Problem: Several years ago, the city of Ames, Iowa, began a massive-scale repair and restoration of its sanitary sewer system. The team was warned that with projects such as this, residents can get anxious when their street is shut down and the sewer is torn up, especially when the repairs drag on and on.

Solution: In an effort to reduce the project’s timeline, materials, labor and overall costs, the city’s engineering team decided to use a Mr. Manhole cutter to complete the work. “The manhole technology is incredibly fast,” says Eric Cowles, a civil engineer with Ames. “On a good day, depending on the depth of the rehab that has to be done, our contractor is knocking out eight to 12 a day very easily.”

Result: The Mr. Manhole system transformed the way that Ames executed this large-scale project. The system is incredibly fast, and on a good day, depending on the depth of the rehab that was being done, contractors completed eight to 12 manholes. Everything was done quickly and efficiently with minimum impact to the public. “Overall, everything has been really smooth,” says Cowles. “We were kind of warned that sometimes on these projects, residents get a little antsy. You shut down their street, tear up the sewer, and that really hasn’t been a problem here.” 567-242-2221; www.mrmanhole.com