Uncategorized Archives - Page 2 of 3

BITAFAL ON THE RED CARPET AT THE INFONEGOCIOS GALA

Several professionals from our team made up the final shortlists.

For the second consecutive year, BITAFAL participated in the InfoNegocios Gala, the business event in which company teams and professionals are recognized for their performance throughout the year.

On this occasion we received nominations for best professional of the year from our area managers Marinella Fernández in Human Resources, Andrea Ferré in Administration and Finance, and Victoria García in Marketing. Likewise, our entire human team, directors and collaborators, were nominated in the final shortlist as the Team of the Year.

We want to congratulate our nominated colleagues individually and fundamentally the entire team, because behind each nomination is the effort, dedication and commitment of each member of BITAFAL, in all areas. Integrating the different shortlists, together with very prominent companies and professionals, is a great recognition for our work, which we celebrate with great joy.

We especially thank InfoNegocios for the nominations, which for us are already an award, and also for the organization of an event of excellent production quality, filling the Antel Arena with representatives of the most important companies in the country and generating a ceremony full of emotion and joy for all participants.

PRESENT AT THE XXIII CILA IN ASUNCION, PARAGUAY

19 December 2025
in: Uncategorized

BITAFAL led the Uruguayan delegation at the main road industry congress

One of the most important milestones of the year was our participation in the 23rd Ibero-Latin American Asphalt Congress CILA in Asunción, Paraguay. The event brought together the highlights of the road industry at a regional and global level, with more than 1,100 participants from more than 20 countries, to learn about the trends, innovations and perspectives of the sector in the medium and long term.

In this context, once again the Uruguayan delegation stood out for the quantity and quality of projects presented in the different instances of the congress. And within them, the presentations of our general director Santiago Kröger on the “Impact of the Incorporation of Warm Mixes in Uruguay” and on the “Deregulation of Asphalt and Technological Changes” stood out for their scientific rigor and their vision towards the future of the asphalt industry in our country and also in the region.

The projects presented by the students of the BITAFAL UM Sustainable Asphalt Chair were also highly valued, as well as the work of technicians from the Ministry of Transportation and Public Works and representatives of other companies that make up the Uruguayan road construction cluster.

The BITAFAL team was also made up of our founding director Claudio Kröger and the members of the Commercial and Marketing department Victoria García and Ezequiel González, who were able to exchange experiences with representatives of the main companies in the asphalt industry in the region. The occasion was conducive to deepening technical and commercial links, generating new business opportunities and prospecting the incorporation of new technological solutions.

With more than 20 editions, the CILA is the event par excellence of the asphalt industry, the area where you can learn about the state of the art of a very dynamic and strategic sector for all countries. In this edition, highly topical topics were incorporated into the debate, such as digitalization, Big Data, sustainability, performance-based road safety, financing modalities for road work and also the participation of women in the industry.

WE PRESENT OUR ELECTROLINE AT EXPOCARGA

With all the energy, the BITAFAL team participated in the largest transportation and logistics meeting in the country.

In the first days of December, a new edition of Expo Carga was held, the main event of the cargo transportation industry in Uruguay that takes place every two years at the Punta del Este Convention Center.

BITAFAL had a very active presence at the fair, presenting its electric station project that is under construction at our plant on Route 8 with a stand set up for the occasion.
In addition, our general director Santiago Kröger was invited to speak on the Electric Mobility 4.0 panel, along with the president of Ancap Cecilia San Román, the national director of Energy Arianna Spinelli and the head of Electric Mobility at UTE Diego Bentancur. On that occasion Santiago was able to explain in depth the transformation of the energy matrix of our plant, completely converting to solar energy and biomass, and the scope of the electric station project, powered 100% with energy from renewable sources. Likewise, he commented on the experience that BITAFAL has been developing with its 100% electric high-load truck, the first of these characteristics to circulate in Uruguay.

At the stand we present one of the 500 KW chargers that will be part of the 12 total chargers that the electric station will have, being one of the most powerful in the country, which will be very useful for transport companies, both cargo and passenger. The strategic location of the project positions it as fundamental support for all companies located in that area of Montevideo and in the industrial area surrounding the city of Pando and that wish to transition their fleet to electric mobility.
The occasion was excellent to carry out great networking work by the BITAFAL Commercial and Logistics team, sharing experiences and projecting future actions with companies from different sectors of activity.

WELCOME ALVARO!!

New Head of Logistics at Bitafal

Completing the process of consolidating our new governance structure, in recent weeks we have incorporated Alvaro Brugman as Head of Logistics. Excellent news, since he is a young but highly experienced professional, who will surely contribute all his knowledge to reinforce a key area of our company's management.

Alvaro comes from the agricultural industry, where in recent years he specialized in the logistics area, focusing on the management of transportation fleets. And as he tells us, since joining BITAFAL he found “a company rich in values, with a very strong spirit and a clear vision.”

