HAUC recommends further tests on single-drum rollers

Further tests on single-drum rollers have been recommended by the working party of the Highway Authorities and Utilities Committee (HAUC) to gauge their suitability for meeting its reinstatement compaction specification.
According to HAUC working party chairman Alan Rainford, a statement will shortly be published on its website outlining the completed test results. It will state that single-drum rollers have achieved the required compaction levels.
However, he said further tests are needed to iron out a few doubts and make sure everything is 100% satisfactory.
"Manufacturers have been informed," Rainford said. "But the tests won't happen until funding has been sorted out."
The original tests were supervised by the Transport Research Laboratory. They were seen as a temporary stay of execution for the machines to stop them from being outlawed from road reinstatements.
Funding for further testing is not secured, as the two main manufacturers, Terex and Bomag, which jointly provided £40,000 for the original tests, are unwilling to pay any more.
A spokesman for Terex said: "We've already paid for tests that have proven our rollers meet the required standard. There's no way we will be funding more tests."
The manufacturers would like a statement from HAUC as quickly as possible, making it clear that single-drum rollers have met the compaction specification.
"The longer HAUC delays, the more money we lose through customers not buying our kit. We just want it clarified," the Terex spokesman said.
"We won't be paying for more trials, it's a waste of time," said Alan Batty, general manager of Bomag GB. "We just want HAUC to make a clear statement; it's already months overdue."