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In This Issue
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Featured Article |
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News From NAPA
Congress Passes HIRE Act, Restores Transportation Funding.
President Obama signed the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act on March 18. Among other things, the HIRE Act enables state and local governments to move forward with needed transportation projects by extending authorization for the highway and transit programs through the end of this year; providing $19.5 billion to keep the Highway Trust Fund solvent; and restoring $8.7 billion in highway contract authority to the states that had been rescinded at the end of 2009.
Still, the Congress has left in limbo a six-year, $450 billion spending plan for highway construction, mass transit and other projects. Without reauthorization of the highway bill, transportation funding remains at current levels. Two recent commissions on that subject have called for $106 billion a year investment over the next 20 years to maintain the current system, compared to the $80 billion a year currently spent by all levels of government. Click here for a summary of the HIRE Act.
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HMA Your Best Value |
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The concept of Perpetual Pavements was introduced in 2000 by the Asphalt Pavement Alliance (APA). They defined a Perpetual Pavement as "an asphalt pavement designed and built to last longer than 50 years without requiring major structural rehabilitation or reconstruction, and needing only periodic surface renewal in response to distresses confined to the top of the pavement" (APA, 2002). At that time, it was recognized that many well-built, thick asphalt pavements that were categorized as either full-depth or deep-strength pavements had been in service for decades with only minor periodic surface rehabilitation to remove defects and improve ride quality. The advantages of such pavements include:
1. Low life-cycle cost by avoiding deep pavement repairs or reconstruction,
2. Low user-delay costs since minor surface rehabilitation of asphalt pavements only requires short work windows that can avoid peak traffic hours, and
3. Low environmental impact by reducing the amount of material resources over the pavement's life and recycling any materials removed from the pavement surface.
Click here to read the document
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APAM Happenings |
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Save the Date!
Golf season is right around the corner. We have chosen the date for the 4th Annual Asphalt Pavement Association Scholarship Golf Outing. We will be going to Bucks Run Golf Club in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan on Tuesday, July 20, 2010. It will be the same format as in the past with a shotgun start at 9:00 a.m. so watch the newsletter and website for further details.
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MDOT News |
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Longitudinal Joint Density Pilot Program Underway
In an effort to improve pavement performance, MDOT and APAM are partnering on a Longitudinal Joint Density Pilot Program in 2010. The purpose of the pilot program is to obtain and analyze as much data as possible in order to establish joint density requirements that will be used on all projects in the future. The HMAOC established a goal of having one pilot project per TSC in 2010.
Click here to view the pilot special provision titled "Acceptance of Longitudinal Joint Density in Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) Pavements". This specification establishes density requirements for mainline longitudinal lane joints only; shoulder longitudinal joints are not included. The SP requires two pay items; "Longitudinal Joint Density" paid by the foot and "Longitudinal Joint Density Quality Initiative" paid by the dollar. The "Longitudinal Joint Density" is to be set at $1.00/Foot and the Initiative should be set at 20% of the total amount of "Longitudinal Joint Density" set up for the project.
The special provision has been included in some projects for 2010. However, contractors are encouraged to volunteer to have this added to existing projects. We need as much data as possible in order to set achievable density requirements and evaluate the operational aspects of the special provision.
Updated MDOT PWL Software Available
MDOT Construction Advisory CA 2010-02 announces that updated PWL software will be available to download on April 2nd. There will be two versions posted, one for regular PWL projects and one for Capital Preventative Maintenance (CPM) PWL projects. These spreadsheets must be used for 2010 projects. To read the CA click on the link below for more details.
CA 2010-02, Updating the Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) Percent Within Limits (PWL) Spreadsheet on the MDOT Web Site
Revised Index
MDOT Links
Click here to view a listing of Construction Advisories
Click here to view a listing of Instructional Memorandums
Click here to view a listing of EOC Minutes
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NAPA News |
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Asphalt. America Rides on Us
Asphalt is the material that carries most of the traffic in the U.S. and it is the material that Americans rely on. We have a lot riding on asphalt.
"Asphalt. America Rides on Us" is the new tagline of the Asphalt Pavement Alliance (APA). The APA is a partnership between the State Asphalt Pavement Associations (SAPA), the Asphalt Institute (AI) and the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA). The new campaign has issued a policy white paper entitled "Asphalt Pavement. America Rides On Us." The paper discusses the superior benefits of asphalt and why investing in asphalt pavement is right for America.
Watch for more information from the APA in future issues.
Paving Smarter With Asphalt Webinar
Paving Smarter is all about doing business better from design through construction. A webinar is scheduled for May 4-5, 2010. For more information click on the link. Webinar Info.
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News About Our Members |
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APAM Welcomes New Member
Yeager Asphalt, founded in 1959, is a paving and sealcoating company servicing Mid- Michigan - including Saginaw, Bay, Midland, Genesse, Tuscola and Gratiot counties. Mark Yeager is the company president. Welcome Yeager Asphalt!
Ron Worden Passes Away
Ron Worden, father of Mark Worden (Cadillac Asphalt, LLC) died March 7, 2010. Ron was part owner of Worden Brothers of Coldwater, then later went to work for TM Oil Division of Thompson McCully Co. and Asphalt Materials, Inc. of Oregon, Ohio.
A memorial service will be held April 17, 2010 at the United Methodist Church in Coldwater, MI with visitation at 10:00 a.m. and the service at 11:00. Contributions in Ron's name may be made to the American Heart Association or the American Cancer Society. Click here to read the full obituary.
APAM extends its deepest sympathies to Mark and Shelly and the family.
2nd Annual Starr Kohn Memorial Golf Outing
The Golf Outing, supported by Soils and Materials, Inc. (SME), will be held May 24, 2010 at The Majestic at Lake Walden, Hartland, MI. Shotgun start is at 9:00 a.m. The cost per person is $100 with a dinner only price of $50. Proceeds from this tournament will provide Civil Engineering Scholarships. The sign-up sheet will be out soon. Email for more info: SDK-outing@sme-usa.com.
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Other Meetings |
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