Industry News, trenchless people
Jacksonville, FL – SippTech LLC CEO/CTO Kent Weisenberg announced recently that the company has finalized a contract with Louisiana Tech’s Trenchless Technology Center for their continued partnership and product analysis of the advancement of Spray in Place Pipe Technology, (SIPP). The awarded contract specifically involves testing of SippTech’s robotic systems and installation of its cutting-edge, filament reinforced composite lining, SippSteel™.
“The Trenchless Technology Center (TTC) is excited to support SippTech through testing, research and developmental support of their innovative Spray-in-Place Pipe (SIPP) technology. This new SIPP technology has high potential to drive the pressure pipe rehabilitation industry forward in the very near future” stated Dr. John Matthews, Director of the TTC and Principal Investigator on the SippSteel™ project. Mr. Matthews further stated, “It is also a monumental moment for the TTC as this is the largest contract awarded to us from a private company since our conception.” Dr. Matthews will be assisted on this four-phased project by co- Principal Investigator’s Dr. Shaurav Alam and Dr. Amin Azimi. Industry professionals, undergraduate and graduate students will also be collaborating during each phase of testing.
SippSteel™ is comprised of a composite lining of two dissimilar lining material layers and a carbon fiber filament reinforcement, which are applied robotically in a single pass through the pipe system. The robotic apparatus is self-propelled, and all its mechanical functionalities are controlled autonomously by internal sensors and computer vision. Employing both individually specific and a synergetic combination of computer vision, LIDAR, ultrasound, RF, Wi-Fi, gyroscope, accelerometer and machine learning technologies, the robot can precisely navigate and apply the SippSteel™ composite inside of the pipe. The device can be operated via umbilical or autonomously providing lining lengths of more than a mile from one access point in the pipe.
“The SippSteel™ technology addresses a multitude of customer needs as well as resolving systemic problems in the trenchless technology sector. Today’s pipeline rehabilitation industry has long been searching for an innovative, and more importantly, versatile technology to fulfill all the structurally independent liner requirements” Mr. Weisenberg stated.
Innovative components that ensure that the SIPP system can deliver:
- The ability to provide structurally independent rehabilitation; therefore, significantly optimizing the cost effectiveness and efficacy of the rehabilitation method as well as increasing the design life of the pipeline.
- The ability to rehabilitate long lengths of pipe; therefore, substantially reducing installation time as well as costly and environmentally invasive excavations.
- The ability to negotiate through pipe bends and valves; therefore, substantially reducing excavations that increase costs and disrupt the public.
- The ability to provide a thinner liner system without a resulting annulus between the liner and the host pipe; thereby increasing the comparative cross-sectional diameter and subsequent flow capacity while impeding all potential for infiltration behind the liner which can result in hydraulic failure.
The Trenchless Technology Center (TTC) was initiated as the Trenchless Excavation Center in 1989 and formally established as the Trenchless Technology Center in November 1991. It was created to promote research, development and technology transfer in the trenchless technology industry.
“After several years of painstaking R&D we are tremendously enthusiastic to have entered the final analysis phase with such a highly credible institution as the TTC for the final verification of our compiled scientific testing and empirical data.” stated, Mr. Weisenberg. “We are proud to be revealing SippSteel™ and its capabilities which will revolutionize the industry for the rehabilitation of pressure pipelines in an extensive range of diameters.” Mr. Weisenberg noted.
Please visit www.sipptech.com for more information on Spray in Place Pipe technology.
Contact:
Tiffany Laufer
SippTech Technologies, LLC.
tiffanyl@sipptech.com
904.374.5606
Industry News, trenchless people
You are invited to participate in the 8th Conference of Trenchless Technologies NO-DIG POLAND, which is going to take place on 18-19 April 2018 in Kielce.
The conference began in 2005 and takes place every second year, and each of the previous editions were attended by a number of domestic and international participants (also from outside of Europe), including representatives from the scientific community, water supply and sewerage companies, design and construction companies, manufacturers of materials and equipment used in trenchless technologies.
The topics of the upcoming conference include issues closely related to the use of trenchless technologies in design, construction and renewal of underground infrastructure in the water, sewage, gas, road and rail industries, as well as in trenchless infrastructure tunnels.
The conference is an excellent opportunity to share knowledge and experience between public administration staff, scientists and professionals working in the water and wastewater sector.
For more information visit the conference website.
Industry News, trenchless people, trenchless products
Expanded access and support for HDD rock tooling
PELLA, Iowa, February 15, 2018 – Two of the horizontal directional drilling (HDD) industry’s leading equipment and tooling manufacturers, Vermeer Corporation and Mincon Group PLC, have formed a distribution alliance to expand contractors’ access to quality rock tooling worldwide. As part of the agreement, Vermeer dealers are now the exclusive channel for Mincon HDD air hammer systems, HDD pull reaming hammers and HDD support equipment, including HDD support stations and oilers.
“Mincon has pioneered HDD rock drilling solutions and when paired with Vermeer drills are productive in hard rock environments,” said Jason Zylstra, product manager, Lifecycle at Vermeer. “With the responsive support provided by Vermeer dealers and quality Mincon tooling, contractors have everything they need to take on challenging rock bores.”
