18 June 2008

Tayset® - A greener shade of black

Scottish local authority contractor Tayside Contracts is about to launch a new product that will help tackle the maintenance backlog on the nation's roads, boost recycling efforts and bring important environmental savings.

TAYSET® is a new asphalt paving system which has been developed through a three-year Knowledge Transfer Partnership between Tayside Contracts and the University of Dundee, with additional input from specialist bitumen manufacturers Nynas, who operate a Dundee refinery.

This new asphalt paving system is made from recycled construction waste and is capable of producing financial savings of over £6 million per year when compared to traditional asphalts.

In addition, the production process, described as providing a "greener shade of black", could lead to annual CO2 savings of 17,160 tonnes - enough to fill an Olympic sized swimming pool 3800 times over.

The product is to be launched by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable growth, John Swinney, who said that Tayset offers numerous benefits to Scotland.

"It recycles construction waste, the unique production process emits less carbon and it is cheaper than traditional materials.

"The development of Tayset has been a hugely successful collaboration between our world class universities and industry, and I wish Tayside Contacts success in rolling out this new, more environmentally friendly product" said Mr Swinney.

The system was first developed in the laboratories at the University's Concrete Technology Unit and then tested on-site by Tayside Contracts.

Tayside Contracts managing director Iain Waddell said that the aim had been to develop a sustainable, low cost, low carbon, recycled road paving system.

This, he said, would ease pressure on Council maintenance budgets, while offering a greener, cost effective solution which performs as well as traditional asphalts.

"Scotland produces around 7.2 million tonnes of construction waste annually, which has the potential to be recovered to supply market demand for aggregates. Approximately 500,000 tonnes of this is excavated asphalt, which has the potential to be recycled into much higher value products.

"As a producer, supplier and end user of road construction materials we have been recycling construction and demolition wastes for over 10 years, initially producing low value fill materials.

"More recently, since 2003, Tayside Contracts has incorporated small percentages of recycled material into their traditional hot mixed asphalts, with the 10-15% recycled content governed by existing industry standards.

"This new application provides a significantly higher value to waste materials and eases pressure on virgin aggregates by utilising all available bituminous waste.

"The Aggregates Levy, which is a tax on the quarrying of stone from virgin sources, now accounts for about 30% of the cost of quarried stone and is set to increase annually.

"The other constituents of road asphalt production are bitumen, heating oil and electricity and with oil price increases of around 60% over the past year this has been a major driver in developing the process".

Mr Waddell went on to say that the main commercial driver had been to recycle 100% of the bitumen and aggregate content within waste products, further contributing to the company's zero waste target.

The initial development and testing of the recipe for the cold-mix asphalt was carried out at the Concrete Technology Unit at the University of Dundee.

To accomplish the desired percentage researchers had to develop the technique of mixing at ambient temperatures (cold mix) recycling for Scottish conditions.

Dr Moray Newlands from the Concrete Technology Unit said, "The challenge has been to develop a material which has the credentials of being environmentally sound whilst having the resilience to withstand the harsh environmental conditions of the Scottish climate. Our Unit's experience in sustainable construction and materials performance has been instrumental in understanding and developing the technology appropriately."

The concept of cold recycling of asphalt is not a new one - with Scandinavian and Baltic states using the technique for many years. The process is also well established in parts of the USA and trials have been carried out more recently by the Highways Agency in the south of England.

In developing a product to suit Scottish conditions, there were significant challenges, including high rainfall and frequent freeze / thaw cycles, the make up and shape of the stone, suitability of the road generated waste, acceptance of the product by clients, and the potential market.

The business case to develop the product was approved in 2005 and the Knowledge Transfer Partnership (funded by the Scottish Government and the Technology Strategy Board) was established.

"The initial research phase has now been completed and several successful live trial sites are operational in three local authority networks," said Mr Waddell.

"Transport Scotland, the organisation responsible for the trunk road and motorway network, and two major utility companies have also shown interest.

"The product is now ready to make a significant change to road surfacing in Scotland" he said.

