January-February 2022 - 16

RUNWAY MAINTENANCE
Construction was
done in phases, with
a 48-hour closure to
both start and end
the process.
MEAD & HUNT
off 4 inches nightly and paved it back
in 2-inch lift staggering out joints, " he
continued.
As they milled off the runway, Piper
said soft spots were discovered, resulting
in sections of the runway needing to
be reinforced.
" We had some pumping starting to
THE POSSIBILITIES OF POLYMER
AUTHOR WALKER JAROCH
Kwik Bond Polymers was founded over
36 years ago, with a goal of developing
a product that was better than concrete
- offering more durability and longevity.
Kwik Bond PPC 1121 was the result, and
as Bobby Scarpitto, Kwik Bond's upper
Midwest regional manager, points out, the
product has so far withstood the test of
time - literally.
" [Kwik Bond's founders] actually were
part of the installation of the first bridge
deck, which is still in existence today. So,
36+ years later, the first bridge deck that
was done with this technology is still in
existence, still operating and still has a
great surface finish, " Scarpitto said.
PPC 1121 is " near-permanent, " Scarpitto
added. It can be used for both patching
and repairing surfaces and as an overlay.
Essentially, it is the same resin technology
used to make boats, countertops and
camper shells, but with more engineering
behind it.
Kwik Bond is used often for road repair
by state departments of transportation
(DOTs). " We're in 46 states, we're working
with a lot of people, cities, counties,
DOTs, all the likes, some airports, " he
said.
Scarpitto said he's started the process
with the FAA to turn PPC 1121 into a
runway overlay someday. That, he said is
his goal and dream.
In the meantime, it's been used for
the departure lanes at LAX and the
Dreamliner parking at San Francisco
International Airport, among numerous
other projects.
" One of the claims to fame is you can
return to traffic in almost any temperature
in just under two hours or just at two
hours, " Scarpitto said. " I've done it as low
as minus 32 and as high as 120 degrees.
And these are deck temperatures, not
ambient temperatures. So, it has a broad
working range. And again, the cure rate is
determined by chemistry, not by ambient
temperatures. "
The process to use the polymer starts
by sawing out the cracked or damaged
area of concrete. After all the damaged
concrete is removed, a primer is applied
to the remaining good concrete, creating
the root system of the polymer. PPC 1121 is
then applied and finished like traditional
concrete, using even the same tools.
Finally, a small amount of sand is used
on the top surface to create a weather
surface. Then it is left to cure.
" Through resin technology and through
resin chemistry, we add a promoter and
a catalyst to it, " Scarpitto said. " You have
about 30 minutes to work this material,
and then it starts its crosslinking or
chemical process. It's not only bonding to
the concrete below it and beside it, but
it's also turning into hard plastic, is the
best way to describe it. "
After it's applied, Scarpitto said traffic can
return to the surface in as little as two
hours.
" It has about a 7,000 PSI rating. As far as
concrete goes, that's extremely tough. It
also has a low modulus of elasticity so it
is flexible. It looks, acts and sounds and
feels like concrete, " he said, adding that
it expands and contracts the same as the
surrounding concrete, as well. " We're
impervious to salts, we're impervious
to chlorides. So, you can throw all the
chemicals you want at it to keep snow off.
All the oils and fuels that spill on top of
this material are really going to have no
net effect to it. "
The future of Kiwk Bonds is using it for an
entire runway, Scarpitto hopes.
" I think probably the biggest thing that I
need is an open mind and the opportunity
to present this material. We make an
offer to all DOTs and this offer stands for
airports as well. I like to affectionately
call it the 1 cubic yard challenge. I give
the DOT or an airport a cubic yard of
material for free. I come in and train their
maintenance people on how to mix and
place this material.
" Part of my job also is traveling around as
a technical trainer, and I come in and train
them on how to use this material, and
then simply wait and see what it does.
We're not asking for anything. We're not
asking for an order today, but watch and
see what the material does and learn
what we know, and I'll make a believer
out of any airport or DOT that allows
me the opportunity for the challenge, "
Scarpitto said.
happen. And so, they actually had to
mill the rest of that off, take up some
soil and then put down and re-compact,
and then rebuild that in a small section,
but those were not significant obstacles, "
he said.
On the lighting side, SBP went form
incandescent to LED runway lighting.
" We replaced our entire runway
circuit and all the fixtures, all the
isolation transformers, there was new
conduit placed. So we trenched in new
conduit, new cans. In certain locations,
we had to re-utilize the crossing points
under our connector taxiways, " Piper
said. " We ended up with the all new
runway lights. They pulled all new
conductors from the home run all the
way from the vault, where our constant
current regulator is , all the way out and
replaced all the conductors out there,
around the runway. "
Altogether, the work came to
roughly $13.4 million, and Piper said
they came in slightly under budget.
Ultimately, he attributed the success
of the project to their use of CMAR.
" Using CMAR, when you have a
level of complexity, at least from my
perspective, that we did from the logistics
on the phasing standpoint, that was
key to having CMAR on board, having
the contractor on board through the
design phase. I think that was really key
to really help us phase the project in
the way that they could accomplish the
work. And we can still keep the runway
operational. It was a key component of
allowing us to get this done and having
it go so smoothly, " said Piper.
" I would just really echo the CMAR
process, " added Souza. " All airports
have really tight scheduling issues with
all the operations going on. Bringing
a contractor on board early and being
able to vet all the options and really pick
the best one for each airport I think is
a big advantage. " 
16 \ AIRPORT BUSINESS / JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022
January-February 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January-February 2022
