Quality Improved While Costs Are Cut in Half

The Ammann AFW 150-2 Mini Paver trimmed expenses by half during a recent waterline construction project in Barka, Oman.

“The use of the mini paver provided 50 per cent savings in time and cost,” said Mr. Jeganathan of SM Infra LLC, which specialises in projects such as water pipeline installation, concrete reservoirs, water treatment plants, shopping malls, and commercial and industrial buildings. “The speed of operations also greatly reduced traffic issues.”

The AFW 150-2 was utilised on a pipeline installation project that stretched over 8 km. The project had a significant social impact, giving 130,000 residents access to an improved water system.

A portion of the existing road was removed and the underground water pipe installed.

Aggregate backfilling and compaction were undertaken, followed by closing of the trench with the Ammann Mini Paver – which placed an 80mm layer of asphalt. Paving widths varied from 600 mm to 1000 mm at different stretches and the flexibility of the Ammann Mini Paver provided significant advantages.

SMC Infra also observed that quality and finish were greatly enhanced when compared to the paving methods that they initially employed. For example, the asphalt would have been dumped by skid-steer loaders, raked and compacted.

“The previous work was manual, which was very slow, and the quality was poor,” said Mr. Jeganathan. “Now the work is easier and faster, and the quality is better, too. The paver moved at a pace of 10 metres per minute, which is outstanding in this application. The paving lasted two months and involved placement of 4000 tonnes of mix.”

Mr. Jeganathan also touched on how much easier the Ammann Mini Paver made the work. “Some of the roads were narrow with heavy traffic,” he said. “If we were to use our conventional manual method, the progress would have been really slow. However, with the Ammann Mini Paver, we could work at a rapid pace even in constrained high traffic locations. Even loading using skid steer loaders was a simple, quick process.”

The paver even helped the firm avoid fines. “Thanks to the Ammann Mini Paver, we completed the project on time and avoided getting into penalties with the local authorities,” said Mr. Jeganathan.

“If we had done this project manually, we would have been penalised by the local municipality because of delays. But with the help of this paver, we finished the project on time.”