July 2021 Vol. 76 No. 7
Editor's Log
By Robert Carpenter, Editor-in-Chief Sometimes, I like to rattle around in the old attic that is my brain. This year, 2021, marks an auspicious occasion for Underground Construction magazine. We’re celebrating our 75th anni..
Newsline
Broadband Expansion Plan Approved for Two West Virginia Counties West Virginia officials approved a $61.3 million broadband infrastructure plan to build fiber lines in Logan and Mingo counties. The state Public Service Commission announced it approved the application from Appalachian Power and W..
Washington Watch
By Stephen Barlas, Washington D.C. Editor The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) keeps producing angst among gas pipeline developers with two recent decisions having to do with rehearing demands from pipeline opponents. Both reflect Chairman Richard Glick’s intention to give new leverage ..
Features
By Robert Carpenter, Editor-in-Chief From its humble beginnings as a monthly newsletter for pipeline construction to the primary news and information source for all sectors of the underground infrastructure market, for 75 years Underground Construction magazine has been a consistent and constant fo..
By Cathy Schmermund, Contributing Editor The “wild ride” of the 1990s was tame compared to what the underground construction industry experienced during the 2000s. As the new millennium began, the economy was robust and workloads were heavy in virtually every area of underground utility construct..
By Daniel Shumate, Managing Director, FMI Capital Advisors Inc. While the underground construction industry performed admirably throughout 2020 and into the second quarter of 2021, there is an air of uncertainty for what the second half of 2021 will bring. While the challenges to the oil and gas ma..
By Jeff Griffin, Senior Editor The year 2020 and even through the first half of 2021 was a period of challenges and adjustments for members of the Pipe Line Contractors Association. The worldwide Covid 19 pandemic limited association events and forced adjustments on every level, said Kelly Osbor..
Ask Chris LaCroix what his crews have found in the storm and sanitary sewers of the city of Lake Charles, La., and you’ll get a wide range of answers. “We’ve found a little bit of everything down there,” said LaCroix, chief ..
Business
PPI Honors Industry Projects The Plastics Pipe Institute Inc. (PPI), the major North American trade association representing the plastic pipe industry, named its Projects of the Year. Winning projects in the five categories were predominantly underground infrastructure related. Building & Constr..
Rehab Technology
Hobas Pipe Proves Good Fit for Providence Water Sliplining Since a 1996 rupture of a 102-inch-diameter pipe raised concerns about the structural integrity of a 9.5-mile aqueduct supplying water to about 600,000 customers in Rhode Island, Providence Water has embarked on a systematic and comprehens..
By Jeff Griffin, Senior Editor InnerCure Technologies Inc. has introduced a new technology to stop leaks at sewer mainline/lateral connections. The InnerCure system consists of a fiberglass or felt lining material, a patented ring that provides a guide to position the lateral connection behind th..
New Products
Hobas Introduces Corrosion-Resistant, Leak-Free Manhole System For more than 30 years, Hobas has manufactured pipe and fittings, including tee bases and risers. Finally, Hobas offers what was missing, topping it off with a fiberglass-reinforced, watertight, structural manhole system. The complet..
- Tunnel boring machine ‘Clack-A-Mole’ nears one-third completion in Oregon outfall project
- Explosion in underground PG&E vault leaves one dead in Richmond, Calif.
- Sinkhole in Texas town accrues over $800,000 in sewer rehabilitation costs
- Tennessee pipeline gets initial FERC approval despite environmental concerns
- Water and Sewer Damage Awareness Week highlights infrastructure challenges
- Wisconsin proposes new PFAS drinking water standards to align with federal rules
- Elgin, Ill., joins EPA drinking water initiative to accelerate lead pipe replacement
- GasTracker Accurately Locates Plastic Gas Pipes
- Florence, S.C., to fund $537 million sewer, water upgrade with bonds and 5% rate hike
- Union County, Ga., breaks ground on $20.5 million fiber broadband expansion project