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MAGAZINE 

■ Astec and Dillman: The industry leaders 

are now working together as a team 

■ Roadtec’s after-the-sale service earns 

good feedback from longtime customers 

■ A look at two of Hubbard Construction’s 

hot-mix asphalt plants in Florida 

■ The seven key components in Heatec’s 

complete waste-oil fuel system 

YOUR DEPENDABLE SOURCE FOR NEWS ABOUT HMA TECHNOLOGY 

PUBLISHED BY ASTEC INDUSTRIES, INC. 

VOLUME 14 NUMBER 1 — 2009

TANK FOR 

NO. 2 FUEL 

TANK FOR 

WASTE OIL 

REMOTE CONTROLS 

FOR FUEL SYSTEM 

FUEL PUMP 

FOR NO. 2 FUEL 

(NOT SHOWN) 

BURNER 

STRAINER 

SOCK FILTERS 

WITH 

CONTAINMENT 

UNLOADING 

PUMP 

PRESSURE 

TRANSMITTER 

DUPLEX 

STRAINER 

FUEL PUMP 

FOR WASTE 

OIL 

FUEL 

PREHEATER 

UNLOADING PUMP 

CONTROLS 

LEVEL 

INDICATOR 

PROBLEMS BURNING WASTE OIL? 

Many HMA plant owners have added fuel preheaters 

so they can burn waste oil. But some have had 

unexpected problems. 

Simply adding a waste oil preheater to an existing 

system originally designed for No. 2 fuel is not 

enough. The fuel system should be designed as a 

complete system. 

A complete fuel system includes everything 

between the delivery truck unloading station and 

the burner. Here are key considerations: 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Selection of waste oils 

Filtration 

Fuel storage tanks 

Recirculation of unheated waste oil 

Recirculation of heated waste oil 

Temperature variations of heated waste oil 

System maintenance 

Rapid switching between fuels 

Automation 

The ability to rapidly switch fuels in response to 

market prices is important. There are times when 

it pays to burn waste oil. One customer told us 

that his new Heatec fuel system would pay for 

itself in about two months. 

The right system allows you to achieve the maximum 

savings possible—without the problems. 

Call us today for more information on 

complete fuel systems. 

HEATEC ® ® 

HEATEC,INC. an Astec Industries Company 

5200 WILSON RD • CHATTANOOGA, TN 37410 USA 800.235.5200 • FAX 423.821.7673 • heatec.com 

• 

• 

•

6 12 

MAGAZINE 

VOLUME 14 NUMBER 1 

Copyright © 2009 

Hot-Mix Magazine is published 

by the family of companies 

known as Astec Industries, Inc. 

Our mission is to provide 

members of the HMA industry 

with up-to-date news 

about HMA and WMA technology 

and the recent advances 

in the industry. 

Editorial Staff 

Editor: 

Gary E. Gulick 

Assistant Editor: 

Kristi Mayo 

Staff Photographers: 

Paul Shelton (Astec) 

Brandon Meredith (Astec) 

Scott Lee (Roadtec) 

Subscription Services: 

Diane Hunt 

Directors of Advertising: 

Paul Shelton (Astec) 

Frank Eley (Heatec) 

Stephanie Rider (Roadtec) 

Editorial Board: 

Dr. J. Don Brock 

Ben Brock 

Tom Baugh 

Paul Shelton 

Norman Smith 

Contact Information 

If you would like to be added 

to our free subscription list, 

just call, fax, or write: 

Hot-Mix Magazine 

c/o Astec 

P.O. Box 72787 

Chattanooga, TN 37407 

Phone: 423-867-4210 

Fax: 423-867-3570 

Website: www.astecinc.com 

20 26 

6 Astec and Dillman are Now Together 

Dillman Equipment has been acquired by Astec 

12 The Most Important Word: “dependability” 

Experiences with Roadtec’s after-the-sale service 

14 Hubbard Construction Company 

Florida company adds two Double Barrel ® plants 

18 Offering Warm-Mix Asphalt to Canada 

Two innovative producers look forward to WMA 

20 Asphalt Crumb-Rubber Blending 

The benefits of rubberized asphalt cement 

22 Smooth Numbers on I-26 Resurfacing 

Tennessee Interstate work had very low numbers 

26 An Upscale Combination Facility 

From batch plant to Double Barrel Green System 

28 Upgrading to 21st Century Technology 

And here is yet another batch plant upgrade 

30 

30 Preparing for the Unknown in Paving 

Processing and sizing reclaimed asphalt pavement 

32 Trash to Treasure in Oregon 

Recycling logging slash and construction debris 

34 Heatec’s Complete Waste-Oil Fuel System 

Learn about the seven key components 

36 Paving Russia’s Trans-Siberian Highway 

An Astec Double Barrel plant in remote Russia 

38 New Safety Labels for AC Storage Tanks 

It is a good idea to know exactly what they mean 

40 A Simple Retrofit Is All It Takes 

Upgrading to Double Barrel Green System is easy 

43 Hot-Mix News 

What’s happening at Astec Industries 

ON THE FRONT COVER 

Pre-planning the layout for a new hot-mix asphalt (HMA) plant is a process 

that your engineers and Astec’s personnel can do together. The facility shown 

on the front cover is one in Kennesaw, Georgia that is owned and operated by 

C.W. Matthews Contracting Co., Inc., one of the nation’s premier highway and 

heavy-construction contractors. 

Here’s how to get all future issues 

of Hot-Mix Magazine absolutely free! 

To have your name added to our mailing list at no charge, 

just call 423-867-4210 and ask for Diane Hunt. 

Or you can e-mail your request to dhunt@astecinc.com 

HOT-MIX MAGAZINE 3 VOLUME 14 NUMBER 1

Roadtec: Built in the USA 

Put Your Tax Dollars & Your People to Work Building 

American Infrastructure with American Equipment. 

Butch Sebers 

Roadtec offers reliable, productive Cold 

Planers, Pavers, Shuttle Buggy® MTV’s, 

and Reclaimer/Stabilizers combined with 

excellent local, factory-supported service, 

and great parts availability. 

Building and servicing reliable, productive roadbuilding 

equipment. That’s all we do, and we know how to do it. 

Count on Us. We’re Ready Now. 

Call us or visit our website today! 

ROADTEC an Astec Industries Company 

800 MANUFATTANOOGA, TN 37405 USAFm

POINT OF VIEW 

A look back at 2008...while looking forward 

to growth with proven technology and expansion. 

The road-construction industry experienced an 

interesting and very stressful year in 2008. We saw 

prices for liquid-asphalt cement (liquid AC) go 

from $250 per ton to as high as $1,000 per ton on 

the West Coast—before falling back to as low as 

$300 per ton in some areas of the United States. 

We also saw gasoline prices go from $2 per gallon 

to more than $4 per gallon—and then back to 

below $1.50 per gallon. 

Because of the high prices of liquid AC and fuel, 

Astec Industries saw considerable interest during 

2008 in the technology of foamed or warm-mix 

asphalt (WMA) and the ability of our products to 

increase the use of reclaimed asphalt pavement 

(RAP)—which is often called simply “recycle”. 

The combined use of WMA technology and RAP 

will undoubtedly revolutionize our industry in the 

near future. Astec Double Barrel ® equipment has 

produced excellent mixes at 50 percent RAP content when the RAP 

is fractionated before it enters the plant. In this way, gradation can 

be controlled and the warm-mix technology can be used to achieve 

density. This allows the producer to continue using the standard 

grade of asphalt and eliminates the need to go to a softer, more 

expensive liquid AC. 

Test results have also shown that the high RAP content aids in preventing 

stripping of the asphalt. This capability could conceivably 

replace anti-strip additives or lime in future mixes. 

In addition, the stiffer recycle mix is much more rut resistant and gives 

superior performance using standard grades of liquid AC with high 

recycle content in the mix. The results are comparable to utilizing 

polymers in the mix. Test results on the NCAT Pavement Test Track 

at Auburn University have shown that mixes with high RAP content 

perform equal to or better than virgin-asphalt mixes. They can be 

more rut resistant and can provide a long fatigue life. 

The combination of the WMA process and the use of higher RAP 

content is obviously a win-win opportunity for our country and our 

industry. By increasing our industry’s use of recycled material in our 

mixes from 15 percent to 50 percent, we would be able to reduce 

our use of imported oil by as much as one week’s supply. As a 

result, this would somewhat insulate our industry against inflation 

and the volatility of high oil prices. 

The year 2008 marked two major acquisitions and additions to the 

Astec Industries family of companies: 

❏ Dillman Equipment Company (now a division of Astec, Inc.) of 

Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, has been a premier manufacturer of 

asphalt plants and related equipment for more than 40 years. The 

Dillman Equipment facilities and personnel will give Astec 

J. Don Brock 

Chairman, Chief Executive Officer 

Astec Industries, Inc. 

Industries more production capacity, as well as a 

variety of products that we did not offer in the 

past. We are very proud to have Brian Dillman 

and his team as an integral part of Astec, Inc. 

❏ Q-Pave Pty Ltd (now called Astec Australia) 

has been a distributor of Astec Industries’ products 

for many years, selling asphalt plants, 

pavers, milling machines, trenchers, and 

screeds. David Smale has joined Astec Australia 

as its president. Paul Commins, the prior owner 

and president of Q-Pave, will continue to serve as 

a consultant. Astec Australia’s product line will be 

expanded to include crushing and screening 

equipment from our other companies. 

Also during 2008, the Astec Industries family of 

companies introduced several new products that 

reflect the companies’ ongoing research-anddevelopment 

programs: 

❏ American Augers introduced a series of oil-drilling rigs that are 

unique because they have the ability to do shallow drilling, both 

vertically and horizontally. 

❏ Astec, Inc. will begin manufacturing ready-mix concrete plants 

and will eventually offer five different models. Over the years, Astec 

has manufactured a number of roller-compacted concrete plants 

and the company will continue to offer this product. We also plan 

to introduce dry-batch, central-mix, and portable lines of concrete 

plants. Many of Astec’s existing customers produce both asphalt 

and concrete mixes so the new products should be quickly accepted. 

We believe that we can enhance the ready-mix concrete industry by 

building plants that will produce a higher quality, more consistent, 

and more uniform product. 

The volatility of our current economy has proven to be challenging 

for most companies. Fortunately, the new stimulus package that 

was recently passed by Congress should prove to be beneficial to 

our industry and allow all of us to continue growing in 2009. 

One final note: 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank our many valued 

customers for their continued confidence in the Astec Industries 

family of companies—and for their continued business. 


ASTEC and DILLMAN 

The two industry leaders 

are together as a team 

NEWS SURPRISED MANY 

in road-construction industry: 

Two leading manufacturers of 

hot-mix asphalt (HMA) plants and 

collateral equipment were getting 

together to better serve the HMA 

producers of the world. The press 

release that went to the industry 

publications read like this: 

On October 1, 2008, Astec 

Industries, Inc. officially 

announced the finalization of 

the purchase of 100 percent 

of the stock ownership of 

Dillman Equipment, Inc. 

Upon finalization, Dillman 

Equipment was made a divi- 

Dillman Equipment has been acquired by Astec Industries 

and will operate as a division of Astec, Inc. 

THE sion of Astec, Inc., which team to Astec,” said Brock. “We 

itself is a subsidiary of Astec look forward to growing our companies 

Industries, Inc. 

together.” 

Today, the acquisition is final. 

Astec and Dillman are a team— 

and everyone who is involved 

looks forward to the future. 

Ben Brock, president of Astec, Inc. 

and also president of Dillman 

Equipment, Inc., was one of the 

management’s first executives to 

comment publicly on the recent 

corporate acquisition: 

“We are excited to finalize our 

acquisition of Dillman and we 

welcome the successful Dillman 

Brian Dillman, the son of Dillman 

Equipment’s founder, Bruce 

Dillman, and a key executive in the 

company since his father passed 

away last June, agreed that the 

acquisition is a positive development 

for both groups. 

“The two companies—Astec and 

Dillman—may have competed for 

attention in the marketplace all 

these years,” he said. “But it was 

always with respect and admiration 

for the other company’s product 

quality and customer service. 

Here at Dillman, we look forward 

to sharing our name, our reputation, 

and our resources.” 

The Astec-Dillman 

sales and marketing plan 

According to Brock, management 

at Astec and Dillman have already 

worked closely together to develop 

a sales and marketing integration 

plan that will create a very smooth 

progress into the future. “In the 

past,” said Brock, “Dillman has 

sold equipment only in the United 

States and Canada through a widespread 

network of direct-sales 


epresentatives, equipment dealers, 

and agents. That approach has 

now changed to give potential 

customers of Dillman products a 

more direct connection with the 

many resources of the new Astec- 

Dillman structure. The existing 

Astec direct sales staff will handle 

all new-equipment sales for both 

companies in North America and 

worldwide.” (See Page 10 for the 

new sales territory map.) 

The full line of Dillman equipment 

will continue to be offered for sale. 

In addition, Astec’s existing parts 

organization will be selling and 

providing Dillman parts to HMA 

producers across North America. 

This resource will prove to be 

very beneficial for users of Dillman 

HMA equipment since Dillman 

previously had no full-time parts 

representatives working on the 

road. (See Page 10 for the new 

sales territory map.) 

Organizationally, Dillman management 

remains in place. For the 

last five years, the company’s 

day-to-day operations have been 

guided by a skilled management 

team of eight individuals. This 

management team was set up by 

Bruce Dillman. All of those managers 

are still with the company in 

key management positions. 

Brock indicated that the changes 

in sales and marketing evolved 

smoothly after the acquisition. “We 

are happy to have this portion of 

our growth plan complete,” said 

Brock. “Perhaps most important, 

however, is the fact that virtually 

all of the Dillman employees are 

still here to continue their active 

roles in the future of the company. 

Brian Dillman, of course, will still 

to be a key individual in the sales 

effort by coordinating the activities 

of the inside sales group and the 

outside sales group at Astec.” 

Background information about 

Dillman Equipment, Inc. 

