Water

Polyethylene Pipe Installation Revitalizes 1800s Neighborhood

Leavenworth, founded in 1854, is the oldest city in Kansas. Workers have actually unearther some wooden pipelines, but many are cast iron that have long-served their time for the city’s 36,000 residents. Today, those pipes are often corroded to the point of leaking and even bursting. About a decade..

When a Town Had Enough of its Brown Water

What would you do if your drinking water was discolored and your water system was more than 100 years old? That is the question residents in the Town of Scituate, MA, were faced with when they voted in favor of a $22 million water pipe replacement project in November 2013. Today, work continues on t..

Florida County Shows Benefits Of Aggressive Reclaim Water Program

by Jeff Griffin, Senior Editor Programs to reclaim wastewater for reuse have been in effect for more than three decades, with treated wastewater widely used in many areas for irrigation, cooling water for industrial plants and various construction activities such as mixing concrete and other purpos..

LMK Technologies Continues to Lead the Way in Trenchless Rehabilitation

LMK Technologies Continues to Lead the Way in Trenchless Rehabilitation of Main to Lateral Connections with the Addition of Man Entry Lapel Liner Located in Ottawa, Illinois, LMK Technologies has been a leader in trenchless Cured-In-Place Pipe (CIPP) lining since 1993. LMK is recognized by many mun..

Vactor’s New DigRight™ Technology Benefits Vacuum Excavation of Utilities

According to hydroexcavation best practices, there are set pressure limits based on the depth of the excavation. For example, when excavating 18 inches below the surface, the water pressure limit is 1,500 psi. The maximum water pressure allowed in any situation with a straight jet nozzle is 2,500 ps..

Advanced Drainage Systems

Advanced Drainage Systems (ADS), a leading global manufacturer of water management products and solutions for non-residential, residential, infrastructure and agricultural applications has opened a new distribution center in Abbotsford, BC. The Abbotsford location, the company’s first in British Col..

My $3,100 Water Bill

by Elizabeth Fitzpatrick, Art Director, Underground Construction Halloween is fast approaching. I’ve given it some thought and I’ve decided I’ll be a comma. Yes, I’m going to dress up as punctuation. Why a comma? Because, while commas can bring much joy — like if you win the lottery with two commas..

New productivity tools help HDD contractors work smarter, not harder.

The world’s aging infrastructure, expanding population and growing energy demands create an environment that will keep horizontal directional drilling contractors in high demand. At the same time, HDD contractors face new challenges, as project owners demand more information and detailed documentati..

Trenchless Pipe Replacement

HammerHead Trenchless Equipment HammerHead pneumatic pipe-bursting systems are being used by underground contractors around the world as an effective method to replace failing, outdated or under sized sewer, water and gas lines. Pipe bursting follows the path of the existing utilities, reducing uti..

A Small HDD Mud Recycler Built for Big Success

Some of the best new product ideas come from customer conversations. Equipment manufacturers often talk with underground construction contractors about their ever-changing equipment needs on horizontal directional drilling (HDD) job sites. When utility contractors talk about their biggest HDD pain p..

New Products

John Deere The Final Tier 4 444K, 524K and 544K utility-class wheel loaders’ PowerTech engine deliver impressive torque, 444K (124 hp), 524K (141 hp), 544K (163 hp), to help maintain good boom and bucket speed in and out of the pile for heaped loads, even in wet or hard-packed material. The K-Seri..

Rehab Technology News

Reline America welcomes new installer, Whitaker Construction Reline America has announced the addition of Whitaker Construction to its team of authorized installers. Whitaker Construction, founded in 1953, has been in the underground utility construction industry for over 60 years. They have grown ..

American Augers Introduces Mid-Range Rig, Fluid Recycling System

American Augers has introduced two new horizontal directional drilling (HDD) products – the DD-110 directional drill and M200D drilling fluid recycling system. The 110,000-pound pullback DD-110 represents the “low” end of the company’s mid-range directional drill lineup. The M200D fluid recycling s..

WaterWorks News

3M, TaKaDu Join to Offer Advanced Infrastructure Management To Water Utilities 3M and TaKaDu recently signed an agreement designed to help water utilities learn how to improve efficiency and ultimately save water. 3M currently has a small strategic equity investment in TaKaDu. By combining their s..

Thompson Pipe Group Capabilities 2015

A Pipeline to the Future The 2015 California drought is projected to cost the state more than $2.5 billion and over 20,000 jobs. One of its most serious long-term consequences is the reduction in California’s groundwater reserves. This is like dipping into savings to make up for a shortfall in the ..

