Wood pallets
TEST SECTION CONSTRUCTION
The mats were 1.2 3 m (4 10 ft) and con-
Mats
structed from rough cut 2 6's and 2 4's. A
Four types of mats were tested: wood pallets
few species of wood were used. Additionally, a
and Uni-Mats (both wooden mats), a tire mat, and
nail gun was used to expedite mat fabrication.
a PVC fascine mat. The Uni-Mats and tire mats
Each mat was carried to and placed in the test
were preassembled. The wood pallets and fascine
section by a crew of seven to nine people.
mats were fabricated by the Wisconsin National
On the sloped trail, the mats were placed end
Guard. They had no previous experience build-
to end in the wheel tracks. On the wooded trail,
ing or placing mats; therefore, placement meth-
the mats were placed three across. A line was
ods were continually improved with each test
painted on the ground as a guide to keep the
section. Each type of mat was unique enough that
mats in a straight line during placement. Mats
a different placement method was used for each.
were hand placed (Fig. 2) on both the sloped
The following sections simply discuss the place-
and wooded trail sections. Wood pallets were
ment methods used for each stabilizing technique
not used on the pentagonal loop trail.
at Fort McCoy.
Uni-Mats
The Uni-Mats were 2.4 m (8 ft) wide
4.3 m (14 ft) long, weighed approxi-
mately 643 kg (1400 lb), and required
heavy equipment for placement (Fig.
3). The mats are designed to interlock
by placing the top layer (right side up)
such that it overlaps the bottom layer
(resting upside down). Uni-Mats were
used on the wooded and sloped trails.
In both instances, they were delivered
to a staging area, then transported one
at a time to the test section.
On the sloped trail, a 5CY bucket loader
was used to move and place the mats.
One end of the mat was placed in the
bucket, while the other end was attached
to the bucket with a steel cable. The mat
Figure 2. Wood pallets.
was lifted by tipping and raising the
bucket. The loader then drove to the test
section and placed the mat. The bucket
was lowered and tipped to place the far
end of the mat. The loader then lowered
the bucket and backed away. The mat
was moved into position using long pry
bars.
On the wooded trail, the mats were
lifted using four cables and the HEMTT
crane. The mat was rested on the vehicle
tow assembly while being transported to
the test section. One person held a tie
line attached to the mat to keep the mat
from swinging during backing (Fig. 4).
The mat was then lowered into place.
The pry bars were then used to move the
mats to their final location. The HEMTT
Figure 3. Lifting Uni-Mats with bucket loader.
carried one mat at a time from the stag-
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