Tacoma's Sinking Street

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In Tacoma, Washington they are about to undergo a much-needed correction to the substructure of Pacific Avenue, a main stretch in downtown Tacoma. The city is upset that the use of geosynthetic separation and reinforcement wasn't incorporated into the road's 2002 lightrail construction. Geosynthetics will be used now to stop the street from sinking further. Learn more here.;

TTL Wins Award

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Within the Tuscaloosa News' business roundup you'll find TTL Inc.'s 2008 Engineering Excellence Honor Award for its geosynthetic-reinforced load transfer platform work. The design transfers the building loads from compressible soils to a deeper firm foundation. The platform, a first of its kind in Alabama, consists of geosynthetic reinforcement layers and a stone base. The American Council of Engineering Companies of Alabama presented the award. Learn more here.;

Geosynthetics in EC

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Erosion Control magazine's latest issue includes a suite of geosynthetic articles. Carol Brzozowski writes about geocells, geogrid steep-slope reinforcement, and vegetated, geogrid walls; Roberta Baxter covers silt fence and sediment control; and Janis Keating tackles slope erosion and drainage control with blankets and TRMs--including with North American Green's expertise. Learn more here.;

geosynthetica in CE News

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geosynthetica.net's 2008 Education Box project has received a mention in the March issue of CE News. See the piece online in the New & Noteworthy section and learn how we're working to improve undergraduate geosynthetic education. A version for practicing engineers may be developed too. Learn more here.;

Student Seeks Help

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Abdullah-Al-Hussain, a student in civil engineering in Khulna University of Engineering & Technology KUET), Bangladesh, is researching the use of geosnthetics for embankment slope protection. Readers of geosynthetica who might have project information you can share with him are encouraged to email him directly. Learn more here.;

Geosynthetic Data

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When you need to access and compare geosynthetic data, go to geosindex.com. The site allows you to view only those selection criteria fields you need, highlight the products that interest you, and track them as you sort high-low or low-high on the data. Also, geosindex.com includes extensive distribution information on where you can call for geosynthetic acquisition information. Check it out. Learn more here.;

CE Marking Certification

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Strata Systems, Inc. announced that its high tenacity geogrids and other soil reinforcement products have been issued a CE marking certification. CE is a mandatory European marking for certain product groups to indicate conformity with the essential health and safety requirements set out in European Directives.

Old Wall Collapses

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A retaining wall made of steel mesh and "old fashioned lime cement" has collapsed along the shore at Pay Beach near Oak Bluffs in Massachusetts' Martha's Vineyard area. Officials are scrambling to repair the road and seaside wall ahead of the popular beach season. They have appealed for "some good advice." We suggest they start this time with more modern design: geosynthetic reinforcement! Learn more here.;

International Journal Launches

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In the latter half of 2007, J. Ross Publishing launched the International Journal of Geotechnical Engineering. Braja M. Das serves as the quarterly publication's editor-in-chief. Issues in the journal will address foundations, geosynthetics, retaining structures, slope stability and much more. Learn more at the publisher's website. Learn more here.;

Dundee Meets Tonight

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Dundee Township, Michigan officials will meet tonight, February 12, to discuss road improvement plans. Among the city's interests: whether road fabrics or geotextile separators might help improve both road performance and long-term maintenance costs. Learn more here.;

Mining Development Costs

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The spike in demand for (and profit from) minerals and precious metals has caused a furious number of mining projects to be pushed. The environmental management costs--liners, erosion control, etc.--have contributed more as the scope of these mining sites expand; but a far greater cost crunch lies in the global competition for mining equipment and labor. There are shortages of both. Learn more here.;

Reid Says Government Responsible

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Senate majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said on Thursday that the federal government is responsible for the Fernley Canal break near Reno, Nevada. The break flooded a couple square miles of homes and caused considerable damage. Reid went on to criticize the President's slashing of Bureau of Reclamation (BuRec) project money and warned against the dangers of an aging infrastructure that fails to adjust to modern needs. Learn more here.;

