A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
Tacoma's Pipeline Assessment Project: Replacing the Right Mains at the Right Time
Tacoma Water is a public water utility serving approximately 300,000 people in Tacoma, Washington, and neighboring communities. Founded in 1893, Tacoma Water owns and operates more than 1,200 mi of distribution water mains with more than 95,000 service connections. Like many water utilities, Tacoma Water faces the challenge of a limited capital budget and aging infrastructure. To compound this challenge, Tacoma Water has acquired multiple smaller water systems beyond its original borders with little known service history, making their useful life more difficult to assess. As a means of bridging the gap between available capital funds and the capital requirements of replacing aging mains, Tacoma Water has conducted two pipeline condition assessment projects to ensure that these limited capital funds are spent where they are most needed. In 2011 and 2013, Tacoma Water assessed 19 and 12 miles of distribution mains using an acoustic method for measuring the average remaining structural wall thickness of water mains. This method is fully nondisruptive, requiring no insertion of sensors into the mains, and no interruption of service for customers. These results were used to calculate the remaining useful life of each of the mains, which guided the prioritization of main replacement projects. This paper provides details of the Tacoma Water condition assessment projects, the technology used, the benefits of performing condition assessment, and how this has shaped the pipe replacement decision process in Tacoma Water.
Tacoma's Pipeline Assessment Project: Replacing the Right Mains at the Right Time
Tacoma Water is a public water utility serving approximately 300,000 people in Tacoma, Washington, and neighboring communities. Founded in 1893, Tacoma Water owns and operates more than 1,200 mi of distribution water mains with more than 95,000 service connections. Like many water utilities, Tacoma Water faces the challenge of a limited capital budget and aging infrastructure. To compound this challenge, Tacoma Water has acquired multiple smaller water systems beyond its original borders with little known service history, making their useful life more difficult to assess. As a means of bridging the gap between available capital funds and the capital requirements of replacing aging mains, Tacoma Water has conducted two pipeline condition assessment projects to ensure that these limited capital funds are spent where they are most needed. In 2011 and 2013, Tacoma Water assessed 19 and 12 miles of distribution mains using an acoustic method for measuring the average remaining structural wall thickness of water mains. This method is fully nondisruptive, requiring no insertion of sensors into the mains, and no interruption of service for customers. These results were used to calculate the remaining useful life of each of the mains, which guided the prioritization of main replacement projects. This paper provides details of the Tacoma Water condition assessment projects, the technology used, the benefits of performing condition assessment, and how this has shaped the pipe replacement decision process in Tacoma Water.
Tacoma's Pipeline Assessment Project: Replacing the Right Mains at the Right Time
Flynn, R. M. (author) / Coleman, M. (author) / Laven, K. (author)
Pipelines 2014 ; 2014 ; Portland, Oregon
Pipelines 2014 ; 1512-1519
2014-07-30
Conference paper
Electronic Resource
English
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