Ramky relies on Dynapac compaction to build Hyderabad Ring Road

Indian contractor Ramky Infrastructure Ltd is using a fleet of Dynapac equipment for both soil and asphalt compaction on the 22-km stretch of the new Hyderabad Outer Ring Road (ORR) that the company is building under a 30-month schedule.

The ORR is a 158-kilometre eight-lane highway encircling the city of Hyderabad, in Andhra Pradesh, under construction by the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority.

Hyderabad is one of India's fastest-growing cities and in recent years has become a centre for enterprises in the fields of information technology, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. The ORR is designed to relieve congestion in the city, act as a hub for the national highway network, and offer more opportunities for enterprise zones and satellite townships.

The ORR is an eight-lane divided carriageway with a design speed of 120 km/h and one emergency lane for break down vehicles. The width of the fast lanes is 3.5 m, the outer lanes are 3.75 m, the hard shoulder is 3.0 m, and the median width 5.0 m.

Ramky Infrastructure is part of the Ramky Group, which also formed Ramky Elsamex Hyderabad Ring Road Ltd in 2007 to build and operate parts of the ORR on a Build-Operate-Transfer basis.

Ramky, one of Dynapac's largest customers in India, is using a fleet of equipment that includes two CA250 soil compactors, two CC384HF asphalt compactors, two CC222HF asphalt compactors, and two CC122 mini compactors.

Mr Y.R.Nagaraja, Ramky Managing Director, says that the highway has a base of 13 cm, with a layer of 10 cm binder and 8 cm of wearing course.

The two CA250s, a 10-t roller with a single drum 2130 mm wide and which is a leader in its class in India, are being used to compact the base course along the length of the highway and on the access roads, taking up to eight passes to achieve compaction of around 98 percent. The two CC384HFs, a 9.4-t tandem roller in the 1730 mm drum width class, are working together to compact the asphalt on the highway, taking up to 10 passes to achieve a compaction of 100 percent.

The CC222HF is a lighter model tandem compactor with an operating mass of 7.7 t and a drum width of 1450 mm. Designed primarily for the asphalt paving of roads, streets and industrial areas, the two units being used by Ramky have the maneuverability necessary to work on the access roads of the ORR.

The CC122 is a mini compactor with two drums, an operating mass of 2.6 t and a drum width of 1200 mm.

Designed for small streets and tight operating areas, it frequently works alongside larger compactors on restricted areas, a duty that the two units on the ORR are performing.

"We are a long-time customer of Dynapac and much of our compacting plant consists of various Dynapac models," says Mr Y.R. Nagaraja. "We find the Dynapac range gives us everything we need for compaction, and of course it simplifies spares and maintenance."