Superior Pothole Operations

For this month’s deep dive into products and services that enhance your paving and pavement maintenance efforts, we start with a look at a partnership revolutionizing pothole repair. EZ STREET®, Miami, joined its partner Superior Paving Corp., in an open house event at Superior’s Bealeton, Virginia, facility April 25, 2024, to unveil robotic technologies for production of Ambient® Asphalt Technology without displacing jobs.

The open house featured the introduction of a state-of-the-art robotic arm that packages 50-pound bags of EZ Street. David Helmick, EVP operations at Superior Paving, emphasized the positive impact of automation. “Our new robotic operation is a pivotal moment for us as we escalate our efforts to combat pavement challenges across the Mid-Atlantic and beyond. This technology allows us to enhance our operations while ensuring job security and efficiency for our employees.”

David White, president at Superior Paving, said, “This is fundamentally about harnessing technology to work alongside our people, enhancing and innovating within the asphalt industry. It’s not just about adopting new tools; it’s about embedding these technologies into our workflows to improve both product and process.”

This robotic solution is part of Superior Paving’s broader strategy to adopt Ambient® Asphalt Technology by EZ Street.

The sentiment was echoed by Dag Seagren, co-founder of EZ Street, who highlighted the human element at the core of technological adoption. “Adopting robots and technology can work in tandem with companies that love people. Automation and robots are not about taking jobs but about enhancing safety and accuracy in repetitive tasks, allowing our staff to focus on more critical aspects of their roles,” Seagren explained.

The event was not only a showcase of technological advancements but also a celebration of the strong community ties and the skilled workforce at Superior Paving. The presence of all employees from The EZ Street Company underscored the company’s ethos of being in the “relationship business,” reinforcing that innovation does not detract from their community focus.

Superior Paving remains at the forefront of the asphalt industry’s shift toward high-tech solutions. This open house marked a significant step in the company’s journey toward redefining industry standards and leading the way in infrastructure improvement.

For more information, visit their website or contact Elyssa Maslach at elyssa@ez.st.

The robotic arm at Superior Paving has a unique name in honor of two members of the Superior family. The story goes, one day, Jim Mitchell (at left) was thinking the robot needed a name. He thought to himself, “What does the robot do? Obviously: It stacks bags.” Someone else who stacked bags was Superior Paving Chairman Frank Surface (middle).

Mitchell thought about Surface, who loves to go visit with the crews. Unlike others who might just greet workers with a simple, “Hey, how’s it going,” Surface is known for challenging them by asking who is the fastest or who can do the most push-ups. This usually results in the crew stopping to figure it out.

Surface enjoyed stacking bags—a task that requires physical labor. Normally, you would need two people for this task. After his first time stacking, Surface took a week off, and it became apparent they needed a robot for the job. Mitchell thought, “Who should be helping Frank?” Well, his best buddy from college, Joe, who lives in Warrenton, would have been perfect for the job. He’s an awesome guy, but he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s 20 years ago. If not for his condition, he would be in that room and doing awesome stuff for Superior and stacking bags alongside Surface, challenging the robot.

Frank and Joe attended college at Lenoir Rhyne (LR) University in North Carolina where they played football together. Their numbers were 47 and 49. Thus the name of the robotic arm was born. The Frank&Joe LR-4749.

Also in the photo is Superior President David White (at right).