Eurovia Specialist Treatments are making asphalt beautiful with StreetPrint®

On walkways, cut-throughs and car parks across Britain a new treatment is being used to bring decorative patterns and textured surfaces to pedestrianised areas. This new innovation, StreetPrint, has been developed by Integrated Paving Concepts Inc in Canada with licensing in the UK, exclusively, to Jean Lefebvre UK (JLUK) and installed by Eurovia Specialist Treatment (EST).

EST is the dedicated treatments arm of the wider Eurovia Group and specialise in delivering advanced and effective solutions for improving and renewing the surfaces of footways, roads, airfields and car parks. StreetPrint provides clients with an alternative to block and slab pavings, and is a system that is quicker to lay, does not come with traditional maintenance concerns and offers a greater flexibility of design.

“StreetPrint is the most innovative, decorative paving system developed in the last 30 years,” says Paul Goosey, EST Divisional Manager. “StreetPrint is licensed to EST through JLUK and we are the primary license holder for the UK and Ireland. This allows us to self-deliver this industry-leading treatment within the Eurovia Group, which adds enormous value to our client base, saving them both time and money on the life of a StreetPrint treatment.”

The Process
The StreetPrint process starts with an application of SMA or conventional hot-rolled asphalt which is then heated to 150ºC using a purpose-built infrared SR60 Streetheater. This brings the asphalt to a malleable state where it can be manipulated. The next stage of the process involves pressing a template into the asphalt surface. The particular purpose of the space will dictate the template design, as templates can be made to answer client’s specific requirements.

Beyond the imprint stage, the surface is compacted and once cooled, treated with StreetBond – an application of a UV-stable, water-based epoxy-modified acrylic, which coats the newly treated surface. To complete the process the area can be sprayed in any of the 200 RAL colour options to provide added detail, making it hugely versatile and suitable to retail spaces, residential estates and parkland.

The main benefit of StreetPrint is the reduced cost to the client. A comparison of a recent project in Amesbury, Wiltshire, saw the StreetPrint process save the local authority 47% when compared to traditional cobbles, slabs and stone.

EST’s most complex StreetPrint project, to date, was recently completed in Gravesend, Kent. The brief called for a highly intricate design to be delivered in a high-profile area of the town and in double-quick time. “I was very concerned before it started with the intricacy of the patterns and the irregular shape of the area being treated,” said Andy Padgham, Traffic Engineer for Kent Highway Services. “I needn't have worried. Paul [Goosey] and his crew were very keen from the start to provide a top job. I quickly realised that I could be confident to leave the site knowing I would get what I was expecting, I would not hesitate to use it again.”

The installation process itself also presents added value to clients. Noise pollution is greatly reduced due to stone-cutting being removed from the application. This also eliminates the dust and residue one associates with the process and the manual handling of stoneware. These factors speed up the installation and reduce the health and safety risks associated with dust and noise pollution. The downtime and closure of pedestrian areas is lower, with good pedestrian access being maintained throughout.

Recent EST applications of StreetPrint include:
• 2009 Swanton, Kent - 40m²
• 2009 Shady Bower, Wiltshire - 600m²
• 2009 Edgware Road, London - 1200m²
• 2010 Whitstable, Kent - 1200m²
• 2010 Tunbridge Wells, Kent - 150m²
• 2010 Dartford, Kent - 1100m²
• 2011 Echo Square, Gravesend, - Kent 500m²
• 2011 Lauder, Scotland - 700m²

Combing the known benefits of asphalt and the design aesthetics of stone, cobbles and slabs is the essence of StreetPrint with the maintenance issues of slab laying having been designed out of the process. EST is committed to pioneering new techniques and surface treatments to bring real change to communities and highways maintenance. With StreetPrint, this vision combines with the added value of reduced disruption, reduced costs, reduced pollution and substantial total life savings on the product.

Whether it be used in close communities like Lauder in Scotland or bustling, heavy traffic metropolitan sites like London’s Edgware Road, StreetPrint is a perfect fit. Highly versatile, StreetPrint is a long-lasting and decorative addition to pedestrianised areas and with StreetPrint XD (a hard wearing thermoplastic layer which is applied to the imprinted surfaces) EST are beginning trials for lightly trafficked carriageways to transfer the many benefits of this unique specialist treatment.