Updating Infrastructure

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A necessary bridge reconstruction project near Cincinnati is reducing cost by including geosynthetic reinforcement in the abutment plan. While the article author is incorrect to call the reinforcement scheme a "new" technology, the project is yet another example of the need to update our infrastructure with modern materials. Learn more here.;

A New Generation

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The British military is building geocellular wall systems at ammunition supply points (ASPs), according to the blog at Aviation Week. the article includes four photos from the ASP construction and describes them as "a new generation in-force protection system". Learn more here.;

Renewing Reunion

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Geotextiles are key to the construction of 33.7 km of highway on the Indian Ocean island of La Réunion. Geotextile-formed embankments provide a platform for the road way. A face of volcanic stone will be added to the embankments. Read the article about the project and the manufacturing story to geotextiles here. Learn more here.;

NA Green on Top

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North American Green's HydraCX2 Cotton Fiber Reinforced Matrix has been named one of Better Roads magazine's Top 50 Rollouts of 2007. North American Green manufacturers a number of erosion control products for slopes, channels and other needs. HydraCX is part of the company's new HydraMatriCx line. See the write up in Fibre2Fashion or the Top 50 in Better Roads. Learn more here.;

Community Standards

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Gatlinburg, Tennessee is like many communities in that it is so tired of and concern with erosion and soil stability from new development that it is setting barriers to retaining wall and slope heights. The community is also to decide on vegetation that may be combined with walls. While those responsible for setting the benchmarks say changes may be made, an engineering review process will be needed. Learn more here.;

Reinforced Granular Columns

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The corrected proof of Cho-Sen Wu and Yung-Shan Hong's article "The behavior of a laminated reinforced granular column" is available through ScienceDirect. The article comes from the journal Geotextiles and Geomembranes. Wu and Hong are professors from the Civil Engineering Department of Tamkang University in Taiwan. Learn more here.;

Fernley Canal Mystery

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No one in Fernley, Nevada is yet sure about what caused a breach in the canal's earthen wall. The flood caused significant damage to the town. The US Bureau of Reclamation (BuRec) has indicated a cause may not be discovered; but that what is for sure is that the canal will be repaired with stronger materials and a more modern design. The precise design has not been selected yet. Learn more here.;

A Failure to Communicate

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In Palmyra, Maine the city has asked contractors to rebid a road reconstruction process. Three miles of roads are to be rebuilt on geosynthetics and gravel, but the bids the contractors submitted showed significant confusion as to who would provide the gravel and what sort of geotextile would be needed. Geosynthetics are designed for specific functions and situations. The city has wisely put the contractors on the same page. Learn more here.;

India and INDA

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The government of India and INDA, a nonwovens industry association, are teaming up to organize nonwovens and geotextile workshops. The aim is to improve the technical textile knowledge base in the country. Learn more here.;

Specifying Geotextiles

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geosindex.com lists geosynthetic data and it's free to access. Registration is never requested. For a sample of what the site provides, check out the geotextile data. The interactive table is sortable and users can choose what criteria fields they would like to see, such as CBR Puncture, NTPEP, and tensile strength. Questions on how to use the site or how to list your products? Contact us. Learn more here.;

Owens Corning S&A News

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Per European regulatory remedies required to finalize Owens Corning's acquisition of Saint-Gobain's reinforcements and composite fabrics businesses, the company has agreed to sell composites plants in Belgium and Norway. Learn more here.;

Hidden Costs

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Evaluating soils is a tricky business, as Winston-Salem officials have found out. An additional $830,000 was added to the end of a road-widening project, largely due to the need for unplanned drainage and erosion control operations. The upfront soil analysis missed the trouble zones, and the city's lack of month-to-month project oversight led to the surprise bill. North Carolina recently toughened its EC rules. Learn more here.;

Park Place

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Will Delury Square in Manhattan get a new park? Only if a landownership group gets a couple assurances: one, teenagers will be discouraged from congregating; two, a sinkhole will be fixed. While officials say they can do little about the teenagers (who apparently use a nearby Burger King), they are planning to correct settling soil with geotextiles. Learn more here.;
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