July 2012, Vol. 67, No. 7

Underground Construction's 2012 rehabilitation equipment selection guide: presenting the industry's most comprehensive resource for the products and services offered to the rehabilitation market.

Advertisers from the print edition of Underground Construction, July 2012, Vol. 67, No. 7.

Thompson Pump & Manufacturing Co. Inc., held their 22nd annual Pumpology School April 25-27, at their corporate facilities in Port Orange, FL.

URS Corporation and Flint Energy Services Ltd. announced that URS has completed its acquisition of Flint. Under the terms of the definitive agreement announced in February, Flint shareholders received $24.50 per share in cash for each Flint share. The total equity value paid by URS was approximately $1.24 billion.

Radius Professional HDD Tools has launched a new e-commerce website (www.radiushdd.com) that offers a convenient way to purchase hundreds of horizontal directional drilling (HDD) tools and accessories.

Dura-Line Holdings Inc., a portfolio company of Chicago-based CHS Capital, has completed the acquisition of PolyPipe Holdings Inc. from the Halifax Group. Terms of the sale were not disclosed. Dura-Line is a portfolio investment of CHS Private Equity V LP, a $1.3 billion investment fund. The Halifax Group is a private equity firm that partners with management to invest in growing entrepreneurial companies.

Larry E. Randolph, 66, vice president, chief marketing officer and owner of Apex Pipeline Services Inc., died May 23.

MEA’s 89th Annual Gas Operations Technical & Leadership Summit will be held July 31-Aug. 2 in Ames, IA. The Gas Operations Technical & Leadership Summit is focused on learning and supporting future operational leadership trends. Sessions are developed to provide the best educational impact for business improvement and personal development.

City officials in Perth Amboy, NJ, agreed in federal court on June 7 to make $5.4 million in sewer improvements to end the release of millions of gallons of sewage into the Raritan River and Arthur Kill each year during heavy rains.

The Volvo Group will launch a 13-liter liquefied natural gas (LNG) engine within the Volvo brand for the North American market 2014. The engine’s high pressure diesel ignition technology will provide significant fuel efficiency gains compared with current natural gas products.

The Knoxville Utilities Board knew cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) would bring faster, lower-cost repair to an underground sewer pipe in Knoxville, TN. The 8-inch diameter clay pipe had been in service for more than 50 years.

Reynolds Inliner, a leading wastewater infrastructure renewal contractor, has been renamed Layne Inliner to reflect its status as a member of the Layne family of companies. Layne Christensen Company acquired Reynolds Inliner in 2005.

MaxLiner, a manufacturer of a turnkey set of cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) equipment, accessories and materials, has been featured in another episode of the Emmy Award-winning <em>Ask This Old House </em>television series. The MaxLiner system was also highlighted in a 2006 episode of <em>This Old Hous</em>e, which featured the complete renovation of a 1916 East Boston home.

NASSCO, the National Association of Sewer Service Companies, has recently released Suggested Standard Specification for Pressure Testing and Grouting of Sewer Pipe Joints, Laterals and Lateral Connections Using the Packer Method with Solution Grouts.

The Distribution Contractors Association (DCA) has initiated a federal advocacy program to advance the interests of the association in the halls of Congress and before federal regulatory agencies. DCA represents contractors, suppliers and manufacturers who provide distribution construction services including installation, replacement and rehabilitation of gas pipelines and fiber optic, cable and duct systems in communities across the country.

Sixty feet below the surface of Sowashee Creek in east Mississippi lies a new section of pipeline – 1,640 feet of 36-inch American ductile iron pipe – installed with little more than a ripple’s impact on the waterway. This section of pipeline marks the longest length of this size ductile iron pipe ever installed using horizontal directional drilling (HDD).

Southern Diversified Technologies Inc. (SDT), headquartered in Brookhaven, MS, is a nationally recognized infrastructure services company involved in a wide variety of large scale fiber optic deployments for several national telecommunications carriers.

Kobelco’s new versatile Tier 4 compliant SK170 Mark 9 delivers up to a 10 percent improvement in both fuel efficiency and productivity, and provides more power and faster engine response.

Hobas Pipe USA has been manufacturing centrifugally cast, fiberglass-reinforced, polymer mortar (CCFRPM) pipe at their Houston-based plant since 1987. Recently, they began manufacturing pipe in diameters from 18 inches to 126 inches with capabilities to produce even larger diameters.

General Machine Products’ Air Stream Micro Fiber Cable Blowing Machine is designed to safely install micro fiber cable into pre-installed 0.196 to 0.708 inch OD micro duct. The Air Stream will place 0.098 to 0.433 inch OD cable at speeds up to 260 feet per minute.

To help competent persons perform required inspections, D2000 Safety Inc. has developed an app for iPhones: EXC Inspect. This app, which sells for $9.99, provides an efficient and structured way of recording and sharing the results of excavation inspections.

