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  Last Updated:  March 05, 2010 02:26 PM

 

 
 



Register Today!
 

CPAM's 49th Annual

Concrete Paving Workshop

March 18 - 19, 2010
 

Breezy Point Convention Center

Breezy Point, MN

 

Final Program - Workshop


Preliminary Program

Hotel Info

Registration Form
 

 

 


National Highway Institute


 offers web based training!
 

  Click here for course offerings.

 

 


MnDOT Places First Thin Overlay

 

By Ivy Chang, Construction Bulletin, November 3, 2008

The Minnesota Department of Transportation tried a non-traditional concrete overlay on Highway 53 a few miles north of Duluth, MN, that showed promising results for future highways.

The thin overlay, which has been tried in other states, should restore a smooth ride, provide a load transfer between pavement segments, and can be poured in less time, according to Ted Sexton, Mn/DOT resident engineer in District 1A that includes Duluth.

Read Full Article

 

 

A "Must Read" !

The Economics of

 Concrete Pavement
 

The April 2, 2008 edition of ACPA's
CONCRETE PAVEMENT PROGRESS,
"The Economics of Concrete Pavement,"
is available via the following link:

The Economics of Concrete Pavement

Headlines in this issue include:

* Casting a Light on the Hidden Costs of Asphalt
* Oil Price Volatility Extends to Asphalt
* Beyond Materials
* Calculate Total Costs Using Life-Cycle Cost Analysis
 



See the difference!

Click here

To view photos comparing asphalt and concrete streets


 


Click here to see why...


 

   
    Concrete Pavement Rehabilitation for Local Streets and Roads

April 28 - 29, 2010

Waseca, MN

The University of Minnesota is offering this continuing education class for county and city engineers or their technical staff who have responsibility for maintaining concrete pavements and associated concrete structures.

The course will be limited to 35 people to accommodate the field survey teams.
Registration fee:  $100

Click here for program overview and to register online

 

   
   
 

October 2009 issue now available!

 

   
   
 


      

 

 PCA Announces 2010 Webinar Schedule

 

Registration is now open for the 2010 PCA webinar series.  These one-hour seminars will take PCA's popular engineering bulletin, Design and Control of Concrete Mixtures, and present the topics chapter by chapter via distance learning.

Registration is now open for the first six webinars in the series.  All webinars will be held from 12 pm - 1 pm Central Time. 

     >  Fundamentals of Concrete - January 21
     >  Portland, Blended, and Other Hydraulic Cements - February 18
     >  Fly Ash, Slag, Silica Fume, and Natural Poxxolans - March 11
     >  Mixing Water for Concrete - April 15
     >  Aggregates for Concrete - May 27
     >  Admixtures for Concrete - June 17
 

Webinar Details & Registration

 

   
 

Why Concrete’s Advantage vs. Asphalt Is Widening


With the U.S. poised to invest heavily in roads and highways and
as legislation designed to expand major infrastructure projects looms
on the horizon, concrete is fast emerging as not only the more cost-
effective long-term solution for road construction, but also a
far less-expensive initial investment.

Download PCA's Special Report

Download PCA's Economic Report: Update: Paving, The New Realities

Click here for additional information on PCA's website


 

   
 

      EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

 

Webinars Address Key Technical Topics in Concrete Paving 

The American Concrete Pavement Association's popular web-enabled training continues with webinars through mid-September. ACPA's webinars cover topics related to concrete pavement design, construction, and rehabilitation, as well as broader issues such as sustainability.

February 18, Discovering a New Approach to Designing & Using Tie Bars (90 minutes)
March 4, The How, Why, and When of Concrete Overlays
March 18, Protecting Your Investment in Equipment
March 25, Repairing Concrete Pavements Near Utilities
April 15, A Contractor's Guide to Batching Equipment
May 13, Permeable Subbases
May 27, Precast Pavements
June 3, Benefits of Recycling and Re-Using Paving Materials

For additional information about the webinar series, contact Michael E. Ayers. To register online, visit the ACPA website at acpa.org.

