This VTI-led project has been funded by Vinnova and involved a total of eleven partners, including several of the major forestry companies.
The background to the project is that current forest roads have been designed according to old guidelines and are not adapted to the demands of today. This applies both to climate change, with heavy rainfall over short periods, and to heavy vehicles as the maximum permissible gross weight has increased from 64 to 74 tonnes. As a result, roads break down and vehicles get stuck
Stora Enso chose to implement Neroloy geocells in their road construction in Värmland. The positive results showed an improvement in bearing capacity of up to 64% compared to a reference section without geocells. Despite the waterlogged ground in the construction site, the geocells were able to handle the increased load from heavy machinery without deformation, clearly demonstrating the geocells’ ability to reinforce the road body and reduce the risk of subsidence and other stability issues. Both Stora Enso’s trials with Neoloy geo cells stand out in that, in addition to providing higher load-bearing capacity, they also gave lower construction costs than the reference section
For VTI’s full report, read here: