A Wirtgen SP 64 slipform paver guarantees precisely paved surfaces in an industrial park in Wujiaqu City in China’s Xinjiang Province.
Sustainability and the conservation of valuable resources are also shaping the future of road construction in China. At the same time, there is growing demand for both quality and cost-efficiency. For the construction of a concrete road in its new industrial park in Wujiaqu City, the Longtaida Group not only utilized environmentally friendly recycled material, but also focused on the use of state-of-the-art paving technology. The Wirtgen SP 64 slipform paver impressively demonstrated that environmental compatibility, productivity, and outstanding cost-efficiency are by no means mutually exclusive.
The Longtaida Environmental Protection Building Materials Industrial Park is one of a total of 23 industrial parks in the rapidly developing Xinjiang Province. The portfolio of the Longtaida Group includes investments in the establishment of centers for environmental and business technology in Wujiaqu City. The future goal is the recycling of industrial wastes, building materials, and waste products from a variety of industries for the production of resources for use in the road construction segment.
What are the key ecological and economic benefits of using resource-friendly materials and the latest machine technologies? A first project – the construction of a road through the industrial park – was expected to deliver the answer to this question and more detailed insights. The use of recycled materials enabled the resource-friendly production of construction materials. At the same time, Wirtgen slipform paving technology guaranteed precise and cost-efficient paving.
“This pilot project employing new technologies and materials revealed a number of positive economic and ecological benefits.”
Longtaida Group
Solid wastes in the form of slags from a coal-fired power plant in the park were recycled for use in the production of the concrete for paving. Its composition – slag, cement, and polymers – ultimately offers the same strength and durability as conventional concrete. Its use for road construction, site surfacing, or other infrastructure measures can reduce overall project costs by 20–30 percent.
In addition to the use of environmentally friendly and cost-saving materials, the company also attached considerable importance to the utilization of state-of-the-art Wirtgen slipform paving technology. The versatile SP 64 slipform paver from Wirtgen impresses with a particularly cost-effective and efficient machine concept and enables continuous, high-performance concrete paving, even in challenging situations. Its predecessor, the SP 500, already delivered outstanding paving results in the construction of airport runways, for example at Beijing Daxing International Airport and Shanghai Pudong International Airport. The new paver shows that the construction of concrete roadways is now even less complicated and much easier than ever before.
Thanks to the exact control of the machine height and, through this, the paving height and transverse tilt of the machine, the innovative Wirtgen machine control system enables particularly precise construction work. During the paving process, the machine control system continuously adapts the actual value to the target value defined by the stringline and finely compensates deviations by means of proportional control. This enables exact leveling and significantly reduces the operator’s workload. Thanks to the precise control of the SP 64, the paved concrete surfaces it delivers are characterized by extreme evenness, smoothness, and perpendicular edges.
The concrete is deposited directly in the path of the slipform paver by a tipper truck or a dump truck. The built-in spreading auger evenly distributes the concrete in front of the paver. Integrated vibrators ensure homogeneous consolidation of the concrete.
After the consolidation process, the concrete produced with the addition of recycled slag from a coal-fired power station possesses the required density and homogeneity. Only this enables the concrete to achieve the required strength after curing.
As it travels forward, the SP 64 paves the concrete surface at a width of 6 m and a height of 30 cm. The paved surface is then smoothed perpendicular to the direction of travel with an oscillating beam. The grinding movement produces a small concrete roll in front of the beam which fills out even the smallest remaining hollows in the concrete surface. Final smoothing of the paved concrete surface is carried out by a super smoother.
Highlights of the SP 64
Wirtgen SP 64 series slipform pavers are the ideal choice for efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly paving of all kinds of concrete surfaces:
The Wirtgen SP 64 slipform paver was able to prove its particular strengths and demonstrated that it is the ideal choice for paving heavy-duty concrete surfaces for industrial facilities, major roads, or airport runways.
The Wirtgen SP 60-series models feature a powerful 180 kW engine. In contrast to the SP 500 models of the previous generation, this means 40% higher performance (+20% according to EU Stage 3a/ US Tier 3 emission standards). In ECO mode, the control system automatically adjusts the engine speed to the current performance requirements – and this means that the fuel consumption is sustainably reduced, despite higher performance.
The SP 60-series offers considerably more features – for instance in the area of hydraulics. For example, hydraulically-telescoping swing legs enable much easier and faster changes from transport to working mode.