Note to editors
Tayside Contracts
Tayside Contracts is a commercially based local authority contracting organisation providing catering, cleaning, roads maintenance, vehicle maintenance and winter maintenance throughout the Tayside area of Scotland.

Tayside Contracts is the commercial trading arm of Angus, Dundee City and Perth and Kinross Councils. It operates under a Joint Committee comprising of elected members from each constituent council. The organisation has a wide range of public and private sector clients, employs approximately 2,500 people, and operates out of over 300 establishments.

Tayside Contracts services the many and varied needs of Angus, Dundee City and Perth and Kinross Councils, covering tasks as varied as supplying school and welfare meals, cleaning buildings and maintaining roads. Demand for the services offered increases year on year, and we consistently deliver the highest standards.
www.tayside-contracts.co.uk.

Tayside Contracts - environmental activities and benefits
Tayside Contracts are constantly aware of their contribution to the environment, and have been involved in a number of environmental activities. During 1995-2000, we developed a process to treat and recycle heavily contaminated waste water from road drainage systems. The project won third place in the UK Green Apple awards and went on to first place in the Vision in Business Enterprise Scotland (VIBES) awards in 2001. The three Tayside Councils have saved many millions over the years and the process is now used widely within the UK and beyond.

The Government's Economic Strategy has clearly defined five strategic objectives for both public and private businesses to aspire to. Tayside Contracts is realigning its business plan to assist the three constituent Councils in achieving these targets. We are confident that the Tayset project has made a significant contribution to all five objectives, and will continue to do so.

Facts
Assuming all available asphalt planings were used in this process, there is the potential to produce an estimated 715,000 tonnes of cold mix asphalt annually within Scotland.

Estimated CO2 savings could reach 17,160 tonnes, during production, compared with traditional asphalts. To put this into context - the volume of CO2 saved would be enough to fill an Olympic sized swimming pool 3800 times over.

Advantages

• Environmental benefits realised through reduced CO2 emissions and energy consumption
• Assists in the conservation of virgin materials and landfill
• New material can be recycled many times over
• Offers an extended storage life, no waste generated
• Health and safety issues addressed - no heat or emissions produced.

Note: Information on recent case studies can be provided by Grant Milne, Tayside Contracts (see contact details below)

University of Dundee - Civil Engineering
The Division of Civil Engineering at the University of Dundee is one of the UK's most successful departments in research and teaching. It has been rated top for civil engineering research in Scotland in the last two national Research Assessment Exercises (equal 6th in the UK) and has been consistently rated one of the top 3 departments in the UK for Civil Engineering degrees as determined by national league tables compiled by The Independent (2nd), Guardian (3rd) and Times (3

Nynas
Nynas is a different kind of oil company. We use oil to create sustainable value. Our business is specialised oil applications and within our field we're a world leader. We have over 800 employees, we maintain production facilities in Europe, North and South America and have offices in some 30 countries. All this generates a € 2 billion turnover and stable growth. In order to meet changing needs and demands, we work closely with our customers to continually develop oil's unique possibilities. That's what we call - Taking oil further.
www.nynas.com.

Venue: Collace Quarry, Collace, by Kinrossie, near Perth, PH2 6JB

For further information contact:
Press enquiries:
Viv Collie (contractor to Tayside Contracts)
Tel: 07977 510 435
E mail: vivien.collie@btconnect.com.

Photographs from the event can be provided by :
Alan Richardson (www.pix-ar.co.uk)
Mobile: 07831413094
Tel: 01382 228956
Email: alan@pix-ar.co.uk.

Product enquiries:
Grant Milne, Quarry Manager, Tayside Contracts, Collace Quarry, Collace by Kinrossie, Perthshire, PH2 6JB, Tel: 01821 650222, E mail grant.milne@tayside-contracts.co.uk.

Corporate Enquiries:
Iain Waddell, Managing Director, Tayside Contracts, Contracts House, Dundee, DD3 8SS
Tel: 01382 812721

For media enquiries contact:
Roddy Isles
Head, Press Office
University of Dundee
Nethergate Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384910
E-MAIL: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk