GOMACO World Index --- GOMACO World 27.1 - January 1999

 

GT-3200: The Curb and Gutter Answer

 

GT-3200

Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, the site of a parking lot curb and gutter project by OPP Construction Company of Grand Forks and Fargo, North Dakota.

The City of Oakland, Nebraska, awarded M.E. Collins Contracting Company of Wahoo, Nebraska, a project that totaled $179,000 for curb and gutter work.

Master Construction Company, Inc., of Fargo, North Dakota, was awarded The Westgo Commercial Second Addition project in West Fargo, North Dakota. The project included curb and gutter work for a new subdivision development.

GOMACO, Closner Equipment Company, Inc., of San Antonio, Texas, and a local contractor teamed-up to test the new GT-3200 with rubber tires. The test-site was a Texas Department of Transportation project through a residential/commercial area.

 

OPP Construction Company

OPP Construction Company of Grand Forks, North Dakota, recently had a project at Grand Forks Air Force Base. They slipformed over 914m (3000 ft) of curb and gutter on the parking lot expansion. It involved several short runs, corners and radii. Greg Opp, president of OPP Construction Company, stated, "We replaced our old machine with the GT-3200 and everybody likes this one." The curb and gutter was produced with five crew members.

Chris Conzo, foreman of OPP Construction Company, added, "We are producing twice as much with this machine. There is no material overrun, we are trimming as we go, and it is just a better looking curb. For instance, on this stretch it has all been graded to within 51mm (two inches) of final grade and the curb and gutter machine walked right through it. The top of the curb is staying very nice. We don't have to pre-trim anymore, so we have saved a whole step with this machine." He also added, "We were running a 25mm to 31mm (1 to 1.25 in) concrete slump, you can slip a nice radius and it will hold for you."

Ron Wald, superintendent, said, "The machine makes it nice when pouring a radius. We gained on the radius what we lost by not getting a bigger machine. It is doing more for us on the small stuff."

Conzo added, "We also have a GOMACO C-450 which we love. It is a great combination with the GT-3200. If we didn't have the curb machine we would have more setup with that paver. They work together very well and we use them quite often. Now we can slipform the curb and gutter first and we don't have to set forms for the paver anymore."

 

 

GT-3200

GT-3200

 

 

 

M.E. Collins Contracting Company

M.E. Collins Contracting Company is located in Wahoo, Nebraska, and was established in 1977. President Mike Collins, stated, "The project was a storm and sewer infrastructure rehabilitation project. This infrastructure was quite difficult because the pipe laid diagonally across the intersection with a creek on each side of it. It was a challenge in handling the utilities."

They currently own a GOMACO GT-3200 machine. Before they bought the new machine, they would do the curb process by hand. Collins said, "The machine has paid for itself already this year."

The project was 518m (1700 ft) of 762mm (30 in) curb and gutter work for the City of Oakland, Nebraska. They used a Nebraska Department of Roads #47B concrete mix design with an average 25mm (one inch) slump. The project had eight crew members, including forewoman/operator, Jeanne Shepardson, and general superintendent, Craig Knepper.

Collins remarked about the versatility of the network controller system, "Yes, our people really do like it. The GT-3200 enables someone with a good understanding of concrete and common sense to easily learn to run the machine while utilizing the new technology." He added, "We went with the driveway blockout assembly and we really like it. When I arrived at Ida Grove, Iowa, and started talking to your technicians at GOMACO, I decided to purchase the blockout assembly."

The Oakland project was located on the same street that Karla and Jeff Johnson, proud parents of newly born quintuplets, reside. Collins said, "We fought the rain at the beginning of the project and wanted to complete it before the five babies were born."

 

 

GT-3200

GT-3200

 

 

 

Master Construction Company

Fred Schlanser, Jr., president of Master Construction Company, Inc., stated that certain requirements had to be considered in looking for a new machine. "The GT-3200 had the minimum width access to the existing pavement. That determined our decision in purchasing the GOMACO machine. This machine is 2.59m (8.5 ft) in width. The city directs us on how much pavement we can remove on our sewer and water projects. If we had a machine that was too wide, we couldn't get in to pour a narrow strip of curb and gutter, so the width of the machine was critical to us."

