Search

India’s ministry of transport and highways is seeking an additional US$1.17 billion on top of a record spend for road construction and maintenance. The ministry has already earmarked nearly $11 billion for the year 2015/16. The government recently announced plans to build a new 600km highway connecting Katra with New Delhi. The route, costing around $2.25 billion, will run through Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir states. A consultant is being selected to carry out a feasibility study for the project

Road safety is a key issue for sustainable development targets. During the Rio+20 Conference in 2012, it was agreed by member States to launch a process to develop a set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), to build on the Millennium Development Goals and converge with the post-2015 development agenda. Over the past six months, IRF Geneva has undertaken a sustained campaign to ensure that road safety is included in the SDGs. As part of this, Kiran K Kapila, chairman, IRF Geneva, has reached out, amon

During his recent radio programme “Mann Ki Baat,” Narendra Modi, The Prime Minister of India, expressed concern regarding the road safety situation on Indian roads and the number of lives being lost as a result of traffic accidents. Modi said, “The statistics on road accidents in our country are shocking. There is an accident every minute. And due to road accidents there is a death every four minutes." He further noted that lives can be saved by taking the injured to hospital within the first hour, also kno

Different road rules are in place in many parts of the world, with some proving rather peculiar. In the US state of Kentucky, women are permitted to drive while wearing a bikini, as long as they either have a weapon to hand for self-defence or are sitting alongside two police officers. Meanwhile in Germany, driving in the nude is permitted as a car is regarded legally as a private space. Should the driver be at the wheel barefoot however, making insurance claims in the event of a crash would be difficult. I

An estimated 75,000 people aged 15-34 were killed in road crashes in India during 2014. This accounted for 53.8% of India’s total road crash fatalities for 2014, around 129,300 in all. The data comes from India’s 2014 Road Accident Report by the Road Transport and Highways Ministry. The report also revealed that 84% of those 75,000 killed were males. The data is in line with World Health Organisation's report that road crashes are the number one cause of death among people aged 15-29 globally. The 2014 Road

The Indian Government plans to build a new highway connecting Katra with New Delhi. The route will be some 600km long, running through Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir. A consultant is being selected to carry out a feasibility study for the project. The project will cost in the order of US$2.25 billion and will be of importance as Katra is where the Vaishno Devi holy shrine is located. The new link will reduce travel time on the route from 11-12 hours at present to five-six hours when the work is complete

Chinese manufacturer LiuGong has adjusted its strategy to meet the changes in the construction machinery industry Slow recovery from the global economic recession has impacted on the construction machinery industry. Intense regional, political and economic situations, low demand for resources, a decrease in emerging economies and conservative investment have led to a sharp decrease in demand for heavy machinery. LiuGong is tackling this using its refined initiative programme, however, and the firm sa

A quarrying operation in India is seeing the benefit of new machines for its fleet Indian quarry firm Pearl Mineral and mines, extracts some 7,200m3 of granite/year from its two granite quarries at Chimakurthy and Andhra Pradesh. Pearl Mineral and Mines is one of the top producers and exporters of Indian granite, with more than half of its produce sold overseas. Located on India’s south-eastern coast, the company produces stone, ranging from giant blocks to tiny chips. The Green Pearl granite quarry

XCMG is developing its overseas activities with a programme called 'One Belt, One Road'. Representatives from 18 countries recently travelled to XCMG’s headquarters in China to launch the firm’s new Overseas Service Activity. This is focusing particularly on service support for customers involved in the New Silk Road project. The launch event was followed by a seminar at XCMG, with officials discussing business opportunities deriving from the 'One Belt, One Road' strategy. This forms part of a drive by t

XCMG is developing its overseas activities with a programme called 'One Belt, One Road'. Representatives from 18 countries recently travelled to XCMG’s headquarters in China to launch the firm’s new Overseas Service Activity. This is focusing particularly on service support for customers involved in the New Silk Road project.

India plans to carry out the necessary feasibility study into the bridge and tunnel connection with Sri Lanka. India’s Transport Ministry has said that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide the finance needed for the project, which is now expected to cost US$3.6 billion. According to India’s Transport Ministry the bridge and tunnel link with Sri Lanka forms part of a plan to boost the country’s connections with its neighbours. The new over sea crossing will provide an important connection to a count

The VDMA is the German equipment manufacturing association and says it is optimistic with regard to machine demand. The VDMA’s latest forecast for the construction equipment business segment in 2015 suggests market growth of 4%. According to the VDMA, the bauma 2016 construction equipment event in Munich in spring 2016 will also provide strong impetus for machine sales. German construction equipment manufacturers are more optimistic at the middle of the year than they were at the beginning – "even though u

An array of new bridge refurbishment and repair solutions are available – Mike Woof writes Around the world there are many bridges requiring repairs or refurbishment, and there is a ready market for novel solutions to upgrade existing structures. New developments offer quicker and more efficient ways to improve bridge surfaces and structural performance and add new life to ageing designs. Spancrete is broadening the availability of its novel precast building solutions worldwide by offering these to th

The IRF Geneva said that India has the dubious distinction of claiming the highest number of fatalities by road crashes. More than 10% of road-related deaths occur in India alone, and this poses a serious challenge, being the major killer of young and productive lives. While India’s infrastructure programme is being lauded all over the world and high rate of growth has been achieved for the 1.25 billion strong democracy, a significant 3% of the GDP is lost every year due to the uncontrolled and unmanaged

Plans are being considered for either a tunnel or bridge to connect Sri Lanka and India. The preferred route would be from Dhanushkodi in India to Talaimannar on the Sri Lankan island of Mannar. Building this 23km link could cost around US$3.62 billion according to estimates. Spanning the Pak Strait with a bridge might leave such a structure vulnerable to tsunami as well as typhoons however. It is worth noting that Sri Lanka’s south western coast was devastated some years ago by a tsunami precipitated by an

These four-day-long expert knowledge sessions are run at the Ammann International Training Centre (AITC) in Nové Msto nad Metují and, according to after-sales projects manager and training centre boss Martin Sedláek, the idea is, “…to ensure that Ammann has a globally consistent (approach) to presenting, selling and servicing” the company’s fast-developing range of road pavers.

A raft of global pressures is driving developments in the materials and equipment we use for the handling, storage and treatment of bitumen. The goal is to achieve better performance and longer life for less financial outlay, and at the same time overcome the challenges of inconsistent and varying bitumen supplies. Kristina Smith reports.

Chinese construction equipment firms have been building their operations in local markets – but are now looking to develop globally - Mike Woof writes In recent years Chinese construction equipment manufacturers have been able to capitalise on local demand in the home market. The rapid rate of expansion of transport infrastructure, fuelled by government spending, led to a massive need for construction machines. The country’s manufacturers have grown rapidly in size, investing enormously in factory capacity

The implementation of a new strategy looks set to lead to strong development among infrastructure-related industries in export markets for Chinese firms. And as an industry leader in the production of construction machinery, Zoomlion has long been preparing to compete against the major international companies At the bauma China 2014 event in Shanghai, Zoomlion gave an insight into its international ambitions according to the firm. At the show, the senior director in charge of Zoomlion overseas business,

No sooner had senior managers told a roomful of journalists that corporate restructuring is on track, news followed that Volvo Group’s chief executive had been replaced Olof Persson fell from his perch following pressure from shareholders' dissatisfaction over the group’s weak financial performance in recent years. Volvo group plans to appoint Scania’s head Martin Lundstedt to the role staring in October. Until then, Volvo Group’s chief financial officer Jan Gurander will be standing in. Lundstedt and G