5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

Pavement Management- MicroPAVER Update

M.Y. Shahin
US Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratory
P.O. Box 9005
Champaign, IL 61826-9005
U.S.A.
(217) 373-4466
[email protected]

Abstract The MicroPAVER pavement management system was developed and continues to be updated by the US
Army Corps of Engineers through funding from the US Air Force, US Army, US Navy, Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA), and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The purpose of this paper is to briefly
present the current capabilities of MicroPAVER (version 5.x) with emphasis on the newly introduced pavement
engineering features. System components presented include the following: pavement inventory, condition
inspection, basic reporting, condition prediction, condition analysis, work planning, and the use of GIS.

PAVEMENT INVENTORY

The pavement inventory is defined in terms of network, branch, and section. A pavement section is the smallest
management unit for considering a major maintenance and repair (M&R) project. Key features to be considered in
section definition are pavement type, structure, construction history, functional classification (or traffic), and
existing condition (1). A branch may consist of one or more sections and is a readily identifiable part of the
pavement network that has a distinct use (i.e., roadway or parking). When implementing MicroPAVER, an agency
may include all their pavements in one or more networks. For example, a city may define one network for each
maintenance district, or one network for roadways and another for parking lots. The MicroPAVER system provides
the ability to combine or subset networks at any time.
There are several new features in the v5.x inventory module. The following is a brief description of each.

User Defined Fields

At each of the section, branch or network levels, there are standard fields that define them. Some of these fields are
mandatory while others are optional. In version 5.x, the user has the ability to define as many fields as desired at the
section, branch, or network levels. These may include fields to inventory curb and gutter, traffic signs, and
shoulders. The fields can also be used to identify sources of funds, and climatic variables. In defining the fields, the
user has the option to choose among a variety of formats such as a drop down menu of a predefined list. These
fields can also be used as key fields to select a specific part of the network to perform analyses and reporting.

Virtual Sectioning

Virtual sectioning provides the user the ability to create a virtual inventory by combining pavement sections of the
same type (i.e. asphalt or concrete). The user has the ability to define the basis for combining the sections’
properties (aggregation rules). For example, the virtual section may have the average Pavement Condition Index
(PCI) of all the selected sections or it may be assigned the lowest of all sections, etc. The individual sections are
able to maintain their actual properties, but the virtual section possesses an aggregation of the sections’ properties.
Virtual sections can be used for reporting and work planning. Virtual sectioning can be used as projects or
combined into projects. When a group of similar sections (i.e. few city blocks) are combined into a virtual section,
inspection may only be performed on one of the sections and the results will be transformed into the virtual section
properties based on the set of aggregation rules in place.

Move and Copy Inventory Data

This allows for ease of reorganization of the inventory. Examples of this include the following: moving sample
units from one section to another, which is useful when subdividing or combining sections; copying a work item
such as a surface treatment to multiple sections at the same time; and consolidating several branches into one
branch.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

Ability to Define Branch Use and Pavement Type

In version 4.x, the user has to select a certain use (such as roadway or taxiway) and surface type (such as AC or
PCC) (2). In version 5.x, the user can further define new uses and types and associate them with the appropriate set
of standard PCI distresses. For example, if the user defines a surface such as DBST (Double Bituminous Surface
Treatment) then he or she might assign that to the asphalt roadway set of distresses.

CONDITION INSPECTION

The primary pavement condition indicator used in MicroPAVER is the PCI. The ASTM standards for the airfield
and roads PCI are D5340-98 (3) and D6433-99 (4) respectively. In summary, the PCI is a value from 0-100 that
rates the pavement based on surveyed distress type, severity, and quantity. It is an overall indicator that measures
pavement surface operational condition and structural integrity (not capacity). It was also developed to correlate
with needed level of M&R. New MicroPAVER v5.x condition inspection features include the following.

User Defined Distress Indices

The user has the ability to name a new distress index and select which distress types and severities to be included in
calculating that index. For example, a user may define a surface deformation index based on distresses such as
rutting, shoving, and depression, as shown in Figure 1. The index will be calculated using the PCI engine, but only
using the selected distresses. Two such indices have already been predefined for assessing foreign object damage
(FOD) for airports and for calculating Structural Condition Index (SCI) required as input to the US Navy airfield
pavement overlay design procedure. Other uses of such distress indices are presented later in this paper under
“Determination of Work Requirements Using Condition Matrix Approach”.

