Published October 2007

Just for City Folk

By Ted J. Rulseh (page 46)

The 2008 Expo again includes a complete track of Education Day seminars for municipal and utility pipe maintenance and repair professionals.

Municipal and utility managers at the 2008 Pumper & Cleaner Expo will find a complete track of Education Day seminars devoted to the inspection, repair and rehabilitation of collection system infrastructure.

Presented by the Southern Section Collection Systems Committee (SSCSC), the program is one of nine Education Day tracks. It looks at several issues critical to the safe, effective operation of collection systems. The Expo runs Feb. 27- March 1 at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville. Education Day is Wednesday, Feb. 27. Here are capsules of the SSCSC seminars:

Confined Space: The Real World

Rick Lewis, American Hydro-Vac Equipment Co.

Statistics show that 65 percent of all confined-space fatalities are caused by air quality problems. One hundred percent of all confined-space fatalities at 139 sites studied in 17 states in a 2-year period had one thing in common: Neither detector instruments nor powered ventilation was provided.

Furthermore, 29 percent of people who died in confined spaces were supervisors, foremen, and managers; 60 percent of workers who died were rescuers; one-in-four of the people who died did so in a space “ready to kill” from the time the cover was lifted. Lewis will explain the realities of confined spaces and cover critical safety procedures that can help sewer technicians avoid becoming statistics.

Lewis has more than 20 years of experience in the wastewater collections field. He has given numerous conferences and workshop presentations on topics that include OSHA safety. He consults to contractors and cities throughout the United States.

Line Cleaning, Nozzle Selection and Truck Maintenance.

Rick Lewis, American Hydro-Vac Equipment Co.

This presentation will help municipal technicians become safer and more productive in line-cleaning operations. “A $250,000 combination truck plus a $1,500 nozzle equals zero without an operator who has a full understanding of the truck’s components and how they work together,” says Lewis. “Understanding the proper way to maintain your truck and your nozzles will pay off down the road and save money.”

Finding your way with As-Built Drawings

Mark Hill, project manager, RBF Consulting

Record drawings are a valuable tool when investigating problems or locating structures such as buried manholes. Such drawings are developed by engineers to be deciphered by contractors, and can be difficult to use for field crews and managers. “This presentation goes through aspects of reading record drawings and interpreting the symbols and notations,” Hill says. In his role with RBF Consulting, Hill manages the Pipeline Assessment Group; he evaluates collections systems and storm drain systems. He also provides hydraulic modeling, system analysis and design, master planning, and regulatory compliance advice.

Building a Strong CCTV Inspection Program

Jim Aanderud, president, Innerline Engineering

Why do some pipe inspection programs succeed while others fail? How do you define success, and what can you do to ensure it? What are realistic goals and objectives for an inspection program? Who are the main players, and what are their roles? What are realistic maintenance and downtime issues, and how can they be minimized?

This class will explore those issues and more, looking at the topics from a management standpoint for both contractors and municipalities. “Special emphasis will be placed on the selection of the proper CCTV inspection operator,” says Aanderud.

Aanderud has many years of field experience as a CCTV inspection operator and is familiar with current technology. He has steered Innerline Engineering through large inspection and cleaning projects for major clients, including the Los Angeles County Sanitation District, the Orange County Sanitation District, the City of Los Angeles, and the City of San Diego.

CCTV Nuts and Bolts

Duane Johnson, vice president, Affordable Pipeline Services

This seminar will focus on creating quality CCTV pipeline inspections by concentrating on the inspection itself. “We’ll discuss helpful hints and suggestions to help fine-tune the abilities of a CCTV inspection operator,” says Johnson.

“They include proper selection of equipment for the job, proper use of camera equipment, defects and defect identification, and the effect of pipe-line construction and flow hydraulics on inspection. We’ll describe how to identify the needs of the end-user and tailor the inspection to that person’s needs.”

Johnson has 15 years of experience in the construction and pipeline industries and has trained numerous CCTV and cleaning crews. He is a regular speaker on CCTV inspection and pipeline cleaning topics, and is a Certified NASSCO PACP trainer.

Pipeline Lining and Rehabilitation

Dave Badgley, business development, Sancon Technologies, Pipeline Rehabilitation Division

“Collection systems are a wastewater utility’s largest investment,” says Badgley. “They have a replacement value greater than that of a wastewater treatment plant. From $60 billion to $90 billion is spent per year on pipeline replacement in the United States. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that $71 billion to $98 billion needs to be spent on water and wastewater systems through 2019.”

Trenchless technologies have become a major alternative to traditional digging for replacement of these lines. This session will discuss collection system problems such as infiltration, exfiltration, roots, corrosion, and structural defects. It will also describe four basic methods of mainline replacement and rehabilitation: dig-and-replace, slipliner, cured-in-place liners, and folded and re-formed liners. He will also cover bid specifications and present case histories of sewer, storm drain rehabilitation projects.

Badgley has more than 35 years of experience in business development for the construction of pipeline inspection, maintenance and locating equipment and for pipe and construction services. He has given numerous talks at state, regional and national conferences.

To find out more about Education Day or any other aspect of the Expo, visit www.pumpershow.com. You can register online or by calling COLE Publishing at 800/257-7222.