Paving Excellence
A&A Asphalt Paving and Concrete Services, Inc. takes personal pride in each project
What do asphalt paving and skiing have in common? Everything, explains David Wine, Owner of A&A Asphalt Paving and Concrete Services, Inc. (A&A Asphalt). As a teen, Wine worked on creating the Vinings Ridge ski slope near downtown Atlanta. There, according to him, he became a great skier and caught the zeal for asphalt paving at the same time.
Getting Started
As a young adult, Wine had a small pavement-patching company, a side venture to the combined convenience store and gas station he owned in Marietta, Georgia, northwest of the Atlanta metropolitan area. At the time, he owned one paving machine, one roller and one truck, and four guys worked with him. Ironically, Cobb County decided to widen the road in 1986 and, in the process, his store had to be demolished. This propelled him into full-time paving and prompted relocation to Six Flags Hill.
Increasing Business
Wine has increased his equipment to include seven dump trucks, two paving machines, six rollers, one motor grader, two sealcoat machines, a crack-filling machine, which is often used on highway projects, five tack distributors, backhoes, an excavator and other equipment, along with 10 service trucks.
Twenty-one hardworking, dedicated people work for him now, two who are part of the original four. “We have a great crew, and we do the best paving in Atlanta. Period,” Wine says. “My crew is extremely good at getting a smooth mat and smooth ride, and a customer’s problem with ‘ponding’ or standing water will always be fixed. It’s really simple—we pave each job like it is our own.”
Offering All Types of Services
A&A Asphalt has a long list of products and services. Striping and pavement marking services include: parking lot layout consulting, line striping, traffic stencils (arrows, stops, custom), curb painting, custom stenciling, custom signage, speed bump installation and painting, wheel/car stop installation, and playground striping.
In concrete, the group does sidewalks and walkways, patios, driveways, planter boxes, curbs and gutters, dumpster pads, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-compliant ramps, curb throats and tops for stormwater management, bollards and flumes.
Its asphalt line includes gravel lots and driveways, asphalt paving, Perma Flex paving, asphalt repairs, asphalt milling, edge milling, speed breakers, crack filling, seal coating, line marking, and brick pattern stamping and staining.
Stamped asphalt, a decorative product, has been popular since the mid-90s. By creating an impression in the surface, regular asphalt is transformed to look like brick, stone or slate. The process uses a combination of heat, a stamping template and a plate compactor.
Normally, asphalt, a mixture of sand, rocks and bitumen, is dark in color. But it can be produced in various colors, such as chocolate brown, smoky gray, brown brick, pale terracotta, slate green, white, rose and tan. “Asphalt stamping is a specialty item. Commercial sites use stamped asphalt for crosswalks and entrances, not a whole parking lot. We’ve done residential driveways as well,” Wine says.
Tar-and-chip paving, also known as chip and seal, chipseal or macadam is another driveway option customers may choose. According to Wine, this method was developed in the 1800s. It is formed by combining gravel (which can contain simple stone or decorative stone) and an asphalt emulsion bonding agent, and is a low-cost alternative to traditional asphalt. The effect is aesthetically appealing and doesn’t require the upkeep that an asphalt driveway would need.
“We also do soil stabilization, a process that’s been around for a while, for the sub-base in soft areas,” Wine says. Adding adhesive materials to the soil is an all green and environmentally safe method. “When we pave a really soft parking lot, for example, we put liquid glue into the soil and then pack it. The soil hardens and provides greater strength and stability beneath the project surface area, thus reducing the need for added stone and saving contractors money,” Wine explains.
Memorable Paving Projects
On average, the company’s larger jobs run between $250,000 to $750,000. To date, the largest project in literal size and contract value A&A Asphalt has accomplished is the Staples Fulfillment Center in Austell. The team also worked on the MHC Kenworth of Atlanta dealership project. “That was a big job we performed close to 20 years ago, and it has held up really well. The customer hasn’t had to call me back nor anyone else for that matter,” Wine says.
Another project involved leveling the intersection of Pryor Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in Atlanta for the safety of one of the car-chase scenes in the “Fast & Furious 7” movie production. “We enjoyed watching the cars do doughnuts on our brand-new asphalt. They left some nice circles in the middle of it, but they didn’t ruin it. That’s how good we are,” Wine says. That was the second time A&A Asphalt had been asked to work with the “Fast & Furious” crew.
Moving Forward
Wine is looking to grow the company in every way. “If the economy stays strong, we’ll be able to increase our services, project load and workforce. Also, additional skilled help is what I need to broaden our horizons much more,” Wine says. “I have been with The Blue Book for 15 years or so. It centers on commercial contacts and has been very useful in helping us expand.”
The firm’s business philosophy includes respect, quality construction, follow through and providing a superior finished product. Whether dealing with residential or commercial projects, every employee’s team-oriented mentality reflects the company’s mission statement: “We will provide the highest-quality service and most advanced paving technology for all of our customers. We will meet and exceed their expectations, and we will build a lasting relationship with each one.”
Wine rewards his employees’ dedication in various ways, including hosting a large Christmas dinner every year and Labor Day cookouts, as well as providing an incentive program that consists of monthly distributions of 3% of the company’s profits. “My employees are crucial to the success of A&A Asphalt and I believe it is important to reward their good efforts,” Wine says.
Serving Others
The team also works together on quite a few community service projects. For instance, it adopted a mile of Windy Hill Road for cleanup and has built residential driveways in partnership with the NW Metro Atlanta Habitat for Humanity. The company has also constructed a parking lot for a shelter aiding abused and battered women.
For the last 13 years, Wine has been a member of Rotary International, a charitable society of business and professional leaders with over 35,000 clubs worldwide. In this role, he is passionate about effecting lasting change to better communities, including fighting disease. “We are trying to eradicate polio. We are real close, too,” Wine says. The Rotarians report that the incidence of polio infection has been on the rise in the last two years. At the time of reporting for this article, just over 40 cases of polio had been reported this year alone.
As a Rotarian, Wine participates in all kinds of programs to serve the local area, such as BackPack Blessings, Children’s Christmas Event, First Responders Continuing Ed Scholarship, Food for the Poor, One for the Chipper, South Cobb Citizen of the Year and Veterans Recognition. A&A Asphalt employees join Wine in some of these projects as well. “Serving the community where we, along with our clients, live and work is a high priority in our corporate culture. It’s right up there with providing top-quality work and 100% customer satisfaction,” Wine says.
No matter the task, the A&A Asphalt team is committed to delivering exceptional experiences to everyone they serve. Wine concludes: “We are family owned and operated in the U.S.A. We are on it. We are on time, and we do it right. We Pave It!”