New subcommittee ASTM D35.06 on geosynthetic product specifications

Notification to ASTM D35 Members

During 2016, representatives of ASTM International and ASTM D35 Committee on Geosynthetics were in discussion with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ (AASHTO) Subcommittee on Materials (SOM), Subcommittee 4e regarding their current revision efforts on Standard Specification for Highway Applications, AASHTO M288.

SOM Subcommittee 4e includes 26 state DOT representatives from their respective Departments of Materials and Tests, plus six AASHTO representatives. The AASHTO Subcommittee is seeking input from various “organizations” to improve M288 and expand its scope to include other highway product applications. The scope of the current standard states: “This is a materials specification covering geotextile fabrics for use in subsurface drainage, separation, stabilization, erosion control, temporary silt fence, and paving fabrics.”

The SOM Subcommittee 4e has requested ASTM’s assistance in the development of appropriate standards for reference within M288, including standard product specifications. During the February 1–3, 2017, ASTM meeting in Norfolk, Va., ASTM D35 Committee on Geosynthetics held a well-attended one-hour meeting to discuss coordination of effort between SOM 4e and ASTM D35 Committee. After an extensive discussion on this issue and acknowledgment that Committee D35 has already published some geosynthetic material specifications, the attendees believed the D35 Committee is best suited to continue to develop applicable “consensus” product specifications for the geosynthetics community. Based on the comments from the meeting, and in an effort to focus their efforts with regard to geosynthetic specification development, the D35 Executive Committee voted to form a new Subcommittee, ASTM D35.06 on Product Specifications.

The first meeting of ASTM D35.06, Subcommittee on Product Specifications, is scheduled for the next D35 Committee meetings in Toronto, Canada, June 14–16, 2017. The first meeting will include an ASTM D35 Workshop on Product Specifications, 8 a.m.–12 noon on Wednesday, June 14. Further details to Subcommittee D35.06 meeting schedule will be forthcoming and published prior to the Toronto meeting.

–reported by Bob Mackey

For more information:

Katerina Koperna—ASTM D35 Committee, staff representative, kkoperna@astm.org

Jim Goddard—ASTM D35 Committee chairman, jimgoddard3@gmail.com