Colas has recently added to their fleet of 11 Microsurfacing machines.
The new Microsurfacing machine is 4.5m long with a laying box of 2.2m extendable up to 3m wide; this is compared to other applicators which can be up to 12 m in length and laying boxes up to 3.9m.
The new Midi machine is actually a completely refurbished machine that was taken off the road in 2002 due to changes in types of workload. Modern machines tend to be built to cope with larger schemes to achieve higher outputs.
The Midi machine has a 2.5m3 capacity on a rigid chassis twin-steer tractor unit and it is these factors and its smaller size that make it an ideal addition to the Colas Microsurfacing fleet. This machine can cope with smaller urban estate work and tight rural locations and minimise the need for almost all hand lay work.
Colas is receiving more and more enquiries from clients who are looking to move away from surface dressing on estate roads or in urban areas, with tight turning circles and cul-de-sacs, or on small rural roads with restricted access.
The machine is ideal for the Colas Microsurfacing contract in Hertfordshire where the company is currently working on a 900,000m2 program of works, much of which is small estate work with limited access.
This now means Colas has the capacity to complete Microsurfacing in the smallest and tightest of areas along dual carriageways and major trunk roads such as the A1.