Matthews Brothers Engineering’s G-TAR system has been developed for more than a decade, with the company’s modern iteration providing boosts to operational efficiency and output for road construction machinery.
Circumstances provided an opportunity for Matthews Brothers Engineering to introduce a new form of automation for both hardware and software systems.
The bitumen sprayer, tack coater, bitumen tanker and combi sprayer/spreader manufacturer was advised that a part supplied for its control systems was set to be discontinued, with the third party set to move from analogue to digit inputs. Shortly after, the idea for the company’s Guaranteed Target Application Rate (G-TAR) was born.
Paul Matthews, Matthews Brothers Engineering’s Managing Director, is the brains behind the development of the initial G-TAR concept.
He says the idea for the system was formed in 2002, refined two years later and was ultimately ready for operation in 2005.
“The primary focuses of the original concept were twofold. Firstly, we aimed to provide a guarantee to the application rate for our client’s operators. We also aimed to simplify the process for operators by removing the need for traditional road speed charts and a manual set up,” Matthews says.
“The initial prototype saw us deliver these goals plus other advantageous functionality, such as the ability to quickly and easily recalibrate the system to account for wear on the bitumen pump over time.”
G-TAR opens the doors for users to have smarter and more intuitive operator control over their machinery from the vehicle’s cab.
Feedback around the prototype played a key role in accelerating further developments for the G-TAR system.
This not only improved the automation capabilities of the unit, but also its impacts on safety.
“It allowed us to further enhance the systems functionality with modifications such as a two-stage loading/unloading process,” Matthews says.
“This ensured the system is working correctly with no line blockages before increasing to full transfer flow rate. This further improved operational safety of the sprayer during these processes.”
Further improvements haven’t stopped there either.
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“Since the first prototype went into operation back in 2005, the system has been continually evolving,” Matthews says.
“The most easily recognisable update has been the replacement of the back lit display screen, which utilised a separate control panel, to a modern, touch screen interface. This has been accompanied by further graphic improvements to increase the user friendly and intuitive nature of the system.
“We have also combined the G-TAR system with MBE’s Double Row Poppet Spraybar to deliver the G-TAR Maxi system. This allows a transversely variable application rate, which put simply supports variability in the application rate across the width of the Spraybar. This is particularly useful when resurfacing an existing road, delivering the ideal application rate across the full width of the road surface in a single pass.”
Matthews says the current iteration of the G-TAR system, similarly to the very first prototype, continues to provide time savings and visible quality improvements to the final road surface.
“The operator simply needs to let the system know what type of spray jets are being used, select the desired application rate, and away they go. The system monitors road speed in real time and automatically adjusts the pump speed to account for any variation. This can be particularly beneficial when spraying surfaces on variant incline gradients,” he says.
“Clients can also reap the benefits in improved road surface quality and job efficiencies, as well as improvements in operational health and safety. The levels of automation and remote control achievable with the G-TAR systems reduces the time an operator spends outside the cab of the truck, which on a busy construction site is the safest place they can be.”
Matthews Brothers Engineering has recently developed a G-TAR ‘Synchro’ unit for integration in the company’s combi sprayer/chip sealer prototype, designed to deliver both hot bitumen and aggregate in a single pass, forward motion vehicle. Further developments are also in the pipeline.
“Looking to the future we have already mapped out a G-TAR Micro system, which can be incorporated into our Tack Coaters (MPAV’s) to deliver the same guaranteed target application rate when applying bitumen emulsion typically used when asphalt is the road surface of choice,” Matthews says.
Feedback continues to flood in around the system, which has so far impressed many from the road construction and maintenance sector.
“The feedback has been very positive, so much so that some of our clients think they’ll never purchase a sprayer without G-TAR, since they began using the MBE sprayer units with the system equipped,” Matthews says.
“Sprayer operators are often the loudest champions of the system as, put simply, it allows them to easily deliver consistent quality, which in turn makes their job that much easier.
“We always welcome feedback to allow us to refine our designs to deliver an optimum product for the end-user.”
This article was originally published in the December edition of our magazine. To read the magazine, click here.