OUR HISTORY

CONSULSTRADA, Consultores de Engenharia e Sistemas de Gestão Ltd. is a company specialized in engineering consultancy for road and airport pavements. Founded in 2003, CONSULSTRADA leads this sector of activity in Portugal.

CONSULSTRADA is part of the COBA group. This International and multidisciplinary Group of Engineering Consultants, bases its performance on the close collaboration between its associated companies, thus providing the necessary integrated technical and logistical support. For the development of its activity, Consulstrada has highly qualified professionals, being adequately equipped with high-performance equipment with state-of-the-art technology and having its own facilities. CONSULSTRADA is authorized to carry out laboratory tests for the characterization of materials used in pavement construction - soils, aggregates, concrete, bitumen, and bituminous mixtures.

In addition to its experience in Europe - Portugal, Spain, Bulgaria and Greece - its commitment to internationalization has been favoring African markets, namely Angola, Mozambique, Algeria, Ghana, Nigeria, Namibia and Senegal.

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TECHNICAL MEANS

CONSULSTRADA carries out integrated projects in pavement rehabilitation, reinforcement dimensioning and new pavement dimensioning, as well as visual and specialized inspections in all transport infrastructure components. Consulstrada provides complete systems for managing road and airport pavements.

The technical means and the brief descriptions of operation that are presented reflect the autonomy of CONSULSTRADA regarding technical means, both fixed and mobile, covering the entire universe of intervention of CONSULSTRADA, ranging from the auscultation of pavements to the visual inspections of these and accessory works, up to road markings and vertical signage, as well as laboratory tests.

Evaluation of the load capacity of a pavement with FWD - "Falling Weight Deflectometer"

FWD is a device designed to carry out non-destructive load tests, applying a load to the pavement surface that results from a drop of a mass from a determined height. The vertical displacements of the pavement, induced by this load, are measured at several known points through geophones (seismic velocity recorders) applied to the pavement surface itself.

This equipment, in addition to measuring the peak value of displacements and the time of application of the load, allows the measurement and recording of the distance covered, air temperatures and the surface and interior temperature of the pavement at a given depth. All tests are geo-referenced and are guaranteed through a modern built-in GPS system.

Measurement of the Longitudinal Irregularity of a Pavement – IRI "International Roughness Index and macrotexture with Profilometer LASER"

The Laser Profilometer allows the measurement of the altimetry deviation of the pavement surface from an ideal profile. Based on this longitudinal profile, the various indicators of surface regularity can be calculated, such as IRI and macrotexture. The Laser Profilometer is mounted on an aluminum beam, installed on the front or rear of a vehicle. This aluminum beam is equipped with lasers that measure the profile of the pavement along the surface in alignments parallel to the direction of the moving vehicle.

This equipment allows the tests to be carried out at a traffic speed (between 30 km/h and 100 km/h), without the measurement being affected, obtaining real-time data. In addition to laser sensors, the equipment is integrated with a distance and speed measurement system, accelerometers and a data acquisition computer. This data is then processed and analyzed by "software" specially developed for this purpose.

Measurement of longitudinal friction coefficient with a "Griptester"

The "Grip-Tester" equipment allows the measurement of the coefficient of longitudinal friction existing between the pavement and a standard tire, mounted on a partially blocked wheel. The measurement consists of the analysis of the vertical and horizontal forces that are applied on the standard tire, when the equipment is in motion, under standard conditions applied to the pavement (water film thickness and applied speed).

Measured speed may vary depending on local conditions. That's why the test can be performed between 5 km/h and 130 km/h. The speed of 5 km/h is used in special conditions, when local access is difficult or in specific studies, and can be used manually. From these measurements, the friction coefficient is automatically calculated and transmitted to the data logging computer. The "Grip-Number" is the actual value, which corresponds to the average of a given number of instantaneous friction readings over a given test length (average friction coefficient). The computer system of this equipment also allows the entry of observations by the operator.

Visual and specialized inspections

• Roads and highways
• Airports and Aerodromes
• Tunnels and bridges

• Road markings;
• Night visibility - retroreflection coefficient;
• Daily Time Visibility - Luminance Index (IL - Light Factor);
• Slip resistance coefficient;
• Measurement of paint thickness;
• Vertical signs - Retro reflection;
• In situ quality control deflection tests in pavement bed, bases and sub-bases;
• Control compression, granular material density and moisture content, using a "Gamma density gauge".

Supervision of all stages of the works.

Supervision at construction sites, laboratory control and "in situ" prospecting

Regarding laboratory control, Consulstrada offers its customers a wide range of "in situ" and laboratory tests, always complying with the standards and norms agreed for this purpose, both nationally and internationally.

• Prospecting and analysis of the constituent layers and geological and geotechnical characterization;
• "In situ" density measurement - "sand bottle test";
• Pits;
• Endoscopy;
• DCP - "Dynamic Cone Penetrometer";
• Texture Measurement with "Sand Spot";
• Measurement of wheel troughs in bituminous pavements.

• Module and Law of Fatigue;
• Runway Test - "Wheel Tracking";
• Specific tests on soils, aggregates, concrete, bituminous mixtures and bitumen.

Supervision of all stages of the works.

Floor Systems and Project Management

We carry out integrated projects in pavement rehabilitation, reinforcement sizing and new pavement sizing. We provide complete road pavement and airport pavement management systems.

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