The history of the company tends 

to reflect the innovative spirit and 

entrepreneurial nature of the 

founder, Bruce Dillman. In 1955, 

Bruce Dillman purchased his first 

asphalt plant. Within four years, he 

had two production and paving 

divisions: one in Wisconsin and 

one in Iowa. In an effort to improve 

his operations, Dillman designed 

an asphalt vessel that could be 

used to provide surge to his batch 

plant. That design interested others 

and in 1968, he sold the paving 

operations and devoted his time to 

building silos. In 1974, he renamed 

the company Bituma-Stor. Then, 

in 1981, Dillman built a complete 

asphalt plant under the name 

Bituma Construction Equipment 

Company. He dedicated his engineering 

talents to the design and 

manufacture of HMA production 

equipment. In 1994, the company 

became Dillman Equipment. 

Today, the company has its headquarters 

and manufacturing facilities 

in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. 

The product line includes DuoDrum 

counterflow drum-mixer plants, 

asphalt storage silos, dust silos, 

cold-feed systems for aggregates, 

handling systems for reclaimed 

asphalt pavement (RAP), storage 

tanks for liquid asphalt cement 

(liquid AC), baghouses, conveyors, 

plant controls, and control houses. 

Dillman’s products are located in 

almost every state. Over the years, 

for example, the company has 

built more than 3,000 storage silo 

systems. The manufacturing facility 

in Wisconsin is well-staffed with 

approximately 150 associates. 

Brian Dillman and other associates 

of Dillman Equipment are proud of 

the way their equipment has been 

accepted by the industry over the 

years. “We have had some good 

growth with market acceptance of 

our product lines,” said Dillman. 

“Now we expect to see some 

continued growth as we begin 

conducting a more direct marketing 

effort with the Astec-Dillman 

sales group. We also think there 

will be some impressive sales as 

the group begins to sell Dillman 

equipment in international markets.” 

The combination of the two HMA 

product lines—from Astec and 

from Dillman Equipment—is going 

to prove to be a decided advantage 

for HMA producers in North 

America and around the world. 

The innovative designs and proprietary 

technologies that are key 

parts of these product lines will 

definitely set them apart from all 

other competing lines. 

Dillman’s DuoDrum design is an innovative concept that uses one drum for 

drying aggregate and one drum for mixing. It features a counter-flow design 

that offers batch-plant accuracy combined with the production capability of 

conventional drum-mixers...but without the environmental concerns that are 

typical with some of those facilities. 

Engineered for maximum performance and manufactured to provide years of 

reliable service, the Dillman silo system is a good example of the high level of 

craftsmanship that goes into the products that originate in the Prairie du 

Chien, Wisconsin factory. Silo system capacities range from 200-ton (180- 

tonne) single bins to 3,000-ton (2,700-tonne) multiple-bin arrangements. 


“Our primary goal,” said Brock, “is 

to provide existing customers and 

prospective customers with the 

industry’s most comprehensive 

offering of state-of-the-art technology, 

high-quality products, 

and dependable service from both 

Astec and Dillman. In this way, 

we will continue working to grow 

and improve our company in the 

months and years ahead.” 

A quick overview of 

the Dillman product line 

Dillman Equipment has been making 

HMA equipment for more than 40 

years. Here is a brief description: 

❏ DuoDrum Plants—This is a 

high-production, low-maintenance 

asphalt production facility that is 

capable of producing HMA with 

high RAP percentages and low 

emissions. The Dillman DuoDrum 

plants are available in both the 

stationary and easily portable 

configurations. 

❏ Dryers and Mixers—All HMA 

plants can benefit from the fuelefficient 

drying systems available 

from Dillman Equipment. Some 

plants can perform even better 

when there are two devices used 

“The primary goal is to provide 

existing customers 

and prospective customers 

with the industry’s 

most comprehensive offering 

of state-of-the-art technology, 

high-quality products, 

and dependable service.” 

in the production process: one 

for drying and one for mixing. 

This, therefore, is the foundation 

of the Dillman DuoDrum system. 

❏ Cold-Feed Systems—These 

systems are also available as 

either stationary or portable configurations. 

These ruggedly built 

systems are designed and manufactured 

to accurately meter all 

sizes of virgin aggregate into the 

production process. 

—Ben Brock, President 

Astec, Inc. and Dillman Equipment, Inc. 

❏ RAP Systems—These systems 

are used to recycle RAP and help 

producers reduce material costs. 

In most cases, they can provide 

feed to the DuoDrum that allows 

finished HMA production at the 

rate of 250 tph (227 tonnes per 

hour) or more. 

❏ Conveyor Systems—Dillman 

drag-slat and transfer conveyors 

are ruggedly constructed with an 

all-welded U-box frame that supports 

a heavy-duty roller chain 

with reinforced hardened slats, 

segmented sprockets, and fixed 

and floating idlers. 

❏ Storage Silos—Dillman silos 

are engineered for maximum 

performance and provide years of 

reliable service. They are available 

in a range of sizes. 

❏ Liquid AC Tanks—These tanks 

are available in a variety of sizes 

and capacities. The capacities 

range from 10,000 to 40,000 

gallons (37,850 to 151,420 L). 

They are available in vertical or 

horizontal configurations with 

options for hot-oil, direct-fired, 

and electric heating. 

❏ Baghouses—Dillman offers 

high-efficiency, patented Reverse 

Pulse Baghouses that enhance 

production capabilities while 

stringently controlling emissions. 

These baghouses enable any 

plant to meet or exceed standard 

regulations of the Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA). 

❏ Dust Handling—Dillman offers 

complete dust-handling systems 

such as dust silos and run-around 

systems. Collected fines can be 

Dillman plants can be seen all across 

the United States and Canada. Some 

of them are large; others are small. 

Some are stationary facilities (such 

as the one shown here and at the top 

of the facing page). Others are designed 

and built to be easily and quickly 

portable. Upon close examination, you 

will find that a DuoDrum plant from 

Dillman Equipment features practical 

design along with tough, heavy-duty 

construction. 


either metered back into the mix, 

stored, or wasted. 

❏ Plant Controls—There is a full 

line of controls available with 

Dillman Equipment from the most 

respected manufacturers in the 

industry. With these controls, the 

plant operator can accurately 

monitor the weighing and metering 

of all materials from aggregate 

feeders, recycle systems, filler 

equipment, silo storage, and truckloadout 

procedures. 

❏ Control Houses—Dillman offers 

full-view control houses that can 

support all of the computer components 

needed today for proper 

operation of an HMA facility. 

❏ Miscellaneous—The list of 

equipment is quite long, including 

scalping screens, belt conveyors, 

and weigh bridges. Perhaps one 

of the company’s most notable 

achievements was building three 

SuperPlants with production ratings 

of 700 tph (635 tonnes per 

hour). The drum on these plants 

measures 11.5 x 60 ft. (3.5 x 18.3 m). 

According to those who knew him, 

the late Bruce Dillman will always 

be remembered as an innovator 

who constantly sought ways to 

improve products and production. 

As a result, the company known 

as Dillman Equipment earned 

many patents over the years. 

That unique approach to business 

is identical to the approach taken 

by the Astec Industries family of 

companies. ▼▲▼ 

This photo provides a bird’s-eye view of Dillman Equipment’s primary manufacturing 

facilities. The Dillman factory and offices are located on 40 acres 

(16.2 hectares) of land in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. The Dillman factory 

includes numerous buildings that have more than 85,000 sq. ft. (7,900 m 2 ) of 

manufacturing space. There is obviously ample space for expanding the manufacturing 

facilities in the future when marketing demands call for increased 

production of Dillman products. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION 

about Astec or Dillman hot-mix plants, call Diane Hunt at Astec: 

423-867-4210 

Fax: 423-867-3570 • E-mail: dhunt@astecinc.com 


In the past, sales of the 

Dillman equipment were 

handled by Dillman’s 

dealers, agents, or a few 

direct-sales representatives. 

From now on, 

however, all sales will 

be serviced by Astec’s 

experienced team of 

sales representatives. 

This territory map will 

give you the name of 

the Astec-Dillman representative 

who serves 

your area. 

Dillman Equipment has 

not had an in-the-field 

team of representatives 

whose job was helping 

HMA producers with 

their periodic need for 

replacement parts. That 

has changed. Now you 

call the Astec-Dillman 

parts representative in 

your area...as shown in 

this territory map. 


IF YOU GET A BUNCH of users of 

Roadtec equipment together in 

one room and start asking them 

questions about the performance 

of their pavers, milling machines, 

and material transfer vehicles 

(MTVs), you will probably get a 

good variety of answers. That is 

because every user has a different 

way of using and maintaining the 

equipment. But after listening to 

all of those Roadtec customers 

talk for a while, you will probably 

start to hear one comment 

repeated over and over again: 

“Roadtec’s service and support 

facilities are excellent.” 

We talked with three long-time 

users of Roadtec equipment and 

asked them to explain what they 

do with those pavers, MTVs, and 

milling machines—and how the 

Roadtec philosophy of service 

and support helps them with their 

day-to-day operations. 

A full-service 

paving contractor 

LoJac Enterprises, Inc., is headquartered 

in Lebanon, Tennessee. 

From this location, the company 

provides a full menu of construction 

services, including grading, 

storm drainage, utilities, hot-mix 

asphalt (HMA) production, paving, 

and site development. Its Paving 

Division provides paving, milling, 

and base-stone work throughout 

middle Tennessee. Projects tackled 

by the LoJac paving crews 

range from Interstate highways to 

airports, and from rural roads to 

parking lots. 

A key component for its paving 

crews is LoJac’s fleet of Roadtec 

equipment. “We have eight pavers, 

three milling machines, and three 

Shuttle Buggy ® MTVs,” said paving 

division manager Tim Murphy in 

a recent interview. “We started 

running Roadtec equipment in the 

early 1990s, and we have had 

good luck with them. They have a 

very good line of products in the 

paving industry.” 

After working with Roadtec equipment 

for more than a decade, 

Murphy said he has seen some 

positive changes in paving technology—particularly 

where the 

Shuttle Buggy MTV was involved. 

“The Shuttle Buggies came out in 

the early ‘90s, and I think it was a 

good thing for the paving industry. 

It helped improve the mats on the 

road and allowed for continuous 

paving. That’s been a real positive 

factor for us, too.” 

Murphy added that LoJac has had 

good luck with the service and 

support that they receive from 

Roadtec. “We don’t have any 

trouble getting replacement parts,” 

said Murphy. “Of course, being in 

the Nashville area, we’re pretty 

close to Roadtec’s headquarters 

in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Any 

time we need something, the 

Roadtec representatives jump 

right on it. I have been very pleased 

in dealing with them. If there’s 

ever a problem, they’ll bend over 

backwards and do whatever they 

need to do to get your equipment 

back online.” 

The most imporant word 

in contracting is “dependability” 

E&B Paving of Anderson, Indiana has a paving fleet made up of 41 pavers, 

39 of which were made by Roadtec. Five of those Roadtec pavers have 

logged more than 10,000 hours on the job and seven of them have logged 

more than 5,000 hours. The secret? Good maintenance. 


A niche market: 

full-time milling contractor 

Charbon Contracting of Madisonville, 

Kentucky does work in concrete 

construction and slipform 

paving and curb and gutter work. 

But when it comes to roads that 

are paved with asphalt, Charbon 

Contracting tends to focus on one 

specific service: milling. 

According to Brett Kik, co-owner 

and operations manager for 

Charbon Contracting, the company 

covers a market area that includes 

all of Kentucky, most of Tennessee, 

and southern Indiana. Their crews 

currently operate 16 mills, of which 

12 were made by Roadtec. 

“We have found that Roadtec 

equipment is dependable and easy 

to maintain,” said Kik. “Even more 

important, though, is the fact that 

Roadtec’s service and support 

facilities are excellent.” 

For a full-time milling contractor 

who works most of the time as a 

sub for a prime contractor, on-thejob 

dependability is important— 

and it is absolutely required. 

“We have guys with trucks full of 

hot-mix asphalt waiting behind us 

all the time,” said Kik. “We try to 

keep a spare mill on the job when 

we can because if you work at 

night and something goes down, 

you’ve got ten loads of hot-mix 

asphalt sitting behind you that has 

to go down or otherwise it is 

wasted. We feel like we have to 

be dependable to our customers.” 

Kik said he appreciates the fact 

that Roadtec seems to have the 

same customer-service philosophy. 

“Roadtec has always gone above 

and beyond the call of duty in 

order to get us the parts when we 

need them. We never get the old 

shrug-off, ‘Well, the part will be 

here in two weeks.’ They can get 

us the part even when they don’t 

have it on their shelves,” said Kik. 

“Roadtec actually has the same 

mentality that we do as far as taking 

care of the customer.” 

Preventive maintenance 

for longer service life 

E&B Paving, Inc., headquartered 

in Anderson, Indiana, does about 

75 percent of its paving volume in 

the public sector. Its paving fleet 

Three different contractors 

tell about their experiences with 

Roadtec’s after-the-sale service. 

is made up of 41 HMA pavers, of 

which 39 were made by Roadtec. 

Those pavers see a lot of hours 

on jobsites: five have logged more 

than 10,000 hours and seven 

have worked for more than 5,000 

hours. And E&B Paving recently 

began a new preventive maintenance 

program that aims to keep 

pavers functional even longer. 

Charbon Contracting of Madisonville, Kentucky specializes in milling on 

roads paved with asphalt. The company operates 16 mills, of which 12 were 

manufactured by Roadtec. Working as a subcontractor in front of a contractor’s 

paving equipment, it is essential to keep the milling equipment moving. 

LoJac Enterprises, Inc. of Lebanon, Tennessee does a lot of paving work 

with hot-mix asphalt (HMA). LoJac has eight pavers, three milling machines, 

and three Shuttle Buggy material transfer vehicles (MTVs). The availability of 

replacement parts is obviously a key factor for this company. 


about Roadtec equipment, call your Roadtec Regional Sales Manager: 

800-272-7100 

Fax: 423-265-7521 • E-mail: sales@roadtec.com 

“We have a preventive maintenance 

program where we bring 

the pavers in every three years, or 

roughly every 5,000 hours,” said 

Dave Christman, equipment 

superintendent for E&B Paving. 

“We rebuild all the wear parts 

about once every three years.” 

“A lot of companies rotate their 

fleets out a lot sooner than we do,” 

he added. “But with this new program, 

I expect our equipment 

rotation to be ten years before 

that machine will be rolled out of 

the fleet and replaced. Most companies 

don’t hold them that long. 