With a strong emphasis on customer satisfaction, BITAFAL's Logistics area has the permanent challenge of meeting the delivery of its products in a timely manner, in coordination with construction companies, often at long distances from our plant. “The logistics task is a key piece to being an efficient organization and meeting our clients,” Alvaro tells us, adding that “I am involved in managing an area that has solid foundations, we have a team made up of people who have been part of the team for a long time and are clear about both their role and the challenges of logistics itself.”

From all areas of BITAFAL we warmly welcome Álvaro and wish him much success in his management, which will undoubtedly benefit our organization and also the companies that have trusted us for many years.

PAVING EXPO 2025

Uruguay was present at the traditional paving fair in Brazil with a presentation on the development of warm mixtures and the control of IRI in paving works.

This year the event was held in the Anhembi District of San Pablo with the participation of more than 31,000 people who visited the fair and a Paving Conference that registered more than 4,000 attendees during the three days it lasted.

We were invited by the company Ingevity to present on the advances in the use of warm asphalt mixtures in our country and Eng. Max Iglesias from Interagrovial and Nicolás Olivera from Serviam were invited to present on the control of the IRI in paving works, showing the case of the construction of the double lane of Route 3 (San José).

From BITAFAL we made a summary of the pilot sections executed to date as well as the lessons learned that allowed a rich exchange with attendees regarding best practices in the incorporation of technology.

In the case of Serviam, they presented the IRI control strategy in the Circuit 7 PPP Contract, where the main objective was to minimize the IRI at the end of the work and keep it below 2 m/km throughout the service period, optimizing conservation costs. Optimized laying and compaction methods were implemented, using two finishers and combined compaction equipment (tandem and pneumatic rollers). Improvements in the methodology allowed the IRI to be reduced by 15% to 25% in the black base layers.

In turn, the incorporation of the Transfer VÖGELE MT3000-2 in the low-thickness tread layer (4 cm) also allowed the final IRI to be improved by 40%, obtaining values of the order of 0.7 m/km, considered the lowest recorded in Uruguay, along with a significant reduction in granulometric and thermal segregations. This guaranteed the continuity of the laying, giving more regular, durable surfaces and meeting the comfort and quality standards required in long-term contracts.

The fair had attendees from 25 countries in South America (53.5%), North America (19.7%) and Asia (15.7%) who toured the immense pavilion where more than 300 brands presented their latest innovations.

XVIII ARGENTINE CONGRESS OF ROADS AND TRANSIT

03 October 2022
in: News,Uncategorized
Tags: asphalt, congress, mtop, floors, road safety, roads

Great Uruguayan delegation in the XVIII CAVYT

On September 26, 27 and 28, the traditional Argentine Road and Traffic Congress was held at the Convention Center of the Hilton Hotel in Puerto Madero, with a historic attendance of more than 2,000 participants.

The Uruguayan delegation was present with a large contingent of Engineers from the National Directorate of Roads as well as Municipalities and companies in the road sector of our country. Grupo Bitafal presented on the Development of the Cape Seal in Uruguay and also on the promotion of the next XXI CILA that we are proudly carrying out together with the AUC.

The inauguration of the Congress was attended by the Ministers of Public Works of Argentina, Gabriel Katopodis, and that of Uruguay, José Luis Falero, as well as other road and transportation authorities from the neighboring shore.

The event was held simultaneously in 5 rooms where the following topics were discussed: Network management and road asset management; connectivity, transport and logistics; Smart Technology: Knowledge, innovation and creativity; Rural roads; Road safety: policies to reduce accidents; flooring; Sustainable Multimodality in Urban Regions; Environment and road transport; and Highway Planning and Project.

In parallel, the Symposium organized by the Permanent Asphalt Commission was held with three master lectures by renowned technicians in the field such as Dr. Miguel Angel del Val, Dr. Angel Sampedro and Dr. Carlos Fonseca focused on Sustainability and in Road Safety.

The Uruguayan delegation was present with a large contingent from the DNV who attended along with the Minister and his advisers showing the change in direction that the MTOP shows in terms of the training of its collaborators and that they will also be present in large numbers at the next CILA and the Uruguayan Road Congress.

"ROAD TO THE FUTURE"

Continue reading: “WAY TO THE FUTURE”

construction magazine note pdf

WE REMEMBER ARTURO FORTEZA

31 August 2021
in: News,Uncategorized

Last august 17th we received the sad news of his passing. From Bitafal we remember him with the same affection that he gave us forever.

This time someone without a name or face is not writing, I am writing from a place that has allowed me to meet Arturo and share many moments of me academic and professional activity. Arturo was me Professor of the "Roads" course at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Montevideo, was me mentor and reviewer during the two years of elaboration of the manual of High Performance Surface Treatments, he was sworn in the presentation of me thesis and also thanks to your letter of recommendation I was able to study abroad.

Dear Arturo:

I know that you will no longer be with us, but in this letter I want to remember you as I met you. I will remember you as a person of listening and infinite dedication, both as a teacher and as a mentor, you were always present in the dialogue, attentive to every word and with the right answer for each moment. I will remember you with a serene temper and with a great willingness to explain your point of view, no matter the time or how busy you were at the time. Nor can I forget your great sense of humor and your characteristic laugh that will be immortalized in time. I think we all recognize that smile.

On behalf of the entire company, especially Claudio, Diego, Santiago, Mariana, and on behalf of the students in your course at UM, I want to send you a warm hug, Arturo. I keep the permanent imprint you have left on me, I keep your friendship and I keep everything you have taught me. Thank you for crossing my path, thank you for training me, thank you for listening to me and thank you for guiding me. I don't want to forget to greet your family and friends, and tell them to be proud of the person you have been.

Will always remember you,

A hug from a distance, wherever you are.

Ignacio Kroger

BITAFAL GROUP WEBINAR CYCLE

The first webinar of the High Performance Superficial Treatments Cycle was held.

The first module of this cycle was carried out last Thursday September 24 through the zoom platform with more than 350 subscribers from 26 countries. Relevant topics were discussed to achieve the success of gravel irrigation such as materials, selection of the type of treatment, design and good construction practices.

We are happy to share with all of you this new virtual adventure to exchange knowledge and opinions. The first conference of this first Cycle exceeded our expectations in terms of attendance, adding more than 350 registrations, including technicians, students, officials and builders, demonstrating the growing interest in Latin America for cost-efficient solutions for the road network.

In the presentation by Ing. Ignacio Kröger, some critical points to be taken into account that can improve the quality and favor the success of the application of gravel irrigation were dealt with very concisely. In the area of materials, the importance of granulometry tests, ALD (average minimum size), cleanliness, wear and polishing of aggregates was discussed; and the performance tests of the binders, which are adjusted to the climate and traffic of the project. Some of the tables included in our manual regarding the selection of treatments were also presented and a review of the methodology for using the Australian and New Zealand dosage design was made. Finally, some recommendations were discussed regarding the execution of irrigation, on planning, sweeping, compaction and we showed some examples of proven cases of success in Uruguay.

In module 2, we will focus on the transformation that the evaluation of surface treatments has had (from material control to quality control), marking the difference between traditional tests and new performance tests. We will talk about laboratory and construction tests that allow us to improve the final quality of the treatments and new ways to evaluate their behavior in the long term.

Module 2 will take place on the day October 15th, at 4:00 p.m. (Uruguay GMT -3).

We leave below the invitation to register, we are waiting for you!

VIRTUAL COURSE “Surface treatments and asphalt primer”

On Thursday, May 20 and Friday, May 21, we had the pleasure of attending the virtual course on "Surface treatments and asphalt primer" organized by the Bolivian company Quimitec Asfaltos. The webinar, by Prof. Edson Andrade and Ing. Daniel Zenteno, discussed important aspects on the execution of asphalt primer and surface treatments, developing the concepts and manufacturing procedures for emulsions and construction procedures for these techniques.

On Friday, Ing. Ignacio Kröger spoke about the importance of a good penetration in the primer. For this, the porosity and humidity conditions of the base, and the viscosity and strength of the binder were detailed. Likewise, the need to progressively eliminate the use of asphalt dilutes in paving in general and in priming specifically was discussed.

To summarize, the four main disadvantages presented by the dilutes are detailed below:

1) Contains volatile gases that are toxic to workers.

2) Impact on the greenhouse effect and reduction of the ozone layer.

3) It requires energy for heating, which in addition to being expensive, requires valuable time. It can also create a risk of overheating and explosion of tanks, like the two accidents we had in our country last year.

4) After 72 hours of applying a dilute type MC1, it still has between 55 and 85% of the solvent. Risk of softening binder of future treatment and oozing in summer.

The IMPRIMA 50 emulsion for its part is a mixture of asphalt and water, and this brings great technical and environmental advantages:
1) Quick release to traffic, without the need to prime with sand. This allows paving tasks to be carried out in the following 12 and 24 hours.

2) Low viscosity at room temperature (at 25 degrees it has the same fluidity as at 60 of the diluted). Quick loading of a sprinkler truck and without the need for heating.

3) Releases water to the environment instead of volatile organic compounds (less dangerous for workers and the environment).

4) It is compatible with other emulsions, therefore it does not generate inconveniences in its manipulation.

For more information about the performance comparison between the emulsion and the diluted primer, you can consult the technical work presented by Quim. Santiago Kröger at the IX Uruguayan Road Congress "Primer with emulsions: technical and environmental improvements."

https://bitafal.com.uy/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/9%c2%ba-CVU-Trabajo-Imprimaci%c3%b3n-con-emulsiones-mejoras-t%c3%a9cnicas-y-ambientales.pdf

We thank Quimitec Asfaltos for the invitation, and hopefully it will be the first of several collaborations between the two companies.

Category Archives: Uncategorized Archives - Page 2 of 3 - Bitafal

Great Uruguayan delegation in the XVIII CAVYT

Continue reading: “WAY TO THE FUTURE”

Last august 17th we received the sad news of his passing. From Bitafal we remember him with the same affection that he gave us forever.

The first webinar of the High Performance Superficial Treatments Cycle was held.

Category Archives:
Uncategorized Archives - Page 2 of 3 - Bitafal