Ontario Canada Utility Contractors Adapt to Changes in Boring Technology

Utility contractors in Ontario, Canada have seen many changes over last thirty years in the installation of underground utilities. They have witnessed the rebirth of densely populated Toronto and been a part of the switch from electric and oil to natural gas utilities in much of the province. Contractors have heeded the increased environmental regulations governing utility installation and have searched for alternative trenchless ways of installation when urban utility customers complained about open trenching through their property. In order to survive in a tough, changing, competitive business environment, Ontario contractors had to be alert and adaptable to the changes in the utility market.

Many times these market changes brought the utility contractor increased delays and increased costs of doing business. Cutting open trenches 20 years ago required little more than dumping the excess spoil into someone's backyard if they wanted the fill. Today, contractors not only have to meet density tests for backfill, but they also have to bear the expense of taking a crew off the job, having them haul away excess spoil and pay a landfill dumping fee.

With these added expenses came the realization that costs had to be saved wherever possible. One solution for cost savings was for a contractor to be very meticulous when seeking out the highest quality, most advanced, labor saving, low-maintenance equipment. Equipment that was durable, because longevity in equipment increases profits for most contractors. Low cost and high production rates was the name of this new game.

For utility contractors, this adaptation creed has been a way of life. When the contractors have been faced with installing mainline fiber optic or main gas lines in rural and suburban Ontario, utility trenchers and vibratory plows have done the job quickly and efficiently. It is the installation of distribution lines in the congested urban areas that has proven to be problematic. But recently, with the evolution of trenchless technology-- the development of directional boring machines and the improvement in pneumatic impact tools--- the problem has been alleviated somewhat. Now, trenchless installation in urban areas has become a profitable alternative to more traditional approaches.

According to Adrie Van Egmond, owner of Van Egmond Construction, in Smithville, Ontario, the improvements in trenchless technologies are a contractor's dream come true. "I could have used them 32 years ago when I started. We do 40 percent trenchless installation now. And I'm glad to be able to do it."

Van Egmond went to explain additional reasons for the push towards trenchless installation. "The final customer is king," he continued. "Although the utility company is our primary employer, they are not the ultimate customer. The homeowner who is having the utility service placed in his property is. You have to do anything you can do to satisfy the public. And the urban public, especially, does not want their lawn trenched."

A crew of his completed a job of 458 meters (1,500 feet) in 4 days using a directional boring machine and pneumatic impact tools. The bore was large enough to take a 10 cm (4-inch) diameter pipe, a 5 cm (2-inch) diameter pipe and a cable grouping. The path ran along side a road and had to go underneath shrubs, trees and a wall across the property of million dollar homes.

Van Egmond described the difficulty that they may have encounter had they used older methods. "It was such a confined area that you couldn't even get a trencher in there. And even if we could, the job would have taken months. Plus, there is no way we would have open cut this without significant costs, most of which would be due to comebacks," he stated.

He continued by saying, "We would have been responsible for compaction, topsoil, sod, and be liable for the lawn until it grows back. That's where the costs are. With trenchless methods, you don't disturb anything."

Ed Boss, Van Egmond Construction shop foreman, explains how he has seen the company increase its productivity using trenchless methods. Boss said, "We have been using our pneumatic tools much more and have come to depend on them to get the jobs done. In our work for Bell Canada, we have used the "torpedoes" for house drops--the lateral connection from the junction box to the house under people's lawns."

Boss continued by saying, "We have a lot of confidence in the HammerHead pneumatic tools we've been using. They have a replaceable wear ring between the striker and the tool body. When they wear, the crews replace the rings in the field and keep going. This is a evolution from the older tools we had been using. It increases our crews' productivity."

Claude Belanger, General Superintendent for Robert B. Somerville Construction , has seen many changes in utility installation during his 27 years with the Ontario based company. He said, "When we first began, it was all open trenching. Over the past 10 years, we have switched more and more to trenchless methods. We ask our crews for maximum productivity so we are always aware of what works well and what doesn't. In our gas distribution work, our 6 person crew will be expected to install 300 plus meters (1,000 feet) a day. With many of these shots between 7.5 meters (25 feet) and 10 meters (35 feet) long, the crews will use 4 or 5 "torpedoes" to accomplish their goals."

Somerville's crews are also employing directional boring units for the longer shots, even when installing telephone cable in congested urban Toronto. According to Belanger, "When we have a longer shot that warrants the set up time for the directional boring unit, we'll use it, but these shots are usually for main lines. For the house distributions, we use the pneumatic tools. We'll use them because we have to open cut to get to the junction box anyway."

Whether its directional boring or pnuematic tools, it is clear that trenchless technology methods have made their mark in Ontario. Contractors like VanEgmond and Somerville have adapted a very productive means of improving their service all the while remaining profitable.

Written By: Richard Yach - Technical Writer Des Moines, Iowa