The Association has also made it an aim to continually monitor improvements in technology and equipment and pass the benefits of these improvements on to the customer where appropriate.

The Association of Planing Contractors have in conjunction with the Health and Safety Executive produced a Code of Practice for all member companies. The Code of Practice for safe working at Road Planing Operations provides guidance and advice on safe working practices within the planing industry. It is being distributed to major road contractors and local authorities in order that they may understand the particular requirements needed when road planing contractors work on their sites in order to reduce or eliminate hazards and accidents.

The Association has been at the forefront in developing a suitable NVQ for planer operatives with the CITB and has now several qualified specialist Assessors to monitor the training of the candidates. In addition to the NVQ qualifications the Association has developed its own Certification scheme for planer operators. We have several qualified Assessors and carry out detailed assessments of the skills and knowledge of individual planer operators. When all conditions are satisfied the operator is issued with an APC Certificate of Competence.

The Association in conjunction with the CITB is developing an Apprentice training scheme in order to promote entry of new personnel into the civil engineering and planing Industry. The course has been set up in order that the apprentice may be taught all the required skills to become a fully trained and qualified operative with a level 2 NVQ.

To assist in negotiations with clients, the Association has produced a set of standard Terms and conditions of Contract. The objective of which is to highlight those features of contracts which are peculiar to planing operations so that both client and contractor know what is expected of each other. This has been a key factor in improving working efficiency and avoiding disputes.
The planing of asphalt and concrete is an essential part of the measures required to maintain trafficed and hard standing areas, from pedestrian areas to aircraft runways, and from city streets to motorways. It is used both for maintenance and reconstruction, and for re-profiling for changes in design.
Almost all of the ten million tonnes of "Black top" materials produced by our members every year is reused in some form or other. Although recycling to produce new paving materials for primary roads is still being developed in the UK, it is certain that this will become the most economic re-use of planed material in the future.

The planing of one or more layers of asphalt is a pre-requisite to the removal of damaged layers. To the taxpayer, the economy of the planing operation is augmented by the fact that the levels of street furniture can be retained, thus avoiding the costs of changes to the utilities apparatus, such as drainage and footways etc.

Modern planing machines are capable of planing away 300mm of old road surface in a single pass. This means that several layers of newly designed materials can be can be laid on the planed surface. This will dramatically strengthen the whole superstructure of the highway network to enable it to withstand traffic of greater density and speed than that originally expected which will also lead to a major economy for the taxpayer.

It is more and more important to the national economy that short construction times are adhered to and that traffic restrictions caused by highway maintenance is kept to a minimum. Planing works of this nature can only be carried out economically with the use of modern and efficient machines and crews who are well trained and motivated.

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