eNews

2012 is turning out to be another very busy year for the RSTA with activity levels increasing on many fronts as the Association continues to raise its profile and grow from strength to strength. Membership has continued to increase this year and with recent additions we now have nearly 80 members up from 59 three years ago spread across five industry sectors with opportunities to represent other sectors moving forward.

The RSTA represents best industry practice and this year we have seen more new Codes of Practice published for different treatments and endorsed by ADEPT to add client side recognition. An important RSTA-ADEPT Seminar hosted by Cheshire West & Chester CC is taking place on 3rd October at Chester racecourse to launch the new suite of industry Codes of Practice. This event is aimed at local authorities and is free to attend so I would encourage anybody involved with road surface maintenance working for a local authority to come along and listen to an array of industry experts to learn how these new Codes can add value and save money. Please contact the RSTA office for more details. These new Codes also form the basis of our regular liaison meetings with the major client organisations including ADEPT, Highways Agency, Direct Road Services and Transport Scotland which are proving to be very productive as we all strive to raise industry standards and quality. The RSTA contributed towards the Highways Maintenance Efficiency Programme (HMEP) Pothole review, published by the DfT in April, which further supports the case for sealing roads surfaces to prevent pothole formation. The report encourages local authorities to think out of the box and to consider the wide range of treatments now available for helping to maintain the existing network, to maximise service life and importantly help to stretch diminishing budgets. The Chester seminar is entirely aligned with these objectives.

Having a competent well trained and qualified workforce underpins the long term sustainability of our industry and the RSTA continues to play an active role in training the workforce at all levels. So far this year we have run some 20 courses for local authorities and contractors. Our autumn training schedule commences in October so if you think your organisation would benefit from training in surface treatments contact the RSTA office or visit the website calendar. We also run events addressing wider industry issues such as CE Marking for Surface Dressing and Slurry Surfacing and Carbon Footprinting seminars to explain how contractors can now measure the carbon footprint of the services they provide. The new year will see the launch of the new RSTA 'Pavement Road Treatment Embodied Carbon Tools' (ProTECT) and these new carbon calculators will be available to the industry to be used in a reporting sense for clients but also to help improve processes to reduce energy consumption and save cost.

Finally, on a personal note, I should like to say farewell to Richard Jackson who has played a very active role as RSTA Vice-Chair over the past three years in helping the Association to develop and grow. His kiwi good humour will be missed! I hope you find something of interest in the latest edition of RSTA E-News, happy browsing!

Howard Robinson
Chief Executive

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