Industry told to adopt pre-slab fabs
General (Dr) VK Singh (Retd), Minister of State for Road Transport & Highways, has urged the Indian road infrastructure and road construction industry, including the equipment and materials, to come up with innovations that the government will support even at the policy level.
“We have enough expertise, innovative spirit, know-how to make things better and this sector needs it. Indians have a great ability for innovation, but we are somehow not coming out with it. Innovation and experimentation should be encouraged in the industry to bring down the cost,” said General Singh.
“We should focus on lifetime cost-cutting rather than immediate cost-cutting. There is a great scope available. It ensures less road maintenance, while wear and tear come down.
“What we need is to utilize less thickness of cement by using other methodologies to strengthen the concrete and put a thin layer of bitumen to get better riding quality,” General Singh pointed out.
He also urged the industry to adopt pre-slab fabs in which quality is maintained and are standardized while suggesting the industry should find out ways to expand the use of bitumen and not just restrict to road construction.
The industry is the biggest ingredient in spurring the economy, said General Singh while addressing the valedictory session at ‘BITU-CON 2020’ on 11 Sept 2020.
“Things are improving in the economy although it may take some time for complete recovery. The more we construct the better it is going to be for the economy,” said the General, highlighting the sector’s potential and it being profitable.
The industry will collectively work with the government, academia, and businesses to meet such the target, assured Shailesh Pathak, Co-Chairman, FICCI Transport Infrastructure Committee and CEO, L&T Infrastructure Development Projects Ltd.
“We want to work with the government in the expansion of greenfield expressway development,” he said, also calling for the government’s support in ensuring that bringing newer technologies and reducing cost should not impact profits.
“We have to work collectively and in partnership to bring down the cost of road construction,” added FICCI Secretary General Dilip Chenoy.
“We must also focus on using innovation and experimentation to develop products and systems through which India could become a world leader in the sector,” he stressed. #infrastructure #highways #environment #roads #innovations #technologies #costs /fiinews.com
