This report has been produced by a Working Group of the Forum of European Highway Research Laboratories (FEHRL) to meet the requirements of an increasing number of European countries using the Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) for bearing capacity assessment of road pavements. This is the first report of a series dealing with the harmonisation of the use of the FWD to achieve a common code of good practice. It deals with the most essential aspect, namely the FWD testing and data processing required for flexible road pavement evaluation at project (scheme) level. The report contains advice and recommendations on the use of the FWD including guidance on the preparatory information required as well as detailed specifications for the FWD apparatus itself. In particular, the report contains advice on the calibration of the FWD and quality control of FWD measurements. The final section presents a summary of methods used for interpreting FWD measurements on flexible pavements. More detailed advice on the analysis of FWD data will be reviewed in future FEHRL activities and will be reported at a later stage. The information contained in this report is recommended to all FEHRL countries, whether they have established guidelines on the use of FWD or not. By adopting the advice and recommendations in the report, FEHRL members will improve their quality assurance and competitiveness in providing FWD services. (Author/publisher).
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