Features Education Event Reports
OHMPA presents Partners in Quality seminars

May 10, 2012, London, Ont. – Road builders in Ontario have their
hands full, as a series of trials and regulatory changes are forcing
contractors to make adjustments in 2012.

May 10, 2012, London, Ont. – Road builders in Ontario have their
hands full, as a series of trials and regulatory changes are forcing
contractors to make adjustments in 2012.

The Ontario Hot Mix Producers
Association hosted its annual Partners in Quality Seminars in Toronto, London,
Ottawa, and Sudbury in May, highlighting the latest news and developments from
the Ontario Ministry of Transportation, the OHMPA, the Ontario Good Roads
Association, and the Canadian Council of Independent Laboratories.

The full-day sessions are aimed at
informing contractors on the newest developments that will affect road paving
projects in the province of Ontario. That includes information on the review of
previous trials, a look at the changes affecting the 2012 paving season, and
what lies ahead in 2013 and beyond.

One of the biggest trials held by
MTO in 2011 was Asphalt Cement Characterization in which 33 contracts were selected
to include one of three initiatives: lower low temperature PR grade
specified, extended BBR and DENT acceptance criteria, and MSCR acceptance
criteria. The data collected through each initiative has resulted in adjusted
standards for 2012. Various versions of SP 111S09 will be in contracts.
Modified grades, excluding PG 58-28 and 52-34, will now have to meet DENT
acceptance criteria, MSCR acceptance criteria, and Extended Bending Beam
Rheometer for data collection.

The MTO held additional trials that
will result in further studies, and increased usage of new technologies, on
roads across Ontario in 2012.

·     
The use of grit spreading on SMA projects will
increase to at least seven projects this year.

·     
Work has resumed on the testing of RMA on
Ontario roads, both wet-terminal and wet-field blends. Additional trials will
be held the next two years on built warm mix RMA sections using wet-terminal
blend.

·     
The success of WMA on Ontario roads resulted in
about 230,000 tonnes of the mix used on MTO projects in 2011. As a result, the
MTO has concluded WMA trials, and is developing permissive specification that
will allow contractors to bid either WMA or HMA.

·     
Smoothness tests involving High Speed Inertial
Profilers and ProVal software have resulted in a review of past contract data
and recommendations on revisions to smoothness specifications. MTO will now be
using high-speed profilers for all new contracts in Ontario that meet
smoothness warrants.

Finding ways to improve the quality
of longitudinal joints was a primary area of discussion, with presentations
from both the MTO and OHMPA on the subject. For pavers in Ontario, the MTO has
created a set of performance specifications that is the subject of a trial on
8-10 contracts that have a 5-year warranty included. The specifications allow
the contractor to construct the joints in whatever way they choose, with the
width of cracks along the joints being met with a set repair criteria.  The MTO is also recommending the use of
echelon paving when possible.

Looking ahead to 2013, concerns
continue surrounding the impact of the implementation of the Toxic Reduction
Act for companies that already have to report to the NPRI. OHMPA Environmental
Committee Chairman Bruce Armstrong provided details of the Act, which will force
plant owners to track and quantify the toxic substances they use, create, and
release, as well as develop plans to reduce the use of those substances. With
the estimated cost of reporting and planning in the tens of thousands of
dollars, the OHMPA has created industry partnerships to help companies with the
accounting, reporting, and planning provisions of the Act in a more
cost-effective manner.

With the MTO’s continued investment
in trial solutions to make the quality of Ontario’s roads that much stronger,
the paving industry continues to have to make adjustments to their operations
to meet contractual demands. For more information on the Partners in Quality
event, or for additional information on some of the others sessions held, visit
www.ohmpa.org.