Topcon Positioning System Keeps Milling on Track

Don Talend, Write Results Inc.
Created: August 22, 2011

Laser-satellite automated grading system keeps Dayton airport milling on a fast track amid tight work deadlines.

Don Talend

A Topcon Positioning Systems Millimeter GPS+ system utilizes satellite signals in conjunction with a PZL-1 Lazer Zone transmitter (shown here) and a PZS-MC machine-control sensor for precise grade...
A Topcon Positioning Systems Millimeter GPS+ system utilizes satellite signals in conjunction with a PZL-1 Lazer Zone transmitter (shown here) and a PZS-MC machine-control sensor for precise grade control.
Don Talend

A Roadtec RX-60 cold planer mills Runway 18-36 at Dayton International Airport, guided by a Topcon Millimeter GPS+ automated grade control system.
A Roadtec RX-60 cold planer mills Runway 18-36 at Dayton International Airport, guided by a Topcon Millimeter GPS+ automated grade control system.
Don Talend

A Roadtec RX-60 cold planer mills Runway 18-36 at Dayton International Airport, guided by a Topcon Millimeter GPS+ automated grade control system.
A Roadtec RX-60 cold planer mills Runway 18-36 at Dayton International Airport, guided by a Topcon Millimeter GPS+ automated grade control system.
Don Talend

View of a blast pad and taxiway behind Runway 18-36, both of which Barrett Paving Materials resurfaced using the Topcon Millimeter GPS+ system.
View of a blast pad and taxiway behind Runway 18-36, both of which Barrett Paving Materials resurfaced using the Topcon Millimeter GPS+ system.
Don Talend

View of pavement at Dayton International Airport that was milled with the Roadtec RX-60 cold planer.
View of pavement at Dayton International Airport that was milled with the Roadtec RX-60 cold planer.
Don Talend

A Topcon GX-60 control box was mounted on the side of the cold planer so that Welfle, Inc. could monitor how closely to grade the machine milled the runway.
A Topcon GX-60 control box was mounted on the side of the cold planer so that Welfle, Inc. could monitor how closely to grade the machine milled the runway.
Don Talend

Topcon FC-120 field controller mounted on a pole that also mounts a HiPer Lite+ GNSS receiver used to check grade.
Topcon FC-120 field controller mounted on a pole that also mounts a HiPer Lite+ GNSS receiver used to check grade.
Don Talend

Welfle, Inc. recently helped Barrett Paving Materials and Project Superintendent Jay Shawver efficiently mill pavements at Dayton International Airport.
Welfle, Inc. recently helped Barrett Paving Materials and Project Superintendent Jay Shawver efficiently mill pavements at Dayton International Airport.

"There was a lot of preplanning on this job. You have to have it all right and you have the people trained so that when it starts going, it goes off correctly and there are no problems." With this in mind, Combs suggested that the official surveyor on the project - Luis G. Riancho & Associates, Englewood, Ohio - set control points every 250 ft. "With those control points in that kind of proximity, we have checks and balances on either side of the machine as we go up the runway."

Besides the savings on materials, the system also provided savings in surveying costs. Combs pointed out that the cost of having a licensed surveyor constantly checking elevation and grade behind the cold planer would add up fast.

The entire project was to be completed in 120 days, meaning sometime in August 2011. However, Meyer noted that rainy weather had caused work delays.

Don Talend of Write Results Inc., West Dundee, IL, is a print and e-content developer specializing in covering construction, technology and innovation.