DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY (PDF): TDA Manufacturing worked with the U.S. Tire Manufacturer’s Association to provide a table-top display and samples of tire-derived aggregate (TDA) for the attendees of the American Association of Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) annual meeting and conference, taking place October 19-23 in Orlando, FL. The AASHTO Annual Meeting, one of the transportation industry’s most important conferences of the year, brings together experts from the public and private sector to share the latest in industry policy and innovation. Attendees network with fellow transportation professionals and contribute to discussions on a wide range of issues facing the industry today and tomorrow. Our hope is that these materials provide a touchpoint for ongoing discussions about the use of TDA in engineering projects related to highway and transportation challenges. TDA helps increase the safety factor of engineering plans/designs, saves on cost of materials, and can be utilized in projects seeking LEED, GREEN ROADS or Green Build certification!

Steve Hass, Proprietor of Hass Construction, has been responsible for township road maintenance for over 30 years. Stanchfield Township (Minnesota) is one of the many townships his company maintains roads for. Steve and the township officials wanted to improve a section of 381st Avenue that crosses a peaty, swampy area. This swamp crossing is 15-20 feet lower than the sandy knolls on both sides of the swamp. The solution is to elevate the valley, to make the roadway easier and safer, improve driving safety for the area’s residents by leveling out this particularly bad area, and reduce the historic issues with frost heaving and flooding. “Elevating the valley by approximately 8 feet makes for a smoother and safer ride, and protects the surrounding land,” said Monte Niemi, CEO of TDA Manufacturing in Isanti, Minnesota. Tire-derived aggregate (TDA) was chosen as the lightweight aggregate fill for this project due to its interlocking “snowshoe effect” – where the pieces weave together, helping to spread the weight of the driving surface over the soft the organic soils under the current road. TDA possesses a standing beneficial use designation in Minnesota, which means that it can be used as lightweight fill without a permit (when used in accordance with MPCA directives) for any road construction project that is managed by a professional engineer. For the full story and photo history, visit the Project Gallery.

Over three days in August, TDA Manufacturing (Isanti, MN) hosted the producers of Into the Outdoors, an education network that empowers today’s youth and adults to think critically about our planet. Part science lesson and part adventure, Into the Outdoors uncovers the stories behind sensible solutions to creating a better planet while the kid hosts have fun along the way. ITO also arms educators with video resources and lesson plans in various science categories. They were at TDA Manufacturing to film portions of the documentary “Sustainable Waste Tire Solutions,” which will feature the many environmentally friendly uses of tire-derived aggregate (TDA). Over the course of three days, twelve-year-old host Wesley and the production crew trekked to: An apartment construction site in Burnsville, MN, to learn how TDA can solve challenging building issues, such as lateral pressure created by uneven soil levels Purgatory Creek Recreation Area (Eden Prairie, MN), to see a TDA installation in a muddy wetland area that’s stood the test of time (20 years!) The Minneapolis Convention Center, where TDA was used in a below-ground parking ramp The University of Minnesota, where Wesley interviewed professors researching the capabilities of TDA in stormwater and clean-water applications The team wrapped up the whirlwind tour by interviewing Monte Niemi, CEO of TDA Manufacturing, who gave a brief history of how far we’ve come in our understanding of TDA. Watch for “Sustainable Waste Tire Solutions” to air in early 2023 on various broadcast and PBS stations. Check the schedule.

Gregg Matlock, project engineer with Sandman Structural Engineering in Brainerd, MN, had worked with tire-derived aggregate (TDA) once before when he recommended it as a possible solution for the future site of Concorde Flats, an affordable senior and market-rate apartment building in Burnsville, MN. Matlock had a couple of challenging issues to address at the building site. “There was a severe imbalance of soil at the site,” Matlock explained. “One side had two stories and the other had none. The lateral pressure induced by that soil basically made it so we couldn’t resist it without using an alternative backfill that would reduce the pressure on the building.” From his experience, he knew TDA could be the alternative backfill material. Add to that, the TDA had to cooperate with another part of the design—a 20-foot-tall retaining wall on another side of the building that would abut to the TDA. TDA wasn’t a slam dunk. Sandman Structural Engineering, the engineer of record on the project, offered two choices to the contractor, in addition to TDA. A geo-grid system was quickly dismissed because of building site constraints. The third option was foam blocks, which would have been more expensive than TDA. For the full story and photo history, visit the Project Gallery.

Kroschel Township’s minimum-maintenance road, located at 370th Avenue, was built in 1908, serving as the main road that connected Finlayson, MN to Highway 65. It remained the main road until State Highway 18 came through town. Not long after Highway 18 was built, beavers and other wildlife moved in creating problems on 370th Avenue downgrading it to a minimum-maintenance road. In 1971, DNR hired workers to come through and open it up by hand, making it more usable as a trail, for walking and ATV use. Even then, the minimum-maintenance road began to grow back up and became barely passable with off-road equipment. In January of 2021, after a long permit approval process, the decision was made to use a new road subgrade/corduroy underlayment to replace the log corduroy originally used to create 370th Avenue. This new subgrade/rubberized corduroy component is a sustainable Aggregate called tire-derived aggregate (TDA). They choose TDA because of its snowshoe effect over the soft organic soil bridges over the weak materials without a differential settlement. Marvin Rostberg, Kroschel township official, commented that he likes TDA in road subgrade because of its water draining properties. TDA is hydrophobic, eliminating future frost heaving, which will allow us to restore 370th Avenue to a year-round, fully maintained road. TDA is made from processed shredded tires, and its’ properties are ideal for stormwater management systems, roads, retaining wall support, and many other civil engineering projects. In this case, 370th Avenue, will benefit highly from TDA’s hydrophobic property, one of the ten properties TDA provides in their projects. The hydrophobic property prevents TDA from the crystallization of ice, thereby eliminating road damage caused by seasonal frost heaving, as mentioned above, making maintaining the road more sustainable year-round. For the full story and photo history, visit the Project Gallery.