An introductory workshop for agencies and industry was conducted by the workshop planning committee on October 29th and 30th. The committee members are Kristi Grilho (HDOT), Brandon Lima (HDOT), Fan Yin (NCAT), Tom Harman (NCAT), and Jon Young (HAPI).
Implementation co-chairs Jon Young and Kristi Grilho opened the workshop. Jon stated that the key to success is collaboration between agency and industry. Kristi followed by stating HDOT’s goal is to implement BMD for non-standard mixes that relate to sustainability. She also noted that HDOT lab has similar challenges that a lot of the contractors may be concerned about with this implementation – limited lab space, budget, and manpower for the additional testing.
About twenty people attended from HDOT Highways Division, HDOT Harbors Division, County of Kauai, the UH College of Engineering, independent asphalt labs, and of course asphalt producers.
The reminder of the workshop was presented by Fan Yin and Tom Harman. Harman emphasized that the implementation process shown below is not a sprint, but a marathon that would likely take five to seven years to complete.
Topics covered by Fan and Tom included:
- What is Balanced Mix Design (BMD) and Why?
- BMD Implementation – National Perspective
- BMD Implementation Guide:
- Overview of the BMD Implementation Guide
- BMD Performance Tests for Mix Design / Acceptance
- BMD Shadow Projects
- Field Validation of BMD Test Criteria
The workshop ended with everyone having a chance to provided their comments about the workshop. Co-chair Jon Young stated that the implementation of BMD will be orderly, organized, and doable and that it will be done collaboratively between agency and industry.
