Reed Ryan Joins APA as Executive Director

Reed Ryan Joins APA as Executive Director

Reed Ryan has joined the Asphalt Pavement Alliance (APA) as its new Executive Director.  Reed previously was the Executive Director for the Utah Asphalt Pavement Association (UAPA) and recently finished his term as the President of the State Asphalt Pavement Association’s (SAPAs) Executive Committee.  Reed’s extensive experience, especially his lauded establishment and leadership at UAPA, will be a tremendous asset to the APA and its partners.

You can view Reed’s full profile here.

The Asphalt Pavement Alliance is a coalition of the Asphalt Institute, the National Asphalt Pavement Association, and the State Asphalt Pavement Associations.  WAPA is one of the 41 SAPAs operating across the USA.

(Photo Credit: NAPA/APA)

2023 WAPA Paving Award Winners Honored

2023 WAPA Paving Award Winners Honored

2023 Paving Awards winners were celebrated at WAPA’s 69th Annual Meeting on November 3rd.  A wide range of “Best of the Best” awards were presented to Washington state’s premier asphalt paving companies alongside the private sector and public owners of the projects.

The public works paving awards were graciously presented by Doug McCormick, P.E., the 2023 President Elect of the Washington State Association of County Engineers (WSACE), Loren Behm, 2023 President of the American Public Works Association of Washington (APWA-WA) and Roger Millar, P.E., our state’s Secretary of Transportation.  Scott Willms of Shamrock Paving, WAPA’s 2023 President, led the awards ceremony and presented the awards for Commercial, Innovative, Heavy/ Industrial and Intermodal paving.

This year’s Carl Minor Award (the highest rated public works paving project of the year) was awarded to WSDOT Contract 9759 – US 2 – Davenport to Reardan PavingTom Brasch, P.E. and Alex Proszek, P.E. led WSDOT’s project management team and Inland Asphalt Paving Inc. of Spokane (a CRH company) was the General Contractor and self-performed the production and paving of over 17,000 tons of top-quality hot mix asphalt, “magically” transforming the ride on this stretch of highway.  The job was also the smoothest measured ride of all the projects honored at this year’s paving awards banquet.

Carl Minor Award Winners 2023 from WSDOT Eastern Region & Inland Asphalt Paving Company 

 

The full list of award winners, for the past five years, are provided below:

2023 Annual Paving Awards

2022 Annual Paving Awards

2021 WAPA Awards – WAPA/WSACE/APWA Paving Awards and WSDOT/WAPA Paving Awards

2020 WAPA Paving Awards

2019 WAPA Awards – 2019 WAPA Paving Awards Catalog – Web Version

The presentation that accompanied the awards is available here: 2019 Paving Awards Presentation Slideshow

2018 WAPA Awards2018 WSDOT-WAPA Paving Awards

The PowerPoint slide show highlighting each project is available here: 2018 WAPA Paving Awards PPT Presentation

 

Try Asphalt’s New Chat Bot! – Hey NAPA

Try Asphalt’s New Chat Bot! – Hey NAPA

The National Asphalt Pavement Assocation (NAPA) has added a new AI feature to quickly answer asphalt pavement and production questions with detail that may have been difficult to collect in the past.  Try the artificial intelligence advantage when you have in-depth questions about asphalt! Just click on Hey NAPA to begin.

WSDOT Names New State Pavement Engineer

WSDOT Names New State Pavement Engineer

October 13, 2023 – Chris Christopher, the Director of the WSDOT Construction Division announced today that Mohamad Nimeri, P.E., Ph.D will join WSDOT as its State Pavement Engineer on November 1st.  Chris’ announcement is shown below:

Subject: WSDOT State Pavement Engineer

After a competitive recruitment process, I’m pleased to announce that Mohamed Nimeri has accepted the position of State Pavement Engineer for WSDOT.  Mohamed currently serves as Airport Managing Engineer at King County International Airport/ Boeing Field (KCIA) and has an extensive background in pavement engineering, 19 years of civil engineering experience, a proven track record of leadership and a strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.  He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Nevada, Reno (with an emphasis in Pavement, Materials, and Geotechnical Engineering).