But E&B Paving’s philosophy is 

that if we can keep them held 

together and running that long, 

we can pay for those machines 

plus their replacements. In other 

words, we’re getting the most out 

of our investment.” 

Christman said Roadtec pavers 

lend themselves well to this kind 

of maintenance program. “Roadtec 

equipment is very simply put 

together. It is what I call “KISS 

engineering”: Keep It Simple, 

Stupid. They are not complicated 

in their design, and really there 

are very few wear parts.” 

Keeping 39 Roadtec pavers in 

operation also means that they do 

not need a huge parts inventory 

since one part will fit multiple 

machines. But if a part is needed 

on short notice, Christman knows 

he can call on Roadtec to help. 

“I can have any part I need within 

eight hours if they have it in stock. 

Or, in most cases, I can get it overnight,” 

he said. “Plus, service is 

available 24/7. I can have Roadtec 

people on the ground if we need 

them—but normally we just have 

them troubleshoot over the phone. 

That really pays off. We have fixed 

problems on the job with trucks 

waiting in front of us—with the 

phone on one ear and hands on 

the paver while the Roadtec guys 

on the phone talked us through it. 

“We started with Roadtec about 

15 years ago and they have kept 

us as customers because of their 

service and support,” Christman 

said. “I can buy a machine anywhere—but 

I can’t buy that kind 

of support.” ▼▲▼ 


Hubbard 

Construction Company 

Orlando Paving Company—Winter Garden, Florida (Plant 10) 

and 

East Coast Paving—West Palm Beach, Florida 


COMMITMENT TO QUALITY: 

That is one of the concepts 

you will detect when you read 

through the brochures that were 

prepared by Hubbard Construction 

Company. As part of The Hubbard 

Group, the company’s history of 

quality played a key role its growth 

over the years. 

“Hubbard Construction Company 

was founded in South Carolina in 

1920 by Francis Evans Hubbard. 

In 1924, he moved his company 

to Florida,” said Jeff Roberts, USA 

technical director for the Hubbard 

Group. “Frank M. Hubbard, son of 

Francis Evans Hubbard, ran the 

company from the early 1950s to 

the early 1980s. 

“During Florida’s booming growth 

in the latter half of the 20th Century, 

Hubbard Construction was closely 

involved in the development of the 

major attractions in the Orlando 

area, including Walt Disney World, 

the Orlando International Airport, 

and the NASA Kennedy Space 

Center on Cape Canaveral.” 

Roberts went on to describe how 

Hubbard Construction has grown 

to where it is today. The company 

has seven hot-mix asphalt (HMA) 

This Florida company 

has a long history of quality 

...and has recently added two 

new Astec Double Barrel ® plants. 

plants in Florida: four in the 

Orlando area; two in Jacksonville; 

and one in West Palm Beach. 

There are separate operating divisions 

in each of those areas, plus 

another one in Tampa that does 

not have an HMA plant at this time. 

Hubbard Construction has a sister 

company—Blythe Construction— 

that has its headquarters in North 

Carolina. That company operates 

seven HMA plants and is in the 

process of installing several new 

plants to serve its market area. The 

two companies report combined 

annual revenues of more than $450 

million, which makes them as—a 

team—one of the largest highway 

contractors in the southeast part 

of the United States. 

According to Roberts, Hubbard 

Construction currently has two 

relatively new Astec Double Barrel 

HMA plants: one with Orlando 

Paving in Winter Garden near 

Orlando and one with East Coast 

Paving in West Palm Beach. 

Orlando Paving’s 

Winter Garden Plant 

This plant was set up and became 

operational in July of 2007. The 

facility originally consisted of a 

conventional Astec 8 x 40-ft (2.4 x 

12.2-m) Double Barrel ® dryer/mixer 

configuration, but the company 

decided to retrofit the unit with a 

Double Barrel Green System to 

allow the production of warm-mix 

asphalt (WMA). The installation 

also included a six-compartment 

Astec cold-feed system and two 

other feed bins for reclaimed 

asphalt pavement (RAP). Other 

plant components included an 

Astec Phoenix ® burner that can 

handle either natural gas or No. 2 

oil; an Astec Pulse Jet Baghouse; 

and an Astec New Generation 

Storage System that has three 

200-ton (180-tonne) storage silos 

with electric heat on the cones and 

hot-oil heat on the drag conveyor. 

Mike Stacey, Hubbard plants 

manager, is in charge of all seven 

plants in the Florida market. He 

recalled that the startup of their 

new Astec plant was very quick 

and very smooth. “From the time 

we received the air permit,” Stacey 

said, “it took only about eight or 

nine months before the plant was 

delivered, set up, and producing 

hot-mix asphalt. 

“The start-up was great,” Stacey 

recalled. “Astec technicians came 

down here and stayed with us until 

everything was running smoothly. 

They stayed beyond their contract 

requirements for training us and 

managed to get everybody up to 

speed on the new plant.” 

Stacey said that the Double Barrel 

Green System was added as a 

retrofit after their conventional 

Astec Double Barrel plant had 

been working for about six months. 

“We added the WMA retrofit over 

the Christmas holidays in 2007. It 

went really well and only took a 

few days to get it installed.” 

▼ 

An Astec New Generation Storage 

System capable of holding up to 

600 tons (540 tonnes) of hot-mix 

asphalt (HMA) towers over the 

weigh scale and control house at 

Hubbard Construction Company’s 

East Coast Paving operation in 

West Palm Beach, Florida. 

Orlando Paving Company is the 

operational division of Hubbard 

Construction Company in the 

Orlando, Florida market area. 

This is the Astec Double Barrel 

dryer/mixer that is part of the 

company’s production facility in 

Winter Garden, Florida. 

▼ 


East Coast Paving’s 

West Palm Beach Plant 

The new Astec Double Barrel plant 

in Hubbard Construction’s East 

Coast Paving operation in West 

Palm Beach was installed and 

became active in April of 2008. 

At the time this article was written, 

the new plant had been running 

for less than a year. 

Roberts said the plant did quite 

well in its first season of operation. 

“That is really the best part of the 

story,” said Roberts. “It has had a 

positive impact on that division’s 

ability to provide service to their 

customers.” 

Mike Kanaday, manager of East 

Coast Paving’s construction and 

paving divisions, seemed to agree 

with Roberts. “The plant has been 

running well,” said Kanaday. “When 

we first set it up, there were a few 

bugs to work out, but you can 

expect that with any plant. Astec 

stayed with us until everything was 

okay. It’s been a good plant.” 

The market area being served by 

East Coast Paving’s new HMA 

facility is mainly in south Florida, 

within about a 60-mile radius of 

West Palm Beach. “We are currently 

running two paving crews 

here,” Kanaday said. “We had a 

strong fourth quarter last year.” 

East Coast Paving’s new facility is 

quite similar to the one that was 

installed in Winter Garden. It consists 

of a relocatable Astec Double 

Barrel dryer/mixer with a Phoenix 

burner capable of using natural 

gas or No. 2 oil as fuel. The rated 

production capacity of the Double 

Barrel dryer/mixer is 400 tph (360 

tonnes per hour). 

There is a six-compartment coldfeed 

system for virgin aggregates 

and a separate two-compartment 

feed system for reclaimed asphalt 

pavement (RAP). 

Finished mixes are stored in an 

Astec 600-ton (540-tonne) New 

Generation Storage System that 

consists of three 200-ton (180- 

tonne) silos with electric blanket 

heat on the cones and hot-oil heat 

on the drag and traverse. 

Operator control of the plant is 

handled in an Astec Pilot Control 

Center that is equipped with a 

Total Control 2000 HMA programmable-logic 

control (PLC) system 

that can regulate the operations of 

the plant’s components, including 

the burner, feeders, belt scales, 

storage silos, and storage tanks 

for the liquid asphalt cement. 

An equipment manager’s view 

of things to look for: 

An HMA producer who might be 

thinking about buying a new plant 

can often be frustrated by the 

product literature. But at Hubbard 

Construction, their approach to 

the purchase of a new HMA plant 

was described recently by Bill 

White, the company’s corporate 

equipment manager: 

“As far as we are concerned,” said 

White, “hot-mix asphalt plants are 

equipment just like bulldozers and 

pavers and other tools. We believe 

that a plant has to be able to produce 

the mixes that we want it to 

produce at the rate we want them 

and with the amount of RAP that 

we want to use. A plant has to be 

able to do all of that. 

“If you have a three- or four-million 

dollar investment and it is not 

making money, then obviously 

that is not a good sign. You are 


about Astec’s hot-mix plants, call Diane Hunt at Astec: 

423-867-4210 


not getting a proper return on 

your investment unless that plant 

is making hot-mix on a dependable 

basis. With the market the 

way it has been recently, you just 

can’t make that kind of an initial 

investment and then struggle to get 

by through the first two or three 

years, trying to get it to work.” 

White paused to let his point sink 

in. And then he continued: 

“That is why we like Astec’s dedication 

to service. They don’t just 

sell you a plant, put it up, and 

then go home. They stay there 

with you and make sure the plant 

is doing what it is supposed to do. 

That may be the best thing about 

Astec: their service. They are there 

with you while you are working 

out all the bugs. And if you have 

problems later, you can call those 

guys at 10 o’clock in the morning 

or 10 o’clock in the evening and 

they will respond immediately. 

“Good service. That is exactly 

what you need when you have 

that much money sitting out there 

on the ground!” 

Hubbard plants manager Stacey 

seemed to agree. “Astec really 

markets their service—and we 

have not been displeased with 

what we have received. They have 

been really great with us.”▼▲▼ 

In West Palm Beach, Florida, Hubbard 

Construction Company’s operations are 

handled by East Coast Asphalt. This photo 

shows the company’s new Astec Double 

Barrel dryer/mixer that is capable of producing 

400 tph (360 tonnes per hour). 


The East Coast Paving facility in West Palm Beach, Florida is fully equipped to produce 

hot-mix asphalt (HMA) for the company as it expands it services to customers in the 

surrounding market area that reaches about 60 miles away from the facility. Here 

you can see the 600-ton (540-tonne) Astec New Generation Storage System that 

provides the company with the flexibility of storing different mixes for different internal 

paving needs or to meet external customer demands. 

The Orlando Paving Company facility in 

Winter Garden, Florida is equipped with a 

six-compartment cold-feed system for 

supplying virgin aggregate to the Astec 

Double Barrel dryer/mixer. There is also a 

two-compartment feed system that can 

control the supply of reclaimed asphalt 

pavement (RAP). 


INNOVATIVE PRODUCERS ARE 

Lafarge Canada Inc. in Calgary, Alberta 

LAFARGE HAS UPGRADED 

their hot-mix asphalt (HMA) 

plant located at the Spy Hill 

aggregate pit in the northwest 

part of Calgary, Alberta. 

Lafarge decided it was time to 

upgrade their aging 1971 CMI 

batch plant at this location as it 

had become too undependable 

and inadequate in production to 

service customers properly. 

They knew the state-of-the-art 

upgrade was timely with their 

research in relation to the new 

warm-mix asphalt (WMA) 

technology. WMA was one of 

the main reasons that Lafarge 

decided to purchase an Astec 

Double Barrel ® plant with the 

Double Barrel Green system. 

Mike Tiffen, general manager of 

the Lafarge Asphalt Group in 

Calgary explained the upgrade: 

“Our market area for the new 

Astec facility is predominantly 

the north and central parts of 

Calgary. Our other two plants 

service the remaining areas.” 

“We produce asphalt mixes for 

almost any type of road construction 

and commercial jobs 

such as parking lots as we have 

a number of outside customers 

who buy a varying amount of 

asphalt—ranging from the 

small guys who may only do a 

couple of driveways per year to 

our bigger commercial customers. 

We need to stay very 

flexible in everything we do.” 

The company’s new Astec plant 

was installed and running in 

June of 2008. “We had almost 

an entire season’s worth of 

production with our new plant,” 

said Tiffen. “In the beginning, 

we had some minor issues 

setting up the regulator with the 

natural gas line which feeds 

the plant’s burner with fuel. As 

with any new plant, there were 

little things that needed to be 

worked out before we could have 

completely trouble-free production. 

However, Astec helped us quickly 

resolve any issues. Once it was 

going, it operated really well.” 

The plant’s central component is 

a relocatable Astec Double Barrel 

dryer/mixer that measures 8 x 40 

ft. (2.4 x 12.2 m). The dryer/mixer 

has a Double Barrel Green system 

installed that can produce WMA. 

Tiffen indicated that they are now 

prepared to offer this new technology 

to the company’s customers 

in the Calgary market area. The 

new plant is also equipped with 

infrared temperature sensors for 

both the aggregate and the mix. 

The dryer/mixer unit has an Astec 

Phoenix ® burner that can use 

natural gas or No. 2 oil as fuel. 

The plant’s finished mixes are 

stored in a New Generation 

storage system from Astec that 

consists of three 200-ton (181- 

tonne) silos. 

The storage of liquid asphalt 

cement (liquid AC) is handled by 

two 30,000-gal. (113,500 L) 

vertical tanks from CEI. Heat 

for the liquid AC is provided by 

a helical coil hot-oil heater and 

other equipment from Heatec. 

When asked what advice he 

would give to producers who 

are looking for a new plant, 

Tiffen said it is important for a 

producer to know what type of 

business he will be doing. 

“You certainly don’t need a 

600-tph (545-tonne per hour) 

plant if you are only going to 

be doing a couple of tons per 

day. Bigger is not always the 

best. By understanding our 

market we are able to service 

our customer base.” ▼▲▼ 

Lafarge’s new Spy Hill asphalt facility in Calgary, Alberta is an Astec plant that is equipped with a Double Barrel Green 

system on the dryer/mixer. This technology allows the plant to use water with no special additives to make a foamed 

warm mix or WMA. This mixing process is odorless, smokeless, and results in a remarkably better product. The next 

step is to demonstrate the advantages of WMA to regional departments of transportation. 


OFFERING WMA TO CANADA 

Standard General, Inc. in Calgary, Alberta 

BECAUSE OF ITS LINKS to 

the Colas Group of Companies, 

Standard General 

can lay claim to being part of an 

organization that is the world 

leader in road construction. 

