`Swiss system not suitable for city road plan'

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Public Works Radinal Moochtar said yesterday that his ministry would not consider using the Consolid System for constructing new roads in Jakarta, although the system offers lower construction costs.

Radinal said yesterday that the new technology is not the most suitable choice to build roads in Jakarta, as a city with heavy traffic flow requires conventional road-building methods.

The Consolid System, which is Swiss technology for road building, was discovered and developed by Dr. Gunther A. Scherr in 1960s.

With Consolid, developers need not construct a foundation for the road; by spraying three chemical additives, called Consolid 444, Conservex and Solidry, the newly bulldozed soil becomes as hard as rock.

According to the minister, the technology may be applicable for roads in housing estates which have low daily traffic.

"Perhaps it could be applied in some regencies," he said.

Responding to newsmen's questions about whether the ministry will promote the use of the Consolid System throughout the country, Radinal said that the ministry will not automatically accept the technology as its functions, advantages and quality have yet to be proven.

"Something applicable in other countries is not necessarily applicable in Indonesia," Radinal said.

Eddie Lembong, the President of PT. Lahan Aspirindo Lestari (PT. LAL), said that the technology has been applied in Italy, Liechtenstein, the Philippines, South Africa, Australia, India and the United States.

PT. Lahan Aspirindo Lestari is the company appointed by Consolid Asia Pte to be the sole distributor of the new product.

According to Eddie, the system has been used to build roads in an oil field in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, and a transmigration area in Palembang, South Sumatera.

He also noted that roads built with the Consolid System require less asphalt than conventional roads because they are not as vulnerable to friction caused by vehicles' tires.

Eddie said that Consolid System is suitable for areas which do not have an adequate supplies of rock, sand and cement while the system is also environmentally sound and cheaper than conventional methods.

Dwi Putranto, the PT LAL's General Manager, told The Jakarta Post that for a chemically treated surface thickness of 30 cm, the construction cost of each kilometer will range from Rp 8,500 (US$3.9) to Rp 9,000 ($4.1), adding that the cost of labor and equipment were included in that estimate.

He said that construction of a one kilometer road will take only 20 hours and, with a thickness of 40 cm, the road could be traversed by a 111 ton weight vehicle.

Dwi was hosting a demonstration of the road construction process with Consolid System in Lippo Village, Karawaci, West Java. The demonstration was witnessed by Radinal, Mochtar Riady, Lippo Group's Chairman and Gunther A. Scherr, Consolid System founder. (03)