Equipment World Digital Magazine
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as there are no exposed flames. This keeps the asphalt and oils from separating. The heated area is then sectioned off with the back of a rake, forming a rectangular working area, and then scratched up by the rake. A rejuvenator is then added to the asphalt and worked in, smoothed out and compacted using a tamper. While this process isn't necessarily new, it still hasn't matured to a point where it is well known. "Infrared re- pairs are virtu- ally unheard of in many areas," says Wesley Van Velsor, sales and market- ing manager for New Hampshire- based Ray-Tech Infrared. "This makes contractors and their custom- ers leery of the technology. If it is such a good repair method, they wonder why they've never heard of it before. The custom- ers aren't always willing to spend money on a repair that they may consider impossible, which makes it touchy for contractors to sell." Van Velsor concedes that infrared may not be the answer to surfaces with bad base materials, but he be- lieves it can be a cost effective and permanent solution for many asphalt surface issues. "Compared to traditional cut and replace methods, infrared requires fewer employees per job, fewer labor hours and a lower fuel costs, whereas a cut-and-replace patch will eventually deteriorate from the edges inwards," he says. "Infrared edges out cold patching techniques as it will outlast the cold patch materials and requires little to no ad- ditional effort." Right now, Ray-Tech is seeing roughly 75 percent of its equip- ment going to contractors, with the remaining 25 percent being bought by government entities. The success of a pilot program at Prince George's County Maryland could offer a boost of interest from the government level. The county began a two-year pilot program for pothole repairs using infrared technology in 2015. Offi- cials opted for the program due to its need to fill potholes in the winter with a system that would be more reliable than cold mix, according July 2016 | EquipmentWorld.com 64 highway contractor | continued Rubbertrax_Equip0216_PG.indd 1 1/7/16 3:13 PM Infrared-heated asphalt is scarified with a rake to begin the rejuvenation process. Image: Ray-Tech Infrared