P.O.

BOX 1766 Parys 9585 Tel: Fax: Email:

38B Eerste Laan Parys 9585

(056) 817 2066 (056) 817 2281 admin@molprocon.co.za or admin_midrand@molprocon.co.za

PROCEDURES ON HOW TO CONSTRUCT A PAVEMENT ROAD Introduction This report covers and details the construction of concrete segmental paving for road pavements, medians, driveways, parking bays, footpaths and other pedestrian areas. The focal point of this report will be on the construction of pavement road/s for the townships. Stages of project to be included in this report will be from the planning right through the completion stage. The successful implementation of a pavement road project requires the specialized skill of Civil Engineers, Civil Engineering Technicians, Geological Engineers and Surveyors. Preliminary Stage/s of a project At the beginning of the project, the employer/ client must be able to indicate what is expected at the end of project implementation. The client would then appoint Civil engineering consultant to manage the project. The appointed consultant would then conduct feasibility studies and the environmental impact assessment of the project. When all these are done the consultant would also prepare a preliminary design report and the cost estimates for the design and construction of the intended project (in this case the construction of one kilometer pavement road). When preliminary design report has been endorsed by the client, the consultant would then be requested to go ahead with the designs and tendering process. Parties which would have been involved at the projects preliminary stage encompassed Civil Design Engineer, Environmental Engineer and Land Surveyors. Construction Phase The main objective of the tendering process is to appoint a successful contractor who shows competency, technical ability and experience in the field of work tendered for. When the contractor has been appointed, he will be allowed to establish site in which he will store material and keep his plant and equipment. Site establishment will comprise the following activities. Erection of fence Erection of storage houses and ablution blocks Delivery of plant and equipment to site Water and electricity connections After the site has been established the responsible contractor would then liaise with the councillor/s of the area in which the construction is to take place to establish the Project Steering Committee (PSC), appoint the Community Liaison Officer (CLO) and employ local workers. The end of this process would then lead to the start of construction. At the beginning of construction of road, the land surveyor should do the setting-out according to the design data prepared by the consultant/ design engineer. The setting-out carried out would indicate the actual alignment of the road on the ground. The involvement of the geotechnical engineer at this stage is also vital. The geotechnical engineer is needed to conduct geotechnical investigations which would detail the nature of soil on which the construction is to take place.

Materials Before the start of construction the contractor will submit details of all proposed segmental paving materials, including bedding material and joint filling material (sand). These details are submitted to the project engineer for approval supported with test results from a nominated registered laboratory, confirming that the constituents comply with the requirements of project specifications. Earthworks & Subgrade Preparation Earthworks and subgrade preparation is carried out in accordance with the requirements of Section DM1981 of SABS 1200. Usually the top layer (vegetation soil) of in-situ material is not suitable for civil engineering activities. Hence, in most cases the top layer of 200mm-400mm deep is cut and spoiled depending on the topography of the construction site and design levels and this activity is named box cutting. The underlying in-situ material in the box cut is thoroughly compacted to the desired degree of percentage on a layer of 150mm deep and this is called subgrade/ roadbed. When the preparation of the subgrade is complete, suitable material will be borrowed from the borrow pit or commercial source and be utilized to form a firm foundation for the road. At the completion of each road layer, the laboratory is invited to conduct all necessary road soil tests in order to ensure that the quality achieved conforms to the specified quality. Earthworks for township roads are usually carried out by means of conventional machineries rather than labour. Conventional machineries save time and do not compromise quality. Subbase Where shown on the drawings a subbase or working platform will be constructed in accordance with the relevant specification for Stabilization, Flexible Pavements or Mass Concrete Subbase. Subbase is constructed by means of granular soil material imported from any approved source. The imported material is worked on and leveled across the width of the road by means of construction grader and compacted to the specified thickness (usually 150mm) by means of a construction roller. Base The construction of base course also constitutes the importation of suitable gravel material from source/s, the spreading of imported material across the width of the road under construction and compaction thereof. The base is constructed to the specified thickness (150mm) and depth below finished surface level, and to the design grade and crossfalls of the finished surface. Base course is constructed in such a way that its width extends to at least the rear face of all new edge restraints (Kerbs, Edge beam etc). The successful construction of a smooth base course requires the grader, water truck/ bowzer and compaction roller. Because the base course is the final underlying layer beneath the pavement, the natural gravel material utilized has to be stabilized in order to enhance its strength and durability. Usually natural gravel of specified grade is blended with cement to improve its properties. A well constructed base course should be impermeable, thus preventing the ingress of moisture. The finished surface of the base should drain freely without ponding. Edge Restraints Edge restraints in the form of Kerb and/ or Edge beam Strips are constructed along the perimeter of all segmented paving. Faces of edge restraints abutting pavers are kept vertical and are supported on compacted base surface. After the concrete has hardened and not earlier than three days after placing, the spaces at the back of the edge restraint have to be backfilled with earth, compacted in layers not greater than 150mm thick, then topsoiled to meet surrounding of design levels. Bedding Course In South Africa river sand is preferred for pavement bedding as its grading conforms to the requirements indicated in the South African National Standards 1200. Bedding sand is prepared and spread on top of the finished base surface. The bedding course is spread in a single uniform layer and screeded in a loose condition to the nominated design profile and levels plus that necessary to achieve a uniformly thick nominal 20-25mm layer following final compaction of the segmental paving. Laying of Pave Blocks

Paving blocks are placed uniformly on the screeded bedding to the nominated laying pattern, preferably Herringbone laying pattern. The blocks are placed in such a way that they are not directly in contact but should have uniform 2-4mm nominal joint widths. The first row of blocks is located next to an edge restraint (Kerb) and laid at a suitable angle to achieve the required orientation of blocks in the completed pavement. In each row, full units are laid first. Edge or closer units are neatly cut using a paver scour, or mechanical grinder, and fitted subsequently. Bedding Compaction After laying the pavement blocks the bedding sand is fully compacted and the surface brought to design levels and surface profiles by not less than two passes of a high frequency low amplitude plate compactor which covers at least 12 units. Compaction continues until all pavers form a smooth surface with adjacent paver edges matching. Units which structurally get damaged during compaction are being removed and replaced. The pavement would then be re-compacted for at least one meter surrounding each replacement unit. Joints Filling As soon as practicable after bedding compaction, dry material (fine river sand) for jointing is spread over the pavement and the joints filled by brooming. Subsequent to brooming the pavement then receives one or more passes of a plate compactor and the joints then refilled with filling material, the same process would then be repeated sufficiently to ensure that the joints are completely filled. Open to Traffic As soon as practicable after the filling of joints, construction vehicles would use the pavement, and are encouraged to traverse the greatest possible area of pavement to assist in the development of lock-up. Excess joint filling sand is removed from the driveway prior the opening o the road to traffic. When all activities are complete, the contractor would then conduct inspections regularly up until the defect liability period elapses in order to ensure that all joints remain completely filled. Advantages of Block Paving o o o o o o o o o Use South African material (cement, sand and stone) which makes manufacturing feasible. Less volume of earthworks to be carried out Paving blocks are laid by hand, thus providing more job opportunities for local community. The road can be opened to traffic immediately after completion, no curing required. Paved roads can be easily repaired. Pave blocks can be recycled at a minimum cost. Pave blocks can be made in many shapes, thickness and colour. Have a high resistance to fuel and oil spillage. Low maintenance cost