The Westgo Commercial Second Addition project in West Fargo, North Dakota, consisted of 762m (2500 ft) of 762mm (30 in) curb and gutter. The street was 3094m2 (3700 yd2) of 203mm (eight inch) thick non-reinforced concrete. It was their first new paving project. With a crew size of 10 to 12 people, they poured it in less than three days. They also had inlets to place and adjust in the flow-line, with some cul-de-sac work. The concrete was 38mm (1.5 in) slump and a 6-sack mix, 30MPa (4000 lb psi).

Two features they enjoyed most were the high-pressure water system and the width of the machine. They also found that the driveway depressor device worked really well. Schlanser stated, "The device is a definite labor saver as well as a concrete saving tool."

Master Construction Company, Inc., has a solid relationship with their equipment supplier, Swanston Equipment Company. Schlanser said, "We have worked with them for over 20 years on different types of equipment. I wanted someone local who was going to be able to handle any problems and have manufacturing support for service needs."

 

 

GT-3200

GT-3200

 

 

 

 

C-450 and GT-3200 Compatibility

The GOMACO C-450 machine was added to the company's list of equipment. Another project by Master Construction Company, Inc., was using the GOMACO C-450 machine and the GT-3200 machine together.

The curb and gutter was slipformed on both sides of the street by the GT-3200. Then the street was paved with the C-450 cylinder finisher. Rails were placed in the gutter line, eliminating the need for setting rail support jacks. Concrete forms were eliminated by filling in-between the existing curb and gutter.

This project in Fargo, North Dakota, consisted of paving a 7.32m (24 ft) wide street. It was 203mm (eight inches) thick and they used a number four rebar while placing it 457mm (18 in) on the center. The concrete slump was 76mm (three inches) and had a 7.2 sack mix design. The project was a complete water main replacement, and Master Construction completed it with four pours.

The power transition adjuster (PTA) on the C-450 allowed them to pave through the intersections and transverse from a 114mm (4.5 in) crown down to flat and back to the same crown again.

Schlanser stated, "The C-450 was chosen for the West Fargo project because we needed the versatility for adding widths for various paving applications. We used the C-450 on an 11.9m (39 ft) wide pour; then we tore the machine down and set up to pour 7.62m (25 ft) wide with the automated crown."

Master Construction was happy with the success they had in working with the two machines on the same project, first pouring the curb and gutter and then coming back and paving the street.

 

 

GT-3200

GT-3200

 

 

 

Closner Equipment Company

Closner Equipment Company, Inc., of San Antonio is a GOMACO distributor in Texas. They recently provided a GOMACO GT-3200 with pneumatic tires to a customer to pour curb on a project for the Texas Department of Transportation, in the northwest part of San Antonio, Texas.

It consisted of 914m (3000 ft) of curb and gutter work along a residential and commercial area, which encompassed several driveways and short runs. The curb was 228mm (nine inches) high and yielded 11.28m (37 ft) to the .76m3 (cubic yard). The average concrete slump was 38mm (1.5 inches).

The main reason they used this machine was the rubber tires. Frank W. Closner, vice president of Closner Equipment Company, Inc., stated, "The tires can be driven over asphalt without marking the surface. It also enhances the speed of the machine."

This GT-3200 machine travels at a speed of 26.2m (86 ft) per minute and has an operating horsepower of 68.6kw (92 hp). This fast travel speed is ideal for mobility on the job site. It allows the curb and gutter machine to be easily unloaded and set up quickly for several small pours on a large project. It is also ideal for handling several small jobs in a day's time around town.

The GT-3200 with rubber tires, along with the three-track GT-3200, will be featured in 1999 at CONEXPO-CON/AGG.

 

 

GT-3200

 

GT-3200

 

GT-3200

 

 

 

 

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