Leading cement and concrete organizations have unveiled a new online pavement design tool that offers features and benefits never before available to the pavement design community.
PavementDesigner.org is free of charge and was created for city, county, and consultant engineers, academia, or anyone involved in design of roadway, industrial, and parking area pavements. PavementDesigner improves upon traditional pavement design software programs, and provides the following value-added features:- No cost - The platform and is offered completely free of charge, eliminating the expense and burden of ordering software and updates, licenses, etc.
- Immediate access - The platform brings the industry's best pavement design programs together into a single website that allows professionals to design pavements immediately.
- Cloud storage/retrieval - Users have the option of creating a user ID and password to save their design work, as well as to retrieve projects using any digital device.
- Automatic updates and improvements - The online system is automatically updated when new content or details are added. Users will not have to download updated software or "patches."
"ACPA was excited to serve as the project leader for PavementDesigner, working closely with our industry partners and our software designer," said Eric Ferrebee, EIT, the American Concrete Pavement Association's Director of Technical Services. "We are pleased to introduce all in one place the industry's best design solutions for concrete and cement-based pavement design.
"PavementDesigner.org represents a dramatic shift in solutions availability to designers of streets, roads, parking lots, and industrial facilities," he said, adding, "By bringing multiple programs together in one package and eliminating the cost and time to download software, updates, and patches, we have removed barriers and enabled designers to select the best option for pavement designs."
"This comprehensive but easy-to-use pavement design tool not only covers full-depth concrete, but also provides design solutions for concrete overlays and composite pavements," said Wayne Adaska, P.E., the Portland Cement Association's Director of Pavements. "Further, the tool includes other cement-based materials like roller-compacted concrete, cement-treated base and full-depth reclamation with cement."
Designers also can reach out for design support, using contact information found on the website to reach the network of pavement design experts representing
Using PavementDesigner.org
PavementDesigner guides the user through three basic stages of pavement design. The user first selects the project type (parking, street, or intermodal facility). The system then guides the user through the project level details and the design of the pavement structure. Each module has help screens and conversions built in to assist the user in entering pavement structure details. After pavement structure information is entered and calculated, the user moves to a summary screen where the pavement design may be reviewed, analyzed, printed, and/or saved.
"PavementDesigner presents a unique experience to the user which logically steps the designer through the pavement design process," explained Brian Killingsworth, P.E., the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association's Executive Vice President of Local Paving. "The user experience and functionality of the website were foremost in our minds throughout the development. Couple that with state-of-the-art technical methods and reporting and the user will find the design process to be exceptional."
Help is at Hand
The portal also includes helpful resources, which are readily available from the sidebar. Users can view a PavementDesigner introductory video; view the platform's map and methodology visual to see solutions and a process flow; and watch a video that shows how to use the portal to design a jointed plain concrete pavement.
The resource section also includes details from drawings of various concrete pavement structures, as well as images, descriptions, and weblinks to other resources and tools designed to assist pavement designers and others gain more insights about specific types and applications for concrete pavements. Additional training and support materials will be added as feedback is received.
The American Concrete Pavement Association, founded in 1963, is the national trade association for the concrete pavement industry. The primary mission of the ACPA is to lead the promotion of concrete paving, and align its members, chapters/state paving association affiliates and partners for effective and valued concrete pavement promotion, advocacy and technical support on behalf of the concrete pavement industry.
Founded in 1930, the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association is the leading industry advocate. Our mission is to provide exceptional value for our members by responsibly representing and serving the entire ready mixed concrete industry through leadership, promotion, education and partnering to ensure ready mixed concrete is the building material of choice.
Since 1991, the RMC Research & Education Foundation has been putting the generous contributions of the concrete and construction community members to work to fund programs to improve quality, sustainability and professionalism in the ready mixed concrete industry.
The Portland Cement Association, founded in 1916, is the premier policy, research, education, and market intelligence organization serving America's cement manufacturers. PCA members represent 92 percent of US cement production capacity and have facilities in all 50 states. The Association promotes safety, sustainability, and innovation in all aspects of construction, fosters continuous improvement in cement manufacturing and distribution, and generally promotes economic growth and sound infrastructure investment.
