwork. Guy Woodford reports. Taking a road and rail link across one of South America’s largest rivers, together with its swamps and floodplain, calls for a new crossing of superlative dimensions. Two 135.5m pylons for the third bridge across the Orinoco River in Venezuela are taking shap