Paving specialist overcomes obstacles, yields strong rewards

"We used a 1,000-gram sample of the aggregate and ran it through the screens, weighing it before and after to see if the end product meets specification," says Price. "Type III aggregate is a 'beefier' product than Type II and is the most common aggregate used for highways and other large projects."

Intermountain Slurry Seal uses five ingredients in the microsurfacing mix:

1. Polymer modified emulsion (65 percent asphalt, 35 percent water and emulsified chemicals)
2. Type III aggregate
3. Mineral filler (Portland cement, hydrated lime or other chemicals)
4. Water
5. Additives (optional, used at operator's discretion for break control)

Bergkamp's M1 continuous paver has a separate compartment for each of these ingredients. At the flip of a switch, the ingredients are delivered at metered rates into the pugmill, where they are mixed and transferred to a hydraulically adjustable, variable-width spreader box. The augers in the spreader box spread the mix throughout the box and onto the road. Mobile support unit trucks hold replacement ingredients and feed the paving machine when it runs low, keeping the machine running constantly and minimizing the number of construction joints in the road.

In all, Intermountain Slurry Seal used the following to complete the project:

• 2,287,062 square feet of Type III microsurfacing
• 3,081 tons of Type III aggregate
• 381 tons of microsurfacing emulsion
• 800 90-pound sacks of Type I cement
• 16 tons of concentrate fog seal

Intermountain Slurry Seal also took extra environmental precautions to prevent the leakage of asphalt or chemicals into the environment - including laying down tarps to absorb excess material during cleaning.

Caltrans was pleased with the new pavement and Intermountain Slurry Seal's attention to the environment.

"I am quite satisfied with the professionalism that the Intermountain crew exhibited," says Todd Traunero, Transportation Engineer for Caltrans District 11. "Their knowledge and attention to detail played an important role in the success of this project."

Second time around
It's no surprise that Intermountain Slurry Seal won ISSA's President's Award for a second straight year. Since 1978, the company has built a reputation for honesty and fairness, and works with its customers to secure their satisfaction. It ensures the quality of its work by testing its materials, making certain its equipment is calibrated properly for each project, and adding the right ingredients into each mix.

The company keeps its equipment fleet up-to-date and invests a great deal of time in operations training and operator safety.

Intermountain Slurry Seal is a wholly owned subsidiary of Granite Construction Company, one of the nation's largest heavy civil contractors and construction materials producers.

Granite Construction Company helps fund new equipment, training and safety programs for employees. Intermountain Slurry Seal's three operational areas in Utah, Nevada and California work together and cover most of the western United States. Chip seal and microsurfacing make up 65 to 70 percent of the Utah operational area's business, with 25 percent in slurry seal and the rest in fog seal and rejuvenation work.

Other examples of Intermountain Slurry Seal's work include: 13 miles of State Highway 75 in Idaho; 30 miles of State Highways 34 and 36 in Colorado; 16 miles of I-80 and I-84 in Utah; 10 miles of I-80 in Wyoming; and six miles of the Yosemite National Park El Portal Road in California.

Intermountain Slurry Seal has been a Bergkamp customer since 1989 and currently uses three M1 pavers, with another on the way, six M2 pavers and eight mobile support units. The Utah operation only uses Bergkamp's M1 continuous paver and M2 Series of truck-mounted pavers for its slurry seal/microsurfacing jobs.

The M1 is the only full-size continuous paver of its kind on the market, and has been used by every contractor receiving ISSA's President's Award - since 2001 when the award was introduced. The M2 Series is ideal for jobs that are smaller or have stockpiled materials close by. It provides contractors the option of putting a drop axle in the front and back of the tandems to maximize the amount of material carried.