Wirtgen Group is promoting green technologies for road construction.

The most recent innovation from Vogele is the Road scan which helps the operator of the paver to know the exact temperature of the mix.

Ramesh
Managing Director & CEO
Wirtgen India

Products from Wirtgen, Vögele, Hamm and Kleemann underscore how Wirtgen technologies enhance productivity and profitability for road contractors and government agencies. “Wirtgen Group are promoting green technologies with our cold milling and recycling where upto 100% of existing material can be reused, states P. Ramesh, Managing Director & CEO, Wirtgen India. Excerpts from the interview

How do you assess the current technologies used in India compared to the methodologies and equipment used in developed markets?

There has been a continuous upgradation in technologies what our customers have been using for the highway construction in India.  The pace of adapting to new technology has picked up considerably in the last 3-4 years. From the Wirtgen Group stand point, we have been able to introduce and popularize technologies like cold milling, recycling, hot recycling and Niveltronic Plus and many more.

What are the trends in milling and recycling in road construction?

There is a shortage of aggregates in road construction and also the leads are getting longer for fresh aggregates in certain states of India and here we at Wirtgen Group are promoting green technologies with our cold milling and recycling where upto 100% of existing material can be reused.

What are the major challenges in spreading advanced technology brought in by Wirtgen India for better and faster construction of quality roads? 

Major challenge in use of new technologies is to create awareness about these with the consultants and the independent engineers and we are working on it continuously with our product experts. However I would like to add from government point of view, there has been full support to use green and new technologies.

Elaborate on soil / asphalt compaction and asphalt paver equipment range?

In India we offer the Hamm 311 soil compactor, HD 99 Asphalt compactor, GRW 15 rubber wheeled roller ,3520 pad foot compactor and also the mini tandem roller HD 12VV.

For asphalt pavers in India, for wheeled segment pavers – the 5-6 m class are popular. For the track segment, pavers with paving width of 7m to 13 m are commonly used where 7 m   and 9 m paver – being the fast moving in the track segment.  Vogele offers the S 1403, S 1400, S 1800-3, S 2100-3 pavers which are competent for all types of paving jobs.

What are the features in-built/optional to achieve improved compactor performance / paving performance and productivity?

Compactors  with  improved  reliability and  fuel  efficiency  play  an important role  in  buying  behaviour. In addition to performance and productivity, customers are also increasingly aware about operator safety, operating and maintenance cost. New  technologies  like intelligent compaction, HCQ system  for Hamm compactors, 3 point articulation, edge  cutting  option,  some  of the add on  features  are the new trends.

As far as asphalt paving is concerned, Vogele is the world market leader  and we are pioneers with regard to innovation and we introduce several new technologies – some of which are already in use in India like the high compaction screed, electrical heating screed, inline pave, pave dock assistant, spray jet, mobile feeder

What are the technology trends in compactors with regard to ‘intelligent compaction?

The Wirtgen Group HAMM compactors come with more than 125 years of experience in the development and manufacture of roller and compactors for soil and asphalt compaction. HAMM, the German manufacturer leading the field in compaction technology, is a member of the internationally successful Wirtgen Group and a global leader in the market of road rollers. HAMM offers numerous field-tested extras for its 311 compactor and HD 99 tandem roller, allowing everyone to equip the machines to suit their individual needs. Options include the edge pressing and cutting equipment for the tandem roller, or the working lights for the compactor. A number of measuring systems are available as well, such as the HAMM Compaction Meter, which can be used on both machines to monitor compaction quality even while the work is being carried out. An additional option for the tandem rollers is the HAMM Temperature Meter. Via an infrared sensor, it measures the asphalt temperature in front of the roller and displays it on the dashboard.

Hamm compactors are equipped with isolated operator platform mounted on shock absorbers so that the vibrations are reduced. The operator platform is with antiskid material to ensure operator safety.  The sliding  seat console for operators  and excellent  drum edge  visibility are  some  striking features  which make  the machines  easier to  operate.

Hamm soil compactors are built with patented design of three point articulation joint. This connects the front and rear end of the compactor and enables excellent directional stability and provides driver safety on difficult terrains and also adds to drivers comfort. This also increases the operator efficiency.

The engine compartment is closed with FRP hood in Hamm compactors which reduce the noise levels. ROPS / FOPS requirement is currently not mandatory requirement as per Indian regulations; however it can be provided as an option.

Tell us about the paver range from Vogele?

Vogele has been the industry pioneer as well as the market leader for asphalt pavers. The Vogele range of sensor pavers can pave from 1.5 m paving width to a maximum of 16 m – the widest range.

Vogele has introduced several innovations like the pressure bars and electric heating of the screed, Niveltronic plus operating concept and ergo plus operator features. With our Dash – 3 pavers we also offer the eco plus which helps in saving fuel, auto set plus, pave dock assistant etc. Vogele also offers several other technologies like the spray jet paver which does the tack coat and paving with the same paver, mobile power feeders which are now being used for building of airport runways and expressways and also the inline paving technology. The most recent innovation from Vogele is the Road scan which helps the operator of the paver to know the exact temperature of the mix – as it is being paved, and also later -through the recorded data.

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