Soil Reinforcement

Geosynthetics veteran Ian Peggs was in Abu Dhabi, UAE in November for the annual Geosynthetics Middle East conference. He writes of the fifth installment of the conference, "One day was devoted to geotextiles, geogrids, and geocells, while another was devoted to geomembranes. Approximately 350 people registered and represented 30 countries including Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, UK, USA, Germany, Switzerland, India, Iran, China, Slovakia, and Poland. There were more than 30 exhibitors. The conference is organized by SKZ (Germany) with the assistance of BMC-Gulf." Read more.

Group CTT publishes a broad resource for the greater geosynthetics and textile industries: Textile Journal. Each issue examines market trends, changes in tests and standards, new opportunities for growth (e.g., nanotechnology), and much more. Read it online. Learn more here.;

Yamba is a small coastal community on the northern beaches of New South Wales (NSW), Australia. and is known as the "Jewel in the Crown" for Clarence Valley Council, a point which was reinforced when it won "The Best Town in Australia" in 2009. In early 2012, undermining in the southeast corner of Whiting Beach was exposing key infrastructure, including the footpath, road, stormwater pipe work and chamber, pressurized sewer and a car park. ELCOROCK® Geotextile Sand Containers were seen as an ideal solution to fit these criteria and were adopted after consultation with Geofabrics Australasia, Fisheries and Crown Land.

The International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) has published the third issue of its 2012 volume of newsletter. Issue 28.3 delivers 40+ pages of stories from around the world, summarizing events, detailing opportunities in geosynthetics, profiling society activities, and more. Key stories in this issue include a reboot of the "Educate the Educators" initiative, results from the IGS Elections (2012 - 2016 term), the members-only proceedings library online, and much more.

Tensar International, the leader in geosynthetic soil reinforcement and stabilization, has completed a major investment in its Morrow, GA geogrid production plant. The facility's new extruder is now operating at full capacity, offering additional production capacity to help meet growing demand for Tensar® TriAx® Geogrids. The new extruder can run multiple resin types and allows the facility to run longer production campaigns. Significant growth of TriAx® Geogrid sales prompted the investment.

Maccaferri, whose geotechnical solutions include geosynthetics, gabions, rockfall netting, and other materials, is adding to the international body of information on rockfall barrier systems with a series of progressively tougher barrier system trials. These tests are revealing boundaries, potential failure mechanisms, and full strength capabilities of today's engineered systems. Learn more about Maccaferri's trials here and watch a video of their most recent test from Italy in which a weight equivalent to a tractor trailer was dropped from 125 ft. onto a barrier system. Following this trial's successful system performance, even larger tests are being planned.

The Ballina Bypass Alliance (BBA) received the award for the local community generating value for the New South Wales Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) and community. The $640m project managed significant technical complexity and left a positive technical, safety, community and value for money legacy for future projects. Coffey Geotechnics played a key role in the work. Learn more about how the alliance of geotechnical experts involved in the project achieved such significant success on this project (which has previously been profiled on Geosynthetica).

On 1 November 2012, Dr.-Ing. F.- Hans Grandin took over as Managing Director of HUESKER Synthetic GmbH based in Gescher (Westphalia). Thus, after just ten months, Mr Grandin succeed Mr Wolfgang Huesker who, from now on, will return to devote his full attention to his tasks in the Advisory Board of the company. Established in 1861, HUESKER today is a company which pioneers the development and production of geosynthetics, agricultural and technical textiles for applications used throughout the world.

The exhibition area, already extended, has sold out and the international group of expert speakers are ready. The fifth edition of Geosynthetics Middle East, organized by SKZ and being held again under the patronage of Abu Dhabi Municipality, will unfold 19–20 November 2012 at the Rocco Forte Hotel in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. This year's speakers hail from the UAE, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Malaysia, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Italy, United Kingdom, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Canada. They'll address the transportation infrastructure and environmental solutions theme through case studies, research, new materials and application approaches, and direct interaction with the attendees.

Maccaferri's professional development webinars have built a steady, strong following and addressed topics such as geotextiles and geogrids, MSE wall design and installation, gabions, rockfall protection, and embankment construction. These sessions run roughly 90 min, include expert presenters, provide a non-credit 0.15 CEU certificate, technical document downloads, and ample time for direct Q&A between the listening audience and the presenters. In November, the company is presenting two new sessions, both of which are free to participants. Learn more.

Tensar International has signed an agreement to build a manufacturing plant in Russia. Tensar is the majority shareholder in this joint venture (JV), with remaining investment coming from Russian partners. Don Meltzer, CEO of Alpharetta based parent company, Tensar Corporation, and Bob Vevoda, Chief Operating Officer and President of Tensar International, met with their Russian JV partners in London earlier this month to finalize the funding and construction schedule.

