Case Study: Power Group achieves on-time Cape Town runway rehabilitation and doubles nightly milling output with Trimble 3D milling (PCS900)

Power Group - Customer Case Study

Power Group, a South African construction and engineering firm, was awarded the 11-month rehabilitation of Cape Town International Airport’s main runway, including milling 4,500 m² of asphalt and placing 35,000 t of wearing course. Work could only be done nightly (00:30–05:15) with tight level tolerances (±8 mm) and an IRI rideability target of 1.26; conventional survey set-ups consumed valuable time and limited milling production to ~120 t/night (vs. the 200 t/night needed), putting the contract, schedule and reputation at risk.

The team implemented Trimble 3D milling control (PCS900/GCS900) and ran a rapid laser scan to optimise the design and identify low spots before milling. After installation on their Wirtgen machine the system reached 220 t/night by the third night, met the handover date, and exceeded quality targets—the final averaged IRI was 1.16 (earning a bonus). The project established best practices (pre-scans, accurate benchmarks, dual UTS, drum and hydraulic maintenance) and made 3D control standard on subsequent runway work.

Power Group

Gary Hirst

Technical Executive