The European Concrete Pavement Association (EUPAVE) held its 4th Workshop on Best Practices in Concrete Paving on June 18, 2019 at the Thon Hotel EU in Brussels, Belgium. The theme for this year was “Hydraulically Bound Base Layers & Roller Compacted Concrete (RCC) Pavements”. The workshop was attended by about 35 participants who were experts with a particular interest in RCC.
During this event, various topics were discussed over the day, including:
• Hydraulically bound base layers
• General introduction on RCC
• Promotion of RCC across Europe
• Situation of RCC in Turkey
• Market of RCC in the United States
Each participant received a copy of EUPAVE’s newest 16-page RCC publication:
“Roller compacted concrete: making concrete pavements
available to the whole pavement building industry”
Mr. Stéphane Nicoud, President-EUPAVE, opened the workshop on behalf of its Rory Keogh, Vice-President-EUPAVE, who welcomed the attendees and thanked them for their presence. Mr. Nicoud gave a special welcome to EUPAVE Members and Partners and introduced EUPAVE’s working groups on:
• Best Practices
• Concrete Safety Barriers
• Environmental Strategy
• EU Advocacy
• Communication Strategy
He also informed the participants about EUPAVE’s NEWSLETTER and different affiliations. He finished his introduction by an overview of the previous workshops on Best Practices organized since 2015. Presentations were offered by:
Mrs. Colette Grégoire, Senior Researcher-Belgian Road Research Center (BRRC):
“Standards, materials and tests methods” of Hydraulically Bound Base Layers (HBBL).
Mr. Luc Rens, Managing Director-EUPAVE:
“Design, Construction and Performances” of HBBL. His presentation focused on the choice of base layer, the different types of HBBL, the construction techniques and ended by final considerations such as the circular economy and climate-resilience.
Mr. Carlos Jofré, Consultant:
RCC and in which Cases Using RCC Pavements is important and where to use them. He discussed the market of RCC pavements and gave technical information.
Mr. Mathew Tranter, Cemex-UK and Mr. José M. Merino, Pemex-Spain:
RCC promotion across Europe
Mr. Ozgur Yaman:
RCC pavements in Turkey:Mr. Yaman showed the different applications in Turkey and what lessons have been learned regarding the construction of the roads.
Mrs. Anne Beeldens, Consultant-AB-Roads:
The market of RCC pavements in the U.S.: (on behalf of Corey Zollinger, Director Paving Solution-Cemex and Chairman-RCC Pavement Council).
An open discussion followed the presentations, and finally, Stéphane Nicoud drew the main conclusions of the workshop:
- Hydraulically-Bound Base Layers are a good solution for all types of pavements
- Several types are available depending on the design parameters
- The preliminary design study is a good start
- The resistance to erosion can be more important than just strength
- They fit in the framework of “circular economy” and “climate resilience”
- RCC pavements are increasingly applied all over the world:
- Equipment are widely available
- Properties are similar to conventional concrete
- Mainly for low speed applications
- Further developments in surface finishing are ongoing
- A good way to get started with concrete pavements
The workshop was followed by a cocktail at the hotel restaurant.
For the adjacent ISCP article on this RCC Publication titled “New EUPAVE Publication: “RCC: Making Concrete Pavements Available to the Whole Pavement Building Industry”, and for the 16-page publication, please go to: https://www.concretepavements.org/2019/07/18/new-eupave-publication-rcc-making-concrete-pavements-available-to-the-whole-pavement-building-industry/
For the RCC Pavement Council, please go to: http://rccpavementcouncil.org
For the article on the EUPAVE website, please go to: https://www.eupave.eu/success-for-eupaves-4th-workshop-on-best-practices-18-june-2019/
Home Page Photo: RCC in Turkey