Mohamed loves spending time with his family, his wife Karima and 4 lovely children, Lina, Shahd, Ali, and Omar. He is a huge fan of soccer (called football in some places) and he likes playing it in all forms, whether that be 11-a-side, 5-a-side, video games (FIFA), foosball, and any virtual form. Mohamed also likes listening to Audiobooks and Podcasts (Gladwell and Freakonomics fan), hiking, basketball, and volleyball. He enjoys meeting new people and learning about new cultures.

We are looking forward to Mohamed joining the team starting Nov 1, 2023.  I would also like to extend my sincere appreciation to both Karen Strauss and Karen Carlie for all the great work they did in leading the State Pavement Office over the last year.  Please join me in thanking them for their outstanding efforts, and welcoming Mohamed into this new role.

WAPA welcomes Mohamed in his new role, and we look forward to working together as we face the challenges of moving our highway system into a state of good repair, which benefits the safety and mobility of our citizens and the efficiency of our economy.

2020 & 2021 Event Links

Past (2020 – 2021) Events

WAPA/ WSDOT Joint Training Sessions – March 3rd, 4th & 5th, 2020 – Conference Presentations

WAPA Annual Meeting & WAPA/WSDOT/APWA/WSACE 2020 Paving Awards Presentations – November 12th & 13th, 2021 – A Virtual Event –  Meeting Presentations and Paving Awards link

WAPA/WSDOT 34th Annual Joint Training Workshop – A Virtual Conference – Thursday, March 11, 2021 – The presentations released for sharing can be viewed here.

WAPA Annual Meeting & WAPA/WSDOT/APWA/WSACE 2021 Paving Awards Presentations – November 4-5 – Business Meetings & Paving Awards (11/5) – Meeting presentations library –   Annual Meeting Agenda – V10.28

WSDOT Wins APA “By Design” & “By Conversion” Perpetual Pavement Awards Again!

WSDOT Wins APA “By Design” & “By Conversion” Perpetual Pavement Awards Again!

The Asphalt Pavement Alliance (APA – www.driveasphalt.com) has announced its newest awards (2022) for Perpetual Pavements.  New pavements that are designed for a 50-year life and that meet PerRoad design criteria are eligible for the APA Perpetual Pavement By Design award.  Pavements that re-built by adding a new asphalt structure over an existing road, and which meet the 50-year/ PerRoad criteria are eligible for the Perpetual Pavement by Conversion award.  WSDOT won both of these awards for three years running – more than any other state DOT. Congratulations!

The list of the Washington state 2022 APA Awards are here: 2022 PPA WA Press Release FINAL – APA – 3 awards

The list of the Washington state 2021 APA Awards are here: 2021 PPA WA Press Release FINAL. Learn more about Perpetual Pavement Awards at www.driveasphalt.org/awards

There is also a great article about 2020’s Perpetual Pavement by Conversion award winning project published by Roads & Bridges magazine.  View the article here.

All three of 2020’s Perpetual Pavement award winning projects were featured in the September/ October 2021 edition of Asphalt Pavement magazine.  View the article here.

WSDOT Give ‘Em a Brake Summer 2022 Message

WSDOT Give ‘Em a Brake Summer 2022 Message

WSDOT has produced a “start of summer” road worker safety message that we hope will impactful: Watchfor.us this summer and please, Give ’em a Brake when traveling through a work zone!

Other industry safety resources are available.  Try the tools at The Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) at this link.

Plastics in Asphalt – Current State of Practice

Plastics in Asphalt – Current State of Practice

The asphalt industry has a long history of using greenhouse gas reducing materials such as reclaimed asphalt pavement, recycled tire rubber, and more to build ever more sustainable roads. As countries stop importing waste plastics, the question of “What to do with our plastic waste?” has grown. One potential solution is to use recycled plastic in asphalt.

As strong supporters of recycling responsibly, the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA) is working alongside other partners within the asphalt pavement industry and with plastics manufacturers to study the practical feasibility of reusing plastics in asphalt pavements.

NAPA has launched a webpage to showcase the start of our research.  Many questions remain related to the long-term performance impact of plastic in asphalt pavements, the true environmental impacts, potential material cost increases, worker health & safety, operational feasibility, and the eventual re-recyclability of asphalt mixtures that incorporate plastic in “first generation” plastics enhanced asphalt mixtures.

