Asphalt pavers and cold planers: material supply, cut geometry and fitted equipment
Asphalt pavers and cold planers perform different jobs: a paver places and screeds a mat, while a planer removes material with a milling drum. Choose working width, layer or cut depth, material supply and removal system for the project; engine rating alone leaves those requirements unanswered. Cat’s AP355 brochure identifies a 3.8 m³ hopper; that storage volume does not establish tonnes per hour. Wirtgen’s cited US brochure gives the W100Fi a 1,000 mm milling width and 0–330 mm depth range, which are separate dimensions rather than a promise of production at maximum depth. An expressly assumed 100 m run, 1 m wide and 50 mm deep, contains 5 m³ of geometric removal before irregularity and bulking. Doubling depth doubles that quantity. Confirm the fitted screed or drum, truck cycle, finish requirements and acceptance process before turning a product specification into a job estimate.
Asphalt pavers and cold planers need different production evidence
How do asphalt pavers and cold planers differ?
A paver receives paving material, distributes it and screeds the placed mat. A cold planer cuts existing material with a rotating milling drum and transfers the removed material through its handling system.
Specify removal or placement first. A maximum milling depth cannot establish paving suitability.
What does the AP355 hopper figure describe?
The Cat AP355 brochure lists 3.8 m³ hopper capacity. The hopper figure measures material-receiving volume.
Use the material’s bulk density to estimate fill mass. For continuous paving, check usable inventory against supply timing and consumption; nominal hopper volume alone cannot describe the material available throughout a delivery cycle.
How many delivery loads does an assumed paving demand require?
For expressly assumed demand of 200 tonnes per hour and 20 usable tonnes per delivery, divide 200 by 20 to obtain ten loads per hour. That averages one delivery every six minutes. These are planning inputs, not AP355 ratings; travel delays, queuing, material suitability, safe truck interaction and operating interruptions remain part of the actual supply plan.
Calculate the selected milling section before assigning trucks
| Length and width | Depth | Geometric volume |
|---|---|---|
| 100 m × 1 m | 50 mm | 5 m³ |
| 100 m × 1 m | 100 mm | 10 m³ |
Which W100Fi dimensions can be used for a removal estimate?
The Wirtgen US W100Fi–W130Fi brochure identifies a 1,000 mm milling width and a 0–330 mm depth range for the W100Fi. Width and depth define a cut section at the selected settings, but the maximum depth does not establish travel speed, tool life or hourly output in a particular material. Identify the fitted milling drum.
How does cutting depth change the volume to be removed?
Using expressly assumed dimensions, 100 m length × 1 m width × 0.05 m depth equals 5 m³. At 0.10 m depth, removal doubles to 10 m³. This is in-place geometry before irregularity or bulking, not a loose-truck volume or mass; use measured material information before assigning truck numbers, weights or disposal quantities.
Does the maximum milling depth establish the achievable cutting rate?
Depth limits cannot supply a production rate. Material properties, tool condition, drum arrangement, permitted machine settings, traction and the collection or truck system affect progress. A shallow resurfacing pass and a deeper removal pass can impose different demands even over the same area; obtain representative project evidence before committing to a delivery or completion schedule.
Check the screed package and the mass basis
What must be known about the fitted paver screed?
Identify the screed model, installed extensions or reduction equipment, working range, heating system and available compaction arrangement. Identify the offered screed and fitted extensions. The required finish and project acceptance method determine the useful setup; neither a broad width range nor a named screed feature proves compliance with the finished-layer specification.
Can paver-only shipping mass be used as the complete transport weight?
The cited Cat brochure distinguishes 7,100 kg paver-only shipping mass from approximate operating masses of 8,500 kg with an SE34 V screed and 8,700 kg with an SE34 VT screed. Its operating basis includes fluids, a full fuel tank, a 75 kg operator and grade-control components.
Establish the actual secured transport configuration. Paver-only and operating masses describe different equipment and conditions.