THRACE LINQ, a global supplier of woven and nonwoven performance fabrics for a wide variety of textile applications, announces a rebranding to streamline and create a unified look and feel and highlight its identity and cohesiveness across its family Thrace Group.

The Geosynthetics Interest Group of South Africa (GIGSA), which is a chapter of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS), has published the October GIGSA Newsletter. This edition features stories on a new nonwoven manufacturer in South Africa, geocontainers for erosion control, the historical use of geotextiles in the Namibian road system, and more.

On 8 November 2012, geotechnical engieering expert Dr. Kerry Rowe, a Sir John Kennedy Medal recipient (which is the Engineering Institute of Canada's highest award), will speak at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. The topic of his talk will be "The Use of Geosynthetics to Aid Construction over Soft Soils - Successes and Cautions." This presentation explores the reason for the success and the benefits that can be achieved using geosynthetics, as a basal reinforcement, and PVDs to increase short-term stability of embankments and to accelerate consolidation and long-term strength gain.

On November 15 at 1:00 pm EDT, Maccaferri will host a webinar on "Gabions and Reno Mattresses in Hydraulic Applications." Topics for this engineers, planners, developers and contractors-oriented session include channel bank protection; drop structures; culvert inlet and outlet protection; and bridge abutment scour protection. Attendees will receive a non-credit 0.15 CEU certificate following the webinar and a link to download handouts, technical data sheets, product specifications, product installation guides, a gabion installation video, case studies, and design software. Learn more here.;

The Ijkdijk large-scale research program in the Netherlands is currently investigating the role sensor technologies can play in predicting earthen dike failures. In August and September this year, failures were precipitated, and the experiments showed that embedded sensors, such as in enhanced geotextiles like TenCate GeoDetect®, yield data that can predict failure well in advance.

Maccaferri, Inc. is pleased to announce the launch of their new website: www.maccaferri-usa.com. The new website offers a more contemporary look and feel, and provides users with a comprehensive overview of the solutions and products that Maccaferri offers to the civil and environmental engineering fields. Users will find the functionality and navigation to be more streamlined. New site features include: an interactive map to view case studies by location, access to LinkedIn and YouTube, and a searchable documents section for viewing and downloading brochures, design software, and a variety of other technical documents and drawings.

As we approach the opening of EuroGeo 5--the Fifth European Regional Conference on Geosynthetics--Germany-based HUESKER Group has announced a new organizational structure. Implemented in July in conjunction with the company's celebration of its 150th anniversary, the new strategy combines the continuance of its well-established customer support services and product lines with a drive towards innovation and high-quality, customized solutions.

Maccaferri has posted a new video with a series of images and application information from installations around the world. From geogrid used for debris control in a Swedish mining tunnel to rockfall netting/mesh in Australia; and from 20m+ high crusher walls in Africa to leachate containment in Peru--the video presents a strong range of applications and geosynthetic and affiliated-technology solutions. It's a nice overview. Learn more here.;

SynTec now offers Type 1 and Type 2 biaxial geogrids in 16ft wide rolls. The wider rolls reduce shipping costs, minimize waste lost to overlaps and reduce construction time. The new wider rolls will be standard stock for SynTec and are readily available now. SynTec biaxial geogrids are produced in the USA and offered throughout North and South America.

The International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) Indian Chapter (IGS India) has announced the publication of Volume 1, Issue 2 of the Indian Journal of Geosynthetics and Ground Improvement. This issue includes articles on "Comparative Study on the Performance of Piled Embankments with and without the Geosynthetic Reinforcement," "Evaluation of the Performance of Geosynthetic Reinforced Soil Walls Using a Geocentrifuge," and "A Case Study on the Use of Coir Geotextiles for Stabilizing a Steep Slope." Additionally, updates on forthcoming events and opportunities are included. The journal is distributed for free to IGS members, who also enjoy full access electronically to other international journals on geosynthetics. Join today. Learn more here.;

Huesker has released a new image brochure. Get a copy here (PDF).

3M introduces 3M™ Geotextile Seaming Cylinder Spray Adhesive, a new method for seaming geotextile fabrics for uses including, but not limited to, erosion control, soil separation and subgrade stabilization applications. The adhesive is an extremely versatile, fast-tacking construction-grade spray adhesive with a unique wide-web spray pattern, ideal for bonding geotextile fabrics. With this innovative solution, installers of geotextile fabric can see time-savings of more than 56 percent compared to sewing.

IRF once more broke ground by gathering over 600 regional transportation officials for the world's first comprehensive review of sustainable transportation solutions in the context of the Andean Region. Lima, Peru, an important regional crossroads for trade and a hub for engineering know-how offered an ideal backdrop for the Congress.

The ASCE Geo-Institute’s long-running Geo-Congress conference is one of the most important annual gatherings in the United States on geotechnical engineering. With the announcement of Geo-Congress 2019, the Geo-Institute...