Banks Construction Company（Banks Construction）It is generally recognized by the industry for its excellent road construction ability.。The Charleston, S.C., company is a frequent presence at the South Carolina Asphalt Pavers Association. （SCAPA） On the list of winning projects.，And is one of the most popular asphalt paving companies in the area.。When it was recently lauded again for its 2023 performance in a major interstate renovation project.，They feel a greater sense of accomplishment.。
In this project，They used a technique known as“Intelligence”Paving Solutions。Although some key team members were skeptical at first.，But the company tested the solution on one of Charleston, South Carolina's most dramatic thoroughfares.。At the end of the project，They have become loyal supporters of the new paving technology.，Share some impressive advantages in cost savings，Won an award while improving safety。They won on so many levels.。
History does not repeat itself.
The item mentioned above is a long 12..Eight kilometers，4 lanes wide，Located in a heavily trafficked neighborhood of Charleston. I-Renovated Pavement of 526 Ring Road，These include seven bridges.。According to Banks' investigative manager, Trey,·Cox（Trey Cox）The saying of，Before the start of project bidding，They realized the difficulty of the problem.。
“Not so long ago，We did something similar for the Ministry of Transport.，It was a two-stage milling project.，It is necessary to mill the damaged part of the surface first.，Measurements are then taken to obtain the design needed for the correction，Then mill again to match the correction。However, the reality is that milling the surface in the particular humidity and low temperatures of the area may result in surface chipping。This will bring hidden dangers to driving safety.，Increased risk of driver claims，And therefore cannot be handled using the same techniques as before I-The work of 526。
Banksy is pinning the alternative on them at the triennial building trade show. ConExpo I saw it on the Internet Topcon Positioning Systems （TPS）A revolutionary solution。Because it improves the entire workflow of the asphalt operation.，From highway fast road scanning to variable depth milling to 3.D Spreading and so on，Banks management thinks this is called“SmoothRide”The solution is the answer they are looking for.。
Loyal fans
As mentioned earlier，Cox was initially right SmoothRide Be skeptical about the feasibility of，In particularSmoothRideWhether the project can be made profitable。But Banks management thought it was the right move.。With their support.，Cox and his team need to prove it.。
Cox said：“We invited TopconOne of the Intelligent Paving Experts Justin Thompson Come to our office.，Where we discussed the system.，Use Topcon RD-M1 Scanned I-Part of 526，And set the time for the demonstration.。In typical Banksy fashion.，We didn't back down。We have 25 Trucks.、Two Milling Machines and a complete paving team。Even though we just did a very basic scan and job setup，But it works perfectly.。Since then，I went all out to do it. I-The work of 526。”
With this peace of mind.，Cox returned to the Department of Transportation.，Because they know they can save by streamlining their workflow.。Now paving and milling can be carried out in the same shift，Thereby saving a great deal of cost.。
Cox said：“While reducing the milling time, it also minimizes the demand for traffic control.。Shorter hours on the interstate effectively reduce our safety risk。So，We called the engineer from the Ministry of Transportation.，They were shown the technology.，And made our plans for the project.。One point of contention is，Some construction specifications require absolute elevation rather than relative elevation。So through the right SmoothRide Simple update of software，We are able to control files directly from or Geoide Extract this information from the file.。They are satisfied with Topcon.SmoothRideTechnology。”
“Even though we just did a very basic scan and job setup，But it works perfectly.。”
— Trey·Cox
Get a sneak peek
Soon Cox found out. SmoothRide The most distinctive scanning capability in the process。SmoothRide Offers something the paving industry has wanted for years but never had.，Review the entire project before officially starting the project。He said，“Companies like ours can take measurements on simple milling jobs or slope projects.，In order to have a good understanding of the upcoming work.。But go one step further.，When it comes to more complicated situations,。We can never really know what will happen.。This technology changes all that.。We can go deep into the project.，When we set the parameter（Maximum milling is 10 cm.，Minimum milling is 2.5 cm），We can complete the design and look at the areas where we have over-milled or under-thickn，Then adjust the design to fix them.，This is exactly what we need.。”
RD-M1 The scanner is SmoothRide The first step in the process，We saw the real benefit of scanning the road for as-built information.。We often bid for work that was surveyed and designed five or six years ago.，But in those five or six years,，The road may have been covered up many times.，This needs to be re-measured，Because the design says to“Match existing”。Use RD-M1 can do that.，It doesn't just eliminate the cost of traffic control.，It also keeps surveyors away from open roads.。In the decision-making process，The safety factor it provides is almost as important as the streamlined workflow.。At Banks，Security cannot be overemphasized。
“SmoothRide Provides technology that the road renovation industry has wanted for years but never had，Be able to understand the whole project before formally entering the project。”
— Trey·Cox
Super high ROI
In a long 12.Eight kilometers、In a project with a width of 4 lanes，The cost savings realized by eliminating one complete milling job are substantial——This matter is true. I-526 was proved on the renovated road surface.。Although exact figures are not readily available,，But Cox brings up some interesting numbers for reference.。
Trey·Cox：“First，You have to look at the fact that，That is, we don't have to mill in advance.，Resulting in a reduction of 20 shifts，This is a significant cost savings per night.。And the cost of data acquisition reduction is huge.。At the same time, we have no way to add a number to safety and responsibility.。Different from the project I mentioned before，I don't believe we can find any other fault with this work.，This is almost unheard of in interstate projects.。All of these are what our users think. SmoothRide Why the solution is well worth the investment。”
The green side.
Although sometimes it's easy to overlook.，But the environmental impact that can be reduced by streamlining the workflow of a project can be dramatic.。According to Cox,，These savings are inI-The 526 project is actually a full range of savings.。
Three-axle Trucks may burn 95 litres of diesel per night，There are 20 such Vehicles.，In addition, there is WittgenW220 Milling Machine，These add up to a huge number.。
Banks's SCAPA The award points out，As of October 2023I-526 Upon completion of resurfacing project，The project is in 12..A total of 42 were laid in the span of 8 kilometers.,826 tons of asphalt。Banks Construction Team Leverages New Technology，Allow all these operations to be performed in one milling，Thus saving a lot of money for the Ministry of Transport.。In addition，It also mentions，The change in scope significantly reduced the duration of the project，Any exposure to the milled surface is also eliminated，Both minimize the overall impact on the traveling public.，The net result is an average ride improvement of about 30 percent%。
Cox：“What the award does not say is that，We have to meet some very strict specifications for cross slope adjustment.，We did it。I'm here for our team. I-I am very proud of the work I have done in my work.，It is also a pleasure for them to share this award.。As a company.，We also thank you very much. Topcon Dealer Georgia Surveyors Exchange Yes Randall Brown Support for us。Complete a job in 300 days（The original plan was 360 days.）Significantly improve the safety of our employees and the traveling public。This is also our relationship with Topcon Another reason for cooperation for about 16 years。”
As for who is the real winner of this award?，Would be a resident of the Charleston area.，They pass through regularly or daily.I-On Highway 526，Have got something that has been missed for some time.：A really smooth ride.。