Standard General’s history 

includes operations of one sort 

or another in Calgary, Alberta 

since 1941. In recent years, 

they have had two hot-mix 

asphalt (HMA) plants in Calgary. 

A third plant with an Astec 

Double RAP Green System 

was installed last fall. 

“We fired it up in late October,” 

said Dave Welter, asphalt plant 

superintendent for Standard 

General in Calgary. “Before 

winter hit us in December, we 

had time to run approximately 

20,000 tons (18,140 tonnes) of 

material through it. It worked 

really well. Of course, we have 

a few things we want to try out 

next spring—especially the 

plant’s ability to produce warmmix 

asphalt (WMA).” 

Welter said that management at 

Standard General is examining 

ways to promote the use of WMA. 

“The next thing we need to do is 

get the key government officials 

involved in this new technology. 

We would like to get together with 

the city engineers and try some 

jobs that will prove the viability of 

this concept.” 

The plant has an Astec Double RAP 

dryer that was designed to make 

the use of reclaimed asphalt pavement 

(RAP) more efficient and 

economical. 

During a normal operation, the RAP 

material is dried in the external part 

of the Double RAP dryer, flashing 

off moisture in the drum before it 

is mixed with the virgin aggregate. 

Then, the RAP and aggregate 

materials are discharged into a 

twin-shaft asphalt mixer where 

they are subsequently coated 

with liquid asphalt cement (AC). 

“The pugmill is a very important 

part of the plant,” said Welter. 

“It allows us to add different 

products to the mix, keeping it 

away from the burner. This plant 

is very environmentally friendly 

with regard to control of noise, 

dust, and blue smoke.” 

The facility also has a 600-ton 

(545-tonne) New Generation 

Storage System from Astec 

that consists of three 200-ton 

(181-tonne) silos. There is a 

cold-feed system that consists 

of six separate compartments 

for supplying virgin aggregate, 

as well as a two-compartment 

feed system for supplying the 

fractionated RAP material. 

“The plant also has a waste 

silo that we use to contain the 

start-up and shut-down fines.” 

The operator has a Command 

Control Center that measures 

11.5 x 40 ft. (10.4 x 36.3 m). 

“Astec makes a pretty good 

plant,” said Welter. “As far as 

I’m concerned, it is after-thesale 

service that makes a plant 

worthwhile. Why the service? 

Because the rest of it is iron 

and technology—but it is the 

service that backs up the iron. 

When you get right down to it, 

that’s what makes you want to 

buy an Astec plant.” ▼▲▼ 

The Astec Double RAP dryer measures 6.5 x 40 ft. (10.4 x 36.3 m) in size. There is an insulated RAP blending 

chamber that is 15 ft. (4.6 m) long. Below the Double RAP dryer is a twin-shaft asphalt mixer that coats the 

RAP/virgin aggregate mix with liquid AC before transporting it to the storage silo. This installation also includes 

the Astec Double RAP Green System that is used to make warm-mix asphalt (WMA). 

FOR MORE 

INFORMATION 

about Astec’s WMA plants, 

call Diane Hunt at Astec: 

423-867-4210 

Fax: 423-867-3570 

E-mail: dhunt@astecinc.com 


THERE WAS A TIME when 

rubberized asphalt cement 

(RAC) was somewhat of a 

novelty item for many producers 

and departments of transportation 

(DOTs). Although the technology 

has been around since the 

1960s, rubberized pavements 

have been assigned an experimental 

status for many decades. 

Gradually, however, state DOTs 

are realizing the benefits of using 

RAC in their mix designs, and 

today the technology is being used 

more widely in Arizona, Texas, 

Florida, and California. 

In California specifically, RAC 

pavements moved far beyond 

being labeled as experimental or 

novel in October 2005 when 

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger 

signed into law California Assembly 

Bill 338. This bill requires the 

California Department of Transportation 

(Caltrans) to gradually 

phase in the use of RAC on state 

highway construction and repair 

projects. By January 2013, the 

bill aims for 35 percent of all 

projects constructed by Caltrans 

to include RAC. 

That commitment made by the 

State of California to rubberized 

pavements has many hot-mix 

asphalt (HMA) producers looking 

for efficient and cost-effective 

ways to incorporate ground tire 

rubber (also called crumb rubber) 

into their mixes. Sacramentobased 

Teichert Materials is one 

of those companies. 

The eighth licensed contractor 

in the state of California 

Teichert Materials is one division 

of the parent company, A. Teichert 

and Son. This family-owned firm 

traces its history all the way back 

to 1887 when Adolph Teichert— 

a German immigrant—started 

his own business building walkways, 

cellar floors, sidewalls, 

fencing, and other projects in the 

Sacramento area. The company 

has California State Contractor’s 

License #8, the oldest active 

contractor’s license in the state. 

Today, Teichert is made up of 

two main operating companies: 

Teichert Materials, which includes 

aggregates, ready-mix concrete, 

and precast-products divisions; 

ASPHALT 

CRUMB 

RUBBER 

BLENDING 

Teichert Aggregates, an operating arm of the Teichert Materials company, 

decided to begin making its own crumb-rubber blend for mixing with its hotmix 

asphalt (HMA) products in the company’s Sacramento, California plant. 

The two major components of this blending sytem are shown here at the 

plant site. On the facing page are photos of the individual units. 

and Teichert Construction, which 

handles asphalt paving, mass 

grading, concrete curbs and 

sidewalks, and utility installation. 

An operating arm in the Teichert 

Materials company is known as 

Teichert Aggregates. This group 

produces HMA products and 

generally purchased RAC from a 

third-party contractor. But as rubberized 

asphalt pavements are 

now specified in an increasing 

number of projects statewide— 

and especially in the Sacramento 

area—the company has opted to 

begin making its own RAC. In 

order to do that, they had to 

install a mixing system. 

The asphalt-rubber 

mixing system 

Teichert Aggregates serves a large 

market area in California, ranging 

from Yuba City in the north to 

Vernalis in the south and from 

Esparto in the west to Martis 

Valley in the east. 

“We add crumb rubber to our 

mixes in all of those areas except 

Martis Valley,” explained Paul 

Mercurio, production manager 

for Teichert Aggregates. “At our 

Sacramento plant, we decided to 

further endeavor into the business 

by making our own blend 

of crumb rubber.” 

The company opted to purchase 

an asphalt-rubber mixing system 

from CEI Enterprises. The system 

includes two main components: 

a Portable Mixing Unit and a 

Portable Reaction Tank. 

Here’s how the process works: 

❏ Crumb rubber is loaded into 

the hopper before mixing begins 

and must be replenished during 

the mixing process. 

❏ The screw conveyor carries the 

crumb rubber to the system’s 

mixing chamber. 

❏ In the mixing chamber, the 

crumb rubber is blended with 

virgin liquid asphalt cement that 

has been pre-heated. The mixing 

is done by a high-shear mixer 

running at a speed of 3400 rpm. 

❏ As the materials are mixed, 

they are pumped to the Portable 

Reaction Tank. 

❏ In one compartment of the 

Portable Reaction Tank, fresh mix 

is held for a specified amount of 

time in order to allow the mix to 

reach its appropriate “age”. 

❏ The aged mix is moved to a 

second compartment where it is 

fed to the hot-mix plant to be 

included in the HMA production. 


❏ Both compartments in the 

Portable Reaction Tank contain 

horizontally mounted augers in the 

lower portion of the compartment 

that agitates the mix to 

ensure the crumb rubber stays in 

suspension. Augers in each compartment 

move independently. 

Starting up 

and learning the process 

Representatives from the company 

that supplied the system— 

CEI—assisted the personnel at 

Teichert Aggregates with the 

installation and startup of the new 

asphalt-rubber mixing system. 

The system was connected to a 

new drum-mix plant at the Sacramento 

location. 

“We actually took delivery on the 

asphalt-rubber mixing system at 

the end of last year’s season, but 

initially we didn’t use it except to 

hold conventional liquid AC,” said 

Mecurio. “It was this season that 

we started processing the crumb 

rubber in the system. 

“In the beginning, we had a few 

issues—getting valves and a 

feeder operating smoothly, fixing 

a computer glitch, and optimizing 

the burner while trying to get it 

going right away. But CEI was 

there. Their crew took care of us. 

They got it all dialed in. And it 

turned out to be a good startup— 

and a good blending system.” 

Looking back, CEI delivered the 

kind of service that Teichert had 

specifically expected when they 

first set out to make this critical 

equipment-buying decision. 

“Teichert is a careful, conservative 

company, and they knew 

exactly what they wanted and 

needed,” said a CEI spokesperson. 

“They wanted to stay with an 

experienced manufacturer that 

could supply training, service, 

and long-term equipment support. 

They also wanted to comply 

with all California regulations on 

emissions and with all Caltrans 

specifications. And they wanted 

the highest continuous production 

rate to the plant that was 

available.” 

When the asphalt-rubber mixing 

system is in full operation, it is 

capable of continuously running at 

least 30 tph (27 tonnes per hour) 

Four state DOTs are already 

experiencing the benefits of 

rubberized asphalt cement (RAC) 

...and engineers in many others 

are taking a close look. 

The CEI Portable Mixing Unit receives ground rubber in the hopper. The rubber 

then moves to the mixing chamber to be blended with virgin liquid asphalt 

cement. The resulting rubberized asphalt cement (RAC) is stored in the CEI 

Portable Reaction Tank (below). 

The CEI Portable Reaction Tank shown here has two compartments: one to 

hold fresh rubberized asphalt cement (RAC) mix for a specified period of 

time—and another compartment to hold the aged mix so it can be used to 

make hot-mix asphalt (HMA). A third compartment is available as an option. 


about CEI’s hot-mix asphalt plants and production equipment, 

call Colleen Roerick at CEI Enterprises, Inc.: 

800-545-4034 

Fax: 505-243-1422 • E-mail: info@ceienterprises.com 

of mixed rubberized asphalt to the 

HMA plant. The assumed blend 

ratio is 20 percent ground tire 

rubber by weight to 80 percent 

virgin liquid AC by weight, but 

this ratio can be raised or lowered 

by the operator depending on 

Caltrans specifications. 

Blending control is achieved by 

using a fully automated PLC 

(programmable logic controller) 

system. The blending-control 

keypad and display allow entry 

of the desired size and ingredient 

content. All motors involved in the 

blending process are controlled 

by variable-frequency drives, 

driven by signals from the PLC. 

The CEI system operated by 

Teichert Aggregates features 

push-button controls, a blending 

control panel, and a display—all 

of which are panel mounted. 

There is also a fold-up canopy 

that provides operator comfort. 

As another option, controls can be 

inside an air-conditioned room. 

The Portable Mixing Unit includes 

a circulating hot-oil heater that 

was specified with a low NOx 

natural gas-fired burner. All of 

the system’s pumps and all of the 

other components are isolated 

from the hot-oil system by valves 

to allow for easier maintenance 

or repair. 

The Portable Reaction Tank features 

a total capacity of 24,000 

gal. (90,850 L). The unit operated 

by Teichert Aggregates features a 

triple-compartment design that 

allows for asphalt-rubber storage 

in three compartments, divided 

into 8,000 gal. (30,283 L) each. 

This maximizes storage and 

allows for more continuous production: 

the HMA plant can draw 

rubberized asphalt from one tank 

while the product ages in another 

tank, and meanwhile a third tank 

can be initiating the blending 

process for an entirely new batch 

of rubberized asphalt. 

With this new technology at hand, 

Teichert Aggregates is now able 

to produce its own RAC for the 

Caltrans projects that occur in 

the vicinity of their Sacramento 

plant. Mercurio foresees that this 

is going to be an important feature 

in the years ahead for the 

company’s daily operations. 

“Caltrans is encouraging the use 

of rubberized asphalt,” Mercurio 

said. “And Sacramento County is 

also being very proactive in using 

rubberized asphalt. It’s really a 

great product.” ▼▲▼ 


SMOOTH NUMBERS 

I 

F 

The resurfacing of a stretch 

of Interstate 26 

through mountainous terrain 

resulted in ride numbers that 

were the smoothest 

ever recorded in this area 

of Tennessee. 

YOU EVER HAVE OCCASION 

to drive north on Interstate 26 

from North Carolina to eastern 

Tennessee, you may want to take 

special notice of something other 

than the beautiful scenery that 

greets you and surrounds you in 

this rolling mountainous country. 

And what in particular should you 

be noticing? 

The smooth, quiet ride. 

When you cross over the state 

line into Tennessee, for the next 

10 miles (16 km) you will be on 

what has been judged to be the 

smoothest pavement anywhere 

in eastern Tennessee. 

The resurfacing of this stretch of 

the I-26 running north from the 

North Carolina and Tennessee 

state line was finished in August 

2008 by Summers-Taylor, Inc., a 

full-service transportation-infrastructure 

contractor that has its 

headquarters in Elizabethton, 

Tennessee. The project involved 

milling 1.75-in. (4.5-cm) off the 

four-lane mainline and replacing 

that material with a 2-in. (5-cm) 

binder course. This was followed 

by a 1.25-in. (3.2-cm) surface 

course. The shoulders in the 

project’s area received a scratch 

course and a surface course. 

What sounded like a fairly routine 

resurfacing project became an 

extraordinary achievement when 

the Tennessee Department of 

Transportation (TDOT) calculated 

the ride numbers on this stretch 

of the Interstate when it was 

completed. Using their best roadpaving 

technology, techniques, 

and equipment, Summers-Taylor 

crews were able to achieve an 

average ride number of 24, with 

a minimum of 21. 

“We changed our method of 

measuring smoothness in 2002 

from the old Mays Ride Meter to 

the half-car simulator with lasers,” 

said Jack Stout, the regional 

materials supervisor for TDOT 

Region 1. “Since that change in 

methodology, our records show 

that this job was the smoothest 

pavement that we have tested in 

our region in eastern Tennessee, 

which covers 24 counties.” 

The team at Summers-Taylor is 

justifiably proud of this record. 

“TDOT has some pretty tough 

expectations,” explained Ted 

Bryant, vice president of Summers- 

Taylor. “If you have a ride number 

of 45 or greater, then you have 

to take a reduction in pay. So all 

the contractors around here try 

to have ride numbers that are no 

greater than 35 or 40.” 

