March 2017 Vol. 72 No. 3

The new 450K, and updated 550K and 650K dozers reflect John Deere’s continuing use of customer feedback to meet the evolving needs of contractors and job sites. “With the 450K, we focused on proven K-Series durability and fuel-saving technologies, and we updated the 550K and 650K models to offer en..

Prime Horizontal has introduced MudVis, an automated horizontal directional drilling (HDD) mud viscosity and specific gravity measuring and logging system. “Connected to the mud tank, MudVis samples fluid stock or mixing tank mud at preset intervals, logging specific gravity and viscosity values, a..

VacuWorx Vacuworx Global appointed Rob Verwilligen as European business director. Based in the Netherlands, he will manage sales and service, partner agreements and logistics for Vacuworx Europe. Verwilligen has more than 20 years of experience developing sales relationships in the European market..

RDO Vermeer RDO Vermeer, part of the RDO Equipment Co. network of heavy equipment dealerships, received five awards from Vermeer including top honors, the Pinnacle Dealer Award, which recognizes talents in sales and aftermarket support. Award criterion include dealer metrics, such as parts, service..

CUES offers a full line of portable, truck, and trailer mounted grout rehabilitation systems for mainline, manhole, and lateral joint sealing with the latest CCTV equipment and decision support software. Its new Easy Grout computerized grout control system is designed to consolidate all the valves, ..

RJN Group Inc. (RJN), a consulting engineering and specialty field services firm, has a new contract with the Village of Buffalo Grove (IL) for professional engineering and specialty field services to help meet short-term program requirements of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater..

Imagine H2O, the water innovation accelerator, selected 12 startups to advance to its 8th annual Accelerator Program. Over 180 startups from 20 countries registered for the Challenge. The startups will join the organization’s growing portfolio of 70 alumni companies, which represent over $1 in every..

San Antonio Water System (SAWS) introduced a truly new drinking water source: desalination.   While desalination is usually associated with sea water, SAWS project pumps salty – or brackish – water from deep in the Wilcox Aquifer under south Bexar County as the source for this purified drinking wa..

Berntsen International Inc.’s InfraMarker solution for marking underground assets and linking asset data to real-time GIS monitoring has received the Geospatial World Excellence Award for Technology Innovation. The award was presented by the 2017 Geospatial World Forum, which highlights the value a..

The Pipe Liners Club of Tulsa is celebrating its 70th anniversary in 2017. To mark the event, Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum proclaimed Jan. 22-28 “The Pipe Liners Club of Tulsa Week.” Pipe Liners Club spokesman Terry Flynn, vice president of sales and marketing for Tulsa Rig Iron, said that “it just speak..

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced $95 million in new funding to California for improvements in local wastewater infrastructure, including upgrades to the city of Holtville’s 850,000-gallon-per-day wastewater treatment plant, serving 6,954 residents, to comply with water qu..

According to a survey of Independent Equipment Dealers Association (IEDA) members, the EPA’s Tier 4 mandates are driving up the demand of non- Tier 4 used construction equipment, and this trend will continue for the next several years. For many equipment categories, used equipment availability is ..

M-I SWACO, a Schlumberger company, offers Drilplex HDD inorganic viscosifier, specially engineered for water-based bentonite drilling fluids to accommodate both maxi and mini HDD rigs. Drilplex HDD allows the formulation of fluids with shear-thinning properties, resulting in a drilling fluid with bo..

TRU-BORE® is a highly concentrated bentonite based drilling fluid designed for difficult drilling operations in both vertical and horizontal borings. It is extremely effective high performance viscosifier for horizontal drilling applications to maintain hole integrity during pullback. It is non-toxi..

CETCO’s newest drilling fluid has been created to improve cuttings removal, as well as circulation. This high-quality bentonite drilling fluid increases viscosity and lowers fluid loss. VELOXITY-PRO mixes quickly and easily in freshwater and will improve borehole stability. This NSF/ANSI Standard 60..

