The company was paid an unannounced visit by Ohio Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration personnel on October 21, 2024.
The investigation was launched after a referral from ODOT, the Inspector General’s Office said.
Upon investigators’ arrival, the lab was locked with no testing personnel present, even though asphalt was being produced for a project at the time, according to the report.
ODOT and federal agents were eventually granted access to the lab and conducted their own tests, including those designed to determine moisture content according to the report. Those tests had different results from quality control tests documented by Valley Asphalt’s lab personnel.
Investigators then obtained testing forms, quality control worksheets, electronic access card data, and truck load records for October 21, 2024, and conducted interviews of two laboratory technicians.
Those agents were “unable to confirm that testing was not performed on the day of question,” per the report, but did find that the documented nuclear gauge testing performed did not comply with required ODOT testing procedures, something the lab technicians who conducted the nuclear gauge testing acknowledged in subsequent interviews.
The investigation report recommends that ODOT review it and determine if administrative actions are necessary, as well as “whether this failure rises to the level of non-specification material.”
Valley Asphalt, which is listed as “a Jurgensen company” is a contractor for ODOT, and considered a Local Public Agency, which means they must comply with federal regulations in exchange for federal funding.
Neither Valley Asphalt nor the Ohio Department of Transportation could be reached for comment late Tuesday.
Quality of asphalt has been an issue in at least one local road project in the past year. In August, ODOT said the Far Hills Avenue paving project in Oakwood was delayed, in part because contractor Barrett Paving Materials Inc. was having “asphalt mix issues.”
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