The I-26 resurfacing project in 

eastern Tennessee obviously 

exceeded everyone’s expectations. 

“It was a really good ride,” said 

Stout in a recent interview. 

Smooth results call for 

the right equipment 

The eventual success of this I-26 

resurfacing project began with a 

subcontractor who used a 12-ft. 

(3.7-m) Roadtec milling machine 

to remove the existing 1.75-in. 

(4.5-cm) of asphalt pavement. 

The paving crews for Summers- 

Taylor then moved in with a Roadtec 

Shuttle Buggy material transfer 

vehicle (MTV) and a Roadtec 

RP-190 paver to apply the binder 

and surface courses on the mainline 

and the scratch and surface 

courses on the shoulders. 

“We used the Shuttle Buggy MTV 

on every course,” said Bryant. 

“On the Roadtec paver, we used 

sonic skis and a 10-ft. (3-m) 

S-screed. I think the length of the 

screed is one of the things that 

helped us get the great ride. 

While most screeds are 18-in. 

(46-cm) long, this one is 34-in. 

(86-cm) long. We consistently 

get good rides with that paver 

and screed combination.” 

Consistent quality 

is standard for this contractor 

The Summers-Taylor company has 

been serving Tennessee, Virginia, 

and North Carolina since 1932. 


Summers-Taylor contracted for the 

multi-layer resurfacing of I-26 from the 

North Carolina and Tennessee state 

line 10 miles (16 km) to Johnson City, 

Tennessee. As you can see in this 

photo, the route offers some spectacular 

scenery as it winds through the 

rolling mountains of Tennessee. 

Rab Summers, the president of 

the company, represents the third 

generation of the family to be 

involved in its operations. The 

fourth generation of the family is 

represented by his son, Grant 

Summers, who is now part of the 

team. Summers-Taylor provides a 

variety of services to its market 

area. They contract for heavyhighway 

construction, asphalt 

production, concrete production, 

bridge and curb construction, and 

utility work. The company owns 

six hot-mix asphalt (HMA) plants 

and five ready-mix concrete plants. 

“In other words,” said Bryant, 

“we are ready to do it all.” The 

company prides itself on its longstanding 

reputation for consistent 

quality. Summers-Taylor was the 

inaugural regional winner of the 

State of Tennessee Highway 

Quality Award and is a six-time 

winner of Tennessee’s Smooth 

Paving Award. In January 2009, the 

company was awarded the NAPA 

Quality in Construction Award. 

According to Bryant, Roadtec 

equipment has been a cornerstone 

of Summers-Taylor’s quality 

paving work since the early 1990s. 

The have frequently upgraded to 

new equipment. “We bought this 

new Roadtec RP-190 paver and 

the Shuttle Buggy MTV about 

three years ago,” said Bryant. 

When asked if his experience with 

Roadtec equipment would affect 

his advice to another contractor 

in the market for new paving 

equipment, Bryant had a firm, 

straight answer: 

“What would I tell somebody 

who was looking for a paver? I 

would recommend that they get 

a Roadtec paver for road paving. 

I think it’s the best one on the 

market if you want to get a quality, 

smooth ride.” ▼▲▼ 

The paving crew for Summers-Taylor 

used a Roadtec Shuttle Buggy MTV 

to deposit hot-mix asphalt (HMA) into 

the hopper of a Roadtec RP-190 paver. 

The paver was equipped with sonic 

skis and a 10-ft. (3-m) S-screed. The 

resulting ride figures on the job averaged 

24. The lowest reading was 21. 

FOR MORE 

INFORMATION 

about Roadtec equipment, 

call your Roadtec 

Regional Sales Manager: 

800-272-7100 

Fax: 423-265-7521 • E-mail: 

sales@roadtec.com 


ANY PLANT 

CAN MAKE 

WARM MIX ASPHALT

BUT AT WHAT COST? 

The exclusive Astec Double Barrel Green system gives you more for your fuel dollar. 

Make warm mix asphalt, cut fuel consumption by 14%, increase production by 14%, run more 

RAP – and the only “additive” required is water. For more information go to astecinc.com 

ASTEC, INC. an Astec Industries Company

AN UPSCALE 

COMBINATION 

FACILITY 


RIGHT IN THE CENTER of 

Orange County, California, 

you will find a hot-mix 

asphalt (HMA) production facility 

operated by R. J. Noble Company. 

There has been an HMA production 

facility—in one form or 

another—on that very same site 

for 58 years. 

As the Orange County housing 

developments grew up around the 

R. J. Noble property—and as airquality 

regulations evolved and 

became more strictly enforced— 

the plants operating on the site 

were also forced to evolve. In the 

beginning, the production facility 

was in the form of a steam-boiler 

plant. Then a Stansteel batch 

plant went in. And today, the production 

facility has morphed into 

a combination (or combo) plant: 

part of it is a Stansteel batch plant 

and part of it is Astec Double 

Barrel ® dryer/mixer equipped with 

a state-of-the-art Double Barrel 

Green System that permits the 

production of warm-mix asphalt 

(WMA) as well as HMA. 

“We are within the South Coast 

Air Quality Management District,” 

explained Norm Wright, the vice 

This California producer 

is a good example for how you can 

retrofit an existing batch plant 

with the warm-mix advantages of 

the Astec Double Barrel Green System. 

president of operations for R. J. 

Noble. “In this district, if you want 

to make a major change to your 

asphalt plants, they look at it as 

basically taking out an entirely new 

permit. That means you have to 

come up to speed on everything 

in the plant—and get the best 

available technology.” 

A few years ago, R. J. Noble saw 

that it needed to make one of 

those major changes to its plant. 

As housing developments moved 

closer to the facility, management 

decided it would be wise to upgrade 

their old baghouse to a new, 

higher capacity baghouse. That 

decision indirectly revealed to 

R. J. Noble some other areas that 

needed improvement. 

“We had to wait a year to install 

the baghouse because we had so 

much production work and could 

not afford to shut down,” said 

Terry McGill, the company’s general 

manager. “At that point we 

decided that our dryer was getting 

worn out and we needed a new 

drum anyway. So we talked to 

Astec and they said they could 

retrofit a Double Barrel dryer/mixer 

into our existing plant layout.” 

The retrofit turned out to be the 

perfect solution for R. J. Noble. It 

would be easier to obtain a permit 

for a retrofit versus the installation 

of an entirely new plant. Plus, the 

new Double Barrel dryer/mixer 

facility would be able to produce 

continuous mix at 500 tph (454 

tonnes per hour), while the old 

batch plant would still be available 

to serve R. J. Noble’s smaller jobs. 

“First thing in the morning, we dry 

aggregate in the Double Barrel and 

then put it up in the batch plant. 

That usually lasts us all day,” said 

McGill. “Then the Double Barrel is 

free to make mix at 500 tph. And 

it likes it, too. It likes to run fast!” 

McGill said the installation of the 

Double Barrel dryer/mixer went 

very smooth. “In fact, we started 

out on a huge project that was 

80,000 tons (72,575 tonnes). As 

soon as we got the mix designs 

done and got the plant running, we 

were shipping to the job.” 

Upgrading their production facility 

to the latest Astec technology 

brought with it one other benefit: 

the new Double Barrel Green 

System. Using that system, R. J. 

Noble now has the ability to make 

WMA—a product that is quickly 

becoming accepted and desirable 

in the road-construction industry. 

“We actually ran some warm-mix 

through our plant and put down a 

demo strip here inside our facility 

where our trucks are driving over 

it all the time,” said Wright. 

“WMA is a relatively new product, 

but we are trying to educate the 

cities and other people out here 

about the technology.” ▼▲▼ 

The central component of R. J. Noble 

Company’s combination plant is the 

Astec Double Barrel Green System that 

is shown in this photograph. Not only 

does the system heat and dry virgin 

aggregate for use in the batch plant, it 

also performs two other key functions: 

(1) the production of conventional 

hot-mix asphalt (HMA) and (2) the production 

of the new warm-mix asphalt 

(WMA). The latter product is receiving 

a lot of attention worldwide because it 

is cost-effective and environmentally 

friendly. The processing in the Double 

Barrel Green System reduces the viscosity 

of the liquid asphalt cement, 

allowing the mix to be worked at temperatures 

that are 50°F (28°C) lower 

than HMA products. 

FOR MORE 

INFORMATION 

about Astec’s hot-mix plants, 


423-867-4210 

Fax: 423-867-3570 



Here is how one company 

upgraded from an out-of-date 

20th Century batch plant to... 

21st CENTURY TECHNOLOGY 

...with n a cost-efficient and 

environmentally friendly Astec 

® 

Double Barrel Green System. 


ON A GOOD DAY, the old batch 

plant churned out about 150 

tons (136 tonnes) per hour. 

But the old technology was getting 

more outdated by the minute and 

the maintenance costs were rising 

—and that relatively modest production 

rate just could not meet 

the everyday needs for Barnhill 

Contracting Company. 

So in 2007, the management took 

a close look at their Raleigh, North 

Carolina batch plant and made a 

logical decision: They upgraded 

the plant site with a 400 tph (363 

tonnes per hour) Astec Double 

Barrel ® dryer/mixer that included 

the added benefit of the Double 

Barrel Green System that allows 

for the production of warm-mix 

asphalt (WMA). 

In other words, in just a matter of 

months, Barnhill Contracting took 

its Raleigh plant from the 1970s 

into the 21st Century. 

Tying it all together 

The old facility at Barnhill Contracting’s 

Raleigh plant site had a few 

parts that were worth keeping. 

Most of the original batch plant 

was stripped down and hauled 

away, except for an Astec 200-ton 

(181-tonne) storage silo that had 

been added a few years ago, the 

drag conveyor, and the original 

cold-feed bins. Barnhill Contracting 

also opted to move a RAP system 

from their Southeast division to 

the plant site in Raleigh. 

Those existing components were 

then incorporated into the brandnew 

Astec Double Barrel asphaltproduction 

facility. This included 

an 8 x 40-ft. (2 x 12-m) Astec 

Double Barrel dryer/mixer; an 

Astec Phoenix ® burner capable of 

using gas or No. 2 oil; a pulse-jet 

baghouse; a 170-ton (154-tonne) 

Astec New Generation storage silo 

to complement the existing silo; a 

Total Control 2000 PLC control 

system incorporated into the Astec 

Command Control Center; a Heatec 

helical coil hot-oil heater and 

30,000-gal. (113,562-L) vertical 

asphalt storage tank; and a Heatec 

20,000-gal. (75,708-L) vertical 

double-containment fuel tank. 

It might seem like getting all those 

parts working together would 

become a major chore, but with 

Barnhill Contracting’s organization 

and the Astec technician’s experience, 

the plant was operational in 

a relatively short amount of time. 

“It went well,” said Mike Smith, 

plant supervisor for Barnhill 

Contracting Company who was in 

charge of overseeing installation. 

“Not counting the time it took to 

take the batch plant down, the new 

plant was installed and operating 

in about one month after we got 

the footers ready.” 

Enjoying new technology 

The construction was completed 

in April, just in time for Barnhill 

Contracting to get a full summer’s 

worth of production out of the new 

facility. Astec representatives provided 

hands-on training at the 

new Raleigh plant, alleviating any 

learning curve caused by making 

the switch from a batch plant to a 

Double Barrel dryer/mixer plant. 

“Astec provided the training, and 

they stayed with us for two or 

three weeks after we got up and 

running,” said David Glover, the 

quality control general manager 

for Barnhill Contracting. “The 

transition was very smooth.” 

The company has also enjoyed 

the benefits that come with a 

plant that has a higher production 

capacity as well as the ability to 

produce WMA. 

“The new Astec facility has given 

us a lot more flexibility, that’s for 

sure,” said Glover. “We can handle 

any size job now, and that makes 

us a lot more competitive. It is 

obviously important to be able to 

run higher tonnages and get the 

work out and completed quicker.” 

Smith and Glover added that they 

look forward to educating their 

customers about the benefits of 

WMA so that they can produce 

more of what they consider to be 

a top-notch product. 

“That Double Barrel Green System 

is awesome,” said Smith. “I had 

my doubts about it to start with 

because I just didn’t know much 

about it. But after we started running 

the WMA, I realized that this 

is going to work very well. Once 

we get everyone to try it, I think 

they will like it.” 

Customers are already starting to 

jump on board. Several of the 

municipalities in the Raleigh area 

have tried the warm mix on their 

city streets, said Glover, and they 

are happy with the results. 

“Everything has been great so far,” 

said Glover. “All the tests meet 

specification and the paving crew 

likes it, too.” 

Looking back, it would seem that 

Barnhill Contracting didn’t just 

bring their Raleigh plant up to 

date; they also prepared it for the 

market of the future. 

“I don’t see how you can not have 

this type of plant,” said Glover. 

“The flexibility, the higher RAP 

percentages, and the increased tons 

per hour give you that additional 

flexibility that is so important if 

you are going to be able to compete 

in today’s market.” ▼▲▼ 

Barnhill Contracting upgraded its 

Raleigh, North Carolina plant site by 

replacing its 1970s batch plant (the 

black-and-white photo on the facing 

page) with an Astec Double Barrel 

dryer/mixer that represents the very 

latest in innovation and technology. 

One very positive feature on the new 

facility is the Double Barrel Green 

System (shown here) that permits 

the production of warm-mix asphalt 

(WMA) as well as conventional mixes. 