Mincon hard rock hammer systems utilize high-frequency cycle technology that aids in the faster removal of drill cuttings from the bit face while providing the smallest possible chips. This design also improves steering capabilities and causes less vibration in the drill string.
For more information about Vermeer HDD equipment and Mincon HDD tooling, please consult your local Vermeer dealer.
ABOUT VERMEER
Vermeer Corporation delivers a real impact in a progressing world through the manufacture of high-quality tree care, environmental, underground construction, surface mining, and agricultural equipment. With a reputation for durability and reliability, that equipment is backed by localized customer service and support provided by independent dealers around the world. To learn more about Vermeer Corporation, products, the dealer network and financing options, visit Vermeer.com.
ABOUT MINCON
Mincon Group PLC was founded in 1977 in Shannon, Ireland. Mincon manufactures and distributes a range of precision engineered hard rock drilling tools for a variety of industries including mining, exploration, waterwell, geothermal, construction, horizontal directional drilling, oil-gas and energy. Mincon Group PLC has a worldwide presence with offices in Ireland, UK, Sweden, Finland, USA, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Namibia, Tanzania, Senegal, Chile and Peru. For more information about Mincon Group PLC, visit Mincon.com.
trenchless people
NASTT is pleased to announce that Kent State University based in Kent, Ohio, has joined the roster of Student Chapters. This brings the Student Chapter count to 19!
The Chapter will be lead by the following student officers:
President – Tyler Pocsics
Vice President – Alex Ceh
Secretary – Andrew Mozil
Treasurer – Zachary Burke
The Faculty Advisor for the Chapter is former NASTT Student Member, Lameck Onsarigo. Lameck is a graduate of Bowling Green State University and is one of NASTT’s many student success stories! Read more about Lameck’s student experience here. Lameck has since graduated and has gone on to join the faculty at Kent State and will lead the new Student Chapter. NASTT is extremely proud of Lameck and we’re excited for the future of this new Student Chapter! Welcome to the Family, Kent State!
Industry News, trenchless projects
HDD with Fusible PVC® pipe saves Commission $200,000
Overview
The Howard County Regional Water Commission (HCRWC) was formed in April 2008 with the intent of being a wholesale water provider for the City of New Franklin, the City of Fayette and Howard County CPWSD #1. MECO Engineering has been involved with HCRWC since day one in an effort to assist with design and funding of the required infrastructure. The necessary infrastructure consisted of an alluvial well field, water treatment plant, water tower and distribution mains.
The distribution system design consisted of approximately 68,000 feet of 12-inch waterline, 1,200 feet of 10-inch waterline and 1,200 feet of 6-inch waterline with the majority of the pipe to be installed by conventional open-cut installation. However, there was still a significant amount of the 12-inch waterline that could not be installed by conventional open-cut construction
based on environmental concerns such as creek crossings or as a result of private property disturbance agreements tied to the issuance of easements. As a result, approximately 8,800 feet of the 12-inch line would need to be installed using horizontal
directional drilling (HDD) installation methodology.
The original plans and specifications included HDPE pipe for the HDD portions of the job. However, during the bid process, Fusible PVC® pipe was allowed as an alternate material for the HDD sections. As a benefit, Fusible PVC® pipe would be able to match the bell-and-spigot PVC pipe being installed in the open cut portions of the job, while the HDPE pipe would need to be upsized in order to provide the same inside diameter. Ultimately the project allowed for two material options in the HDD portion of the job, 12-inch DR 21 Fusible PVC® pipe and 14-inch DR 9 HDPE pipe.
Bids were opened on July 8, 2015 and based on utilizing Fusible PVC® pipe for the HDD sections, C&S Construction out of New London, Missouri was the low bidder. In fact, their bid provided a $200,000 savings due to installing Fusible PVC® pipe instead of the HDPE pipe that was originally specified.
The distribution system portion of the work lasted approximately eight months with all of the Fusible PVC® pipe being installed and tested without any issues.
“We have installed Fusible PVC® pipe on multiple jobs. We really like the way it performs. For this project it allowed us to drill a smaller hole when compared to the HDPE option. Since most of these drills occurred in rock, a smaller hole provides substantial savings of both time and money.” Clinton Ray, Owner Ray’s Construction
Project Story submitted by Underground Solutions, Inc., 858.679.9551
www.undergroundsolutions.com
“The Trenchless Technology Center (TTC) is excited to support SippTech through testing, research and developmental support of their innovative Spray-in-Place Pipe (SIPP) technology. This new SIPP technology has high potential to drive the pressure pipe rehabilitation industry forward in the very near future” stated Dr. John Matthews, Director of the TTC and Principal Investigator on the SippSteel™ project. Mr. Matthews further stated, “It is also a monumental moment for the TTC as this is the largest contract awarded to us from a private company since our conception.” Dr. Matthews will be assisted on this four-phased project by co- Principal Investigator’s Dr. Shaurav Alam and Dr. Amin Azimi. Industry professionals, undergraduate and graduate students will also be collaborating during each phase of testing.
