Transportation

On 6 May 2011, the Deep Foundations Institute (DFI) and the Connecticut Section of ASCE will present a short course on the design and construction of mechanically stabilized earth walls (MSEW) and reinforced soil slopes (RSS). Barry Christopher has been announced as the instructor. Course content includes, but is not limited to, design, selection of reinforcing materials, specification and construction. Special issues that result in undesirable performance will be reviewed. Learn more. Learn more here.;

After 25 years of successful collaboration, Tensar International Corporation, and CONTECH Construction Products, Inc. have mutually agreed that Tensar will take on distribution responsibility for geogrid products in the United States. Under the terms of the agreement and effective 2 May 2011, Tensar International will assume CONTECH's geogrid distribution business, which includes exclusive distribution of both biaxial and triaxial geogrid products in the United States. The joint decision to modify the long-term distribution alliance comes as a result of strategic initiatives both companies are pursuing in their respective markets.

Canada's $1.4-billion Windsor-Essex Parkway road construction project is calling on 2m-high silt fence barriers along roughly 13 km of its work zone. This unusually high geotextile barrier is being used not for erosion and sediment control but endangered species protection. The eastern foxsnake inhabits the area. A climber that is also able to dig, environmentalists overseeing the project hope the trenched fabric will protect the snake from going over or under the barrier. Learn more here.;

Chattanooga-based Propex Operating Company, LLC, announced today that its Board of Managers has named Michael Gorey as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. A global leader in technology and innovation, Propex is owned by a private investment fund managed by Wayzata Investment Partners LLC, a Minneapolis-based private equity firm. Propex has a strong foundation and substantial liquidity to aggressively expand its market leadership.

The third day of activities in Minneapolis for the National Association of County Engineers (NACE) 2011 Conference ("Guiding with Vision") saw close to 200 people crowd into a room to hear another talk on accelerated bridge construction, including geosynthetic reinforced soil (GRS) techniques. This time, Warren Schlatter, the county engineer for Defiance County, Ohio, discussed his county's particular success with the GRS-Integrated Bridge System approach now being promoted (including with DVD films) by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).

The Geo-Institute's 2012 annual congress focuses on the "State of the Art and Practice in Geotechnical Engineering" and will be held 25-29 March 2012 in Oakland, California. The conference invites 200-300 word abstracts on topics such as Geosynthetics; Embankments, Dams and Slopes; Earth Retaining Structures; Earthquake Engineering; and much more. Learn more and submit your abstract through April 29. Learn more here.;

In this second report from the National Association of County Engineers (NACE) annual conference and trade show in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Geosynthetica's editor Chris Kelsey reports on the geosynthetic-reinforced soil (GRS) bridge abutment technology session. Evidence from the session reveals both a tremendous need to utilize this process in modernizing infrastructure and a tremendous advantage (cost and time) in doing so.

This snapshot is a comprehensive summary of the U.S./Canadian geosynthetic market. It focuses mostly on the U.S. geosynthetic marketplace, particularly as it relates to market size, market growth, predominate materials/polymers as well as applications used in the U.S. geosynthetic market, trends, opportunities, threats, and market outlook. Available in PDF. $149 ($79 for IFAI members). Learn more here.;

The newest IGS News is available. Volume 27, No 1 from the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) is content loaded, with correspondant reports from around the world, event reviews, news regarding the 10th International Conference on Geosynthetics (10 ICG, Berlin, 2014), award winners, sustainability, and much more. Read the latest in PDF today.

The proceedings from Geo-Frontiers 2011 contain 500 papers presented at Geo-Frontiers 2011 in Dallas, Texas, March 13-16, 2011. Geo-Frontiers 2011 included three key events: the ASCE/Geo-Institute Annual Congress, Geosynthetics 2011, and the biennial NAGS Conference. These papers will be of interest to geotechnical researchers and practicing engineers, especially those working with geosynthetic materials. Cost $99 ($79 for IFAI members). Learn more here.;

ASTM Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has announced work item WK32870, "Standard Practice for Quality Control of Geosynthetic Clay Liners." This is a work item revision to existing standard D5889-97(2008). The updating of this standard practice to make it representative of current industry practice and test standards. Learn more here.;

Last year, Geosynthetica reported on a large erosion control study being directed by Germany-based SKZ. Now, SKZ is shedding more light on this research. On 5 May 2011, a special event will be held to take attendees through the site-based research: "Formulation and verification of selection criteria for geosynthetic surface erosion control systems." A main focus for this data will be to better assist in road construction erosion and sediment control. Read more.

The 5th European Conference on Geosynthetics (EuroGeo 5) will be held 16-19 September 2012 in Valencia, Spain. The Spanish Chapter of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) will organize it, and the event will be held under the auspices of the IGS. Authors interested in presenting a paper at the Conference must provide an abstract before 31 October 2011, addressed to the Conference Secretariat, through the Conference website. Abstracts received by fax or mail will not be considered. Further instructions to submit abstracts are available in the Conference website http://www.eurogeo5.org The abstracts must be written in English or Spanish. Learn more about the topics (PDF).

