JCB Asks The Nation To Nominate The Worst Potholes

British heavy machinery manufacturer JCB has asked the public to nominate the worst potholes in the UK, and vowed to fill in the three deepest for free.

Sunday Times Driving reported recently that JCB has unveiled a new vehicle that has been specifically designed to fix the UK’s ravaged roads, the PotholePro, a £165,000 heavy-duty machine that the manufacturer claims can fill in the largest of craters in under eight minutes.

Now the digger maker wants to prove how capable the new model is by filling in three of the UK’s deepest potholes for free, and has called upon the nation’s drivers to nominate the biggest and most damaging they have had the misfortune to come across.

The social media posts that were shared by JCB to tie in with National Pothole Day on Friday 15 January has already had hundreds of responses, with many highlighting the terrible potholes they have encountered on their travels.

Hundreds of people have responded to JCB on social media to post their recommendations for the worst potholes they've seen. But do you know of any that are bigger than those already submitted?

JCB has said it is committed to fulfilling its promise to fill in the three worst craters and is still seeking nominations so it can pick the three it wants to see fixed.

JCB’s Chief Innovation Officer Tim Burnhope said: “Potholes are an incredibly emotive topic and we've seen a huge interest in our PotholePro machine, not just from councils across the UK but from members of the public who have to live with this scourge on a daily basis.”

He added that since the launch of the PotholePro, the firm has been inundated with requests through Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to attend to the many dangerous potholes on UK roads, and decided to provide some consumer power by launching the search for Britain’s worst potholes.

“Our campaign is urging as many people as possible to send us pictures of potholes which cause them grief and those judged to be Britain’s three worst will get a visit from our PotholePro machine. At JCB we believe we have the solution - one that's been tried, tested and saves money for councils up and down the land,” he said.

JCB has made big claims about what the PotholePro is capable of, saying is the most efficient vehicle of its type, not only reducing the costs and time to fix the car-damaging craters but also cuts down on the emissions typically involved in the road repairs.

The PotholePro has already been conducting trials across Stoke-on-Trent, where it has been found to accelerate road repair times by 700 per cent.

Now, the manufacturer is looking for feedback from those living in Cornwall, recently named the pothole capital of the UK to post examples of shocking examples on their roads. According to a study by MoneySuperMarket, some 210,331 potholes have been reported to Cornwall Council in the last three years.

You can nominate potholes to JCB via their Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

If you need road surfacing contractors, then come and talk to us today.

3 Benefits of Plant Hire in the Construction Industry

Plant hire has long been common practice in the construction industry. Construction firms need heavy machinery to complete both large and small site operations, and hiring plant machinery has many benefits over purchasing.

Construction largely continues in the UK throughout the pandemic and construction companies, large and small, are cautious with their budgets during such an uncertain time, meaning that plant hire is economically preferable to the huge costs of buying heavy machinery. We look at some of the benefits of plant hire.

1. High-Quality Equipment

If you own a small construction company, just started out, or are just being cautious with your finances, it may be unfeasible to buy the latest equipment. Some firms may compromise instead and buy second-hand machinery that is not quite up to the specification needed or may be of questionable quality and reliability. 

Plant hire will allow your firm to use the latest equipment and machinery in the market for your project that you may not otherwise be able to afford. The equipment will always be maintained to the highest standard and ensured it is in optimum conditions, whic will greatly benefit your work. 

2. Depreciation and Storage

Even if you have splashed out and purchased the latest machinery, it will depreciate over time, losing value with regular use. Even if it doesn’t need replacement parts and repairs, you will have to budget for its replacement at some point in the future. 

Also, when the machinery is not being used, it will need storage, taking up valuable space in your premises. The equipment will also need proper storage to continue functioning properly, which will increase the costs. 

3. Flexibility

Plant hire allows you to scale up and down the project as needed. Plans can change on construction sites, and the plant needs may change with it. By hiring your heart machinery, you will be able to hire more or less equipment as you need throughout the project, also mitigating costly delays to the work. 

If your construction firm needs plant hire in Hull, get in touch today

The Most Repaired Pothole road In East Lancashire In 2020

According to statistics released under a Freedom Of Information Act request to Lancashire County council. Burnley Road in Rawtenstall is the most repaired road in East Lancashire

The Freedom of Information Act request from the Lancashire Telegraph revealed that the 4.7km stretch of road has had a total of 105 pothole repairs in 2020, and records show the same road underwent 92 repairs during 2019.

In the 12 months between November 2019 and the end of October 2020, the county council spent £4 million repairing 18,885 potholes in the Burnley, Hyndburn, Pendle, Rossendale and Ribble Valley regions, which had increased from 13,116 repairs in the previous year.

Councillor David Foxcroft, representing the Mid-Rossendale ward, said: “The road is particularly bad on the area from the cemetery to the Tup Bridge crossroads and I am trying to get this area on next year’s resurfacing programme.

“I know that the rest of the road has seen some resurfacing and others have been patched up then resurfaced especially around the Goodshaw area.”

Meanwhile, Lancashire County Council is inviting residents to give feedback on their highways service via an online survey.

County Councillor Keith Iddon, the cabinet member for highways and transport, said that the county’s highways teams had worked incredibly hard during the COVID-19 crisis, especially dealing with the extra damage to the roads caused by the stormy weather earlier in 2020.

“We have been supplementing our techniques to fix potholes with new, innovative methods such as mechanical patching, heated repairs and jet patching. This has helped us to increase the efficiency of our service and fix even more potholes this year,” he said.

if you need road surfacing contractors, talk to our team today.

Sangwin Open for Business During Lockdown

In accordance with Government guidelines Sangwin remains open for business during Lockdown 3 with strict COVID 19 measures in place to safeguard our workforce and customers. These include:

• screens provided at Reception
• hands-free temperature testing units on all access points
• hands free sanitiser units at all access points
• in-house COVID19 antibody testing for returning staff
• hand sanitiser, gloves and masks available
• numbers regulated in offices
• conference call meetings encouraged where possible
• masks worn when moving around the building, such as communal areas and corridors 

Safety remains our number one priority.

Poor State Of Local Roads Revealed As Top Concern For Motorists

A new report has revealed that the poor state of local roads is the top worry for drivers around the UK, ahead of other issues such as bad driving on the part of other motorists, drivers using handheld phones and the aggressive behaviour of others on the road.

The RAC’s annual Report on Motoring found that the condition of local roads was the biggest concern for drivers, despite the big drop seen in car use at the start of the coronavirus crisis.

The research also highlighted a rise in the number of those who say the roads in their local areas have deteriorated, with 52 per cent saying that conditions are worse now than they were a year ago.

People in rural areas are more likely to say that local roads have worsened, as are older motorists. Those living in London and other cities believe their local roads are better in 2020 than they were in 2019, however.

Nicholas Lyes, RAC head of roads policy, commented on the findings, saying: “These findings are a big concern given that last year’s relatively mild winter should not, in normal circumstances, have led to a further decline in road surface quality.

“Usually, RAC patrols see the fewest number of pothole-related breakdowns in the third quarter which coincides with the summer, with volumes having dropped steadily from the high point recorded in the first three months of the year.”

He explained that, because of the pandemic, councils may not have been able to maintain their repair work, which has led to local roads suffering as a consequence.

Potholes and poor roads can cause serious damage to vehicles, affecting the tyres, wheels and steering alignment, making it more dangerous to drive. If you need Yorkshire tarmac contractors at the moment, get in touch with Sangwin today to see how we can help.