The advantages of laying RC MULTIsafe® and RC MAXIprotect® PP/PE pipes using trenchless methods

The advantages of laying RC MULTIsafe® and RC MAXIprotect® PP/PE pipes using trenchless methods

Pipes RC MULTIsafe® and RC MAXIprotect® PP/PE are designed mainly for installation with use of alternative techniques, but the traditional installation is also possible. The trenchless installations are becoming more
and more important due to increasing costs of installation for the pressure pipes.

Use of trenchless methods for RC MULTIsafe® and RC MAXIprotect® PP/PE pipes with additional protective jacket allows for significant investment savings. Due to high resistance to point loads (in particular the 3-layer pipes RC MULTIsafe®3L) are recommended) and effects of surface scratches those products may be installed in the ground without the sand bed and sand pack, which is the protective zone for them.

Due to high costs of soil transport use of pipe RC MULTIsafe® and RC MAXIprotect® PP/PE allows for avoiding significant expenses connected with delivering the appropriate material for ground works to the construction site and removing the excess of remaining soil. Lack of sand pack allows for savings of 15-25% in comparison with traditional trench methods. Installation of pipes with use of open trench method, especially in heavily urbanized areas, is connected with high costs resulting, among other things, from the road occupation time or restoring the road pavement.

In the trenchless technologies the natural flexibility of pipes and ability to change the direction of installed pipeline are used. As a result of many years of positive experience in range of operation of pressure PE pipes the replacement and renovation of pipes from the traditional materials, e.g. steel, cast iron, concrete, are becoming more and more common.

Advantages of trenchless methodes are:

  • assuring significant savings of investment in comparison to the traditional trench methods
  • cost reduction through partial elimination of ground works, such as excavations, refilling, soil replacement, compacting, and surface works, e.g. reclamation,
  • reduction of installation time,
  • minimization of excavation area,
  • the lowest level of infrastructural and environmental disruption,
  • minimum or no traffic disturbances,
  • possibility of using the existing pipe routes,
  • lower possibility of damaging the existing underground infrastructure in the vicinity of constructed pipeline,
  • minimization or elimination of ground settlement, and therefore probability of damaging the nearby buildings,
  • dewatering is required only for entry and exit pit, not the whole route of new pipeline,
  • increase of work safety,
  • increase of structure durability

RC MULTIsafe® and RC MAXIprotect® PP/PE pipes may be installed with use of the following technologies:

1. Trenchless

  • cracking – installation in place of an old pipeline with its simultaneous crushing,
  • pneumatic ramming with use of ramming machine,
  • directional drills,
  • micro-tunnelling,
  • hydraulic ramming.

2. Narrow trench

  • ploughing,
  • milling, etc.

3. Trench

  • without sand bed and pack, with use of native soil and pack of stones up to 60 mm.

4. Renovation of pipes

  • sliplining,
  • close fit,
  • swagelining,
  • rolldown.