NAPA in Review
Feb 15, 2011
It was wonderful to see so many of you at the NAPA meeting in Orlando last week. There were good times, new friends, a little Asphalt Rocks, a Superbowl, and oh-yeah some meetings, too. Here’s what we came away with:
Jonathan MacIver, Evotherm Business Manager: It was great to hear the results of the WMA utilization survey. Based on survey responses, 11% of the mix tons produced in 2010 utilized a warm mix process or technology. An extrapolation of the data suggest that there may have been over 40 million tons placed in 2010. Although the survey did not differentiate between WMA's produced under 275F and technologies utilized as a compaction aid for conventional HMA (produced above 275F), it is an impressive account of the state of WMA deployment in the US.
Also, NCAT provided a great update on WMA performance on their pavement test track. After 6+ million ESAL's the WMA sections are looking great! No cracking & rutting performance is similar to HMA.
Dean Frailey, Business Development Manager: I was impressed by the turnout at the WMA sessions (standing room only in most cases) as well as the number of conversations with HMA company owners from OK to AL. Foam is not as prevalent as we may be led to think and there looks to be many Evotherm opportunities in the HMA market.
Lance Brooks, Technical Marketing Manger: Cracking is a huge concern for agencies – the data that was shared comparing Evotherm mixtures to conventional mixtures when utilizing the overlay tester is very powerful – almost 400 cycles (Evotherm) versus less than 100 cycles (conventional) – it's data like this which can demonstrate to agencies that they're receiving performance value. Also, while overall hot mix volumes are decreasing – WMA volumes have more than quadrupled since 2006 and this trend will continue to increase as the marketplace is more educated and engaged.
Heather Dolan, Evotherm Commercialization Manager: The market opportunity for Evotherm warm mix asphalt continues to grow. Lead states such as Texas are increasing the volumes of warm mix that they are placing while other states are rapidly getting in the game. There was considerable interest during the Energy and Recycling Committee (another standing room only crowd) to use warm mix asphalt with recycled asphalt shingles. The construction industry continues to crawl back to normal, think 2004 not 2006, meaning that opportunities will exist for contractors who continually rethink their businesses.
