In this issue: news highlights, publications and conference updates.
We dodged a hurricane at our Florida office this week, but the storm’s presence and preparations for our close proximity to the forthcoming Global Waste Management Symposium (GWMS 2008) and EuroGeo 4, and our quietly on-going work on a geosynthetica.net site remodel, put a few limitations on the volume of material appearing on the site, but we hope this does not diminish your feeling of quality in the work.
In fact, our online community continues to grow. We had more than 3,800 users on Friday, August 8, alone. (Normally monthly readership is about 40,000.) So we want to say thank you to the online community for your sharing your engineering expertise, sending in your questions about geosynthetic material selection, and so much more.
For more about the week’s happenings, here’s the breakdown:
* We opened the week with a GSE feature box story. The Houston-based company known internationally for its high-density polyethylene (HDPE) geomembranes, drainage products, and engineering has issued its August 2008 issue of GeoVision, an in-house newsletter. The issue includes information on growing heap leach pad needs, regional contacts in the United States, the triaxial performance strength of the biaxial HyperNet TRx® geonet and FabriNet TRx® geocompsites, and more.
* North American Green relaunched its website with a new look and a number of new pages, including a wonderfully expanded technical resources portion. Also of note: the hydraulically applied erosion control products (HydraMatriCx) section and the composite turf reinforcement mats (Vmax3) pages. Also: the company’s Straw Wattles that serve as alternatives to silt fence.
* Firestone‘s August 22 EPDM geomembrane installation training seminar in Michigan filled early for its session, leaving only the September 10 session in Uniontown, Ohio with available space. Interested construction professionals should register as soon as possible. More sessions will be announced soon enough.
* ASTM International‘s 18 August 2008 update on standards and work items was slim this go, including just four items: two standards and two work items from Committee D18 on Soil and Rock.
* Land and Water‘s latest broadcast from the Erosion and Sediment Control Network stories on a new stormwater association, North American Green‘s new website, shoreline protection, and workshops on BMPs and SWPPPs. .
* Resin prices for August remained high on the indexes.
* Plastics Technology‘s senior editor, Jan Schut, published a review of the JEC Composites Show in Paris (from April 2008). Here in Part II of the show review, Schut reports on the various new technologies delivered in fibers, reinforcements, additives and more.
* The International Erosion Control Association (IECA) announced five new appointments at its recently opened new headquarters in Denver, Colorado. Read the latest here.
* Two market announcements emerged: Netherlands-based Royal Ten Cate–of which TenCate Geosynthetics in North America is part–has reported significant growth for 2008. Also in business news, Raven Industries, which has a very strong geosynthetics and engineered films division, reported 17% growth in the second quarter.
* Bristol-based Applied Market Information (AMI) has put out the call for research & development and presentation proposals for Polyolefin Additives 2009, which will be held in Cologne, Germany, 30 March – 1 April 2009. The deadline for proposals to Sally Humphreys at AMI is 30 September 2008. For this and other upcoming deadlines, see the Call for Papers list.
* And taking a sample of world media sources, we find:
Dubai‘s eroding shores are being corrected with the installation of barriers created out of sand-filled geotextile bags.
Wick drains have been used to consolidate swampy soils in Southeast Missouri’s $180 million interstate expansion project.
The United Nations (UN) Office for the Coordination of Human Affairs reports that the UN and the government of Vietnam are defending the country’s coast against typhoons and floods with the incorporation of geosynthetic-reinforced levees, geotextiles underlay and riprap.
Rachael Wingfield‘s "Metabolic Media" draws upon advances in energy conversion, architecture, geotextile design and senso
r technologies to create urban gardening design support.
* As noted at the top, GSE released the August 2008 issue of GeoVision.
* geosynthetica.net published a white paper from Leak Location Services Inc.’s (LLSI) Glenn Darilek and Deron Laine on why and how geoelectrical leak location surveys are superior to water-balance tests. It’s a wonderfully written account that breaks down the reasons by cost, time, accuracy, bias and environmental impact.
* Canada’s largest legal professionals recruitment firm, ZSA, published a short piece from Golder Associates’ Ian Hers on vapour mitigation, brownfield redevelopment and how service sector construction must cope with an industrial business past.
* On 21 August 2008, the Brunei Institute of Technology (ITB) in Rimba held a half-day seminar on “Geotechnical Solutions in the 21st Century.” The session concentrated mostly on hydraulic and coastal engineering and on newer techniques and technologies. Special geosynthetics experience was provided by the main speaker, Dr. Michael Heibaum of Germany’s Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute (BAW).
* The Canadian Waste & Recycling Expo (CWRE 2008) is has issued its VIP registration information for geosynthetica’s readers. The event takes place 5-6 November 2008 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and will highlight the latest technologies and materials being used in the ever-merging sectors of waste and recylcing management. Also: view an information PDF for the event.
* And we added a few key events to the calendar database:
30 March-1 April 2009
Polyolefin Additives 2009 – Cologne, Germany
The 2nd Applied Market Information (AMI) event on Polyolefin Additives
4-6 September 2008
NGM 2008 – Sandefjord, Norway
The 15th Nordic Geotechnical Meeting
30 September 2008
Geosynthetic Clay Liner University (GCLU) – Houston, Texas
Expert speakers from CETCO and TRI/Environmental deliver this day-long course that offers professional development credit.
* geosynthetica is now a partner to forthcoming conferences in Scotland, the United States (2 events), India (2 events), Canada and Germany. We look forward to involvement in other events too. Please send us your recommendations.
Other Week in Review Columns
* 10-16 August 2008
* 3-9 August 2008
* 27 July-2 August 2008
* 20-26 July 2008
* 13-19 July 2008
Chris Kelsey is a consulting editor for geosynthetica.net. He can be reached at chris@geosynthetica.net.
