Soil Reinforcement

When filmmaker Hugh Hunt began production on the documentary "Dambusters: Building the Bouncing Bomb," he sought a dramatic form of authenticity to understanding the 1943 RAF attack on dams in Germany's military industry-heavy Ruhr Valley. The raid utilized the unique "bouncing bomb," most of the technical aspects of which were lost in a 1960s flood. Hunt sought a construction site with water access on which he could construct a concrete dam--one he could subsequently blow up in a simulated attack. The dam was constructed of concrete lock block on an excavated site in Mackenzie, British Columbia with the help of BC Hyrdo. A geotextile backing on the dam helped stabilized the quick construction. Learn more here.;

ASTM International Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has revised D4439, "Standard Terminology for Geosynthetics." Learn more here.;

HUESKER launched a series of "mini-webinars" this year, succinct (<30 min) engineering discussions on various geosynthetic applications and materials. January's coal ash webinar was so well-attended that the company has...

In his latest column, Textile World executive editor Jürg Rupp writes about the shift in high-end global manufacturing to developing countries, the needs and stresses placed upon the world as population swells, and opportunities this presents for technical textiles production. Geotextiles and geosynthetics, for example, will be necessary for the creation of more sustainable infrastructures. Learn more here.;

Cobramseg is a biennial geotechnical engineering event in Brazil that combines multiple national and international engineering conferences. It’s one of South America’s most important engineering gatherings. At the 2016...

US President Barack Obama signed the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) into law on Tuesday, June 10. This bill is significant for its lack of earmarks, its...

geosynthetica.net's 2008 Education Box project has received a mention in the March issue of CE News. See the piece online in the New & Noteworthy section and learn how we're working to improve undergraduate geosynthetic education. A version for practicing engineers may be developed too. Learn more here.;

Dundee Township, Michigan officials will meet tonight, February 12, to discuss road improvement plans. Among the city's interests: whether road fabrics or geotextile separators might help improve both road performance and long-term maintenance costs. Learn more here.;

4 December 2013 - The Nonwovens Innovation Academy (NIA) organised by  EDANA, the international association serving the nonwovens and related industries, on 27 - 28 November 2013 in Tourcoing (Lille Metropole-France)...

Each year we look back at the most-popular reads on Geosynthetica to gauge trends in the field and international reader interests. It also provides us another piece to add...

LINCROFT, N.J. -- FEMA -- With the most developed and densely populated coastline in the country, New Jersey has communities along the Shore that are discovering the numerous ways to...

Hightex 2009 takes place in Montreal 7-8 October 2009. The event, which will be held at Montreal's historic Bonsecours Market, brings together various sectors of the techncial textiles industry, affiliated industries, government officials, and many more. The October 7 session will feature a number of construction and infrastructure-related presentations as part of the Constructex session.

Day 2 of APWA's Sustainability in Public Works Conference has come and gone, and it provided significant fodder for discussion on infrastructure upgrades and the need for new designs to accommodate the potentially devastating impact of climate change--which, regardless of whether one supports the term "climate change" simply means that today public works departments must combat both increased risk for drought and flooding. The morning session featured introductory remarks and agenda setting. Later on, smaller sessions gathered. Geosynthetica's Chris Kelsey attended sessions on impacts of climate change on public works and the utilization of BMPs in low-impact development (LID). Read more in his day two report.

To accommodate our continuously expanding operations in Vaughan servicing Ontario and Eastern Canada, Layfield is pleased to announce the opening of its new fabrication and warehousing facility, opened in June 2010. The new facility will offer many benefits, including increased warehousing capacity; easy access to major shipping corridors; new capability to provide quick turnaround fabricated liners with seams up to 250 ft in length; more than 36,000 sq ft of space to stock multiple geosynthetics and other products. Phone contact information remains the same.

By Ian D. Peggs – Geosynthetic materials and products continue their steady development, as additive packages and manufacturing technologies evolve. Today, however, is different. Today, we are truly...

When GeoAfrica 2013 convenes in Accra, Ghana 18-20 November 2013, Prof. Malek Bouazza (Monash University) will deliver one of the keynote addresses on a subject dear to Ghana’s continuing...

ASTM Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has reapproved D5617, "Standard Test Method for Multi-Axial Tension Test for Geosynthetics," as D5617-04(2010). Installed geosynthetics are subjected to forces from more than one direction including forces perpendicular to the surfaces of the geosynthetic. Out of plane deformation of a geosynthetic may be useful in evaluating materials for caps where subsidence of the subsoil may be problematic. Learn more here.;

In May 2010, TenCate Geosynthetics North America introduced TenCate Mirafi® RS580i, a highly engineered, high strength, geosynthetic product for base reinforcement and subgrade stabilization. Today, TenCate Geosynthetics introduces TenCate Mirafi® RS380i, a lighter RS-Series product that will enable designers to continue to provide more economical solutions for roadway reinforcement applications.

Since 1977, the time of the first geosynthetics conference in Paris, geosynthetics have emerged as exciting engineering materials in a wide array of civil engineering applications, e.g., transportation, geotechnical, geoenvironmental, hydraulics, and private development. To provide a deeper understanding of this subject matter, author Robert M. Koerner presents Designing with Geosynthetics - 6th Edition, which contains two volumes, released through Xlibris.

In a new letter, Tensar Corporation ("Tensar") outlines its intellectual property in regards to its geogrids. The letter notes, "The Patent covers methods of constructing various geotechnical structures including, but not limited to, base reinforcement below roadways and other pavements, mechanically stabilized earth walls and slopes, and other earth structures using uniaxially or biaxially oriented integral polymeric geogrids for reinforcement. The only products authorized under the Patent are Tensar’s own uniaxial ("UX") and biaxial ("BX") integral polymeric geogrids, which in turn are available only from Tensar and its exclusive dealers and distributors." Read more (PDF). Learn more here.;

The Federation of International Geo-Engineering Societies (FedIGS) is a collaborative endeavor that brings together four major geotechnical societies. FedIGS facilitates interaction between these learned societies’ members, promotes common interests,...

On 5 November 2015, a catastrophic tailings dam failure occurred at an iron ore mine in Brazil. The reported  death toll from the event was 17 and...

South Lanarkshire will be the home of Europe’s largest on-shore wind farm. Scottish ministers have just signed off on the Clyde Wind Farm deal. Access to wind farms is often dependent on geogrid reinforcement and/or geotextile separation in the road bed, as the access roads must withstand long-term heavy vehicle traffic. More about this project as it develops. Learn more here.;

IFAI Expo Asia 2011 will be held 22-25 March 2011 at the new Marina Bay Sands Hotel and Exhibition Centre in Singapore, and is being organized to serve the rapidly growing specialty fabrics marketplace in the Asia-Pacific region. There is a tremendous output and consumption of specialty fabrics in the Asia-Pacific region. The current trade shows in India and China focus almost exclusively on the disposable nonwoven industry. IFAI Expo Asia 2011 will now become the first major event in the region that specifically targets as visitors the end-product fabricators who use all types of materials--woven, nonwoven, knit and composite textiles.

Our bi-weekly update on calls for papers, abstracts and proposals is posted. This issue includes Cooperation for Waste Issues, a Kharkiv, Ukraine event for which geosynthetica is a media partner. Events are listed in ordered of closest deadlines.