The NAPA plastics in asphalt dedicated webpage is located here.  NAPA most current publication on the state of knowledge regarding plastics in asphalt is provided here.

COVID-19 Response Resources & Reports

COVID-19 Response Resources & Reports

WAPA recognizes the impact the COVID-19 (aka novel coronavirus) is having on your business, employees, and families. We know the safety and health of your employees is your priority. During these challenging times, WAPA strives to serve as a trusted resource for your company and employees.   A central location for resources for the asphalt industry is being hosted at the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA) website.  The NAPA COVID-19 launch page is HERE.

NAPA is working daily, in conjunction with the State Asphalt Pavement Associations (SAPAs), to provide key resources gathered from around the country.

During this time of unprecedented uncertainty, WAPA urges you to stay informed, stay healthy and stay safe.

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) suspended nearly all highway and ferry system contract work as of March 26, 2020 after the Governor elected to not designate highway construction work an “essence service” during the duration of his “Stay home, stay safe” executive order.   Previously, on March 19th, WSDOT instituted a COVID-19 Response Plan directive.  All active WSDOT contracts require Contractor/ Subcontractor derived and approved COVID-19 health and safety plans to be approved and in place for construction work to resume.  Contractors should continue to work with their WSDOT project office contacts to review/ refine and update these plans so there will be minimal conflict and maximum COVID safety on active project sites.

On April 24, 2020, the Governor signed Proclamation 20-25, defining a path for projects with low-risk activities to re-start.  Low risk basically means that work can be performed safely with 6-feet of physical distancing in concert with COVID-19 appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) – Key documents and resources specific to Washington state and Phase 1 rules are available HERE.  Included  in this link are letters from WAPA supporting the re-start highway construction projects and supporting federal funding increases for surface transportation construction.

The Washington State Dept. of Labor and Industries published its Washington-Coronavirus-Hazard-Considerations-for-Employers-5-2-2020 (1) – Mask Matrix.  This “face covering matrix” came after a lot of discernment by L & I.  It is a good reference for which types of face mask will be needed by crews at different levels of potential COVID-19 exposure.  This should be a key reference going forward as road construction crews continue to work under COVID safety protocols.

COVID-19 site specific health and safety work plans need to address key items such as pre-shift screening, physical distancing (6 feet means 6 feet), PPE and minimizing physical interchanges (no contact tickets, virtual meetings etc.).  There are good templates of  COVID-19 health and safety plans posted on the NAPA website.  Washington state phase designated COVID-19 guidelines need to be incorporated into any plans for construction in our state.

Phase 2 guidance for construction was published on May 15, 2020.  The COVID Phase 2 Job Site Requirements – 5.15.2020 outline the requirements for COVID site safety once a county has been designated as being eligible to move to Phase 2 opening status.  The Governors COVID19 Phase2 Construction Memo 5.15.2020 summarizes this phase of activity.

In Washington state we are relying on the standards included in the Phase 1 & Phase 2 COVID Job Site Requirements and the Dept. of Labor and Industries “Mask Matrix” (see links above).  OSHA has also issued COVID related guidance that includes some additional information that should be helpful in planning for construction crew protection.

Another source of information, targeted specifically to the public works community, is available at the American Public Works Association (APWA) resource webpage titled “Coronavirus and the Public Works Community“.

UPDATE: WSDOT and state highway Contractors have been very effective in working safely and in protecting our employees.  WSDOT issued this report – COVID 19 Response – for state highway projects built in 2020.  As a work sector, the highway contracting COVID infection rates is approx. 20% (2.8 per thousand) of the comparable statewide infection rate (14.4 per thousand).

There are no anticipated work stoppages for WSDOT highway construction contracts in 2021 PROVIDED that Contractors renew/ refresh their COVID-19 site specific health and safety work plan when construction projects begin and adhere to the plan.  Meetings/ interactions with WSDOT will remain largely virtual through at least July 2021 and will be assessed throughout the season as COVID-19 statistics are assessed by the Governor.

New WAPA Associate Members for 2022

New WAPA Associate Members for 2022

WAPA welcomes its three newest Associate Member companies:  HaulHub Technologies, Inc., Surface Tech LLC and Hot Mix Pavers Inc.  

