ACPA Presents 'Excellence' Awards

Several area contractors, owners and engineers were among the winners in the American Concrete Pavement Association's (ACPA) 18th annual 'Excellence in Concrete Pavement Awards' program. The awards recognize industry professionals whose efforts yielded the best pavements in airports, highways, and street and road applications in 2006, as determined by an independent panel of judges.

According to Skokie, Ill.-based ACPA, the awards program cites Gold- and Silver-level projects for quality, efficiency, smoothness, reduced costs, and for minimizing road-user delays.

A Gold-level award for concrete pavement restoration was presented to Costello Southeast Inc. (contractor) and Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (owner/engineer) for restoration of Interstate 65 in Bullitt County, Ky. The project team overcame a number of unforeseen challenges to restore this 52-lane-mile, high-traffic corridor. By coordinating multiple stages to take place simultaneously and revising the traffic control plan, the project was completed ahead of schedule and under budget.

The team of Penhall Co. (contractor) and Missouri Department of Transportation (owner/engineer) was named a co-winner of the Silver-level award for concrete pavement restoration. The team was recognized for the Route 370 project in St. Charles and St. Louis counties in Missouri. According to ACPA, Penhall Co. used state-of-the-art technology in diamond grinding to achieve excellent smoothness on a 12.5-mile stretch of Route 370 in the greater St. Louis metropolitan area. Project work over 39 lane miles included full and partial depth repairs; dowel bar retrofitting; lifting approaches and slabs; and shoulder milling and repairs.

A Silver-level award for divided highways-urban was presented to Fred Weber Inc. (contractor), Missouri Department of Transportation (owner), and HDR Engineering Inc. (engineer) for the Route 367 freeway conversion in St. Louis County, Mo. The project converted Route 367, which previously included outlet roads and at-grade intersections, into an elevated, uninterrupted freeway.

The team of Millstone-Bangert Inc. (contractor), city of St. Charles, Mo.'s Public Works Department (owner), and Kuhlmann Design Group (engineer) was named a Silver-level co-winner in the urban arterials and collectors category. The team was recognized for the North Fifth Street Extension in St. Charles. The project extended Fifth Street 4,892 linear feet to the north, including the construction of a 530-foot-long bridge and a number of aesthetic improvements.

Also named a Silver-level co-winner in the urban arterials and collectors category was the team of The Great Lakes Construction Co. (contractor), Ohio Department of Transportation (owner), and GPD Group (engineer) for ODOT Project 535-03 — S.R. 711 Connector in Youngstown, Mahoning County, Ohio. The project consisted of reconstructing existing roadway, as well as new construction, with concrete pavement.

The American Concrete Pavement Association recognized the Illinois Chapter Inc. — ACPA for its outstanding efforts associated with the reconstruction of Interstate 74 in Peoria, Ill. In presenting its Outstanding Promotional Project/Team Award for 2007, ACPA recognized the chapter's comprehensive and tireless efforts in promoting the largest concrete pavement reconstruction project in downstate Illinois.

Working closely with the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), ACPA's regional office, Illinois Ready Mix Concrete Association, and Concrete Reinforced Steel Institute, the chapter used an open house event to showcase the innovative technology and outreach efforts associated with the project. The open house included sessions on the technologies used in the reconstruction, highlights of the construction processes, aesthetic treatments, a public awareness campaign, and more.

"The number one priority in promotion is partnership," says Randell Riley, P.E., executive director of the Illinois Chapter Inc. — ACPA. "Without our industry partners, and especially our partners at the Illinois DOT District 4, this project would have been impossible."

ACPA presents this honor each year as part of its Distinguished Service Awards program, which recognizes the commitment, focus and achievements of some of the most forward-thinking, innovative and determined professionals in the transportation community, as well as the high quality highways, airports, and streets and local roads they build and rehabilitate.

ACPA presented its Outstanding Promoter Award for 2007 to Gerry Krozel, Prairie Materials Sales Inc. He was recognized for more than 23 years of devotion, passion and leadership, all of which have significantly advanced the concrete pavement industry in Illinois and across the nation.