Soil Reinforcement

The Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) invites you to present a paper at its inaugural EUROTEC technical conference in Barcelona, Spain. The three-day event, SPE-EUROTEC 2011, will be held 14-15 November 2011. SPE invites speakers to present papers on: Failure Analysis and Prevention; Bioplastics; Product and Engineering Design; Color and Additives; General Business; Engineering Properties; Structure; and more. Learn more here.;

TenCate Geosynthetics North America introduces internet-based MiraSpec Design Solutions Software, an easy-to-use software program that will assist engineers in flexible pavement design while demonstrating the many benefits of using TenCate Mirafi® RS580i woven reinforcement & stabilization geotextile in roadway structures.

The United Kingdom-based Contract Journal has published a piece on one of the most intriguing development schemes: the construction of an entirely new, tech-centric town. Ebbsfleet Valley in North Kent will be connected to London and Paris by high-speed rail and include its own "mini-Seine." The US $5 billion project will include some interesting engineering challenges to its water features, much of which will call upon geogrid reinforcement. Learn more here.;

The floods affecting American waterways in 2011 have been, for many communities, historic, as have the engineering solutions being utilized. American Environmental Group, Ltd. (AEGL) has been part of a first-of-its-kind emergency levee protection effort in Mississippi that has used impermeable geomembrane liner to help secure the backside of the Yazoo River Backwater Levee. This emergency strategy, directed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), is designed to prevent catastrophic erosion and failure of the levee in the event the flood water overtopped the levee.

The SIBUR's subsidiary OJSC Orton has conducted a ceremonial launch of new flat geogrid (geonet) manufacture facility under the Aprolat trademark. Operation of this new plant will secure for the SIBUR 13% share in this market segment. The design capacity of the plant is 3 thousand tons per year. Despite of economic difficulties, SIBUR has completed the investment project that will help it to reduce imports of construction materials and provide domestic consumers with competitive products. Read more.

New for the Global Waste Management Symposium 2010 event! Tour the United States' first landfill solar energy cover system! Integrating new and existing technologies, the innovative solar cover project at Tessman Road Landfill in San Antonio, Texas, was brought online by Republic Services, as part of the company's ongoing commitment to creating cleaner, greener communities. It generates clean, renewable energy, reducing dependence on nonrenewable sources. GWMS 2010 will be held 3-6 October 2010 in San Antonio, Texas. Read more.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is releasing action plans developed by 16 electric utility facilities with coal ash impoundments, describing the measures the facilities are taking to make their impoundments safer. The action plans are a response to EPA's final assessment reports on the structural integrity of these impoundments that the agency made public this February. Coal ash was brought prominently to national attention in 2008 when an impoundment holding disposed ash waste generated by the Tennessee Valley Authority broke open, creating a massive spill in Kingston, Tennessee, that covered millions of cubic yards of land and river and is regarded as one of the worst environmental disasters of its kind in history. Shortly afterwards, EPA began overseeing the cleanup, as well as investigating the structural integrity of impoundments where ash waste is stored.

The Second International Conference on Heap Leach Solutions (Heap Leach Solutions 2014) will be held 10 – 13 November 2014 in Lima, Peru. Organized by Infomine, the event builds...

The 3rd Pan-American Conference on Geosynthetics (GeoAmericas 2016) will be held 10 – 13 April 2016 in Miami at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel. The event's organizers have announced...

The Shepherd’s Flat project, when finished, will supply energy to the U.S. west coast grid, including Southern California Edison, Les Gelber a partner at New York-based Caithness, said in the statement. The two-year construction project, to begin in 2010, entails building about 85 miles of road and 90 miles of power lines that will connect to the grid. Learn more here.;

Start the week with the latest in the geoengineering world. Here's the GeoWire conversation for the week of June 15. WORK SMARTER. BIG PROJECTS On June 8, the California State Assembly...

Following the press release of 15 November 2010, Ten Cate Geosynthetics Asia announces the successful closing of the acquisition of the geosynthetics activities of Emas Kiara Industries Berhad, a publicly listed company based in Rawang, Malaysia. The completion of this transaction provides TenCate Geosynthetics with a significantly larger position in the supply of geosynthetics solutions to the Southeast Asian markets.

The Ministry of Textiles in India has launched TechnoTex (www.technotex.gov.in) to better promote the Indian technical textiles industry and to facilitate education in this ever expanding area of manufacturing. The website is divided into various zones, such as GeoTech (which includes the geosynthetic sector), BuildTech (for architectural uses) and AgroTech (for agriculture). Learn more here.;

In November 2009 the north west of England experienced widespread flooding. In the town of Workington, one road bridge collapsed and the other was deemed unsafe. The town was divided in two. The Royal Engineers were commissioned to build a temporary footbridge. The Engineers required design guidance on stabilisation and delivery of geogrids within 24 hours.

Artek Surfin Chemicals Ltd. and Aterian Investment Partners are pleased to announce that they have jointly purchased the PVC additives business of Chemtura Corporation, newly named Galata Chemicals. Galata Chemicals is a leading global producer of additives for numerous PVC and other polymer applications. The expansive product portfolio includes heat stabilizers, plasticizers and impact modifiers. Learn more here.;

GeoNews is a regular publication of project stories, event updates, and geosynthetic materials information. It's the corporate newsletter of Australia-based Global Synthetics. The current issue looks at utilization of geotextile tubes to restore a freshwater lagoon, geogrid-gextile composite reinforcement for crane pads at Maroochydore, revitalizing Adelaide's railway network, Bentofix® GCL containment for a lake, and more. Read the latest issue here (PDF).

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.;

geosynthetica's new site organization still includes our most popular items of use, such as the Buyer's Guide, Industry Directory, Publications/Tech Docs and Abstracts Database, and much more. Use the links along the top row of the banner at the top of the page for easy access to these zones. And don't forget to try out our new channel pages for geosynthetics functions (row two of the link buttons along the page's top banner) and applications (row three). For information on how to get listed in any of these databases, directories and guides, please contact Chris Kelsey.

In his latest post from the Uncontained series, construction quality assurance (CQA) expert Glen Toepfer writes on 5 things we in the geosynthetics and affiliated geotechnical and civil engineering...

By most reports, 2012's construction activity has been furious. Many manufacturers have moved advanced expansion plans begun or announced in 2011, and those decisions seems to be paying off as the on-site services side of the industry (e.g., installation and CQA) also reports significant increases in business. A number of companies have even hired on multiple new full-time employees and expected a considerable growth in seasonal work positions. But as the mid-year work dies down (at least enough to breathe), events take over the calendar. Here are four events (3 in Europe, 1 in the US) Geosynthetica is looking forward to.

Two of the geosynthetics field's most respected figures, Joel Sprague and Grace Hsuan, were honored on Thursday, June 15, at the ASTM International Committee D35 on Geosynthetics meetings in...

GeoAmericas 2016 (www.geoamericas2016.org), the Third Pan-American Geosynthetics Conference and Exhibition, will be held 10 – 13 April 2016 in Miami, Florida at the Loews Hotel on South Beach. The...

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.

Presto Geosystem, a leading manufacturer of cellular confinement, porous pavements and construction mats, is looking for a seasoned technical sales professional to add to their team. Candidates should possess industry...

Maccaferri, Inc. seeks a Production Planning & Quality Assurance Manager with experience or aptitude in plant management functions to join its global production team. The position will report...