Facebook  Twitter  Linkedin  YouTube
Saturday , 23 March 2024

Bringing in Hot in Place Recycling Technology

Coming back to the highlights of your technologies …

Whatever has been the road network built, every five years you have to go for an overlay to maintain that quality. Conventional method uses 40mm thickness of bituminous concrete (BC) or asphalt concrete (AC). If our technology, that is micro surfacing, is used, then instead of 40 mm, you are putting 8mm thickness and the long lasting effect is the same as BC – the same 5-6 years. And, the cost is comparatively 40 to 50% less than conventional methods. The other benefit is: it seals the surface. For example, Mumbai experiences heavy rains and water is the enemy of bitumen. If water enters bitumen, it damages the road. This micro surfacing, being a thin surface, seals the surface. It is like a water proofing coat. Water doesn’t enter that surface.

The second enemy of the bituminous road is sunlight. Oxidisation will take place due to sunlight. Because of that the levelling – the aggregates will come up, thus leading to cracks. Then due to the cracks, the impact of vehicles, speed etc, potholes appear on the roads. If you seal all this with micro surfacing, you are saving the money and giving life to bitumen.

What about the cost factor?

Concessionaires have to spend from their pockets. They have to think of the best technologies and of optimizing their costs. Many concessionaires are opting for micro surfacing and this technology has now matured in India. It is being used since 2000. Many PWDs are using this technology to reduce their cost and increase the life of bitumen. They cannot do resurfacing with conventional methods within their budget. That helps. We started with PWD in Delhi. They were the first to use micro surfacing in India. Now they are matured enough. And since the last 8-10 years, they go in mainly for micro surfacing. They do not opt for conventional methods.

Which are the other important bodies using micro surfacing of Elsamex?

Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has used, Surat Municipality is one of the biggest agencies at present, Ahmedabad Corporation is also using it, PWDs of MP and Uttarakhand. Nasik is also likely to go in for it to some extent, and many more bodies.

Do you have competitors when it comes to micro surfacing in India?

We are the pioneers in micro surfacing. Till three-four years ago, only one or two more players had entered the market. But since the last two years, around 12-15 agencies have come up. They are following our technology but in this technology the major thing is the ingredient — the emulsifies. What you are making the emulsion with is very important, and also your workmanship. Many agencies are not doing their job properly. They do not know how to use the technology properly. They brought the machines. And they want to make micro surfacing the way we do. But they are failing in quality and this is ruining the name of micro surfacing.

The government agencies have to go with the best but they have L 1 system. They go in for the lowest quote. So, the agencies quote low prices. Everybody is now fed up. And the government departments cannot change as they have L 1 system.

What about Cold-In-Place Recycling (CIR)?

When the road condition is very good and we need to go for overlay every five year to maintain, then we use micro surfacing. But often, going by your earlier question of bad workmanship, potholes still develop and road gets damaged. In that case, Cold-In-Place Recycling is helpful.

What happens in the entire process is that in ten to 15 years, bituminous layer after bituminous layer is added to the roads, which keeps increasing the height of the roads. If you take a city portion, your drainages are lower, your plinths are at lower level but your pavements’ height keeps increasing. This leads to water logging. Under the CIR technology, if you want to maintain a desired FRL (Finished Road Level), if you want to remove something, we can use those layers, mill them with the help of a machine, regenerate that milling, add 20% new original material aggregate, one or two percent cement, and two or three percent bitumen, and use the existing bitumen. We will not take it out. We have a German machine, Rotovator, which takes the material, breaks it, and lays it back there itself. We have to remember that bituminous layer is a very costly layer.

You have plans for more new technology

Again, the future relates to pavement expertise only. Every day you read about potholes and everybody gets annoyed. Looking to that, apart from the Cold-In- Place Recycling technology, we are now bringing in a huge German machine for the Hotin- Place Recycling technology. That’s totally a new technology.

In micro surfacing and CIR, you save actual natural resources. These are environment friendly and these are cold technologies. The hot technology – When oxidization takes place, the government says that a layer of 40mm BC will have to be laid again. Instead of removing that layer, or relaying a new layer, this Hot In Place machine will melt it and reuse the existing layer.

Elsamex is also into tolling and check post operations Do you bring in any differentiator in tolling?

The difference is: you should have your own manpower which is loyal to the company. Then your toll collection will be more and the leakages will be very less. If you are taking persons from outside, if you outsource, then those people are not bothered. There is no ownership in them. That is the major difference. ITNL, my parent company that does the BOT projects, is the developer.

After completion of the projects – we call it COD (Commercial Operations Date) – they are handed over to Elsamex for collection of tolls and operation and maintenance

In MP, we are operating 19 out of the 24 check posts. Construction is done by ITNL. We only handle the operations. We have two Central Control facility located at Indore and Gwalior.

Share with: