Grass concrete tiles along A2 service road

Craftsmanship in record time

Along the new service road near the A2 motorway near Roosteren, Grondverzet Richard Palmen recently delivered absolute professional work. In a time frame of just two weeks, the grass concrete tiles on both sides of the new 2-kilometer-long service road were installed with extreme precision. This kind of work is no exception for the company that specializes in installing grass concrete tiles. In fact, Grondverzet Richard Palmen has recently acquired a unique self-propelled road widener that will also come in handy later on this project.

Due to the upcoming widening of the A2 motorway, Boskalis relocated the existing service road near Roosteren. “After positive experiences on previous Boskalis projects, we were asked to realize the widening with grass concrete tiles on both sides of the newly constructed service road,” Palmen says. “To this end, the new asphalt was first cut in at the edges, after which we broke up the strip of about 10 centimeters. Then the cunet was lowered and provided with a layer of setting sand. On this carefully prepared surface, the grass concrete tiles were placed.”

Exceptionally high production

The tiles chosen are 40 by 40 centimeters in size. “In the execution, a mobile excavator and a squeeze truck were used on site. The released materials were transported to a depot, while sand was brought in by trailers from the sand pit. Using a widening machine, the sand was processed and then compacted. Finishing and laying the tiles was largely done mechanically with a mobile crane,” Palmen explained. “With a limited number of people on the job, we managed to achieve an exceptionally high production rate.” This type of work is therefore no exception for Grondverzet Richard Palmen. “Every year we install some 50 to 60 kilometers of grass concrete tiles in a working area stretching from Maastricht to Nijmegen.”

Although the new service road near Roosteren has been completed, another job along the A2 already awaits Grondverzet Richard Palmen. “We have now received an order from Boskalis to widen a service road of about 1,600 meters near Echt. Here a different variant is being used with a larger format tile and a concrete backing for extra strength. We are also using our new 9-ton self-propelled road-widening machine on this project, which automates several operations and enables us to work even faster with a high-quality end result.” To be continued!