FOR MORE 

INFORMATION 

about Astec’s Double Barrel 

Green System, 


423-867-4210 

Fax: 423-867-3570 



VERSATILE EQUIPMENT 

CAN HELP ANY CONTRACTOR 

PREPARE FOR THE UNKNOWN 

EVERY COMPANY is looking organization known as Austin In early 2008, Austin Bridge & Road Unknown #1: 

for ways to stay competitive Bridge & Road grew and began to began operating a piece of equipment 

that would play a major role “When you move into using higher 

Condition of milled pavement 

in today’s road-construction serve a number of transportation 

market. While some organizations infrastructure markets. 

in their asphalt-production operations: 

percentages of reclaimed asphalt 

a ProSizer 2612V from pavement (RAP),” Mills explained, 

may be inclined to experiment in Today, Austin Bridge & Road 

order to find what they consider to provides pre-construction services, Astec Mobile Screens. According “It is critical that you manage your 

be the right combination of lean, design-build, construction management, 

and general-contracting Mills, the firm’s management had on milled RAP material can have 

to operations manager Richard overall gradations. The gradations 

nimble operation and powerful, 

cutting-edge technology, it might services in the transportation several good reasons when they a lot of variation.” 

be more useful to take a moment industry. The company operates decided to purchase a ProSizer 

to examine the strategic thinking six hot-mix asphalt (HMA) plants 2612V—but every one of those 

The milled material that Austin 

of a company that has survived in Texas that produce materials reasons could be summed up in 

Bridge & Road utilizes in its mixes 

more than 90 years worth of 

for their own paving projects as one simple phrase: To deal with 

comes from a variety of different 

changing economies: Austin 

well as for other customers. the unknown. 

sources. “Typically, we don’t do 

our own milling—we sub it out,” 

Bridge & Road. It might even pay 

to try some of their tested business 

practices. 

said Mills. “As a result, it comes 

to us from different places and in 

different shapes and sizes.” 

Austin Bridge & Road traces its 

history back to the early 1900s 

when its founder, George Austin, 

moved to Dallas, Texas and began 

fabricating and installing steeltruss 

bridges in Texas and Georgia. 

Throughout the 20th Century, the 

To ready that material for use in 

high-quality mix designs—and in 

order to be able to use high percentages 

of that RAP—Austin 

Bridge & Road uses the Astec 

Mobile Screens ProSizer 2612V 

to process and size the material. 


The ProSizer 2612V is a closedcircuit 

mobile crushing and 

screening plant with a double-deck 

PEP Vari-Vibe ® high-frequency 

screen and a horizontal-shaft 

impactor (HSI) crusher. One swingout, 

hydraulic-fold conveyor and 

one fines conveyor create stockpiles 

of RAP in two sizes, while 

the onboard recirculating system 

moves any oversized material 

back to the crusher. 

The sizing of RAP has allowed the 

company to incorporate substantially 

more RAP material into their 

mixes. “Through the use of this 

machine and by pushing higher 

percentages of recycle, we have 

been able to use 20 percent more 

recycle material this year than we 

did last year,” said Mills. 

Unknown #2: 

When will sizing be needed? 

For a company that operates six 

HMA plants scattered across the 

state of Texas—and that includes 

four stationary plants—it would 

not make much sense to keep all 

of their RAP sizing operations in 

one location. After all, RAP sizing 

only takes place when there is a 

stockpile ready. This fact is why 

the mobility of the ProSizer 2612V 

comes in very handy. 

“Primarily, we use this unit for our 

four stationary plants,” said Mills. 

“The Astec Mobile Screens unit 

moves frequently from one plant 

to another. It moves every two or 

three weeks.” 

Mills added that the ProSizer unit 

from Astec Mobile Screens is 

extremely easy for the crew to 

move. With a setup time of just 

15 minutes, Mills said he has 

received no complaints from the 

personnel who work with the unit. 

One big benefit of the ProSizer’s 

mobility, said Mills, is the fact that 

they can have the unit where they 

need it when they need it. 

“The nice thing about this unit is 

that we are able to utilize it during 

plant downtimes when we are not 

producing a lot of mix. It gives us 

an opportunity to keep our plant 

personnel productive when we’re 

not running hot mix.” 

Unknown #3: 

Liquid-AC prices 

Using more RAP in HMA products 

means less liquid asphalt cement 

(liquid AC) is needed—a factor 

that helps a contractor or producer 

balance the fluctuating costs of 

oil in an unstable market. 

“The use of recycle minimizes the 

impact of liquid-AC prices because 

you are able to use smaller percentages 

of liquid AC in your mixes,” 

Mills said. “When the price fluctuates, 

the impact is less significant.” 

Unknown #4: 

Maintenance and service 

One unknown that many managers 

have to deal with is unexpected 

downtime or unreliable service. 

The customer-service philosophy 

at Astec Mobile Screens helps 

eliminate that concern for Mills. 

“I don’t just like this particular 

machine,” said Mills, “I like everything 

about Astec Mobile Screens. 

The technical support and education 

that we received from both the 

distributor and the manufacturer 

is exactly what you would expect 

from Astec: It was paramount. 

“Also, there have been no significant 

mechanical issues that we 

have experienced,” he added. 

Unknown #5: 

Future market demands 

Forward-looking construction 

managers can attempt to antici- 


about Astec Mobile Screens equipment, contact Ron Earl: 

800-545-2145 

Fax: 815-626-6430 • E-mail: sales@AstecMobileScreens.com 

pate what DOTs will specify for 

road projects in the future. But in 

the end, simply ensuring that you 

have the most flexible, versatile 

equipment is the best plan for 

staying competitive in any future 

construction market. 

“The Texas Department of Transportation 

(TxDOT) has really been 

getting on board with the national 

push to allow higher percentages 

of recycled material in hot-mix 

asphalt,” noted Mills. “As part of 

their revisions to the specifications, 

they allow those percentages to 

go up if the contractor sizes—or 

fractionates—recycled material. 

“This was a driving factor in our 

decision to purchase the Astec 

Mobile Screens ProSizer 2612V.” 

Overall, Austin Bridge & Road has 

found an innovative and useful tool 

that keeps them on the cutting 

edge and helps them be prepared 

for many of the variables that 

companies in the road-construction 

industry are facing today. 

“Financially, processing and using 

recycled material makes sense. 

Environmentally, it makes sense. 

From an industry perspective, it 

makes sense,” said Mills. “I 

believe when you combine all of 

those things, the use of RAP is 

good for all of us.” ▼▲▼ 

The ProSizer 2612V from Astec 

Mobile Screens provides efficient and 

cost-effective crushing and screening 

for the volumes of reclaimed-asphalt 

pavement (RAP) that Austin Bridge & 

Road uses in its hot-mix asphalt 

(HMA). The mobility of the ProSizer 

2612V is a significant factor in its use 

because it travels frequently between 

the company’s four stationary HMA 

plants to crush, screen, and assist in 

the fractionating of RAP materials. 

Austin Bridge & Road purchased the 

equipment through T-K-O Equipment 

Company, the distributor for Astec Mobile 

Screens in East and Central Texas. 


CONVERTING 

TO 


WHILE HE WAS WORKING 

in the business of excavation, 

demolition, and land 

clearing, Dean Larson noticed 

that some changes were on the 

way for that industry. Some of the 

changes that were coming would 

be enforced by area government 

agencies. And other changes 

would come simply as the result of 

a new environmental consciousness 

that has been growing 

across the country. 

“Here in the northwestern United 

States, the traditional method of 

disposing of wood debris and 

demolished buildings was simply 

to burn it,” said Larson, president 

of Trails End Recovery located 

near Warrenton, Oregon. “We saw 

that the Department of Environmental 

Quality was starting to 

enforce stricter regulations as far 

as air quality goes, and we knew 

that burning was going to be a 

thing of the past.” 

Larson said Trails End Recovery 

recognized air-quality regulations 

not as a hindrance, but as an 

opportunity. In 2002, the company 

began focusing its efforts on 

providing what he calls “creative 

recycling solutions”—that is, to 

provide other contractors a way 

to responsibly dispose of their 

excavation, demolition, and landclearing 

waste. 

This Oregon-based recycling company 

has made a business of converting 

logging slash and construction debris 

into useable electrical energy. 

“We have one facility that serves 

all of Clatsop County here in northwestern 

Oregon,” said Larson. 

“One of our biggest customers is 

Western Oregon Waste, the area’s 

major disposal company. We are 

contracted with them to receive all 

of their mixed-construction debris 

in drop boxes from construction 

sites. All of that comes to our 

facility and we dissect the loads 

and pull out all the recyclables.” 

Those recyclables include wood, 

roofing materials, sheetrock, plastic, 

and metals. According to 

Larson, Trails End Recovery has 

been able to recycle 92 percent of 

that material by weight. 

In 2007, the company expanded 

its operations by reaching out to 

contractors who focus on landclearing 

projects. The removal of 

timber results in large amounts of 

land-clearing debris in that part of 

the country. That debris consists 

of stumps and slash—that is, the 

limbs and tops of trees that are of 

little use to the logging industry. 

Formerly, those stumps and slash 

would be burned, hauled to a landfill, 

or driven long distances to 

remote sites for processing. Larson 

decided to make disposal of slash 

far easier for the land-clearing 

contractors: His company would 

come to the site, grind the slash 

into wood mulch, and then haul the 

wood mulch away. 

The machinery that makes this 

service possible is a Peterson 

4710B track-mounted heavy-duty 

horizontal grinder. This portable 

unit is simply loaded onto a lowboy 

trailer and driven to the site. 

Once on site, the track-mounted 

unit can be driven anywhere it is 

needed for grinding. 

“This unit is extremely mobile, 

which is a necessity at our jobsites,” 

said Larson. “You can just 

track this machine anywhere.” 

The slash is ground down to 3-in. 

(7.6-cm) minus sized mulch and 

discharged directly into a truck 

which hauls approximately 25 tons 

(23 tonnes) of the wood mulch to 

a local mill that is owned by 

Georgia-Pacific. There, the mulch 

is burned to heat a boiler that 

creates steam. The steam is then 

used to run steam-turbine generators 

that provide electrical power 

to the Georgia-Pacific mill. Any 

excess power is actually sold back 

to the power company. 

The company’s one Peterson 

portable horizontal grinder can 

provide a lot of fuel for the Georgia- 

Pacific mill. In all, approximately 

12 of these 25-ton loads are 

trucked to the mill each day. And 

Larson said he can rely on that 

kind of production rate, thanks to 

the Peterson 4710B horizontal 

grinder’s solid construction and 

dependable performance. 

“We have been exceptionally 

happy with that machine and the 

way we have utilized it,” said 

Larson. “We have another grinder 

made by another manufacturer 

that stays at our recycling facility. 

It’s a good machine. But the difference 

between that machine 

and the way it holds up compared 

to the Peterson—well, there’s just 

no comparison. 

“The Peterson horizontal grinder 

is just a well-designed piece of 

equipment in a small, compact 

package. It has performance that 

is just amazing.” ▼▲▼ 

Trails End Recovery saw the opportunity 

to fill a vital need by providing help 

to construction and demolition contractors 

and logging companies. Using this 

Peterson track-mounted grinder, the 

company is able to break down literally 

tons of wood debris and slash so it can 

be used as fuel to heat steam boilers. 

The steam is then used as power to run 

turbines that generate electricity. In 

other words: They are helping convert 

Trash to Treasure. You can learn more 

about them by going to their website: 

www.trailsendtimbers.com. 

FOR MORE 

INFORMATION 

about Peterson equipment, 

call Victor Acevedo at Peterson: 

800-269-6520 

Fax: 541-689-0804 

E-mail: 

peterson@petersoncorp.com 


You have already seen the ad. 

Now here is the whole story: 

THE AD HAS A GOOD POINT: 

Your efforts to achieve some 

significant savings in fuel 

costs by burning waste oil in your 

hot-mix asphalt (HMA) plant’s 

dryer/mixer burner may create 

some unexpected problems if you 

are not totally aware of what is 

involved. Here is the main point of 

that Heatec ad: 

“Simply adding a waste-oil 

preheater to an existing 

system originally designed 

for No. 2 fuel is not enough. 

The fuel system should be 

designed as a complete 

system.” 

Remember those last two words: 

complete system. If you are going 

to use waste oil, you must have a 

system that handles the waste-oil 

fuel from the time it is unloaded 

from the truck until it gets into the 

burner. Simply having a waste-oil 

preheater or some other add-on 

component is not enough. There 

are a lot of things that can happen 

to foul up your operation unless 

you have a complete system that 

is designed to do the job. 

As a major manufacturer of items 

related to storing and heating various 

kinds of fuel for HMA plants, 

Heatec can help producers avoid 

the problems that can arise with 

inadequate systems. 

Jerry Vantrease, the construction 

sales manager for Heatec, was 

providing an in-depth briefing on 

this topic recently. According to 

Vantrease, anyone considering 

the use of waste oil as a fuel for 

drum/dryers should talk with a few 

other producers who have some 

experience with it. 

“If you find a plant manager or 

operator who has worked with a 

facility that has a overly simplified 

waste-oil system,” said Vantrease, 

“you will probably hear some real 

horror stories. But if you talk with 

someone else whose management 

has opted for Heatec’s approach 

—a complete, integrated system— 

you will hear that they didn’t 

experience any problems at all.” 

Avoiding problems 

when burning waste oil 

The first thing you should do is 

very simple and straightforward: 

“When the truck driver arrives 

with the waste-oil delivery,” said 

Vantrease, “check to make sure 

that he is delivering specifically 

what you ordered. If you find a 

truckload of fuel that is bad or is 

not exactly what you ordered, 

send it back. Period.” 

Vantrease said that there can be a 

lack of consistency in the viscosity 

of the waste oil from one batch to 

another is a concern, especially if 

oil is from different suppliers. He 

said that it might be a good idea 

to check viscosity at delivery. In 

addition, a wide difference in the 

viscosity might require changes to 

preheater temperature controls. 

Vantrease went on to provide a 

brief but informative explanation 

for the seven key components 

(shown on the facing page) that 

make up Heatec’s complete 

waste-oil fuel system: 

Straining and filtering 

1before storage 

Heatec’s waste-oil system removes 

debris that might clog the system 

and impede burning. The waste oil 

goes through a strainer and sock 

filters as it is unloaded from the 

delivery truck and is pumped into 

the storage tank. Two sock filters 

are used—so if one filter gets 

clogged, you can switch to the 

other one while the clogged one 

is being cleaned. 

2 Recirculating 

waste oil during storage 

The unloading pump that moves 

the waste oil through the filters 

also pumps the product into the 

storage tanks. But the pump also 

continuously recirculates the 

product. Why? Because it is waste 

oil and so it contains a lot of trash. 

If you do not recirculate it, the 

trash will settle to the bottom of 

the tanks and could end up clogging 

the entire system. 

Straining and filtering 

3before burning 

With the Heatec system, waste oil 

being pumped from the storage 

tank goes through another strainer 

to remove any residual debris 

before it reaches the preheater. It 

is a duplex strainer that enables 

you to switch from one strainer to 

another without having to shut 

down the burner system while you 

clean one that is clogged. Magnets 

can be added to the strainers to 

ensure the removal of very fine 

metal particles. 

