On November 2, 1966, ten forward thinking and responsible hot mix asphalt producers came together and petitioned O. Frank Thorton, then Secretary of State for South Carolina, for an eleemosynary corporation charter in the name of the South Carolina Asphalt Pavement Association. The charter was issued and the Association was born.

In 1966, Robert E. McNair was governor, S.N. Pearman was chief highway commissioner and W.N. Dulin was the district engineer for South Carolina for the U.S. Bureau of Public Roads (now Federal Highway Administration). The interstate highway program was still in its infancy. Only I-85 was completed with I-20, I-26 and I-95 miles from completion. Discussions to extend I-77 to Columbia had not yet begun.

Hot mix asphalt plants were either batch or continuous mix and were manually controlled. Drum plants were nonexistent. Automatic grade controls were new to pavers. No one had heard of a vibratory roller for compacting HMA pavements. The nuclear density gauge for determining roadway density was yet to be invented. Today, all of that equipment with automatic controls is utilized in the daily production and construction operations.

During the late sixties, commercial passenger jet planes were beginning to be introduced in South Carolina which triggered runway expansions at our states major airports. Hot mix asphalt was the pavement of choice for that work.

The past 40 years have brought many positive changes to the HMA industry. Today, state of the art plants and paving equipment are used and the design and testing of HMA is more sophisticated. An increased emphasis on continuing educational programs for HMA production and construction personnel is preparing the industry for the future years.

“Together we know more”, the Association’s motto, best describes the reason for the existence of the South Carolina Asphalt Pavement Association. The Association is a statewide trade association of contractor member-firms engaged in the production of high quality hot mix asphalt. These firms construct all types of environmentally friendly asphalt pavements ranging from tennis courts to airport runways, parking lots, streets and highways.

The Birth of the Association