Foamed bitumen on the Ballina Pacific Highway

To undertake foamed bitumen work on the Woolgoolga to Ballina Pacific Highway upgrade, SEE Civil turned to Dynapac to find the right machinery for the job.

When Australian owned civil construction and engineering business SEE Civil secured a contract on the Woolgoolga to Ballina Pacific Highway upgrade, General Manager Joel Barnes knew the firm needed a unique equipment solution.

The Woolgoolga to Ballina upgrade is the final link in the Pacific Highway, between Hexham and the Queensland border, to be upgraded to four lanes. SEE Civil is working on a section between Maclean and Devils Pulpit which includes delivering foamed bitumen work.

“The contract had very specific requirements, including that it needed to be feeder to paver. We were looking for a large paver and material transfer vehicle capable of transporting foamed bitumen gravel and open-bound and unbound gravel,” Mr. Barnes explains.

“We also wanted a paver that had machine control built-in, especially as there are quite tight ride and level tolerances for the foamed bitumen.”

The east coast-based firm has a range of different equipment brands in its fleet, including two Dynapac CC2200 Double Drum Rollers, which it has operated for just over a year.

Building on positive past experiences with Dynapac dealer Construction Equipment Australia and the technical capabilities of the manufacturer’s paver and material feeder products, SEE Civil opted for two new Dynapac models for the contract – the SD2550CS Paver and MF2500CS Material Feeder with SwingApp.

SEE Civil took delivery of both machines late last year and has no intention of looking back.

“Ultimately we went with Dynapac because they were able to deliver on time and within our specifications. The Dynapac pavers have also been proved to pave foamed bitumen well,” Mr. Barnes asserts.

Using a feeder offers a number of advantages, particularly in allowing for continuous paving, helping to minimise any disruptions or delays, as well as maintaining product quality. As a result, a high-capacity machine was what the contractor needed, and was what Dynapac delivered.

“With the material feeder and paver, we can store up to 46 tonnes of material, which gives us that strong capacity to keep moving during paving,” Mr. Barnes says.

The MF2500CS features a high-performance conveying system, which can transport 30 tonnes of material in just 35 seconds, providing a high-capacity solution for the complex task at hand.

Likewise, the SD2550CS’s machine control enables smooth operation, with minimised disruption, especially when working in tandem with the MF2500CS.

“The paver can lay material on track without affecting level and the quality of the product. The level grading on the paver is amazing – it means we’re not stopping, which is essential on this job.”

SEE Civil worked with both Dynapac and Trimble on the paver’s machine control technology, which Mr. Barnes says was a significant investment, but one that is already paying dividends for the business now and into the future.

Both machines also feature Dynapac’s unique tool for monitoring and controlling machine fleets – Dyn@Link. It gives SEE Civil the ability to track utilisation and also watch the machines’ performance in real time, allowing preventative measures to be implemented if required.

Safety, like productivity, was also a major consideration for SEE Civil when purchasing its new paver and material feeder.

“We purchased the material feeder with reversing systems on it, which alerts the driver so they know when they get closer and closer to the other machines and workers on the ground. Not only did it remove our need for a spotter, but it reduces labour costs as a result too,” Mr. Barnes says. “It’s been an excellent safety feature for us so far.”

SEE Civil has had a successful experience with the new Dynapac machines.

“We’re about 25 per cent through the work now and we have had some challenges in getting used to the new technology between Trimble, Dynapac and our paving crews. But it’s been really good – the machines have been really successful and will continue to be successful,” he says.

“Getting the tolerances for ride and level have been challenging, but so far the machines have been pretty foolproof, and the aftersales service has been really helpful too.”

Now, with two rollers, a paver and material feeder from Dynapac in its fleet, SEE Civil is reaping the benefits of having aftersales support on all four machines from one technical support team.

“Their office is just down the road so they can get here in about 20 minutes and help us out. I think the relationship between us and Construction Equipment Australia has been really good – I think we’ve had a good run with the paver and feeder so far.”

Not only are the new Dynapac additions helping SEE Civil in its work on the Woolgoolga to Ballina Pacific Highway upgrade, but Mr. Barnes believes their capabilities set the business up for more success in the future,

“We’re seeing more and more jobs sent out to the market using foamed bitumen as a requirement on larger projects. There’s a lot of competition in the market, but we think these machines are a good way to differentiate ourselves.”