Fuel pump specifically 

4for waste oil 

The fuel pump must be designed 

for use with waste oil. You should 

not use a pump that is intended 

for regular No. 2 oil. If you check 

the specifications for such a pump, 

you will find a caution note: 

“Not for use with waste oil!” 

It takes a special kind of pump to 

move waste oil—and that is why 

such a pump is an integral part of 

Heatec’s system. 

Pump the waste oil 

5to a fuel preheater 

In the Heatec system, waste oil is 

pumped into a preheater that 

increases the temperature of the 

waste oil about 100°F (38°C) above 

its unheated temperture before it 

moves to the HMA plant’s burner. 

The preheater is equipped with a 

special modulating controller 

instead of an on-off unit. The 

modulating controller keeps the 

temperature of the waste oil to 

within plus or minus 1°F (0.3°C). 


Tank 

for No. 2 Fuel 

Tank 

for Waste Oil 

Remote Controls 

for Fuel System 

1 

Strainer 

Fuel Pump 

for No. 2 Fuel 

(not shown) 

2 

Unloading 

Pump 

1 

Sock Filters 

with Containment 

7 

6 

Burner 

5 

Fuel 

Preheater 

Unloading Pump 

Controls 

Pump the waste oil 

5to the burner 

When the waste oil is heated, it is 

pumped to the burner—and the 

burner must be equipped to use 

waste oil as a fuel. If it was not 

designed as a combination burner 

capable of using both kinds of 

fuel, then it must be modified in 

the field. Fortunately, there are 

usually kits that can be installed 

for this purpose. 

7 Recirculate 

unburned waste oil 

Some of the waste oil that goes 

into the burner will not be burned 

as fuel. In the Heatec system, this 

unused waste oil is taken back to 

the suction side of the fuel pump 

instead of being dumped back 

into the storage tank. The reason 

Pressure 

Transmitter 

Level 

Indicator 

for this is simple: The unburned 

waste oil is already heated and 

only needs to be moderately 

reheated in order to achieve the 

desired temperature again. This 

saves on energy costs. One other 

suggestion: All fuel lines between 

the waste-oil tank and the burner 

should be insulated. 

All of the system’s components 

work smoothly together 

Vantrease pointed out that this 

waste-oil fuel system did not just 

evolve. It was designed to work 

as a unit to achieve a specific 

Duplex 

Strainer 

purpose: The efficient, effective, 

and economical use of waste oil 

as a fuel for HMA plants. 

“We carefully designed each set of 

components to make them easy 

to install and easy to use,” said 

Vantrease. “If you look at the diagram, 

you will see the network of 

piping, valves, and controls that 

help to make this a complete system. 

In some cases, all of these 

valves and conduits can be controlled 

remotely from the control 

house if that is what the operator 

wants. It can be a totally automated 


about Heatec equipment, call Jerry Vantrease at Heatec: 

800-235-5200 

Fax: 423-821-7673 • E-mail: JVantrease@Heatec.com 

Fuel Pump 

for Waste Oil 

The 7 Key Components in Heatec’s Complete 

Waste-Oil Fuel System 

3 

4 

system where you pick which fuel 

you want to use and the valves 

open and close automatically. 

“For example: Some operators like 

to start their system with No. 2 oil 

and then switch over to waste oil 

after everything is up and running. 

This system will let you do that 

without a problem.” 

Vantrease was emphatic when he 

cautioned those in the industry to 

look at all of their options carefully 

before they decide what kind of 

equipment they are going to buy 

for this application. 

“Of course, you want to save on 

operating costs by using waste oil 

as a fuel,” said Vantrease. “But you 

should remember that improperly 

handling waste oil could turn out 

to be a problem by itself.” ▼▲▼ 


Чита-Хабаровск 

Russian Route M58 

is an unfinished part of the Trans-Siberian Highway 

that runs from Chita to Khabarovsk, 

a total of 1,300 miles or 2,100 km. 

Portability was obviously a key issue. 

THERE IS A NEW HIGHWAY 

under construction in Russia. 

It will stretch about 1,300 miles 

(2,100 km) across rolling hills 

and mountains that are covered 

with coniferous timber. It will run 

through valleys and bottomlands 

that contain a number of rivers and 

uninhabitable marshes. In the 

winter, the weather is cold and dry. 

In the summer, it is hot and humid. 

In some areas, there is permafrost. 

The new highway—the M58 Amur 

Highway—It is scheduled to be 

completed in 2016 and it will be a 

key part of what is probably the 

longest highway in the world: the 

Trans-Siberian Highway. When all 

of the segments are finished, the 

Trans-Siberian Highway will stretch 

6,835 miles (11,000 km) from 

Saint Petersburg on the Baltic Sea 

of the Atlantic Ocean in Northwest 

Russia to Vladivostok on the 

❋ 

Distance: 

1,300 miles 

(2,100 km) 

Japan Sea of the Pacific Ocean in 

Southeast Russia. Compare that 

with the longest highway in the 

United States—Interstate 90— 

which goes from Boston, Massachusetts 

to Seattle, Washington: 

Interstate 90 has a total of only 

3,099 miles (4,987 km). 

Although the M58 Amur Highway 

between Chita and Khabarovsk 

makes up only about 20 percent 

of the total distance of the Trans- 

Siberian Highway, it is still thought 

to offer perhaps the most demanding 

challenges for those who are 

building it. The route follows a 

gravel trail called the Amur Cart 

Road that was built between 1898 

and 1909. In recent years, it has 

been used primarily as a logging 

road. When finished, the new 

highway will be two lanes wide in 

most areas, although it will be four 

lanes wide in others. The entire 

highway will be paved with asphalt. 


In order to produce the asphalt 

mixes that are necessary for this 

project, the Kamdorstroy Trust of 

the Republic of Tartarstan bought 

an Astec Double Barrel ® M-Pack 

plant. Kamdorstroy Trust is one of 

the most experienced companies 

in the growing road-construction 

industry of Russia. 

The Astec Double Barrel M-Pack 

plant was shipped from the United 

States across the Atlantic Ocean 

to Saint Petersburg, Russia and 

was then transported by train 

more than 3,000 miles (4,800 km) 

to the location of its first jobsite 

on the M58 Amur Highway. The 

relocatable plant was set up and 

became fully operational in early 

summer of last year. 

The central part of Kamdorstroy 

Trust’s new plant is a 6 x 33-ft. 

(1.8 x 10-m) Double Barrel drum 

mixer equipped with a Whisper 

Jet ® oil burner. The drum mixer 

also has the Double Barrel Green 

System that permits production 

of warm-mix asphalt (WMA) as 

well as hot-mix asphalt (HMA). 

Other portable components include 

a five-compartment cold-feed 

system; scalping screen, conveyors; 

weigh bridge; baghouse; a 

Paving of the M58 Amur Highway 

is being done with asphalt mixes 

that are produced in this 

Astec Double Barrel ® M-Pack plant. 


about Astec’s hot-mix plants, call Diane Hunt at Astec: 

423-867-4210 


split dry-additive silo that can 

accommodate the storage and 

delivery of both dust and filler; a 

portable Heatec asphalt storage 

tank capable of storing and heating 

15,000 gal. (56,780 L); and 

an Astec New Generation storage 

system that consists of two 100- 

ton (91-tonne) storage silos with 

electrically heated cones. 

When the production team’s 

Astec Double Barrel M-Pack plant 

is operating under optimum conditions, 

it is capable of producing 

mix at the rate of 180 tons per 

hour (163 tonnes per hour). 

The plant operator can visually 

monitor all operations in the plant 

from the observer control center 

that is about 10-ft. (3-m) square 

in size. The center includes Astec’s 

PMII-A continuous mix blending 

controls that allow the operator to 

monitor the proportional control 

of the aggregate feeders and the 

blending of asphalt and additives. 

Everyone in Russia is interested in 

the progress of this construction 

project. When construction of the 

M58 Amur Highway is completed, 

it will permit travel and trucking in 

parts of Siberia that have been 

almost inaccessible. ▼▲▼ 

The surrounding terrain of the jobsite where the asphalt mixes are produced 

is mostly rolling hills, valleys, and marshes. But the Astec Double Barrel M- 

Pack plant that is being used by Kamdorstroy Trust to build the up-to-date 

M38 Amur Highway represents some of the very latest technology in asphalt 

production. The plant was delivered and became operational in the early part 

of 2008—and it will be kept busy until this road-construction project has been 

finished. The M38 Amur Highway is a key part of the Trans-Siberian Highway 

that stretches 6,835 miles (11,000 km) from Saint Petersburg to Vladivostok. 


NEWSAFETY LABELS 

ON HEATEC STORAGE TANKS AND EQUIPMENT 

S 

AFETY 

IS A TOP CONCERN 

for any manager of a hot-mix 

asphalt (HMA) production 

facility. While teaching standard 

operating procedures and providing 

hands-on training does build the 

foundation for a safe work environment, 

safety labels serve as an 

every-day reminder to workers 

that danger may be imminent. It is 

important that these labels be easy 

to read and properly displayed. 

Heatec recently took a close look 

at its equipment safety labels and 

redesigned them to conform to the 

latest standards of the American 

National Standards Institute (ANSI). 

The new labels will be placed on 

all new Heatec equipment. For 

owners of existing Heatec equipment, 

the labels will be available 

free of charge from the Heatec 

parts department. Here is a quick 

look at a few of the new labels 

and the potential hazards to which 

they alert workers: 

1 Confined space warning 

This safety label will appear on all 

Heatec storage tanks and calibration 

tanks that have manways. 

The label identifies the hazards of 

entering a confined space where 

vapors contained inside may be 

dangerous to inhale. 

2 Empty tank warning 

The portable storage tanks made 

by Heatec are designed to be 

moved only when they are completely 

empty. They should not be 

used for transporting liquids. The 

center of gravity in a portable tank 

is not suitable for travel when it is 

loaded, which means the load 

could become unstable if moved. 

The label emphasizes this fact by 

using the signal word WARNING 

and illustrates with clear graphics 

the possibility of tipping. 

3 Guard warning 

This label should be applied near 

moving parts and should be visible 

whether the safety guard is in 

place or removed. It illustrates 

the importance of using a safety 

2 

guard when operating equipment 

with moving parts. Components 

on Heatec equipment that should 

display these safety labels include 

hot-oil pumps and asphalt-metering 

pump packages. 

4 Emergency vent long-bolt 

warning 

This safety label explains that when 

a manhole cover is fitted with long 

bolts, it is critical that the bolts 

not be replaced with shorter bolts. 

The long bolts are part of a design 

to allow venting of the excess 

pressure that can build up in the 

tank. Replacing long bolts with 

short bolts could prevent the 

venting of pressure—leading to a 

potential rupture of the tank. 

5 Emergency vent ID 

This safety label identifies the 

location of the emergency vent 

and should be used on all longbolt 

manhole covers of fuel tanks. 

Need New Labels? 

To request a free set of the latest 

safety labels for your existing Heatec 

equipment, just contact the Heatec 

parts department: 800-235-5200. 

1 

3 4 

5 


Asphalt Production is Your 

Business. Keeping You 

Profitable is Ours. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Parts & Service

Upgrade to a Double Barrel Green 

IT DOESN’T TAKE VERY MUCH 

in the way of time or effort to 

give your existing Astec Double 

Barrel ® dryer/mixer an entirely 

new spectrum of productivity and 

economy. Those who have done it 

will tell you that it is quick and easy 

to equip a Double Barrel dryer/mixer 

with the latest in asphalt-paving 

technology: the new Astec Double 

Barrel Green System. 

“We can retrofit a Double Barrel 

Green System to almost any Astec 

Double Barrel dryer/mixer in about 

two days,” said Mike Varner, the 

director of thermal systems for 

Astec. “In most cases, the Astec 

installation team can start the 

retrofit on a Friday afternoon after 

plant shutdown and the plant will 

be running on Monday morning.” 

Varner went on to say that a typical 

retrofit requires mechanical 

If you want to learn 

why everyone is talking about 

warm-mix asphalt, you can start here: 

work by two fitter/welders. “There 

is also some electrical work that 

must be done, although usually 

that can be done at the same time 

as the mechanical work.” 

The two key words, therefore, are 

quick and easy. 

But for producers in North America 

and around the world, there is still 

one lingering question: 

Why? They want to know why 

they would want to upgrade an 

existing Astec hot-mix asphalt 

(HMA) facility to the Double Barrel 

Green System? The answer can 

be found in the facts and figures: 

In general, what is 

the Double Barrel Green System? 

The system is a tool that you can 

use to make warm-mix asphalt 

(WMA) in the same Double Barrel 

mixer that you use to make hot-mix 

asphalt (HMA). That new product 

—sometimes called warm-mix or 

just WMA for short—can be made 

with an aggregate temperature 

that is 50°F (28°C) lower than the 

temperature that is conventionally 

required when making HMA. It is 

a new technology that is widely 

used throughout Europe. And it is 

beginning to catch on in North 

America, as well. 

The key benefits of 

the Double Barrel Green System 

This new system is remarkable 

because it is beneficial on so many 

levels. It is environmentally friendly. 

It is economical. It is the most 

advanced technological innovation 

to appear in road-construction in 

years. Here is a brief list of the ten 

major benefits of the Double 

Barrel Green System technology: 

❏ Improved workability due to the 

fact that the liquid-AC coating has 

a lower viscosity; 

❏ No smoke and no smell because 

the light oils in the liquid AC never 

reach the boiling point; 

❏ High percentages of reclaimed 

asphalt pavement (RAP)can be 

used with a standard grade of AC; 

❏ Longer pavement life is possible 

because there is less oxidation 

HOW THE DOUBLE BARREL GREEN SYSTEM WORKS: 

a AC manifold 

b Nozzle valve (open) 

cAdjustable jet 

dWater enters here 

eWater passage 

fBoiling chamber (foam formed) 

g Spray nozzle 

h AC foam (spraying on aggregte) 

The illustration on the left shows a close-up of one of the foam nozzles. After 

the water enters the unit, it is sprayed into the liquid AC from four points 

around the boiling chamber, causing the liquid AC to foam. All of this is done 

without using any expensive additives. 


