FACERS Trenchless Technology Presentation

FACERS 

Trenchless Technology 

Presentation 

November 29, 2012 

Presented by 

Robert Kermitz-Senior Project Manager 

England Thims & Miller

Trenchless Technology 

• Why? 

– Add tools to your toolkit! 

• Why? 

– Gives you alternatives when managing your ROW 

• Why? 

– Less impact to your customers/constituents 

• Why? 

– Might save you time and money!!!!!

Infrastructure 

What’s really down there???

Infrastructure Issues 

• Aging water, sewer, storm systems all over the US are 

resulting in costly failures 

• Utility Owners and ROW Owners are sometime in 

conflict on projects due to congested ROW’s 

• Utility’s have deteriorating infrastructure 

• Need for larger capacity infrastructure (roadway or 

utility). Growth will continue! 

• Trenchless Technology tools can sometimes mitigate 

these conflicts at lower cost and with less impact 

• Trenchless rehabilitation of infrastructure is another 

tool in your toolkit

Infrastructure Failures



Failures 

• Sinkhole opened underneath a Ford Explorer in Brooklyn, N.Y., on March 27, 

2006. 

• A woman driving her SUV along a Brooklyn street plunged into a cavernous 

sinkhole caused by water leaking from an underground main. 

• This occurred at 3:36 a.m. An 18-inch gas pipe prevented the Ford Explorer 

from toppling farther into the 20-foot-deep hole at 73rd Street and Fourth 

Avenue


Failures 

Arizona-2008 

The initial cause of the sinkholes remains 

unclear, but the 42" sewer main which was 

crushed and plugged was aging and 

scheduled for renovation in the near future. 

The sewer line was a large interceptor that 

carried 32 million gallons of sewage


Infrastructure Failures 

This is not a water main failure


Brittle Asbestos Cement (AC or Transite) Pipe


Tuberculated Cast Iron Pipe

Trenchless Technology Tools 

• Cured in place pipe (CIPP) 

• Pipe bursting (Sewer and Pre-chlorinated water) 

• Pipe coatings/Pipe Linings 

• Pipe Ramming 

• Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) 

• Jack & Bore 

• Microtunneling

Cured In Place Pipe (CIPP)

CIPP Materials 

• The product is made 

using a thermoset resin, 

usually polyester and a 

felt tube carrier. 

• There are many resin 

systems: polyester, vinyl 

ester & epoxy. 

• There are an 

assortment of tubes: 

needled or reinforced.

CIPP Materials 

• Tubes are usually 

constructed of needled 

polyester felt 

• Multiple layers are used 

to achieve the required 

pipe wall thickness 

• Plastic coatings are 

located on the inside of 

the finished pipe.

CIPP Tube Manufacturing 

Tubes are made to the diameter, length 

and thickness for each installation.

CIPP Benefits 

• Minimal traffic impacts 

• Less inconvenience to 

businesses and 

residents 

• FDOT and City traffic 

permits easier to obtain 

• No utility conflicts 

Small diameter linings (less than 12-inch) make up 

over 75% of CIPP lining projects

Once in-place, the process water is heated to cure the 

thermosetting resins and create a Cured-in-Place-Pipe. 

Curing Process

Note: this is not a 

round pipe, 

demonstrating odd 

shapes can be 

accommodated 

Finished Product

Pipe Coatings and Linings

Pipe Coatings/Pipe Linings 

• Many options to line product pipes with 

– Epoxy 

– Cement 

– Polymers 

– Sheet linings 

• Key factor is pipe must be out of service to 

perform ANY lining or coating work 

• Manhole lining system greatly improved

Pipe Coatings/Pipe Linings


Spray Lining system used 

to restore a corrugated 

metal storm drain 

Before 

Spray Process 

After


IPR Pressure Pipe Lining system


Cement Linings 

Before 

After 

Automated Cement 

Lining Process

Pipe Bursting

Sewer Pipe Bursting 

Pneumatic 

• The pneumatic pipebursting tool is placed into the host pipe at an entry 

pit or manhole 

• A constant tension winch is placed at the exit area pit and the pulling 

cable is attached to the head of the tool through the host pipe 

• Continuous percussion from the pneumatic tool fractures the host pipe. 

• The tool effectively hammers its way through the host pipe, displacing the 

fragments into the surrounding soil, while simultaneously pulling the new 

pipe 

• Usually High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) is used but fusible PVC is also, 

into place behind it. 

• Pipebursting is the only trenchless method of replacement that effectively 

allows for the upsizing of the original pipe. 

• Service laterals up to 150 feet are possible 

• Upsizing of sewer mains is possible if additional capacity is needed 

• Costly restoration costs are avoided as compared to open-cut

Sewer Pipe Bursting 

Pneumatic

Static Pipe Bursting 

• Used for water and sewer applications 

• The static pipebursting tool is placed into the host pipe at an entry pit or manhole. 

These tools typically have wheeled cutters 

• A hydraulically driven static pulling unit is placed at the exit area pit. 

• Solid rods (threaded or link type) are attached to the head of the tool through the 

host pipe 

• Combination of static pulling pressure and the cutter head tool splits and fractures 

the host pipe. 

