Small Agency, Big Ambition - How a Pennsylvania Township Authority Chose New Technology to Begin Addressing Their Infiltration Issues

摘要

While it remains important for all sewer agencies to spend their rehabilitation money wisely, it is considerably more vital for small agencies with limited budgets. Hamilton Township Municipal Authority (Chambersburg, PA) has less than 75 miles of sanitary sewer pipe, a very lean budget, and a need to reduce their Inflow and Infiltration (I&I). At the request of Hamilton Township Municipal Authority (HTMA) Electro Scan, Inc. undertook a single-day project in May 2014 to deploy its ES-620 System to evaluate two different small interceptor pipe runs that had never been able to be assessed due to high flows. In less than six hours, Electro Scan was able to investigate 2,000 feet of pipe that had not been assessed since being installed in the late 1970s. Additionally, the findings from the one-day investigation surprised many, altered the I&I investigation and rehabilitation focus areas, and saved the small agency tens of thousands of dollars. HTMA then began operating their own ES-620 system, and after inspecting a section of pipe using their Electro Scan equipment, which had previously been repaired based on CCTV data alone, they were able to investigate how their approach would have changed if the Electro Scan data had been available to them prior to the repair. This paper will discuss the methods and procedures used for the Electro Scan testing (in accordance with ASTM F2550-13), and the challenges faced during the evaluation. The paper will also discuss Electro Scan’s results and findings of the assessment and how those compared with any other past evaluation data. Cost analyses of testing procedures, investigation, engineering, and rehabilitation will be included to show how, where, and why dollars were saved.