Midland GIS Solutions has developed the Sewer Analyst extension for Integrity, the premiere ArcGIS Server and Silverlight web solution to manage, analyze and maintain your utility and municipal infrastructure.

The Saber Tooth provides cool, fast-cutting action on aluminum, stainless steel, Inconel, titanium and other hard-to-grind metals, resulting in lower grinding and finishing costs.

The ES-38 is designed for scanning laterals from 3 to 8 inches in diameter. Using Electro Scan’s proprietary technology, variations of electricity flowing through the pipe wall, associated with distance measurements, are automatically transmitted to Electro Scan’s Smartphone application to record and display defect locations and their relative size. While electricity does not pass through non-metallic pipe walls, it will pass through any defect that can cause water leaks.

The Dromone Multi Lock Couplert allows operators to safely complete attachment changes without leaving the cab, and is specifically designed to address market concerns regarding coupler safety in relation to operator and site safety. The Multi Lock Coupler can be utilized in a wide range of ways with a wide range of machine types, allowing greater versatility.

Hydratight has extended its on-site machining catalogue with the launch of several new multi-unit tool ranges available for sale or rental throughout the U.S., as well as in Canada and South America. The expanded powered-tools include flange facing tools, orbital milling machines, portable tapping and drilling, hot-tapping machines, larger-scale mills and gantry mills.

For the 350 delegates who attended the Pipe Line Contractors Association of Canada’s (PLCAC) 58th annual meeting, it was a time to reflect on the association’s busy year and its many accomplishments.

The city of Pewaukee, WI, recently upgraded its water supply system by spending $1.5 million to install 9,000 feet of 12-inch PVC water main. The city has two water systems, an East Side System and a West Side System.

Pipe bursting is a well-established and proven method for replacement of an existing underground utility throughout the world. The growth of pipe bursting as a method of choice is directly related to the success of installations and the comfort level utility system owners have with the technology.

Together with its licensee, Michels Pipe Services, Sekisui NordiTube, Inc. solved a recurring water main problem for the city of Pasco, WA, with its water main rehabilitation solution NordiPipe. The leaking 12-inch water pipe was located under an active railway intersection in the southeast side of the Pasco. The deteriorated existing pipe was successfully rehabilitated increasing the functionality of Pasco`s water supply system.

Illinois contractor L.J. Keefe Co. is no stranger to utility crossing construction, but a recent force main project in Clinton, IA, was no easy task, requiring six crossings below major highways and a channel of the Mississippi River. The simultaneous construction required hard rock and mixed ground auger bores as well as TBM tunneling, all within a short construction schedule of just five months.

It had been more than 35 years since Junior Kool and wife Beverly opened the first Vermeer Midwest location in Eureka, IL, so expanding the dealership’s original facility -- built by Kool in 1976 -- was imminent.

The threat that a large, severely deteriorated Houston sewer line could cause the collapse of a road at the intersection of a major highway was averted by a timely trenchless rehabilitation project.

Culverts are essential components of highway drainage systems, carrying water beneath roadway surfaces to prevent flooding and erosion from washing away supporting soils.

Earlier this year, the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) used spiral wound pipe liner to rehabilitate two failing culverts beneath Interstate Highway 64 (I-64) near Evansville in the southwest corner of the state. It was the first time this product and installation process has been used by INDOT.

Vacuum excavators from McLaughlin, Vacmasters, Super Products, Ditch Witch, Vactor, Vac-Tron Equipment and AmeriVac Group.

Locating tools from Ridgid, Sensors & Software, Vivax-Metrotech, McLaughlin, Pipehorn Utility, Heath Consultants, Sensit Technologies, Radiodetection and Ditch Witch.

Pumps and dewatering equipment from Griffin Pump, Subaru/Robin America, Gorman-Rupp Pumps, Thompson Pump & Mfg., Rain for Rent, Grindex Pumps, Godwin and Allegro Industries.

Leak detection equipment from SENSIT Technologies, Echologics, Heath Consultants, Fluid Conservation Systems, Moffatt Enterprises and Vivax-Metrotech.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved a Spectra pipeline project which will bring new natural gas supplies to New York City. Spectra subsidiaries Texas Eastern and Algonquin will combine to build the new capacity, which will involve about 20 miles of pipeline, among other construction, such as compressor stations, with the total project weighing in at about $850 million. Texas Eastern and Algonquin hope to have the gas flowing into Manhattan by November 2013.

The rehabilitation industry has arrived. As we struggle through another slow year for municipal spending, the one constant in every city’s plans remains funding a certain amount of rehab work. No longer the last resort for addressing sewer and water system repairs, rehab has evolved to the modern science of repair that it is today. From chemical grout to more than 20 difference market niches, rehabilitation has come of age.