Intelligent Compaction / Continuous Compaction Control with Völkel Navigator
- Roller mounted real-time compaction monitoring for earthworks and asphalt layers
- Measures compaction uniformity and coverage
- Retrofit regardless of manufacturer – suitable for use on most roller types
- Increase rates of construction, lower cost, improve quality, reduce risk and reduce your environmental footprint
- Meets Department of Transport and Main Roads Queensland (TMR) PSTS116 Intelligent Compaction – Earthworks & Pavements specification
Compaction is one of the most important processes in pavement construction and, done well, leads to longer lasting pavement performance and reduced maintenance costs. Our clients use Intelligent Compaction to create uniform efficient quantified compaction.
Intelligent Compaction (IC) or Continuous Compaction Control (CCC) refers to the compaction of pavement materials, such as granular soils, cohesive soils, aggregate bases and subbase and asphalt, using vibratory rollers equipped with an integrated stiffness measurement system, an onboard computer reporting system and Global Positioning System (GPS) based mapping.
The Völkel Navigator Intelligent Compaction system includes:
- Pass count tracking
- Pavement response (an indication of stiffness) – optional
- Temperature measurement for asphalt
- QC and QA reporting
Rollers fitted with the Völkel Navigator Intelligent Compaction system:
- Capture a continuous record of the compaction process with colour-coded plots
- Standardise the proof rolling process, overcoming subjective arguments
- Provide real time data synchronisation between rollers – roller operators always have visibility of total e.g. pass count or current ICMV across the operational rollers everywhere on site – all operators have the same view of progress towards the target.
- Offer all in one transparency, analysis, remote access, and documentation
- Help attain high compaction quality and uniformity
To calibrate the material stiffness measurements, Light Weight Deflectometer and Plate Load Test in situ testing methods are typically used.
The Völkel Navigator Intelligent Compaction system can be retrofit, regardless of roller manufacturer and equipment type.
How Intelligent Compaction empowers the roller operator
The Völkel Navigator Intelligent Compaction technology is a game changer providing reliable information on compaction and on-the-fly real time feedback to the operator which helps to:
Avoid over compaction (which can damage compacted material)
- Commonly leads to ~30% increase in rolling productivity with time savings (operator & roller hours), less fuel burn, lower roller maintenance costs
- Eliminating increased material usage due to over compaction – importing additional material can be a major unanticipated project cost
- Avoid under compaction & gaps between passes (which leading to less defects and longer lasting pavement layers)
- Detect soft spots and anomalies and understand compaction uniformity
- Provide 100% coverage – overcoming the issues with a limited number of spot tests for Quality Assurance purposes
- Confidently move on to placement of the next layer (without waiting for traditional test results)
- Understand base layer material uniformity (smart proof rolling) e.g. after asphalt removal, prior to laying fresh asphalt
- Provide better ‘vision’, enabling operators to see a complete picture of the site compaction status and progress towards a target, real time on their cab display – rollers are networked together
- Gamify their work environment, empowering operators by enabling them to deliver better compaction outcomes
- Accelerate operator skill development by providing visual feedback
What does Intelligent Compaction enable?
At a high level, the Völkel Navigator Intelligent Compaction system, well implemented, can lead to increased pavement life and reduced maintenance costs. Intelligent Compaction enables:
- Increased compaction uniformity and reduce the risk of rework
- Overcoming the issues with a limited number of spot tests for Quality Assurance purposes by providing 100% coverage
- Construction verification of design values – providing a link between pavement design parameters (modulus), roller compaction (stiffness / modulus indication) and testing (field and laboratory).
- Better construction ‘as built’ documentation with layer by layer roller pass counts & coverage, pavement response (accelerometer), speed, vibration (amplitude & frequency)
Intelligent Compaction leads to lowering construction costs:
- Enabling continuous placement of material with confidence (without waiting for traditional test results)
- Time savings (operator and roller hours)
- Less fuel burn
- Lower roller maintenance costs
- Eliminating increased material usage due to over compaction – importing additional material can be a major unanticipated project cost
- Reducing financial penalties during asphalt pavement rehabilitation, by smart proof rolling base layer material and understanding uniformity, leading to meeting density requirements for compacted asphalt
- Using Völkel Navigator Intelligent Compaction system in combination with the PANDA Variable Energy DCP and Light Weight Deflectometer, there is potential to increase placed loose layer lift thicknesses with confidence. This is next level, helping to further increase rates of construction, lower cost, improve quality, reduce risk and reduce your environmental footprint.
Currently, the in-situ density of layers is primarily assessed using nuclear density gauge or sand replacement method and using cores extracted from the compacted layer for asphalt. These are destructive methods measuring density, not modulus, that provide very limited coverage.
The Völkel Navigator Intelligent Compaction system meets the Department of Transport and Main Roads Queensland (TMR) PSTS116 Intelligent Compaction – Earthworks & Pavements specification, the first of it’s kind in Australia.
To find out more, Contact Us.
In May 2018, Insitutek organised the first ever one day workshop on Intelligent Compaction in Australia; 
