New-product evaluation procedures

The construction, maintenance and operation of highways and other transportation facilities require the use of great numbers of manufactured products, large quantities of materials and frequent application of specialized processes. Many new products are proposed for use to highway and transportation agencies each year and each item must be evaluated thoroughly before acceptance to provide assurance that the product will fill a need, be cost-effective and not be likely to produce undesirable side effects. New product evaluation is a full time activity and appears to offer the best opportunity for control and standardization in the evaluation process. However, little information is currently available on the benefits being derived from new product evaluations. The regular exchange of information on new products among states and on a national basis is recommended as being valuable for locating useful products and avoiding unnecessary duplication of the evaluation effort.