Hype Up Your Speed

with Mechanical Paver Installation

By Alva D. Logsdon, Pavestone Company

The equipment operator activates a clamp that lifts a layer of paving stones from the pallet and guides them to their placement in bedding sand. The clamp creates lateral pressure on each layer of pavers as it picks them up. This creates a tight interlock of the stones that is easy to achieve. The next paver layer is then aligned to the section previously installed. The stones are lowered until they almost touch the top of the bedding sand, and then they are released from the clamp. One stone layer on a pallet is approximately a square yard, allowing the operator to pick up and install about a square yard at a time.

Mechanical installation of pave stones is an efficient method that is gaining popularity for large paving jobs. The process is more efficient as a machine is used to pick up large sections of interlocking concrete pave stones that are then placed directly onto screeded sand. With fewer employees installing more paving stones, the rate of productivity increases significantly.

“Like all pave stone installation jobs, the key to reaping the long term benefits of a paving stone job lies in the successful installation processes,” said Joey Guedea of Pavestone Company in?????EUR??,,?EUR Dallas. “This includes job planning; layout; excavating and compacting the soil subgrade; spreading and compacting the aggregate base; constructing edge restraints; spreading and screeding bedding sand; and the final placement of pavers. In addition to proper site preparation, there are some pave stone shapes that lend themselves more naturally to a mechanical installation. The installation pattern options include cross-joint bond, herringbone and running bond, however, it’s important to include your manufacturer in the design process to assure the availability of a mold in the pattern sought.”

Concrete interlocking pave stones are designed with spacer bars on the sides of the pavers. The spacer bars maintain a minimum joint width between the pavers, allowing sand to fill the joints and do not impact the mechanical installation process. Some pave stones are designed to encourage the infiltration of storm water runoff. Many of these ecologically friendly stones can be mechanically placed, which is a tremendous paving feature when large urban development projects face storm water runoff challenges.

Pave stones are delivered to the job site on pallets that can be moved around the site by forklifts. They are packaged on pallets by the manufacturer in a predetermined laying pattern. The equipment operator activates a clamp that lifts a layer of paving stones from the pallet and then guides the placement to bedding sand. When the stone layer is picked up the clamp creates a lateral pressure, creating an interlock of the stones. The layer is then aligned to the section previously installed. The stones are lowered until they almost touch the top of the bedding sand and then they are released from the clamp. Each stone layer on a pallet is approximately a square yard, allowing the operator to pick up and install about a square yard at a time.

All mechanical jobs will require some degree of manual installation; the amount is determined by the job site and installation pattern selected. For example, if the job site has tight areas that cannot be accessed by the mechanical installation machine or the layer is larger than the section to be paved, manual installation will be needed. These areas may include light fixtures, utility structures and drainage inlets.