• This displaces the fragments into the surrounding soil, while simultaneously pulling 

the new pipe 

• Usually High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) is used but fusible PVC is also used

Static Pipe Bursting

Static Pipe Bursting

Pipe Bursting Upsizing


Typical Tools


Typical Tools

Water Pipe Bursting 

Typical Tools


• Relatively new process 

• Has been approved by FDEP 

• Static Method is preferred method due to 

shallow bury depths 

• Materials 

– HDPE pipe was most common 

– Fusible PVC now being used more 

• Highly beneficial in congested ROW

Water Pipe Bursting Project 

Riverside Ave.

Water Pipe Bursting

Water Pipe Bursting

Water Pipe Bursting


Note bladed cutter in 

front of bursting head

Water Pipe Bursting

Water Pipe Bursting

Water Main PB Results 

• Block to block section completed in one day 

• All customers returned to service in one day 

• Complete restoration of area in one week as 

compared to one month for open cut 

• Minimal traffic disruption dependent on pipe 

location

PIPE RAMMING

PIPE RAMMING 

• Pipe Ramming (Hammering) is a non-steerable 

system of forming a bore by pneumatically 

driving an open-ended casing using a percussive 

driving device from a pit and only displacing the 

wall thickness of the casing. 

• The percussive driving device is driven by an air 

compressor. 

• The soil will remain in the casing until the bore 

has been completed and then may be removed 

by water, jet-cutting or compressed air

PIPE RAMMING

PIPE RAMMING

PIPE RAMMING

Horizontal directional drilling 

(HDD)

Horizontal directional drilling (HDD) 

• Steerable trenchless method of installing underground pipes, conduits and 

cables in a shallow arc along a prescribed bore path by using a surface 

launched drilling rig 

• Minimal impact on the surrounding area 

• Used when trenching or excavating is not practical 

• Suitable for a variety of soil conditions including road, landscape and river 

crossings 

• Installation lengths up to 6,500’ (2,000m) have been completed, and 

diameters up to 56" (1,200mm) have been installed in shorter runs 

• Pipes can be made of materials such as PVC, Polyethylene, Polypropylene, 

Ductile Iron and Steel if the pipes can be pulled through the drilled hole. 

• Directional boring is not practical if there are voids in the rock or 

incomplete layers of rock. The best material is solid rock or sedimentary 

material. Soils with cobble stone are not recommended. 

• There are different types of heads used in the pilot-hole process, and they 

depend on the geological material.

Horizontal directional drilling (HDD) 

• Small rigs 

• Large Rigs

JEA TWMP - St. Johns River Crossing 

7235 LF of 36” Dia. Welded Steel & 

Ductile Iron Pipe 

Construction – Open Cut & HDD 

Current Project Estimate - $23 Million 

Contract Approach – Design-Build 

Design - Jacobs 

Construction –Haskell-Michels 

Base Route and Single HDD Crossing option of St. Johns River Utilizing Exchange Island

River Crossing Pipeline Fabrication and HDD

Segment 2 








Jack & Bore/Microtunneling

Jack & Bore-Definition 

• Auger boring is a technique used extensively for 

trenchless installation. 

• Consists of jacking the casing through the ground 

while a cutting head and flighted auger assembly 

remove the spoils from the face. The 

• Spoils are carried back through the casing to the 

spoils ejector located on the boring machine. 

• Many different conditions that need to be evaluated 

in order to utilize the auger boring method.

Jack & Bore 

Selection Criteria 

• Overhead Power Lines – auger boring requires the use of an 

excavator in order to dig the pit and extract spoils from the 

pit. 

• Soil Conditions – Ground conditions are a very important 

aspect when choosing a cutting head. 

• Lubrication – Occasionally soil conditions require the use of a 

bentonite mud mixture for lubrication in order to reduce the 

skin friction between the casing pipe and the material that 

surrounds it. 

• Grade Control – This is critical when tunneling around existing 

structures and certain utilities such as gravity sewer systems. 

A water level is typically used. 

• Ground Water Conditions – A well point system should be 

installed in order to control the influx of water.

Components of J&B 

J&B drive unit 

with casing 

Auger

Components of J&B

Components of J&B 

Note open space in 

behind cutter 

Jack & Bore 

drive unit

Jack & Bore Machine 

Scrapers at drive head that push 

cuttings out

Jack & Bore Machine 

Auger inside casing

Pothole in FDOT Roadway 

Work done over 18 months ago 

Hole about 24” 

deep. . Corrected 

by extensive 

pressure grouting

Microtunneling 

• Is a process that uses a remotely controlled Microtunnel 

Boring Machine (MTBM) combined with the pipe jacking 

technique to directly install product pipelines underground in 

a single pass. 

• Is currently the most accurate pipeline installation method. 

Line and grade tolerances of one inch are the microtunneling 

industry standard. This can be extremely important when 

trying to install a new pipeline in an area where a maze of 

underground utility lines already exists. . 

• Is economically competitive with direct burial when depths 

exceed twenty feet due to the costs of deep trench excavation 

and trench support. 

• Is cost effective when faced with unstable soil conditions and 

work below the groundwater level. These conditions increase 

the risk of surface settlement during a direct burial or Jack & 

Bore installation.

Typical profile of Microtunnel Setup

Microtunneling

Microtunneling

Microtunneling

Microtunneling

Microtunnel Installation Adjacent to EverBank Field







Conclusions

• Why consider Trenchless 

– Many potential solutions 

– Potentially less community impact 

– Less disturbance of existing infrastructure 

– Potential lower cost 

– Speed of installation 

– Materials have improved longevity

Questions?

FACERS Trenchless Technology Presentation

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