February 2012, Vol. 67 No. 2

Backhoe loaders from Case, Volvo, Caterpillar, Bradco/Paladin Construction Group, Kubota Tractor and Terex.

Advertisers from the print edition of <em>Underground Construction</em>, February 2012, Vol. 67 No. 2.

The Toro Company announced Feb. 10 that it has acquired Astec Underground’s equipment lines of vibratory plows, trenchers and horizontal directional drills for the underground utilities market at an undisclosed price.

Al Colthorp of Lake St. Louis, MO, died on Oct. 18, 2011 at the age of 77. Colthorp graduated from Michigan State University with a masters in Civil Engineering, and was a registered Professional Engineer.

Godwin, manufacturer of the Dri-Prime automatic self-priming, dry-running pump, has changed its legal name to Xylem Dewatering Solutions Inc.

Gwinnett Chamber Economic Development and Georgia Department of Economic Development joined Governor Nathan Deal to announce the relocation of Hyundai Construction Equipment Americas Inc. (HCEA) headquarters to Norcross, GA, in Gwinnett County.

Magnum Tunneling LLC, a portfolio company of Momentum Capital Partners, announced has acquired all of the assets of the Boring and Tunneling Company of America Inc. bases in Houston, TX. Magnum and Bortunco Inc. provide primarily subcontract services on trenchless heavy underground construction projects using horizontal boring and tunneling as well as directional drilling. Terms of the investment were not released.

After several years of the Great Recession, America’s underground infrastructure – already stretched thin before the economic crash – is rapidly approaching crisis levels, say city respondents to the 15th Annual Underground Construction Municipal Sewer & Water Survey. However, a majority of the survey participants believe that their city’s financial woes bottomed out in 2011 and anticipate the beginning of a slow turnaround late in 2012.

It was a busy and eventful year for the North American Society for Trenchless Technology (NASTT) with several significant accomplishments achieved and a strengthening of their internal processes that will guide the society in the coming years.

For the American Pipeline Contractors Association (APCA) and most of its members, 2011 was another good year with the majority of members involved with new pipeline construction projects or work to expand and maintain pipelines already in place, said John Fluharty, the association’s president.

Panoramic pipe inspection technology has taken the process of inspecting sanitary sewer, storm sewer and water pipes to new dimensions, providing a 360-degree look at inside pipe surfaces and detailed information a step further past the capabilities of conventional pan-and-rotate inspection cameras and equipment.

TT Technologies has developed an ultra-compact horizontal directional drilling unit designed to operate from a keyhole excavation to install natural gas and water service installations.

The Power & Communication Association (PCCA) and its members continued to navigate difficult economic times in 2011, looking for new opportunities and for ways to work smarter, reports Tim Wagner, PCCA executive vice president. PCCA maintained a positive bottom line throughout 2011, had strong attendance at its meetings, and had a solid 4 percent membership increase from 2010.

Most members of the Pipe Line Contractors Association (PLCA) were busy throughout 2011 with major projects to further develop the expanding shale gas and oil markets.

The One-Call and excavation damage provisions included in the new pipeline safety bill passed by Congress in December will trigger a number of state and federal responses in 2012. However, a rule allowing the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to impose civil penalties on excavators -- ordered by the 2006 pipeline safety bill but never finalized -- would be even more significant. A proposed rule moving that requirement forward is expected this year, finally, perhaps as early as this winter.

Southern Diversified Technologies (SDT), a multi-disciplined telecommunications infrastructure services company based in Brookhaven, MS, has developed a method for using GIS (geographic information system) technology to design and build telecommunications projects.

With increasingly tight municipal budgets being maximized, social benefits are receiving greater and serious consideration. Pipe bursting is performed increasingly more as understanding of its social benefits become more prevalent.

The new Mini-Blower/Pusher from Condux is the lightweight, portable solution for the installation of micro fiber and traditional fiber optic cable.

The Sidewinder Pull & Assist Winch features a 32-inch diameter capstan that provides a controlled force when pulling rope or tape.

Rapid Cut and Bevel Machines safely and efficiently cut and bevel up to 24-inch nominal (610 mm actual) PVC or PE pipe in one pass.

The SGP WHISPER-ALU reinforced grinding wheel significantly reduces noise and vibration.

The R9x12T drilling fluid reclaimer allows Vermeer to broaden the package (drill, reclaimer and tooling) of trenchless equipment offered to pipeline contractors.

Low profile pipeline Road Crossings from Rain for Rent provide an excellent way to safely move water across busy streets, driveways, and highways without disrupting traffic or damaging roadways.

Melfred Borzall once again delivers with their new Hedgehog Reamer. The new budget priced reamer is compact and aggressive to work in a variety of ground conditions. A tapered blade design, combined with the cutters provides smooth, efficient cutting action.

Leo M. Beard, 96, of Mt. Pleasant, MI, passed away Dec. 12, 2011.

Uni-Bell PVC Pipe Association is encouraging its more than 9,000 Facebook followers to shoot pictures of water main breaks or repairs in their local communities and submit them as contest entries to win an iPad.

EPA has awarded $1,455,000 to the city of Lee’s Summit, MO, for improvements to its sewer system. The project is expected to be completed by the summer of 2014.

ConocoPhillips has obtained important federal government support for pipeline and bridge projectgs that would allow the company to be the first to develop a commercial oil well in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve since the reserve was opened to drilling in 1998.

EPA has awarded $123,000 to the city of Wichita, KS, for improvements to its storm sewer system. The project is expected to be completed by the fall of 2012.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the state of Illinois announced a Clean Water Act (CWA) settlement with the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) to resolve claims that untreated sewer discharges were released into Chicago area waterways during flood and wet weather events.

Pattern Energy Group LP announced that its Southern Cross transmission project has obtained two key regulatory orders from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Pattern is developing the Southern Cross project to add a High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission tie of up to 3,000 MW between ERCOT in Texas and the transmission grid deep in the southeastern United States by 2016.

As last summer’s drought conditions wore on, I learned that there is a condition even worse than “extreme.” There is an “exceptional” drought category, which essentially means “pending devastation if you don’t get rain fast.” The impact of this drought, when finally broken, will be felt for years.

Natural gas transmission companies are very unhappy with the EPA's decision to tighten industry air emission limits. A consent decree signed by the EPA requires the agency to revise both New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) and national emission standards for hazardous air pollutants (NESHAP) for the natural gas industry, including for pipelines, by the end of February. Those are two separate EPA regulatory programs.