What does the 200 kg screed-package difference establish?
The listed operating packages differ by 200 kg. That comparison is specific to those listed packages and does not identify every detachable item, the actual load on an axle or the weight of an arbitrary replacement screed. A transport assessment still needs the machine and equipment carried, measured or reliably documented on the relevant basis.
Specify the finished result and inspect the working systems
Does the screed replace the rest of the compaction process?
The screed arrangement can contribute initial compaction, while following equipment and the project’s acceptance process address the completed layer. Plan the paving train around project acceptance requirements. A screed feature or smooth visible surface cannot substitute for the required density or other acceptance measurements, and one roller pattern is not appropriate for every mix and condition.
Which used-machine parts deserve separate inspection?
For a paver, examine the receiving and conveying system, augers, screed plates, heating, controls and running gear under the specified isolation and support procedure. Check planer tooling, holders, bearings and conveying equipment. Price the actual findings and required repairs; a demonstration that the engine runs cannot establish the condition of either machine’s working system.
What should a paving or milling quotation identify?
Keep the machine and working configuration, intended width and depth, representative material, supply or removal assumptions and the basis for the expected result together. Keep geometric quantity separate from measured production. Name who supplies trucks, traffic arrangements and acceptance testing.
See compactors and rollers, dump-truck payload and haul cycles and lowboy and deck configurations. Return to machine classes.
Keep material delivery and screed behavior in the same plan
Plan the receiving hopper, conveyors, augers and screed as a connected material path. The paver needs an appropriate supply and distribution of mix for the intended width and layer. A full hopper at the start cannot establish that delivery will remain adequate through truck changes, travel delays and the whole run.
The floating screed responds to its settings and the material beneath it. Match the setup, heating and any compaction functions to the fitted screed and project instructions. Changes in speed, material supply or setup can affect the mat; one fixed explanation that every stop produces the same dip cannot diagnose every visible mark.
Identify the actual grade or slope-control reference and installed sensors. A string line, averaging arrangement or other supported reference needs its own setup and checks. Automatic control does not independently correct every defect in the base or establish that the required thickness, profile and density have been achieved.
Coordinate milling, haulage and compaction
For milling, identify the selected drum width, tooth and holder arrangement, required profile and depth. Keep the in-place removal volume distinct from loose volume and hauled mass. Tool wear, material condition, water supply and the conveying system can affect the work, so a maximum depth or engine rating cannot supply the missing production evidence.
Check the discharge position and truck interface, including the space and safe movement arrangements for changing trucks. For paving, identify whether trucks feed directly or a transfer machine is included. Price and plan the actual supply method; a transfer vehicle's presence alone does not guarantee uninterrupted paving or a base able to support it.
Match rolling capacity and timing to the mix, layer and project requirements. The screed contributes initial compaction, while the following process must achieve the specified finished result. Smooth appearance and a nominal roller count cannot replace acceptance testing.
Record the settings and conditions that produced a trial result before applying them to changed material or weather.
Inspect the working equipment and secured travel configuration
On a used paver, record the condition of hopper and conveyors, slats, augers and bearings, screed plates, heating and control equipment. On a planer, inspect teeth, holders, drum and its supports as well as conveying and running gear. Keep safe isolation and support with the inspection and price the individual repairs rather than accepting an engine demonstration as a complete test.
Confirm folded or dismantled dimensions and actual carried equipment for transport. Include the screed or drum, extensions and separately carried components without substituting paver-only shipping mass for a different package. Check carrier ratings, axle distribution, loading geometry and the route's permit requirements from the complete move; no class-wide assertion establishes that every machine needs the same permit or trailer.
Paver and milling-machine model references
Use the full designation to find the relevant specification section and its source. Keep editions, options and measurement conditions attached to the figures.
Cat: paving and milling references
- Cat AP1055D specifications
- Cat AP655, AP1000, and AP1055 specifications
- Cat PM102 specifications
- Cat PM200 specifications