Directional Drilling: Reamers & Hole Openers

Century Products Century Products introduces a new line of Fly Cutters engineered for maximum performance and reliability.  Incorporating a robust square tube design to ensure longevity with superior strength, this new design features the ability to pull or push ream due to strategically placed cut..

TTC Seeks Applicants For Eminent Scholar Chair In Civil Engineering

Louisiana Tech University is now accepting applications and nominations to fill an Eminent Scholar Chair Professorship endowed by the T. L. James family and the Louisiana Board of Regents through an initial investment of $1 million. The James Chair will provide leadership in expanding the research ..

Underground Construction Drilling Fluids Guide 2015

Bentonite Baroid Industrial Drilling Products (281) 871-4613, www.baroididp.com Aquagel: Premium grade Wyoming sodium bentonite used as viscosifier and filtrate reducer in freshwater drilling fluids. Meets the requirements of API Specification 13A, Section 9. NSF/ANSI Standard 60 certified. Bore-..

Thunder Products Introduces Large HDD Recycling System

Thunder Products is introducing a new Thunderstorm drilling fluid recycling system at the 2015 ICUEE show in Louisville, KY, in late September. The Thunderstorm III becomes the largest of three fluid recycling system models in the Thunder Products lineup, said company President Dan Sharpe. It is de..

The Risk Of Narrow Vision

The sewer and water infrastructure industry has again been pushed to the rear of significance and importance by states desperate to maintain their road and bridge funding. Consequently, in the short-lived attention spans of politicians, sewer and water has shifted back to “out-of-sight, out-of-mind”..

ASCE to Recognize Dr. Tom Iseley as Distinguished Member

In October, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) will recognize David Thomas (Tom) Iseley, Ph.D., P.E., Dist.M.ASCE for his contributions to the trenchless technology industry at ASCE’s 2015 Distinguished Member Induction Ceremony held during their Annual Convention, Oct. 11-14, in New Yo..

Contech Engineered Solutions helps build 9/11 site

Contech Engineered Solutions supplied a new stormwater detention system to Liberty Park, an elevated public park under construction in the new World Trade Center in New York City. A stormwater detention system was needed to meet NYC Department of Environmental Protection stormwater regulations. The..

Editor's Log: Affording Water

By Robert Carpenter, Editor-in-Chief Water is not free. Those in the underground infrastructure market understand that. Maintaining the underground piping system alone costs billions annually. Public water treatment plants are expensive and must operate and be maintained around the clock. Increa..

Equipment Spotlight: Drilling Fluids/Polymers

Drilling fluids/polymers by CETCO Drilling Products, M-I SWACO, Baroid Industrial Drilling Products and Wyo-Ben.

Equipment Spotlight: Downhole Directional Drilling Tools

Downhole directional drilling tools by Hunting Trenchless, HammerHead Trenchless Equipment, Sharewell HDD, Railhead Underground Products, INROCK, Ditch Witch, Vermeer, American Augers, Radius HDD Tools, Melfred Borzall, StraightlineHDD and Horizontal Technology.

Power Dynamics Completes HDD Rig For Harding Directional Drilling

Power Dynamics LLC (PDI) announces completion of a custom designed and manufactured maxi-rig for Harding Directional Drilling of Bryan, TX.

Updated AEM Safety Manuals Outline Directional Drilling Best Practices

The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) has produced a new Directional Drilling safety manual and updated its Directional Drilling Tracking Equipment safety manual to reflect the latest industry best practices for drilling safely.

Equipment Spotlight: Downhole Directional Drilling Tools

Downhole directional drilling tools by Armadrillco, HammerHead Trenchless Equipment, Railhead Underground Products, INROCK, Ditch Witch, Vermeer, American Augers, Radius HDD Direct, Melfred Borzall, Sharewell HDD Services, Horizontal Technology, Ballantine, Hunting Trenchless and Straightline.

Editor's Log: Issues And Opportunities

At this time of the year, inevitably most conversations turn to market outlooks for the coming year. People want to hear the best scenario, but most are willing to hear the truth. Prognosticating market truths is an educated guess as best. But I’ll give it a try with my usual disclaimer that I’m not responsible for the accuracy of any statements.

Building, Maintaining A Successful Safety/Damage Prevention Program

As Michigan’s largest utility provider, Consumers Energy provides natural gas and electric service to 6.6 million of the state’s 10 million residents, and the company’s safety and damage prevention efforts must address multiple challenges