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Issue link: http://airportbusiness.epubxp.com/i/813534
RUNWAY REPAIRS April 2017 airportbusiness 17 four RX-900e machines running at various loca- tions throughout the site." Roadtec RX-900e milling machines are equipped with Caterpillar 950 hp (708 kW) engines and are considered heavy-duty, high production machines by the manufacturer. "I like the RX-900e because it's the most powerful mill on the market," Coffel said. "And our three-track machines are more maneuver- able, lower in weight, and have less mainte- nance, than other mills." Each of the four mills running on the job had its own three-person crew — a machine operator, supervisor and a ground support person. The milling machines were equipped with 3D machine control that was designed to provide precise cutting depth of the mill to minimize over-cutting. The system uses a 3D design model, a total station and on-machine sensors to mill at a fixed or variable depth, depending on job specifications. The 3D design is displayed to the machine operator showing areas that are on, above, or below ideal grade. Comparing the actual drum position and slope with the digital design, the machine control system automatically guides the milling drum to cut the ideal depth and slope without string lines or manual adjustments. The Roadtec RX-900e milling machines fea- ture a maximum 14-inch cutting depth, but for this runway project Lois Kay Contracting was profile milling to depths of 3- to 5-inches. An approximate 200,000 tons of milling was per- formed by Lois Kay Contracting on the Detroit Runway 4L/22R project. "We had a couple of challenges with the Detroit Metro runway project," stated Coffel. "We had a tight timeline that we stayed ahead of and completed our portion of the project ahead of schedule. We were able to do this with our solid high production equipment, and of course, our hard working crews. "The second challenge… with Michigan weather being as unpredictable as it is, we needed to hit it hard and have maximum production when the weather was good. We received some rain during the stretch of the project but we worked around it." The complete reconstruction of Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport Runway 4L/22R and associated taxiways has been completed. The airport authority is likely sighing relief. "With our part of the runway rehab done I can look back and be proud that a company of our size could take a controlling role in an important project of this magnitude and scope," Coffel concluded. "I believe we performed very well on what was easily our largest milling proj- ect for the 2016 season." For DTW there will likely be renewed con- fidence that 747 jumbo jets, which carry 416 to 660 passengers, depending on configuration, will be safely landing on its Runway 4L/22R air strip. www.aviationpros.com/11174155