Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) is making available its 48 voltage DC protocol for electric charging solutions in a bid to accelerate electrification and make it easier for customers with a multi-branded fleet.

Because the Clean Air Act mandates that all permitted emission sources must be stack tested within 180 days of startup, asphalt plants undergo initial tests pretty early on in their lifetimes. But stack testing happens throughout your facility’s life depending on your state’s requirement. Annual testing may mean you want to stay on top of cleaning and watching out for any loosening seals or potential breaches in ductwork and so on.

When it comes to the actual testing, talk with the team or individual who will be performing the testing. You want to make sure you’re running the mix that day with the best opportunity for successful numbers. If it’s going to rain the night before, see if you can reschedule. If you can’t reschedule, you want to pull the driest material you can and monitor the firing rate on the burner. Try to keep track of the dust load on the baghouse so you can see just what affected your numbers.

Beyond the production elements you control, look at the testing equipment. Is it certified? Are you confident it’s been calibrated correctly? You want to watch out for human error, which means you’re looking for the best person you can find to help you get your stack testing handled competently.

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Among the obvious statements we could make for the July issue, let’s mention the importance of communicating the sense of caring to our workforce. Comfortable, healthy workers are productive and safe in their practices. Overheated, sunburned workers are probably moving more slowly by 2:00 p.m. than they were at 9:00 a.m. and could be stumbling over tools if not collapsing from heat exhaustion.

I don’t mean to paint a negative picture for our industry. I’m aware that companies employ the buddy system to look out for one another in the work zone and around facilities, and companies have safety protocols in place to prevent overheating. The national emphasis program (NEP) that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) put in place a couple years ago came about after our industry had already taken the initiative to ensure our workers knew the signs of heat exhaustion before it developed to heatstroke.

Members of our industry have taken the initiative to show one another how to build cooling trailers you can tow from job site to job site for workers to visit during breaks. We already have troubleshooting guides to set up cooling mechanisms on the back of the paver and bullet point lists of ice-related treats a summer intern could be paid to drive out to the milling, grading or paving crew each afternoon. Now, not every company has been eager to put schematics in a print magazine for fear of litigation if the blueprint wasn’t followed correctly and so on, but the point is folks have been willing to share basic concepts.

Especially online.

Now that we’re in the height of paving season, I encourage members of the AsphaltPro audience to share ideas for keeping workers cool and out of the heat exhaustion danger zone. We have a facebook page where your peers interact with good ideas all the time. Let’s engage that group for the best health of our workforce.

And here’s my original point. As an industry, we should be reminding workers that we care for one another. We’re not preventing heatstroke merely because we want to have productive workers who are at the top of their game. We’re preventing heatstroke because we want to see each and every one of our colleagues and teammates going home and returning to work safely tomorrow.

The new guy who gets assigned to the flagger position needs someone to check on him. Just because he’s not directly above a 320-degree mat or next to a hot engine fan doesn’t mean he’s out of danger. He’s exposed to the same high ambient temperature you are, but he’s not acclimated to it yet.

That acclimation is a point OSHA’s stressing as of late, and it’s one to pay attention to. The worker you’ve just brought on board isn’t a grizzled veteran of our industry. Now don’t call him soft; He’s new. Don’t call him weak; He’s human. Don’t think of looking out for him as coddling him; You’re protecting him from succumbing to heat exhaustion (or worse) while his body adjusts to a new normal. By watching out for each other out there, you help those new workers stay alive. Especially when it’s hot as blazes in July.

Check out articles for best hot-weather paving tips at TheAsphaltPro.com and keep each other safe out there.

Stay Safe,

Sandy Lender

National Pavement Expo and Conference (NPE) and AsphaltPro are pleased to announce their new partnership to best serve the paving and pavement maintenance industry at the 2024 National Pavement Expo and Conference in Tampa, Florida, January 23-25.

The leading annual industry event for pavement professionals, NPE, is excited to join forces with the go-to publication and informational resource, AsphaltPro Magazine, as they work together, combining their extensive knowledge and needs of the industry to develop a comprehensive and carefully curated Conference agenda with top educational offerings, as well as an Expo Floor that highlights state-of-the-art equipment, technology, products, and services.

“Our team is thrilled to be partnering with one of the top publications in the industry. We believe this will greatly benefit our reach to new industry members and increase NPE’s diversification. AsphaltPro has over 80 years of experience in the industry and is going to be a huge asset to our event,” said Show Director, Morgan Wilson.

Sharing in the same sentiment, Chris Harrison, AsphaltPro Magazine, said, “It is important for the pavement maintenance and preservation community to have reliable, steady resources they can count on; places where they can come together with colleagues and competitors and learn the ins and outs of business, materials, techniques, and tools. AsphaltPro Magazine provides that with our print magazine, social media channels and our website www.theasphaltpro.com and NPE provides a live event that showcases equipment, education and innovation. Together, we create a powerful partnership with deep roots in the industry focused on growing the pavement professional’s bottom line.”

This partnership is just one of the many exciting new features that the NPE team looks forward to debuting at the 2024 show.

The National Pavement Expo and Conference brings vendors and contractors together who make their living from asphalt and concrete paving, sealcoating, striping, sweeping, crack repair, pavement repair, and snow removal.  NPE provides over three days to network with other paving professionals, discover new products, and attend expert-led educational programs. National Pavement Expo and Conference is owned by Emerald, the largest operator of business-to-business trade shows in the United States.

Learn more about the upcoming 2024 National Pavement Expo and Conference

Prep the system for stack testing. This month’s Toolbox Tip series from AsphaltPro Magazine is designed to help get consistent numbers even during the all-important testing…

With emissions reduction all the rage, you’ve probably already installed advanced technologies for ensuring your lowest possible impact on the environment. Now let’s look at ways to ensure those new technologies function at optimum levels. This week, let’s look at the all-important burner.

One of the first variables you want to consider when assessing the efficiency of your burner is the type of fuel you’re feeding it. Your options run the gamut from waste oil to LNG to propane and so on. In some parts of the country, agencies have mandated the type of fuel and the type of burner you can use for your business, but some agencies still allow industry experts—rather than environmental activists—to decide how best to optimize fuel efficiency with burner type and production parameters.

Your total air burner running with a PLC and variable frequency drive might be all your operation needs for the tonnage and type of mixes you produce. Or you might be ready to mix fuels feeding into an ultra lo-NOx burner to perfect the flame and temperature for your mix designs.

Notice this is all to regulate the flame and temperature for the mix design at hand. Your goal—along with producing a long-lasting pavement mix—should be to reduce any chance of blue smoke or particulate emission coming off your specific mix whether it’s a straight mix or one with high-RAP, polymer modification, warm-mix asphalt additives, recycled plastic waste or some other technology involved.

Each additive, fiber, polymer or extra ingredient you introduce to your mix design will influence moisture content or time to coat the aggregate or what have you. That means you want to watch your burner for its optimum flame and optimum efficiency. That perfection influences the numbers you see when it comes time for stack testing.

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