SubscribeBernd Weigel Company of Germany has developed a revolutionary precision water jetting method, offering the Road and Airport Industry a complete new way of runway maintenance.
The TrackJet system removes 100% of rubber build-ups and paint markings without touching the surface micro texture.
TrackJet uses very little water applied by very high pressure, but the computer controlled, unique nozzle system enables an environmentally friendly, most effective maintenance of all kind of surfaces.
Low fuel consumption and only 1 man to operate the TrackJet - increases rubber removal intervals and extends the life time of the runway surfaces, reducing further the costs for maintenance of runways.
It increases the safety for landing aircraft because we in general reach, after cleaning, friction values between 0.7. and 0.9. This is why BAA Airports Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted have signed long term service contracts with Bernd Weigel Company, however they follow Zurich Airport - and purchased the first TrackJet System - taking delivery at Heathrow Airport in June 2006.
The modern technology not only offers safer runways for Pilots and Airlines, but reduces maintenance costs for the Airport Industry. More than 40 airports in Europe - among them leading Airports like Heathrow, Gatwick, Amsterdam Schiphol, Munich, Lisbon and abroad prove that the application of this technology is reducing the cleaning intervals and prolonging the life-time of the runway surfaces, because the texture and grooves are no longer scored and damaged, but the rubber is removed by nearly 100% without any damage to the surface texture below.
1. The Company
Bernd Weigel High Pressure Technology has specialized in this business field for 30 years. In 1998, by request of a customer the TrackJet Rubber and Paint Removal System was developed and sold to an Airport Contractor in East Asia. Up until 1998 more than 10 Systems have been sold.
2. Conventional HPW application
Bernd Weigel Company had access to 2 studies, the first generated by a major European Airport, and the second by an European CAA in order to evaluate the costs of rubber removal and marker/paint removal on the Runways and Taxiways.
Both the major Airport and the CAA stated that applying the conventional 700 bar High Pressure Washing (HPW) systems makes them most unhappy because a major concern with this traditional method of rubber removal is the scoring and damage caused to the runway's surface texture by using conventional HPW.
Although the operating pressure of conventional HPW does not permanently scour the surface, they do loosen up the surface matrix encouraging the loss of fine materials.
This action delivers, for a short time, acceptable friction values but it shortens the natural life of the surface, i.e. it speeds up the ageing process and leads to repetitive cleaning cycles.
These experiences were taken into account when doing a cost evaluations.
A further important disadvantage of applying HPW is its low effectiveness in removing rubber. In order to avoid serious damage to the surface, the HPW system removes only about 70% of the rubber, while our TRACKJET System removes 100% of the paint markings and rubber without any damage to the surface texture.
The study of the LFV points out that:
Decreasing friction value by 0.01 reduces the stop distance by 70 metres.
Decreasing friction value by 0.1 reduces the stop distance by 700 metres!
TRACKJET applications when removing rubber have increased friction values between 0.4 and 0.6.
This means that pilots and safety managers at airports have a theoretical additional runway length of a minimum of 2800 metres (factor 40x70 metres).
3. Maintenance cost reductions with TrackJet
3.1 Airports
Considering moderate prices for rubber removal and an assumed life time of the Runway of 30 years, this major airport has calculated a life cycle cost of 21.000.000,00 € within the 30 years of operation and maintenance of the runway.
Included in these costs are necessary investments in intermediate resurfacing of the Touch Down Zones.
If the airport management should decide upon the purchase of the TRACKJET System and utilize it 800 hours/year, the rubber removal costs are reduced substantially for the airport, which means that with conservative calculating, the cost savings could be estimated at a minimum of 60% compared with the application of conventional HPW. (See BAA Gatwick Field Study - available on request.)
3.2 Roads
For roads the remit is quite similar. The aim is to remove a coating and not rubber i.e. bitumen or cement muds, directed and controlled, without damaging or destroying the aggregates, which by themselves have a direct influence on friction values.
By applying certain modifications to the jet configuration and movement kinematics of the jets of the TrackJet, the effective mechanisms are adjusted to the special "highway requirements mode".
Previous tests have shown that the success and expected results are fully demonstrable. Consequently the Federal Governments in Germany, Belgium and UK use the TrackJet for highway maintenance.
The TrackJet method has the ability to process road pavements in such a way that:
- Mineral aggregates both in asphalt and concrete pavements are opened up;
- Freed from alien coatings (bitumen film, cement mud, etc.);
- Their original micro-roughness is reinstated;
- and their macro-roughness is improved.
The process ensures that only actual bonding agents are removed under controlled conditions. The homogeneous, monolithic structure of the mineral aggregates are not destroyed or weakened by crack initiation.
A long period of usefulness of the measures can therefore be assumed as the intact aggregates demonstrate a substantial higher resistance to flouring (crumbling) under traffic loads or frost action than is reached when applying mechanical methods.
Optimum traction values are reached (between 0.70 and 0.80) and measured using the pendulum measurement method.
High environmental compatibility is reached due to very low water consumption and very low eroded road substance volume.
Demarking works can be performed extremely economically and quickly avoiding phantom-marking phenomena drastically.
Clearing out of expansion joints and removal of oil spillages represents a further highly interesting area of application of the TrackJet technology.
4. Statements of the Airport and Road Industry
Our statements are based on Letters from Airports and State Organizations to be seen in the web =www.trackjet.de.
These written statements, given following the application of the TRACKJET in service operations, prove the high quality of our modern state of the art rubber and paint marker removal systems and support our following points when applying the TrackJet System for the maintenance of your pavements:
- Best possible friction values = leads to increasing cleaning intervals
- Optimum treatment with care of the runway surface = reducing direct and indirect renovation costs by prolonging resurfacing cycles
- Applicability on all kind of surfaces like Asphalt, Anti Skid, Petro Grip, Concrete grooved or non grooved
- No damaging of grooving, runway lighting systems, marker paint or joints sealing joints when cleaning at same time
- Runway lights are cleaned within same cleaning mission
- Flexible planning and execution of rubber and paint removal (selective rubber removal of small areas with insufficient friction values possible)
- Minimum personnel expenditure (1 man for operation of System during the 5.5 hours working shift)
- TrackJet can vacate the working areas within 3 minutes and leaves a dry, waste free and immediately usable and safe traffic area
- Highest availability of runway, taxiway and apron areas, because of minimum warning times for area vacation if required by traffic
- High environmental care because of low water and fuel consumption. TRACKJET works with clean water without chemical adhesives and needs only 10-20% of the water and 30% of the fuel for the carrier vehicles compared with traditional HPW systems.
- Low expenses with waste removal because of low water volumes used. Waste is classified as normal non toxic waste acc. EU Directive 200300
- Optimal applicability for the removal of markings by best treatment and preparation of surface for new painting
- Universal application of the systems for cleaning of sealing joints, concrete renovation, cleaning of steel and concrete areas, cleaning of apron areas, oil spills removal aso.
If the Airport decides to purchase the TrackJet technology: - Operating the TrackJet by using already available carrier vehicles like UNIMOG 400 L or SUPRA from SAE Company leads to a higher usage rate for these investments.
- Savings in transport costs paid to contractors'
- No safety risks with non-airport personal and avoidance of control of non-airport personal by own people
For further questions please contact:
Dieter Pade
Director Sales Bernd Weigel HDT
Mob: +49 174 900 1952
Mail: d.pade@gmx.de
Web: www.trackjet.de
