The Selangor government, through its public works department (JKR) and state road maintenance concessionaire Infrasel, has recently procured a new Jetpatcher potholes patching machine from the United Kingdom. Costing a whopping RM1 million, the machine’s tour de force is its ability to fix a pothole in just 15 minutes!
According to the machine’s manufacturer website, the Jetpatcher uses a technology called “spray injection” that significantly cuts down on the time required for road patching (upwards of 400%), while at the same time delivering results that are higher in quality compared to common methods.
“Typically, repairing a pothole requires a team of 15. The process involves cutting the hole to size, drying it, and then applying the patch. Rain can delay repairs by several days. With the new method, just two people are required to operate the Jetpatcher and two more to manage traffic,” said Selangor state executive councillor for infrastructure and agriculture, Izham Hashim.
When run continuously, the new Jetpatcher machine can patch up to 80 potholes in a day, he added. Additionally, the machine was also designed with environmentally friendly features that lower its carbon emissions, in line with the Selangor state’s sustainable development goals.
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The new Jetpatcher machine was unveiled to the public during the launch of the ‘Mega Paving 2024’ campaign at Dataran Pahlawan, Shah Alam last week. The RM20 million road repair campaign is slated to begin early October 2024, according to a social media post by the state politician.
For now, the Jetpatcher machine will be used to patch roads around Kuala Selangor, operated by 15 trainees under the supervision of representatives from the UK. Hashim added that the government will be purchasing more units in the future if the results are satisfactory.
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