Paving the Way Forward

Higgins Contractors recently utilised Synergy Positioning Systems’ consultancy service and fast, accurate PaveSmart technology to achieve fantastic results on a busy Auckland arterial route.

While Higgins Contractors project manager Prameet Sharma had plenty of technology at his disposal during the recent Aranui Road resurfacing project in Auckland, one thing he didn’t have a lot of, was time.

“Because of the nature of the roadway, it had to remain open to traffic throughout the entire resurfacing process,” says Prameet.

“We had to keep a variety of stakeholders happy, which meant working within very restrictive timeframes. And naturally when you need to obtain the best result possible within a short space of time, there’s no room for error.”

In order to help ensure a great result, Higgins utilised Synergy Positioning Systems’ asphalt paving consultancy service and PaveSmart system on their asphalt paving plant.

The PaveSmart system is fitted to the asphalt paver to control survey levels. As the paver travels along a run, the PaveSmart system automatically controls the hydraulics on the machine in order to achieve the desired survey levels, ensuring consistency and accuracy.

The system – which can also be fitted to milling machines – even accounts for the effects of differential compaction, meaning critical design elevations are achieved for the smoothest possible surface results.

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As with other similar projects, Synergy provided end-to-end support for Higgins on the Aranui Road project, with survey and software manager Gavin Greenhalgh providing preliminary depth design prior to the job, as well as on-site assistance with PaveSmart hardware set-up, operation and data dissemination.

As part of the Synergy asphalt paving consultancy service, Gavin also ensured a concluding survey of the roadway was completed, providing Higgins with full conformity reporting.

Beyond the PaveSmart system itself, Synergy Positioning Systems’ comprehensive asphalt paving consultancy service extends to engineering survey work, survey profilograph and design consultation, line marking surveys for roadway rehabilitation and in-house CAD design services.

“We were exceptionally pleased with the results,” says Prameet.

“The road was surveyed prior to resurfacing and had a NAASRA in excess of 60 counts. After we’d utilised the PaveSmart system, and with Synergy’s expertise, the finished NAASRA averaged out at 36, which is brilliant.

“What’s more, the speed with which this result was achieved was impressive too; from the time we contacted Synergy initially to packing up and moving out was only about four days.

“To be able to get into a busy environment such as an arterial roadway and achieve such smooth results with minimal impact to stakeholders is fantastic.”