The construction of runways and taxiways at the GMR Airport was completed in 100 days

The project was completed in July 2021, using the soil stabilization and full-depth recycling techniques says Anil Yendluri, Managing Director – Vishwa Samudra Engineering Pvt. Ltd.

What was the scope of work involved?
We were involved in two projects during the Covid – 19 phases.

• The construction of Rural Roads in Andhra Pradesh: Package 18 & 19 – AIIB, in  Vijayawada – Krishna district, AP (86.91 Km)

• The construction of the Runways and Taxiways at the GMR International Airport in  Hyderabad. (7 lakh sqm)

 What were some of the major challenges you had to overcome to complete this project?
The main challenges were keeping our employees and surroundings safe in this critical time. Daily checks and constant Covid tests were done to ensure diagnosis of employees, if they turn positive, happened well in advance and they were treated much before anything gets severe. With strict protocols, employee safety was primary at VSE. We ensured that every employee at our project sites across the country was safe, was given timely care and monitored on an everyday basis. We had a National Covid Coordinator whose job was to monitor employees across every project-site. Despite several people getting affected, we ensured a 100% recovery rate, with paid leave given to all employees. What we saw was remarkable, employee commitment was not affected in spite of the lockdowns.

In your words, what are some of the innovative materials and techniques that have been utilized to execute this project?
In both the projects, VSE has used a unique cement additive, called StabilRoad.  VSE has the exclusive rights for using StabilRoad in India, which it has been using over the last 5 years to construct roads. StabilRoad is imported from Germany, and is made of natural ingredients. Mixing StabilRoad with cement enhances the properties of cement and soil, thereby making the pavement stronger, flexible, durable, and long lasting. By using StabilRoad and cement, we save huge amounts of aggregates, sometimes upto 90%. This increases our eco-footprint massively, when you look at the aggregates that would have otherwise been brought in, had it been the conventional process. The pace of construction is much faster as well.
The completion of the runways and taxiways at the GMR Airport was done in a record time of 100 days, completed in July 2021, using the soil stabilization and full-depth recycling techniques. This saved 1,30,143 cubic metre of stone aggregate, equivalent to 9296 truckloads, which otherwise would have been brought-in if it was built conventionally. This is equal to saving over 75% of natural resources. It reduces the project cost and time drastically as well.

How will this project benefit the common public?
(a) The construction of rural roads in Andhra Pradesh under the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) from the Panchayat-Raj Department, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, is a very important project for the state. These roads are the backbone for transport and commuting in these areas, some of which, never had roads before. It makes life easy for the farmers and villagers nearby to travel from one place to another by reducing time and cost. Also, the standard of living of the town/village automatically increases with better transport infrastructure. These roads, because of the high build quality, are not destroyed by rains or other extreme weather conditions, ensuring less overhead and maintenance cost for the Govt. going forward. This is part of a larger project (710 Km) that VSE is working on currently.
(b) On the other hand, the runways and taxiways constructed at the GMR Airport in Hyderabad ensure the runways are of premium quality for the safest take-offs and landings of planes in this busy airport. With a high UCS Strength (8.28 MPa) and Moduli Value of 10444, way above the required minimum levels, these runways have unmatched quality and standards. This also reduces the long-term maintenance cost, which need not be done frequently, resulting in high cost savings.

27