Asphalt Pavement Magazine - May/June 2013 - (Page 32)

Smooth Landings at Austin Executive Airport Specia Sectionl : NAPA Award s J.D. Ramming Paving takes 2012 Ray Brown Award for runway overlay NAPA 2012 Chairman Kurt Bechthold (left) presents the Ray Brown Award to J.D. Ramming Paving’s David Fuller, Vice President Field Operations; Chuck Fuller, President; and Ben Carroll, Operations Manager. By Mary Lou Jay A n airport designed to attract private jets cannot afford a bumpy runway. In 2009, subsoil problems left Austin Executive Airport with a new runway that was unusable before the airport had even opened, but by opening day the airport had the highest quality airport pavement in the county. J.D. Ramming Paving Co. LLC of Austin, Texas, won the 2012 Ray Brown Airport Pavement Award for the overlay of Runway 13/31 at Austin Executive Airport, a general aviation airport serving corporate traffic to the Texas capital. Named for the long-time director of the National Center for Asphalt Technology at Auburn University, the Ray Brown Airport Pavement Award is presented each year to the highest-rated airport project submitted for NAPA’s Quality in Construction Awards. Runway 13/31, the primary runway at the airport, had been paved by another contractor in 2009, but movement in the subgrade due to soil problems caused Runway 13/31 at Austin Executive Airport bumps and roughness to develop in the pavement before the airport even opened. Once the underlying problems were resolved, J.D. Ramming Paving Co. came in to provide the smooth runway surface that the airport needed to meet its opening date. Partnering Approach The company took a partnering approach on the project to ensure that the owner would get the runway that it needed. “The airport originally specified an asphalt mix used by the City of Austin, but we went into the prepave meeting and explained how Texas DOT (TxDOT) partners with contractors on its projects. We wanted to use a TxDOT mix that used QC/QA specifications,” said Jimmy Whited, Quality Control Manager for J.D. Ramming Paving Co. “The advantage to this type of mix is that the owner actually has a technician at the plant, testing side by side with our lab technicians while the material is being produced and placed. That way, if any continued on page 35 32 • View past issues online at www.naylornetwork.com/nap-nxt http://www.naylornetwork.com/nap-nxt

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Asphalt Pavement Magazine - May/June 2013

Chairman’s Commentary
Industry News
Meet the Chairman
Vancouver Adds Wax From Recycled Plastics to Warm Mix
Building the Country’s Best
Smooth Landings at Austin Executive Airport
2012 Quality in Construction Awards
Industry Events
Index of Advertisers/Advertisers.com

Asphalt Pavement Magazine - May/June 2013