ACPA Webinar Series
 

 
   
   
 


 

Lessons Learned From Mn/ROAD

(1992-2006)  -  FINAL REPORT

Mark B. Snyder, Consultant
10/15/2008

Read Full Report

 

   
 


Check out bulletproof pavements!

According to TERRA, "the typical recommended minimum standard 6-inch concrete pavement has performed so well on the MnROAD LVR and other Minnesota low-volume roads that it is often referred to as a 'bulletproof' pavement for more heavily loaded applications."

Read Full Article

 

   
 
 

Think Green…Think Concrete
 

 

 

Concern over global warming and a host of environmental issues has many of us thinking “green,” looking for ways to reduce pollution and protect the environment.   If you’re an environmental steward thinking green, think concrete.

 

According to a recent article entitled “Concrete & Climate Change” published in the Summer 2008 issue of Concrete InFocus by the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, concrete compares favorably to other building materials when analyzing energy consumption and CO2 emissions, one of several greenhouse gases that can cause global warming.  And when it comes to paving materials, concrete is decidedly green.  Studies conducted by National Resources Council of Canada which compared fuel consumption and emissions for a 62 mile section of a major arterial highway, one paved with concrete and the other with asphalt, concluded that heavy trucks traveling on concrete pavement realized significant fuel savings ranging from 0.8% to 6.9%.  “These fuel savings lead to reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and air pollutants.”   Another study conducted by Athena Institute analyzed concrete and asphalt roadways to compare embodied energy and global warming potential for construction and maintenance over a 50-year life cycle.  “The study concluded that for a high volume highway, the asphalt pavement alternative required three times more energy than their concrete counterparts from a life cycle perspective.”   For more detail, read the entire article at http://www.nrmca.org/research/CIF-Summer-08-Climate.pdf.


The American Concrete Pavement Association (ACPA) released a special report in October 2007 entitled, “Green Highways – Environmentally and Economically Sustainable Concrete Pavements,” Publication SR385P.   The report begins by noting that, according to the 2005 EPA Green Highways Initiative, “green highways” are “those that are environmentally responsible and sustainable in all aspects, including design, construction, and maintenance.”   ACPA’s special report details the many benefits of concrete paving and concludes, in part:  


Concrete pavement has long been considered an environmentally and economically sustainable pavement choice for its longevity.  This hallmark of concrete pavements ensures that the desirable performance characteristics of the pavement remain essentially intact for several decades.

 

In addition, long-lasting concrete pavements do not require rehabilitation or reconstruction as often and, therefore, consume fewer raw materials over time.  Energy savings also are realized, since rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts consume energy.  Even more importantly, congestion is reduced by using long-lasting concrete pavements because of less frequent construction zones that impede traffic flow.  Ultimately, all of these benefits add up to greater long-term economic and social benefits to the public.

 

Many other features of concrete pavements were also noted which contribute to making concrete pavements an environmentally sensitive pavement choice.   Make a “green choice” today and check out the entire article on ACPA’s website Pavements4Life or via the following link:  http://www.pavements4life.com/QDs/SR385P.pdf.

 

   
 

 

Concrete Overlays

 

 

 

See the results of the tour of Iowa concrete overlays!

Iowa Overlay Tour - November 8, 2007

 

   

 

   
 

 

MnROAD Lessons Learned

Results of Phase I now available!

 

 

 

   
 

Mn/DOT hired the University of Minnesota Center for Transportation Studies (CTS) to do an independent study on the Minnesota Road Research Project (MnROAD), a full-scale pavement research facility opened to live traffic in 1994.   The results are summarized in the CTS report entitled: 

MnROAD Lessons Learned

Mn/DOT also summarized their findings in 11 reports, available  on the DOT website under:

Lessons Learned from MnROAD Phase 1

 

 
     

 

 
 
 

 

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Concrete Paving Association of Minnesota, 4517 Allendale Drive, Suite A, White Bear Township, MN  55127      Phone:  651.762.0402      Fax:  651.762.0638

 

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