The ROUGHNECK R600 is the largest of the range’s pneumatic percussion drilling systems for use in directional drilling applications, and is designed for drilling solid rock with bit diameters of 7.25 to 8 inches. The R600 completes the range of ROUGHNECK rock drills joining the R400 designed for 5.2..

A line of Ditch Witch backreamers helps underground construction operators improve productivity in specialized soil conditions and installations. Sandhog HD Backreamer: Designed for sandy and soft soils, the triple-action Sandhog HD backreamer combines aggressive cutting, mixing and packing for mor..

Melfred Borzall took the design of the tough, long-wearing excalibur blade and made the Rock Saw, a blade that simply excels in cobble conditions. The Rock Saw maintains the same bull-nose design as the Excalibur, but features aggressive Ultra-Bit style conical carbide cutters arranged around the f..

The RehabZone made a repeat appearance at UCT 2017 in a city – Fort Worth, TX – where the event had never been held. Sponsors, volunteers who manned RehabZone stations, and the many visitors who went through the “Zone” in the Exhibit Hall agreed it was one of the best ever. A primary factor in the..

In the fall of 2016, drilling contractor PPI Chrobok S.A. installed two new gas pipelines in Poland. The alignment, which runs along existing gas lines and through geologically challenging terrain, marked the first use of Herrenknecht’s Direct Pipe technology in Poland. With the construction of a n..

By Aaron Eder, P.E Right after people started to feel safe enough to walk away from a recent summer blockbuster earthquake movie, “San Andreas,” New Yorker writer Kathryn Schulz had to go and scare the skinny pants off of Portland’s hipster crowd. Seismologists have long warned that a subduction zo..

By Brian “Butch” Webb and Zachary Casey A communications company is installing a subsea fiber optics cable from Europe to Asia around North America through the Beaufort and Bering Seas. At various points along the main line, branching units are installed to allow for branch legs to be laid to vario..

Five exhibitors at the recent 2017 Underground Construction Technology International Conference & Exhibition (UCT) were awarded the annual UCT Show Stopper Awards. Winners were selected by a panel of unbiased industry experts who walked the show floor looking for exhibits that attracted them and ot..

For the first time, the Underground Construction Technology International Conference & Exhibition (UCT) was held in Fort Worth, TX. “This location proved to be a great opportunity for UCT,” said Karen Francis, UCT’s conference director. “We welcomed 24 new exhibitors, and especially appreciated the..

by Sheila Joy When government and industry come together, amazing things happen. When their collaborative efforts to support under-served youth through career preparation, professional one-on-one mentorship and introductions to potential employers are deployed, lives are changed. In 2015, the Balt..

A new report released in January by the Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) found that rejecting pipeline infrastructure would remove almost one-third of U.S. electricity generation capacity by 2030, dangerously raising electric rates nationwide, especially for poverty-stricken households. The report, t..

The need to install new utility services under existing sidewalks, driveways and landscaping does not necessarily require a horizontal directional drilling (HDD) contractor. Unless the runs are much longer than 50 feet or the ground contains hard rock, pneumatically powered earth-piercing tools can ..

EDITOR’S NOTE: NASSCO just completed its 41th year and continues to set standards for the assessment and rehabilitation of underground infrastructure. As the association continues its phenomenal growth, this series profiles those who have made significant contributions and impacted the continued acc..

by Peter Melsheimer Productivity on the job is about more than just choosing the right HDD tools. It’s about looking at the job from all angles to make sure you’re prepared to tackle anything that might slow down your drilling progress. During our decades of experience, we have seen lots of ways dr..

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) announced in January a number of changes in the pipeline safety laws in a final rule covering some of the provisions in the Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Creation Act of 2011. The key provisions dealt with the timefr..

By Robert Carpenter, Editor-in-Chief There was a vast array of blinking, red lights against a sea of darkness. The night skies of north central Oklahoma were filled with these lights, and additional fields of blinking yellow lights extended into other areas across the plains of Oklahoma. The eerie ..