Source: The Transtec Group, Austin, Texas
Developed under a cooperative agreement between the Federal Highway Administration and Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute, State-of-the-Art Report on Precast Concrete Pavements provides agencies, owners, producers, and contractors information on a highway construction and retrofit method that can speed up schedules, net long service life, and reduce roadway downtime.
“Precast concrete pavement is a long-life solution for pavement rehabilitation and reconstruction, if produced and constructed according to recommended guidelines,” says PCI Pavement Committee Chair and Transtec Project Manager David Merritt, P.E., who helped drive the first U.S. precast/prestressed pavement project and continues to assist with the practice across the industry. Precast pavement’s long life is due partially to a fabrication method, he adds. Panels are cast and fully cured in a controlled environment before being transferred to a job site. For an even more durable pavement, precast panels can be prestressed, a process that minimizes stresses that can lead to cracking.
Authored by the PCI Pavement Committee and the first FHWA/PCI all-inclusive guidance, State-of-the-Art Report on Precast Concrete Pavements is divided into four areas, each available as a standalone file or document: applications, design and maintenance, manufacture, and construction. In addition to the handbook, PCI has created an online precast pavement repository, www.PrecastConcretePavement.org, developed as part of the cooperative agreement with FHWA. Hard copies or digital versions of State-of-the-Art Report on Precast Concrete Pavements can be obtained from PCI’s ePubs webpage.