One of the basics for asphalt paving is getting the mix from the haul truck to the paver’s hopper, which is referred to as “charging the hopper.” It takes a gentle touch and careful release of tension when it comes to the truck’s brake. Follow these steps for your best chances at a smooth process.
- Have the haul truck driver locate the dump person upon arrival at the work zone.
- Back the truck to the paver and stop when the dump person signals that the truck’s back tires are within an inch or two of the paver’s push rollers. Then firmly push your foot down on the brake pedal.
- Have the paver operator gingerly drive forward so the push rollers are kissing the truck’s back tires. This should be a gentle touch.
- With your foot still on the brake pedal, release the tension just a bit as you feel the paver engaging you forward. Let the paver drive and push the truck forward.
- The dump person will signal for the haul truck to begin raising the truck body to discharge material in a consistent, even flow into the hopper. It is important for the truck driver to maintain “even” pressure on the brake pedal! That surge of material will try to push the truck out of the hopper and away from the paver, resulting in a mess for the crew to clean. (Even if you had the emergency brake on, that sudden surge if the bed was raised too high too quickly would push the truck out, so make sure you don’t raise the bed too high too soon.)
In the event of a spill, it is vital for the crew to hop into motion and get the mess cleaned up. The crew can’t be lazy and leave a pile of material for the paver to try to drive over, as you can see was attempted in this photo.
Jump into action and clean up the material using a skid steer so you don’t have temperature segregation and mounds of mess getting caught up in the paver’s track or wheels.
This article originally appeared in the October 2024 issue of AsphaltPro, alongside this article, “Prevent Fatalities with Better Truck Driver Training, Best Practices.”