Ames Engineering delivers for Federal Highway Administration
Ames Engineering delivers for Federal Highway Administration on project aimed at improving highway smoothness nationwide
Ames, IA, May 29, 2013 – Ames Engineering, a leader in the development of pavement profiling and smoothness measurement, recently completed a Federal Highway Administration Long Term Pavement Performance program (LTPP) project aimed at helping states make decisions that will lead to better performing and more cost-effective pavements.
The LTPP initiative identified Ames Engineering as the firm of choice in January, 2012, to provide high-speed inertial profiling equipment for collecting longitudinal pavement profile and surface macrotexture data. After a year of development, production, and testing, the LTPP program recently received four state-of-the-art data collection vehicles from Ames Engineering.
“From a technical standpoint, we knew we were well-equipped to serve the needs of the LTPP,” said Mark Leichty, Chief Engineer of Ames Engineering. Leichty also noted that, “Moving the project from concept to design and production required a great deal of innovation. We upgraded the technological capabilities of our systems and hardware, and developed an updated software program to enhance data collection and interpretation.”
Founded in 1996, Ames Engineering has served the highway construction industry with in-process tools to measure and evaluate pavement profile and smoothness in new road construction. The successful execution of this federal project aligns the firm with the emerging needs of individual states seeking to assess the conditions of their roads and prioritize rehabilitation and maintenance projects.
“It was a total team effort,” said John Maurer, President of Ames Engineering. “Completion of this project validates our position as a market leader in the manufacturing and design of inertial profilers,” added Maurer.
The four high-speed inertial profilers are each equipped with three profiling lasers and two texture lasers mounted on the front of heavy-duty utility vans. The lasers and are linked to an on-board computer system through an ethernet enabled network, allowing operators to collect large amounts of data at speeds of up to 70 mph. The mobile workstations installed inside the vehicles include a power rack, laser printer, and space for personnel to add devices.
Final delivery occurred in College Station, TX, in mid-April when LTPP officials tested and certified the profilers. The Ames Engineering team spent time with the new equipment operators and LTPP leadership, providing training and support on the system. “It was fun to see it all come together,” said Dustin Reid, Ames Engineering’s Production Chief. “We worked on this for the better part of a year. Demonstrating the equipment and educating the folks that will be using our tools in the field was very gratifying.”
About Ames Engineering
Based in Ames, Iowa, Ames Engineering is a technology company focused on process improvement and technological innovation for the road construction and paving industry. At the forefront in the development of sensor technology for pavement measurements, Ames Engineering has worked side by side with the paving industry and government agencies to develop systems and tools that yield exceptional data accuracy and performance. Driven by a problem-solving culture, Ames Engineering specializes in road profiling and measuring equipment, including profilographs, texture profilers, texture meters, and distance measurement instruments. To find out more visit amesengineering.com or call 1-800-205-6355.