Latest Articles

Oklahoma Electric Utility Mounts Successful Overhead-To-Underground Program

The Public Service Co. of Oklahoma (PSO), provider of electricity for metropolitan Tulsa and portions of eastern and southwestern Oklahoma, has an ongoing program to replace aerial distribution lines with underground cable in selected neighborhoods in its service area.

Michels Installs Record Crossing

Crews for Michels Directional Crossing, a division of Michels Corporation, recently completed a successful, record-breaking installation of a 42-inch intra state crossing from Texas to Louisiana in excess of 6,000 feet near Orange, TX. The unique nature of this crossing made it a first of its kind for the horizontal directional drilling (HDD) industry.

Growth Of Laser Profiling Technology Enhances CCTV Inspections

Closed circuit television (CCTV) inspections have become the standard method for inspecting the condition of the inside of underground pipe infrastructure, providing information about their condition and areas where deterioration and damage require pipes be repaired, rehabilitated or replaced. CCTV inspections also verify repairs are properly made and that new pipe has been correctly installed.

HDPE Pipe Plays Major Role In City’s Sewer Expansion

The city of Garland, TX, is in the process of a major sanitary sewer improvement program that will expand its capacity and improve conditions for this community of 230,000 located just northeast of Dallas.

Seismic-Prone Project Area Requires HDPE

A new retail power center in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, is quite literally ‘floating’ on a bed of wood, gravel and concrete. In an area where construction must always consider the impact of seismic activity, the potentially fluid nature of this site’s foundation meant that for underground contractor TAG Construction Ltd. of Langley, British Columbia, the choice when it came to the construction of the underground water and sewer lines was crystal clear.

Fuel Talk

Energy paints a complicated picture. Everybody’s got an opinion, but most are centered around getting prices back down; especially for gasoline but also for gas and electric. And the construction industry is caught in the middle.

Progress or politics?

Let me say up-front that I’ve never been a fan of U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), or Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), which helps to explain some of my admittedly jaundiced views. My opinion is that their grasp of energy issues/realities/policy is non-existent. Pelosi’s ineffective leadership in the House has made Newt Gingrich’s embattled tenure seem like a walk in the park. But that’s politics.

Changes To Historical Procedure Can Relieve Worker, Equipment Shortage

The Sheehan Pipe Line Construction Co. has been constructing pipelines for more than 100 years but in today’s market, the company is feeling the effects of a labor shortage. Chief Executive Officer R. David Sheehan, Jr. said the company is having difficulty filling positions at all worker levels, but hardest to find are welders, journeymen, truck drivers, most equipment operator positions including dozers, sidebooms and backhoes, and foremen and bending engineers.

Underground Installation Projects: Determining the Best Approach

The first decision a contractor should make when preparing a bid for any trenchless job is to identify the application that will be most efficient to complete the project. Each trenchless method has its advantages and works better in specific situations. However, sometimes the most efficient approach may involve using a combination of applications, requiring equipment that contractors may not have in their fleet.

Online Equipment Auctions Growing In Popularity

There's something exciting about bidding and buying equipment at an auction, and experienced auction buyers seem to have a knack for acquiring good machinery at bargain prices. What’s more, equipment auctions are big business. Auction giant Ritchie Bros. reported gross auction proceeds in 2007 of $3.19 billion.