Having the right or wrong pavement design can make millions of dollars difference in a project. That’s why it’s so important to do your pavement design correctly the first time around, and this includes choosing the right team of pavement engineers for the job.
Pavement design is about more than footpaths–it actually influences all kinds of construction projects, from major highway construction to the maintenance of your local sporting ground. Let’s learn more about this vital aspect of geotechnical engineering and how pavement design informs the success of many modern construction projects.
When we talk about ‘pavement design’, this refers to the planning, testing, and creation of more than just sidepaths. The term actually encompasses driveways, pathways, industrial hardstand, working platforms, sports fields, rail trails, sub-divisional roads, rural roads, council roads and freeways.
Pavement design, along with pavement investigations, can be used to determine the best materials, thickness, form and techniques to use when creating new pavement or rehabilitating old pavement. Not only does this help create the ideal pavement for your needs, but you also save money on repairs that would need to happen if the less-optimal type of pavement was created instead.
Pavement design may be used for civic, industrial, commercial and domestic construction projects, including the building of bridges, roads and buildings. Wherever a concrete base has been created, pavement design will have a hand in planning it!
No matter where you are in Melbourne, chances are you’re near a structure or feature that needed pavement design in its creation. Some examples of structures and places that use pavement design include:
Need pavement design in Melbourne? Contact SITE Geotechnical, your local geotechnical engineering experts!
The process of pavement design in Melbourne involves a few key resources that are used to ensure success in every project.
At reputable companies like SITE Geotechnical, we use only the latest programs and software to design our pavements. The Australian-designed CIRCLY system is a powerful, easy-to-use program that has been used for over two decades for road design here and in New Zealand. As part of the Austroads Pavement Design Guide, CIRCLY has helped set the standard for road design across the country.
SITE Geotechnical is a strong advocate for the use of recycled material in pavement construction, as not only are these materials fantastic for creating strong and durable concrete, but using them lessens the need for harvesting raw natural resources as well.
Recycled materials can be added to existing concrete to stabilise it or used to create entirely new concrete pavements. Categories of materials used in these instances include flexible concrete, rigid pavement and solid materials like glass, plastic and steel slag.
We consider ourselves to be one of the leaders in pavement rehabilitation design and stabilisation. For example, standard crushed rock can be converted into an asphalt-type material through the process known as foam bitumen stabilisation, where bitumen is added to make these conventional materials into something much stronger and durable.
The Victorian Planning Authority (previously known as the Growth Areas Authority) manages Victoria’s growth by ensuring it remains a great place to live as the population grows and expands. By keeping our designs are in line with the VPA’s guidelines, we can create pavement solutions that help keep our suburbs in a state of sustainable growth while also remaining liveable.
We keep up to date on all the latest publications and rules from the Department of Transport and Planning and VicRoads. This allows our team to stay abreast of the latest rules and regulations around pavement design in Melbourne, with different information available for everything from crossings and parking garages to green infrastructure and water management.
By using these resources, pavement engineers can bolster the long-term performance of their work and ensure they are built the right way from the get-go.
Pavement design can be used to test for a number of factors and will be used to make sure both that the pavement itself can support whatever is going on top of it and that the pavement itself will stay in place over whatever type of earth it has constructed over.
Use the pavement design aspect of geotechnical engineering to test:
With such a wide range of possible tests and factors to test for, one of the most important things you can do is choose the best pavement engineers for the job.
When it comes to finding the best geotechnical engineers in country Victoria and metropolitan Melbourne for your pavement design, there is only one choice. At SITE Geotechnical, we’ve offered professional pavement design services since 2005, and our team has over 80 years of combined geotechnical engineering experience!
Whether you want an in-depth pavement investigation or need our reliable pavement rehabilitation design and investigation services, you can count on SITE Geotechnical to provide you with an honest, transparent and expert partnership.
Contact us on 1300 557 260 or leave us a message using our online enquiry form and our team will get back to you as soon as possible regarding your request.
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