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Concrete Pavement Progress
www.acpa.org18
a c p a n e w s
ACPArecently completed its
Airport Pavement
Workshop in the Detroit metropolitan area. The
workshop focused on design, construction of
airport pavements. The workshop also provided
an opportunity to discuss the Federal Aviation
Administration’s (FAA’s) P-501 concrete pavement
specification.
About 60 contractors, owner’s representatives,
engineers, and agency officials gathered for the
three-day training and technology transfer event,
held at the Marriott Detroit Metro Airport in
Romulus, Mich. The event also included a site
visit, where participants had the opportunity
to see the reconstruction of Detroit Airport’s
runway 4L/22R.
“The workshop provided an opportunity for ACPA
members and other participants to interact with
the Federal Aviation Administration,” said Gary
Mitchell, P.E., ACPA’s Vice President of Airports
and Pavement Technology. “The workshop also
gave the participants the opportunity to see how
we interact with the FAA, and to see that the
agency listens to our suggestions.
“The dialogue was awesome,” Mitchell said,
adding, “The discussions focused on FAA’s
expectations, and during the workshop, contrac-
tors had the opportunity to talk about challenges
in meeting those expectations.”
Doug Johnson, Civil Engineer at FAA’s Head-
quarters office, was a presenter in the work-
shop and readily addressed industry concerns.
Johnson is responsible for technical issues related
to airport pavements. He also is responsible for
developing the FAA design and construction
Advisory Circulars.
The significance of this relationship is that ACPA’s
voice is being heard, which is especially impor-
tant now as the FAA is contemplating changes to
the P-501 specification. P-501 can be challenging
for contractors, but this workshop helped clarify
some of the language and also provided the op-
portunity for participants to discuss key issues
and challenges.
Mitchell expressed thanks to the Wayne County
Airport Authority, the FAA, Ajax Paving Indus-
tries, Inc., anACPAmember, and RS&H for their
assistance with and support of the workshop. He
also expressed thanks and appreciation to all the
instructors andother participants in theworkshop.
Mitchell explained ACPA has conducted airport
pavement design and construction workshops
since 2001, and in recent years, has offered the
program about once per year. The workshop has
become increasingly popular among contractors,
airport sponsors, and engineers over the past
few years.
Workshop Focuses on Airpor t Pavement Specifications
ACPA Chairman Steve Jackson (left) and ACPA President & CEO Jerry Voigt (right) were among
the approximately 60 participants in the airport pavement design & construction workshop.
Participants provided positive feedback on the interactive discussions
about the FAA’s P-501 concrete pavement specification, as well as the
full program on pavement design and construction.
Participants had the opportunity to see Ajax Paving Industries reconstructing the Detroit Airport’s runway 4L/22R.
(Left to right) Gary Mitchell, ACPA; Pete Mann, Ajax Paving Industries;
and Jerry Voigt, ACPA, take time for a photo prior to the site visit.
Doug Johnson, FAA (left) and Gary Mitchell, ACPA (right), discuss
the concrete paving during the Detroit Airport site visit.
One of the workshop highlights was the site visit where participants
observed Ajax Paving Industries’ work in reconstructing the Detroit
Airport’s runway 4L/22R.