News

Design work has been completed for a key stretch of the highway that will provide a new link between Kenya and Tanzania. The plans for the 210km section in Kenya between Malindi in Kilifi County and Lunga Lunga in Kwale County have been completed. This stretch will form part of the Lamu-Dar es Salaam highway from Kenya to Tanzania. The Kenyan Government is now sourcing funding for the project and hopes to obtain the necessary financing packages from the World Bank and the African Development Bank. The proj

The troubled tunnel construction project in Colombia to build the La Linea link has faced yet a further setback in its long tale of woe. The tender for the completion of the final 12% of the tunnel project has not managed to attract any interest from contractors. The budget for this work is an estimated US$77 million. A new tender process is being launched, with a submission deadline of 6th June 2017 and planned winner announcement on 4th July 2017. The contractor that had been building the tunnel failed to

The Cape Town Road Infrastructure and Development Congress is on track to attract even more global investors, government, road organisations, according to the event organisers. These attendees are coming from East, West and Southern Africa as well as major construction companies, bitumen suppliers, traders and consumers than in previous events. International investors, government representatives as well as construction companies are looking for suppliers for their committed projects across sub-Saharan Afric

Volvo CE has developed an all-electric mini excavator, which it is now demonstrating in prototype form. The machine is powered by the latest generation Li-Ion battery technology and is said to be highly efficient. Volvo CE points out that the machine is a prototype intended to test the concept and that its configuration will be likely to change during development. The 3.5tonne machine also does without conventional hydraulic circuits, marking it apart from currently available electric excavators. Lars Stenq

Funding has been found for the new bridge that will connect Bangladesh with China. Called the Friendship Bridge, the project has been the subject of negotiations between the two countries. Funding worth US$83 million is being provided by China to pay for the construction of the new link, the ninth connecting the two countries. To date the construction of seven Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge links have been funded by China. The eighth bridge link is under construction at present and will span the Kocha R

Huesker Group has restructured its base reinforcement products under the new Basetrac brand. The established products Fortrac (biaxial), Fornit, Base, Duogrid, Comtrac, Sefitec and HaTe now form the Basetrac product family. Huesker said the restructure simplifies product selection and provides construction companies and transport engineers with single-source solutions for all application areas. The company said that all Basetrac products offer interaction flexibility, high reliability and cost-effectiveness

AsphaltQube, new from IPC Global, uses IPC’s electromechanical servoactuation (EmS) technology for dynamic SuperPave Performance tests that were previously available only to high-end research laboratories. According to IPC Global, AsphaltQube allows all the most common international asphalt mixture standard tests in one compact, modular, easy to use machine. The design allows for total flexibility to suit each user's testing requirements. Individual test modules can be added to the base system separately as

AsphaltQube, new from IPC Global, uses IPC’s electromechanical servoactuation (EmS) technology for dynamic SuperPave Performance tests that were previously available only to high-end research laboratories. According to IPC Global, AsphaltQube allows all the most common international asphalt mixture standard tests in one compact, modular, easy to use machine. The design allows for total flexibility to suit each user's testing requirements. Individual test modules can be added to the base system separately as

In the UK the contractor Eurovia has recently carried out a challenging resurfacing job within a tight timescale. The firm had to contend with live traffic on a busy stretch of motorway, while carrying out the work close to shared intersections. The traffic was particularly heavy also during part of the job due to a holiday period and large numbers of tourist vehicles using the stretch of motorway.

Norway could be home to the world’s longest wooden bridge if the government gives the go-ahead for a span across Lake Mjosa. In a new report, researchers conclude that it is possible, both technically and economically, to build a 1.7km wooden bridge between the towns Biri and Moelv. Importantly, the report notes that construction cost differences between a wooden and concrete structure would be little. Estimates for a wooden bridge are around €420 million while for a concrete structure would come in about €