Overnight success for Tarmac PQ-X Cement at Birmingham International Airport

In June 2008 Birmingham International Airport undertook a major taxiway maintenance project which involved the reinstatement of deteriorated concrete slabs prior to overlaying with SMA asphalt.

 

For the precision reinstatement of the concrete bays, main contractors Fitzpatrick Contracting Ltd brought in MJS Construction Ltd, a specialist concreting company that has carried out similar projects at many UK airports.

 

The airport, conscious of the high cost of disruption due to air-side maintenance during operational hours, opted for the work to be carried out during limited night-time possession periods. A total of nineteen 50m2 concrete bays had to be broken out and reinstated. Each bay comprising a 350mm deep, jointed unreinforced concrete slab and a 150mm Drylean cement-bound base course.

MJS Construction MD, Mike Smith, explains: "Our goal for each night shift was to complete four slabs that would cure sufficiently to take heavy aircraft loading next morning. With such limited time to prepare the bays and cast new slabs, we required an extremely quick-curing concrete. Having used PQ-X on numerous other time-contingent projects, we knew it was ideal for the job. Because of PQ-X Cement's rapid hardening and high early strength properties we batch the concrete on-site - a process we have perfected over time. Tarmac CMS Pozament supply the PQ-X in bulk bags at a precise weight for each cubic metre of concrete. We order up Tarmac ready-mix trucks with the right amount of aggregate, sand and water to batch 5m3 of concrete, then we add the PQ-X Cement. With four mixes per slab, it is vitally important that our crew work quickly and efficienty."

MJS completed the programme on schedule, over four night shifts, enabling the taxiways to return to operational status each morning, by which time the Pavement Quality Concrete would already have reached a compressive strength of 25N/mm2 (increasing to 65N/mm2 after 28 days).

See more on Bituminous and Reinstatement Products

 

October 2008