Tensar International Corporation, the leader in geosynthetic soil reinforcement and stabilization, has increased prices for its subgrade improvement and road base reinforcement geogrid products globally. The 10 percent increase, effective May 2, has been implemented to partially offset significantly higher polymer raw material costs.

Federal transportation officials are launching a program to repair and replace aging oil and gas pipelines across the nation to prevent potential catastrophic explosions such as a recent deadly blasts in eastern Pennsylvania and California. Learn more here.;

The International Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ISSMGE) has release the first issue of its second volume of case histories. All papers are available free for download. Achor wall behavior, rockfall and subsidence, and soil stability from previous site mining activities are some of the topics explored. Learn more here.;

The International Erosion Control Association (IECA) is calling for submissions for Environmental Connection 2012 (EC12), annual conference and expo of IECA. Combining quality education with a world-class expo, EC12 is the premier gathering place for the erosion and sediment control community. EC12 will be returning to Las Vegas, NV, 26-29 February 2012. Read more.

As of Tuesday, 29 March 2011, Royal Ten Cate will be listed as an option fund on NYSE Liffe in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Each option will represent 100 shares in Royal Ten Cate. These new options will expire on the third Friday of the contract month and will have initial lifetimes of one to nine months. The introduction of options on Royal Ten Cate shares will enable both investors who want to anticipate expected movements in the share and those who own Royal Ten Cate shares to benefit from the opportunities that stock options offer. The ticker symbol that NYSE Liffe is using for TenCate on the options market is: 'TCT'.

The Second Pan-American Geosynthetics Conference and Exhibition (GeoAmericas 2012) will provide a forum for geosynthetics engineers, practitioners and academe to explore current and potential applications for geosynthetics, while offering an active marketplace for the promotion of geosynthetic products and technology to users throughout the Americas.The event will be held 1-4 May 2012. Abstracts are currently being sought. Due date for abstract submission: 31 May 2011. Learn more.

Bob Drake, editor of CE News and Rebuilding America's Infrastructure, has announced a new magazine contact email address: bdrake@zweigwhite.com. This updated address is the result of ZweigWhite's reacquisition of CE News and other publishing properties from Stagnito Media. Phone and physical address are: Bob Drake (Editor), CE News, 6170 Sandy Ridge Cir. NW, North Canton, OH 44720. Phone +1 330 966 2454. Learn more here.;

In a business update letter on its website, Terram Geosynthetics has announced that as of April 1 it will operate under the Fiberweb Geosynthetics name. This follows Fiberweb's acquisition of Boddingtons Ltd. (now Fiberweb Geosynthetics Ltd.). These three operations, all of which are well-known for their geosynthetics manufacturing, will now operate as a focused, single division operating across multiple engineering and construction sectors while preserving the individual expert geosynthetics lines that have solidified their reputations. Learn more here.;

In recent large-scale channel testing by the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials' National Transportation Product Evaluation Program (AASHTO-NTPEP), North American Green's new ShoreMax® Soft Revetment Scour Protection Mat pushed turf reinforcement mat (TRM) performance to a new level. As one of the newest additions to Tensar's North American Green erosion control line, the ShoreMax® Mat delivered unprecedented unvegetated results in NTPEP's ASTM channel testing, withstanding shear stresses up to 8.6 lbs/ft2 and velocities exceeding 19 ft/sec. Tested with a Vmax3® P550 TRM underlayment, the completely unvegetated ShoreMax system actually exceeded the level of performance provided by many fully vegetated TRMs.

The Geo-Institute's 2012 annual congress will focus on the "State of the Art and Practice in Geotechnical Engineering." The event will be held 25-29 March 2012 in Oakland, California and will feature numerous state-of-the-art and state-of-the-practice presentations. Among the many topics to be explored is geosynthetics. This conference represents a unique opportunity for geotechnical engineers from around the globe to advance their professional career and goals and uncover the latest and most beneficial knowledge and technologies. A call for abstracts is expected shortly. Learn more in the first flyer (PDF). Learn more here.;

From 10-14 December 2012, the next Geosynthetics Asia will be held. Organized by IGS Thailand and the Asian Center for Soil Improvement and Geosynthetics (ACSIG), and held under the auspices of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS), the event's theme will be "Geosynthetics for Sustainable Adaptation to Climate Change." Abstracts are due by 31 May 2011. Download the call in PDF. Learn more here.;

Along the Dishforth to Leeming section of the North Yorkshire A1 upgrade, new carriageways are being built adjacent to the in-use existing highway. By using a Tensartech TR2 Wall solution to create a temporary structure while raising a below grade section, the Carillion/ Morgan Sindall joint venture contractors are saving extensive time and helping to minimise traffic disruption. Read about the project.