FIGURE 1 User defined distress indices.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

PCI Inspection Using Frames

In performing the PCI inspection, a pavement section is divided into inspection units, called sample units, and the
PCI is determined for each sample unit. The section PCI is the average PCI of inspected sample units. An asphalt
sample unit is 2500 ± 1000 square feet for roadways and 5000 ± 2000 square feet for airfields.
A new capability has been added to MicroPAVER to allow for performing inspections on smaller areas than the
required sample unit size. This is particularly useful when performing distress inspections using vehicles equipped
with video or 35 mm film. In these cases, distresses are recorded on a frame by frame basis, where a frame size may
be 10 x 10 foot or 12 x 20 foot based on the equipment used. An example is shown in Figure 2. Also, with the
majority of these vehicles, other condition indices are measured simultaneously while conducting the survey
including the International Roughness Index (IRI), rutting index, and faulting index. The new MicroPAVER
capability allows for the import of distresses as well as other condition indices at the frame, sample, or section
levels. The PCI as well as other user defined distress indices are automatically calculated and stored. The PCI is
calculated by summing the frame areas until it reaches the recommended sample unit size and then calculates the
PCI for the sample unit.

FIGURE 2 Frame inspection method.

Other Condition Indices and Categories

This feature provides the user the ability to define condition indices other than those related to the PCI. For
example: International Roughness Index (IRI), Structural index based on the Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD),
Shoulder Condition Index, etc. The user has the ability to define the minimum and maximum values for each index
as well as the ability to divide the condition ranges into meaningful categories and colors for the agency. The
condition category feature is also true for the PCI and PCI related indices. For example, for military roads and
streets, the PCI is broken into three categories: 0-40 (red), 41-55 (amber), and 56-100 (green). The defined
categories are then used for condition analysis and work plan reporting. The categories and colors can be redefined
as often as the user wishes prior to the execution of the reports.

BASIC REPORTING

MicroPAVER offers several useful preformatted reports that cover existing inventory and existing conditions.
These reports are grouped by type as “summary charts”, “standard reports”, “re-inspection reports”, and the new
addition in version 5.x “flexible reporting”.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

Summary Charts

In this category, the user gets to view any X vs. Y chart by selecting the X and Y variables. For example, network
ID (or maintenance district) may be selected as the X-axis and average network condition as the Y-axis.

Standard Reports
There are several reports from which the user can choose. The most frequently used report is the section condition
report. In this report, basic information is presented on a pavement section by section basis including the condition
type selected by user i.e. PCI, IRI, etc. The last page of the all the standard reports, shown in Figure 3, is a useful
statistical summary of all selected pavement in the report.

FIGURE 3 Section condition report.

Re-inspection Report

This report is primarily used to generate a hard copy or file format of pavement sections to be re-inspected. The
user may choose among three levels of details for information to be included about each of the sections. The most
detailed level includes all distress types, severities, and quantities recorded in the previous inspection. The least
detailed level is a list of sample units inspected in the previous inspection.

Flexible Reporting

Even though there are a variety of preformatted reports from which to choose, it is quite often that a user likes to
customize and define his or her own report. The flexible reporting tool, shown in Figure 4, provides the user with
the ability to select columns, rows, and the sorting order of the rows.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

FIGURE 4 Flexible reporting.

CONDITION PREDICTION

The condition prediction method used in MicroPAVER (known as the family method) was developed as a result of
extensive research to predict PCI over time. In brief, the family method consists of defining a pavement family of
similar sections, filtering the data based on user defined boundaries, removing data points that are statistical outliers,
and then fitting the remaining data with the best model. A condition prediction model is shown in Figure 5. In
version 5.x, the same tool was extended to predict PCI vs. traffic as well as IRI vs. traffic or time. Once a condition
model as been developed, it is then used as a trend for predicting the condition of individual sections in the same
family.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

FIGURE 5 Prediction modeling.

