To make the right choice, you need options
With the wide range of trenchless installation methods currently available, it is imperative that clients are provided with sound knowledge and guidance when selecting the appropriate method for their particular installation. However, more often than not, best suited methods are not utilised, meaning the potential for cost and time savings is never fully realised. Stuart Harrison from Edge Underground explains why. When it comes to choosing the appropriate trenchless installation method for projects, companies are often left without the security of unbiased knowledge regarding construction options from their contractors. The reality is, there is a wide range of trenchless options...
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What you see isn’t always what you get
Understanding the prevailing ground conditions is paramount to achieving successful outcomes from microtunnelling. Planning and preparation before arriving at the job site are also key. But what happens when you arrive on site, and the ground conditions are not what you expected? Microtunnelling expert Stuart Harrison shares his tips and tricks for a successful installation when the ground conditions aren’t what they seem. There are many factors that need to be taken into account when it comes to presumed ground conditions. Is the ground hard or soft? Is clay present, and if so, what type of clay is it? What...
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Pipe selection critical for accuracy
There are many reasons why people opt for a micro tunnelled pipe installation, yet the one reason that is by and large the most frequent, is the requirement for accuracy. Microtunnelling is accurate to +/-25mm, with a number of contractors commonly achieving +/-10mm accuracy on line and grade. The difference between this accuracy and the accuracy seen from pipe profiling is often going to be affected ultimately by the pipe selection. Not only will the pipe selection affect the accuracy, it will also have a major impact on skin friction and installation costs. From a contractor’s perspective, the use...
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Everything you wanted to know about microtunnelling…but were afraid to ask
Microtunnelling expert Stuart Harrison has answered countless questions from the uninitiated about microtunnelling, and maintains there’s no such thing as a silly question. Here, he introduces the science and technology of microtunnelling, addressing some of the most common questions he’s asked on the job site. First things first According to Stuart, the first question he’s usually asked by those considering undertaking microtunnelling works is: “How does microtunnelling differ from other installation methods?” Microtunnelling is one of a number of trenchless installation methods currently available to project owners/builders. Others include horizontal directional drilling (HDD), thrust boring and bed boring. “All of...
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AXIS guides the way
In the five years since it was launched, the AXIS guided boring system has performed countless trenchless pipe installations around the world. AXIS inventor and Edge Underground Managing Director Stuart Harrison reflects on the system’s achievements to date, and his ongoing development of this unique installation method. The Vermeer AXIS guided boring system was launched at the International No-Dig Conference in Toronto in March 2009, where it went on to win the Innovative New Product of the Year Award in the New Construction category. The AXIS system is a pit-launched trenchless installation method designed to achieve pinpoint, on-grade accuracy while...
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Rewriting the microtunnelling rule book
Microtunnelling Edge Underground has always been an innovator in the field of microtunnelling, and two recently completed projects highlight the fact that Edge is a company that’s always willing to push the boundaries of what trenchless technologies can achieve. Under the beaten track WITH MICROTUNNELLING Working with Gippsland Water on its $13million Warragul sewer upgrade, Edge Underground completed the delicate process of burrowing more than 100 metres underneath Princes Way and a railway line to make way for a new wastewater pipeline in Drouin, Victoria. The 4km sewer line will allow residential and industrial properties near Burke and Howitt...
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What are some of the factors that microtunnelling contractors have to consider when installing pipelines?
Microtunnnelling is a pinpoint method of installing a pipe. Most microtunnelling contractors are aiming for a result which would see a pipe installed +/-10 of design line and grade. However the accuracy of this line can be greatly affected by an accumulation of tolerance errors - sometimes referred to as tolerance stack. Any microtunnelling installation begins with a survey of the installation. The setup requires three ingredients: line, invert and grade. First, let’s look at the line. One of the benefits of microtunnelling is the ‘keyhole factor’. Essentially microtunneling is a keyhole pipeline in that the pipe is installed via...
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