HaulHub represents one of the most innovative tech tool providers in the industry, especially in the e-ticketing application space

www.HaulHub.com

Surface Tech LLC specializes in fiber additives for hot mix asphalt pavements.

www.Surface-Tech.com

Hot Mix Pavers is a second generation/ locally owned Seattle based paving company servicing all sectors of the HMA paving market.

www.HotMixPavers.com

A list of all of WAPA’s fabulous Associate Members are on-line at the Associate Members section of our website (https://www.asphaltwa.com/associate-members/)

Welcome to our new WAPA Associate Members!

 

Asphalt Pavements Perform! APA & FHWA Videos

Asphalt Pavements Perform! APA & FHWA Videos

When it comes to flexibility, asphalt pavements provide Performance for a Lifetime.

Watch this quick APA video highlighting the sustainability, innovation, value and flexibility of today’s asphalt pavements!

And please also review these three recent FHWA videos covering Asphalt Pavement Principles (select the topic in the upper right hand corner of the video block).

 

 

Women of Asphalt Features Several WAPA Team Members

Women of Asphalt Features Several WAPA Team Members

Just Released Podcast – Women in Leadership Roles – FHWA & State DOTs –

Where We Belong kicks off our phenomenal series on women in leadership roles within state DOTs and the FHWA. In the first podcast, hosts Amy Miller and Tracie Schlich sit down with Nicole Nason, Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to discuss her recently confirmed position, the growing number of women in leadership positions at the Department of Transportation and how women in male dominated industries often reflect the unique, resilient qualities of asphalt.

Women of Asphalt – 20 to Watch in 2020!

Please visit the national 20 to Watch in 2020 campaign from the Women of Asphalt highlighting some of the many women who thrive in their asphalt industry careers included two (2) women (Karen Deal of Lakeside Industries and Beth Duffus of Granite Construction) working at WAPA Member companies.  The entire set of  profiles can be viewed at the Women of Asphalt website.

Karen Deal – Lakeside Industries

Beth Duffus – Granite Construction

Asphalt Pavement Alliance Western & Pacific Coast Regional Council Blog On-Line

Asphalt Pavement Alliance Western & Pacific Coast Regional Council Blog On-Line

The Asphalt Pavement Alliance (APA) has begun publishing its Western / Pacific Coast Regional Council Blog, The Western & Pacific Smooth Ride Sentinel, featuring articles and resources targeted to this APA region.  You can find the blog at https://apapacific.com/

Jon Young, the Executive Director for the Hawaii Asphalt Pavement Industry (HAPI) is the current leader of the Western / Pacific Coast Council.  Please contact Jon with asphalt pavement related articles of interest from the region.

The APA will soon have its four regional councils for the USA in place.  As part of its continuing refinement of advocacy across the country, the Pacific Coast Regional Council approved the addition of  several western states to its regional effort at the 2019 NAPA Annual Meeting, thus forming the Western/ Pacific Regional Council.

2024 WAPA & Industry Events Calendar

2024 Upcoming Events

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36th Annual WSDOT/ WAPA Joint Training Sessions – March 11th (Homewood Suites by Hilton, Lynnwood), 12th (Bid Bend Community College, Moses Lake) and 13th (Great Wolf Lodge, Centralia) – Registration and Credit Authorization Form / 2024 Joint Training Agenda

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World of Asphalt – March 25-27 – Nashville, TN – Learn more at www.worldofasphalt.com

WAPA Mid-Year Meeting – May 15-17 – The Resort at Coeur d’ Alene, Coeur d’ Alene, ID

Perpetual Pavement Conference – October 28-30 – Louisville, KY

WAPA Annual Meeting & WAPA/WSDOT/APWA/WSACE 2023 Statewide Paving Awards Banquet – November 13-16 – Bellevue Hyatt Regency Hotel, Bellevue WA

2025 Early Event Planning

NAPA Annual Meeting – February 2-5 – Maui

Why Asphalt?

The answers to the question “Why Asphalt” are numerous and varied.  For those of you that would like to explore the top reasons for why asphalt pavements constitute the vast majority of paved roads in America, we’re created this short summary document:

THE MANY BENEFITS OF ASPHALT