CONDITION ANALYSIS

The purpose of the Condition Analysis tool is to evaluate past and future pavement condition at the network, branch,
and section levels. Condition calculations are performed at the section level and then aggregated to produce the
branch and network level results. Past section condition is determined by linear interpolation between past
inspection results. Section condition beyond the last inspection date is determined by predicting the future condition
based on the family deterioration curve assigned to the section.

WORK PLANNING

Work planning in v4.x of MicroPAVER consists of identifying the recommended annual M&R work level for each
pavement section through network optimization. The levels of M&R work include localized stop-gap (e.g. filling
potholes), localized preventative (e.g. crack filling), global preventative (e.g. surface treatment), and major (e.g.
overlay or reconstruction). The optimization at the network is performed using the critical PCI method, which is
based on the principle that it is more economic on a life cycle cost basis, to maintain pavements above rather than
below the critical PCI. The critical PCI is the PCI value below which the rate of deterioration as well as the unit
cost of performing localized preventative M&R increases significantly, as shown in Figure 6. The critical PCI
method was developed by studying results from dynamic programming network optimization analysis and by
performing life cycle analysis on many projects (5). The process of assigning M&R levels to pavement sections is
shown in Figures 7 and 8. When a major M&R is applied to a pavement section, the PCI is increased to 100. If a
global preventative M&R is applied, the PCI is increased so that it returns to its current value after the increase in
pavement life defined by the user. V4.x, however, does not credit the application of localized preventative, which it
should. A very powerful feature of the critical PCI method is the ability to analyze the consequence of various
budget levels on pavement condition and amount of deferred M&R (backlog of M&R). V5.x includes several
enhancements to work planning which are presented below.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

FIGURE 6 Critical PCI.

FIGURE 7 Assignment of M&R levels above or equal to critical PCI.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

FIGURE 8 Assignment of M&R levels below critical PCI.

Effect of Localized Preventative M&R

The critical PCI method was further improved by crediting the application of localized preventative maintenance.
The user defines the expected increase in pavement life due to the selected policy of localized preventative
maintenance. He or she also defines the interval at which the localized preventative is applied, i.e. annually, bi-
annually, etc. The program then calculates the effective increase in PCI at each application so that the specified
increase in life is achieved, as shown in Figure 9. The addition of this capability will provide more realistic results
when comparing the consequence of different budget scenarios where localized preventative maintenance is applied.

100 Net Effect of an

Additional 5 Years of Life
Condition Index

Critical Condition Index

55

0
0 5 10 15 20 25
Years
FIGURE 9 Effect of localized repair.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

Pre-defined Budget Scenarios

Several budget scenarios were developed for the critical PCI method to facilitate work planning. These scenarios
were developed based on observing patterns of use by users. These include the following: determining the annual
budget requirements so that the current average network PCI is maintained; determining the consequence on
network condition and amount of differed M&R if only localized stop-gap (i.e. filling potholes) is applied;
determining the consequence on network condition and amount of deferred M&R if current level of funding is
continued; determining budget requirements if deferred M&R is to be eliminated in five years. Figure 10 is an
example comparison of the resulting PCI of these scenarios.

100
Weighted Network Average Pavement Condition Index (PCI)

90

80

70

60

50

40

30
Condition History

20 No Major M&R - Stopgap Only

$500,000/Year, Current Budget

10 $650,000/Year, Maintain Current PCI

$1,100,000/Year, Eliminate M&R Backlog in 5 Years

0
1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008
Years

FIGURE 10 Budget scenario comparison.

Assignable Cost Models

Before executing the critical PCI work plan, the user has to define which cost models to use for the calculations.
These models include the following: localized stop-gap and preventative distress maintenance policies, PCI vs. unit
cost for localized stop-gap and preventative maintenance, PCI vs. unit cost for major M&R, and unit costs of global
preventative maintenance. Since these cost models may vary based on pavement use, type, etc., v5.x allows for the
designation of different cost models to different pavement families similar to the procedure used for assigning
pavement condition prediction models. For pavement sections without assigned cost models, the work plan will use
the cost models which have been designated by the user as default models.

Determination of Work Requirements Using Condition Matrix Approach

Unlike the critical PCI method where work requirements are assigned based on optimization, the condition matrix
approach assigns work requirements based on user-defined practices. Figure 11 shows an example condition matrix
used by a city. MicroPAVER assigns work requirements to each pavement section based on how it falls in the
matrix. The M&R cost is calculated by multiplying the work unit cost by the section area.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

Load Distress
0% - 0.5% 0.5% - 10% >10%
Climate L M H L M H L M H
Good 1 2 2 5 5 7 5 6 7
Ride Fair 3 4 4 6 6 7 6 6 7
Poor 4 4 7 6 7 7 7 7 7
W ork Codes
1. Surface Seal
2. Crack Seal + Surface Seal
3. Blanket
4. Profile + Blanket
5. Base Failure + Resurface
6. Profile + Base Failure + Resurface
7. Reconstruct ion

FIGURE 11 Example condition matrix.

Project Formulation

Both the critical PCI and the condition matrix work planning methods generate work requirements at the section
level. It is seldom the case, however, that projects are generated for individual sections because of several reasons,
including economies of scale, traffic control, and project funding and management requirements. The project
formulation tool in v5.x provides the capability of combining pavement sections into projects either before or after
executing the work plan. Projects formulated before executing the work plan are viewed by the plan as “required
work.” The advantage of formulating projects after executing the plan is the ability to take the advantage of the
work plan results and thus projects are likely to be optimized on a life cycle cost basis.
Projects may be formulated by combining sections form different branches or networks. The user also has the
ability to assign different work types (i.e. cold milling and overlay vs. overlay only) to different sections in the same
project.

Project Prioritization

Formulating projects can be prioritized based on condition or economics. When performing the work plan using the
critical PCI method, the economic consequence of delaying the execution of a project is quantified in terms of a
penalty cost. The penalty cost of a project is the sum of the penalty costs for each of its sections. A section penalty
cost is calculated as the cost of performing major M&R at a future year minus the cost at the scheduled year plus
any additional safety M&R in between. The cost is normalized by dividing by the section area.
The penalty cost can also be expressed as a percent by dividing the increase in cost by the original cost,
assuming the work to be performed as scheduled.

USE OF GIS

The first step in implementing the use of GIS is to create a GIS coverage (or shape file). A coverage consists of the
pavement network map divided into sections, either polygons or arcs, plus a table which could be a Polygon
Attribute Table (PAT) or Arc Attribute Table (AAT). The table will have a column showing the polygon or arc
identification number and another column showing the corresponding Pavement Identification Number (PID) used
in MicroPAVER. The PID consists of the network, branch, and section numbers combined.
In v4.x of MicroPAVER, information stored in the database as well as the results of the condition and work plan
analysis are exported to the PAT or AAT and different map views are generated using Arc View (7).
In v5.x, this feature will remain, and in addition, several standard map views are made available within PAVER
using ESRI’s Map Object Light (7) as a basis. An example is shown in Figure 12. The standard map views include
inventory as well as condition and work planning analysis. The GIS in v5.x can also be used to select sections from

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).
5th International Conference on Managing Pavements (2001)

maps similar to the use of a grid, tree, or table. Sections selected from any of these tools are broadcasted throughout
MicroPAVER for use in any of the MicroPAVER functions.

FIGURE 12 Object oriented mapping within PAVER.

REFERENCES

(1) Shahin, M.Y. Pavement Management for Airports, Roads, and Parking Lots. Norwell: Kluwer Academic
Publishers, 1998.

(2) Micro PAVER Version 4.1 User Manual. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers CERL, 1998.

(3) D5340-98 Standard Test Method for Airport Pavement Condition Index Surveys. West Conshohocken:
American Society for Testing and Materials, 2000.

(4) D6433 Standard Practice for Roads and Parking Lots Pavement Condition Index Surveys. West
Conshohocken: American Society for Testing and Materials, 2000.

(5) Feighan, Kieran John. An Application of Dynamic Programming to Pavement Management Systems.

(6) ArcCAD User’s Guide. Redlands: Environmental System Research Institute, Inc., 1995.

TRB Committee AFD10 on Pavement Management Systems is providing the information contained herein for use by individual practitioners
in state and local transportation agencies, researchers in academic institutions, and other members of the transportation research
community. The information in this paper was taken directly from the submission of the author(s).