System with just a simple retrofit 

of the mix and more uniformity of 

compaction; 

❏ Fuel consumption during production 

can be reduced by up to 

14 percent because of the 50°F 

(28°C) lower temperature; 

❏ You can increase production by 

as much as 14 percent; 

❏ It provides a more comfortable, 

safer environment for both the 

plant workers and paving crews; 

❏ It eliminates the need for special 

fume systems on plants and pavers 

❏ There is no cost increase in the 

production of the mix. 

The simple ingredients of 

the Double Barrel Green System 

This system is different from most 

of the industry’s attempts at warmmix 

technology because it does 

not require the addition of any 

expensive additives. Instead, the 

primary ingredient in Astec’s WMA 

technology is something that is 

readily available and inexpensive: 

water. 

Instead of being dependent on 

unusual or special ingredients, the 

Double Barrel Green System relies 

on simplicity of design and everyday 

thermodynamics. Ordinary 

water is injected into the mix along 

with the liquid AC. The injected 

water turns to steam—expanding 

1,800 times—thereby causing the 

liquid AC to foam like a whippedcream 

topping. The foaming 

action of the system helps the liquid 

AC coat the aggregate at the 

temperature cited above: 50°F 

(28°C) lower than the temperature 

required for HMA. 

The amount of water used in the 

system is relatively small: only 

about 1 percent of the volume of 

the liquid AC. The temperature of 

the pre-heated liquid AC causes the 

water to change immediately to 

steam, which in turn causes the 

liquid AC to foam. The foamed AC 

adheres to the particles of aggregate 

as they pass through the 

outer drum of the dryer/mixer. The 


about the Double Barrel Green System, call Diane Hunt at Astec: 

423-867-4210 


rest of the mixing process is the 

same as it is with other Astec 

Double Barrel units. The heated 

rock causes the AC to remain in a 

foam state as long as the aggregate 

temperature is above 212°F 

(100°C) or until the mix is compacted 

by the rollers. 

The Double Barrel Green System 

is installed in such a way that the 

bank of nozzles has access to the 

outer drum of the two-drum unit, 

the chamber where the alreadyheated 

aggregate is coated with 

liquid AC. (See the illustration on 

the facing page.) 

This remarkable technology can 

be installed on almost any Astec 

Double Barrel dryer/mixer as a 

retrofit. “If you are interested,” 

said Varner, “you might want to 

give Astec a call.” ▼▲▼ 

The Double Barrel Green System can be installed as a quick-and-easy retrofit on almost any Astec Double Barrel dryer/mixer that is already in operation in 

the field. The new system offers some remarkable benefits for producers—benefits in terms of environmental friendliness, reduced production costs, 

improved pavement, and the ability to use higher percentages of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP). As far as that last benefit is concerned, it might be 

pointed out that the increased use of RAP is a significant step in extending our natural resources. 


astecused.com 

 

ASTEC PF DM COATER SIX PACK: (4) 1012 bins, 8’ X 45’ 

parallel flow drum mix coater and more. Call for price. AST-241 

astecused.com 

SILOS 

 

Location: Kentucky, AST-239 

ALMIX PF DRUM MIX PLANT: 5 bins, 7’drum mixer, 

Astec Baghouse, CMI 200 ton Silo. Call for price. AST-266 

 

Location: New Mexico, AST-259 

 

ceramic liners 

Location: Mississippi, AST-265 

 

Location: Florida, AST-263 

 

PORTABLE SILO 

Location: Tennessee, AST-872 

 

Location: Kentucky, AST-251 

STANDARD-HAVENS/CEDARAPIDS DRUM MIX PLANT: 

1989, 8’ X 49’ drum mixer and more. Call for price. AST-240 

 

 

 

an Astec Industries Company

Approximately 6,000 visitors from 

around the world are expected to 

attend World of Asphalt 2009— 

and they will all have an opportunity 

to see the Astec exhibit in 

Booth 933 at the Orange County 

Convention Center in 

Orlando, Florida. 

Among other 

special items, 

the Astec 

booth will feature 

the Double 

Barrel Green 

System for producing 

mixes at lower temperatures—a 

new technology that is usually 

referred to as warm-mix asphalt or 

WMA. In the Astec Double Barrel 

Green System, the producer will find 

that his facility will eliminate smoke 

and smell, reduce fuel consumption, 

and increase production. There will 

be other interesting things to see at 

the Astec booth, of course. You will 

be able to learn about a number of 

innovative and industry-changing 

products that have been introduced 

to the market over the years—things 

such as the Double 

Barrel ® dryer/drum 

mixer, and the 

Phoenix ® line 

of burners. 

You can also 

learn about the 

Astec AccuSwipe 

belt sweeper, the New 

Generation Storage silos, the Six- 

Pack ® portable asphalt facilities, and 

the M-Pack ® relocatable asphalt facilities. 

For more information about 

World of Asphalt 2009—including 

dates, times, and the location, all you 

have to do is go to their website: 

www.worldofasphalt.com ▼▲▼ 

NEWS 

MAGAZINE 

Be sure to look for the Astec Industries companies 

at World of Asphalt 2009 in Orlando, Florida (March 9-12) 

Telsmith introduces a high-capacity track-mobile 

Primary Impact Crushing Plant: Model TI6060 

Telsmith has added to its line of track-mobile crushing plants with the 

QuarryTrax Model TI6060, a track-mounted primary-impact crushing 

plant that was designed for high-production yields in quarried stone and 

concrete recycle operations. The plant accepts concrete slabs up to 60 in. 

(1.5 m) wide. A heavy-duty solid type rotor is forgiving to the uncrushable 

material often found in demolition debris. The large feed opening 

and rugged design are reported to consistently deliver high production 

yields. For information, go to: www.telsmith.com ▼▲▼ 

One of the more interesting exhibits at the World of Asphalt will be the Astec 

Double Barrel Green System display. It is being explained to a visitor in this 

photo by Dr. J. Don Brock, chief executive officer of Astec Industries. 

Noise emissions on 

Roadtec pavers have 

been reduced 

The noise emited by highwayclass 

pavers is mostly attributed 

to the cooling fan on the engine. 

Only a small portion of the sound 

comes from the engine itself. For 

this reason, Roadtec recently 

switched to varible speed fans on 

all of its pavers. The fan runs on 

an as-needed basis to supply the 

cooling that is needed for the 

machine hydraulics. Owing to the 

cool-running design of Roadtec 

pavers, the average fan speed can 

now be reduced to produce an 

average reduction in noise of 

about four decibels. Under normal 

operating conditions, therefore, 

the crew will be able to converse 

at normal, conversational levels 

of volume. This improvement in 

the ability to communicate has 

received very positive comments 

from paving crew members and 

supervisors alike. ▼▲▼ 


MAGAZINENEWS 

Seat design on Roadtec pavers lets the operator 

quickly check material levels at the rear auger 

TELSMITH 

A paver operator must have the ability to quickly make visual checks 

of the rear auger of the machine to make sure that material levels are 

where they are supposed to be in order to achieve a quality paving job. 

For that reason, Roadtec engineers designed new paver seats that slide 

out to the side in a straignt line instead of swinging out on an arc. The 

straight sideways movement of the seat results in a position that gives 

the operator excellent visibility down the side of the machine and also 

to the rear augers (see above photo). It is important to visually check 

the augers because the mix should always be halfway up on the augers 

across the entire width of the auger delivery system.▼▲▼ 

Astec announced 

a new director of sales 

for western Europe 

Astec recently announced the 

appointment of Nathalie Fourrier 

as director of sales, Europe. The 

appointment was 

effective as of 

October 1, 2008. 

Fourrier was 

previously the 

director of marketing 

and sales 

for Mix Process 

France. Prior to 

Nathalie Fourrier 

that, she was the 

international sales manager for 

BGW France and Eurasphalte- 

Hartmann. Steve Claude, Astec vice 

president of International Sales, 

said: “Fourrier has an extensive, 

varied, and successful background 

in the hot-mix asphalt and roadconstruction 

industry. It will serve 

here well as she continues to promote 

Astec’s state-of-the-art 

Double Barrel technology. ▼▲▼ 

Roadtec’s Shuttle Buggy ® MTV has been proven 

to eliminate the crucial “Seven Degree Span” 

Pavement lifespan tests related to temperature segregation during the 

paving process have shown that a temperature differential of less than 

7°C (45°F) in the mat behind the paver is a key element in achieving 

even compaction and subsequent pavement durability. In tests that 

were conducted in both the United States and Europe, infrared imaging 

behind Shuttle Buggy material-transfer vehicles (MTVs) has shown 

that the machine easily and consistently remixes materials to achieve a 

AD: 

temperature differential that is below the 7°C threshold—the so-called 

“Seven Degree Span”. If you are interested in seeing these studies, 

you can contact Roadtec for more informtion. ▼▲▼ 

Dillman Equipment becomes a part of Astec, Inc. 

after the acquisition of Dillman stock ownership 

On October 1, 2008, Astec Industries announced the finalization of the 

purchase of 100 percent of the stock ownership of Dillman Equipment, Inc. 

At that time, Dillman became a division of Astec, Inc. The production of 

Dillman Equipment will continue uninterrupted, but the acquisition has 

resulted in a reorganization of the sales departments of both Dillman 

Equipment and Astec. For more information, see the article beginning 

on Page 6 of this issue of Hot-Mix Magazine. ▼▲▼ 

Warm-Mix Asphalt 

Conference sets new 

attendance records 

A gathering of asphalt pavement 

technologists and contractors was 

held in Nashville, Tennessee in 

mid-November 2008. The topic of 

interest was warm-mix asphalt 

(WMA) and how it will impact the 

nation in coming years. According 

to reports from NAPA (National 

Asphalt Pavement Association), 

the International Confnerence on 

Warm-Mix Asphalt attracted about 

700 people, including 70 from 

nations outside the United States. 

NAPA was recognized for its leadership 

in bringing WMA to the U.S. 

WMA is gaining interest and has 

been used in numerous projects. 

More information about the WMA 

movement—including dates and 

schedules for workshops, meetings, 

and demonstrations—is available 

at the website of the Warm-Mix 

Asphalt Technical Working Group: 

www.warmmixasphalt.com. 


NEWS 

MAGAZINE 

Roadtec Pavers now have increased fuel capacity 

to provide paving crews more uninterrupted hours 

Roadtec recently announced that its pavers (RP-170 and RP-190 tire 

pavers and RP-175 and RP-195 track pavers) now have more fuel-tank 

capacity than before. The 8-ft. (2.4-m) wide models of the Roadtec 

RP-170 and RP-175 pavers have fuel-tank capacities of 90 gal. (341 L) 

and 95 gal. (360 L) respectively—which is about 30 percent more 

than earlier versions of the equipment. The 10-ft. (3-m) wide models of 

the Roadtec RP-190 and RP-195 pavers both have a capacity of 120 

gal. (454 L)—which is 20 percent more that earlier versions. The added 

fuel capacity provides paving crews with more uninterrupted hours of 

work without the need to refuel. ▼▲▼ 

Astec’s annual Customer Schools 

continue to draw interest from around the world 

Every year, Astec offers hands-on experience and valuable operating 

tips to the people who operate Astec equipment. This year, there were 

five different week-long sessions that were attended—and each one of 

them was attended by 80 students. A typical session includes tours of 

the Astec and Heatec manufacturing facilities where the equipment is 

made so the students can get a close-up look at how and why it is made 

that way. Classroom sessions and hands-on workshops include topics 

ranging from asphalt content to segregation to burner operation to trunnions 

to troubleshooting. If you want information about next year’s 

schedule, send an e-mail to Troy Norris: tnorris@astecinc.com. 

Astec’s totally redesigned and improved website 

is active now...and just waiting for your visit 

The upgraded Astec website has a fresh look that includes a new layout 

and more pictures. These features make it easier for visitors to the 

site to locate and use the wealth of information that is available from 

Astec on its website. A new search feature helps users find a variety of 

information effortlessly. Visitors will also find more newsworthy items, 

including news from international locations. Just browsing through the 

menu on the home page is impressive. And prospective buyers of used 

equipment will also be able to use the website to look at photos and 

descriptions of the most recent used-equipment postings. ▼▲▼ 


MAGAZINENEWS 

Astec Industries takes another major step forward: 

manufacturing and marketing advanced concrete plants 

Astec, Inc. recently announced that it will add concrete products to 

its lineup of offerings. Equipment for concrete pavement facilities will 

be sold through the newly formed Concrete Products Group headed 

by Jim Johnson. To launch this new group and new product line, Astec 

participated in the World of Concrete tradeshow held at the Las Vegas 

Trade Center February 3 - 9. Visitors to the Astec booth had a chance 

to learn more about the Astec product offerings for the concrete 

industry. For more information, go to www.AstecInc.com. 

Introduced to the industry at the World of Concrete tradeshow in Las Vegas 

Roller Compacted Concrete Plants 

Astec Roller Compacted Concrete 

Plants incorporate advanced features 

including weigh bridges, a twin-shaft 

mixer, and a self-erecting cement silo. 

The self-erecting silo features a massflow 

control system with weight 

change monitors that feed information 

into the microprocessor control. 

Astec Portable Dry Concrete Plants 

are designed and manufactured for 

quick set-up and easy transporting. 

You can easily add pre-wired and preplumbed 

components to expand the 

capacity as your needs change. One 

of the features is continuous blending 

that allows aggregates to be placed 

on the conveyor in layers, allowing 

the dry cement to be spread between 

these layers. 

Portable Dry Concrete Plants 

Portable Wet Concrete Plants 

Astec Portable Wet Concrete Plants 

are designed and manufactured for 

quick set-up and easy transporting. You 

can easily add pre-wired, pre-plumbed 

components to expand the capacity 

as your needs change. The twin-shaft 

mixer quickly incorporate materials 

into a consistent, uniform mix 

Stationary Plants 

Astec Stationary Plants combine 

modular, clean structures with built-in 

stairs, decks, and ladders. They also 

have interchangeable deck mixers with 

Astec’s proprietary surge hoppers. 

Seismic designs are available. Other 

features can include a twin-shaft deck 

mixer for use with wet-mix products. 


parts pros 

TM 

anywhere 

any part 

any time 

an Astec Industries Company

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