One of the most critical bits of data needed before any urban or suburban construction project can begin is the whereabouts of underground utilities. Contractors must be aware of water trunk lines, sanitary tap-ins, power lines, and gas line for several reasons.
- Contractors need to know where these utilities are in order to tap into them.
- Contractors need to know where these utilities are in order to avoid them during excavation and other intrusive construction activities.
If these utilizes are not located before a construction project begins, the results can be extremely damaging and costly.
For precisely measuring underground utilities, several different tools are needed, including:
Metal Detectors: These devices can locate utilities and compute depths by using magnetic field measurements.
Gradiometers: These devices measure magnetic field gradients (changes) instead of total field strength.
Optimal Ranging’s Spar Utility Locator (FieldSens): This new technology computes the effects of ground conductivity and field distortions in real time, combining this information with GPS map utilities in 3D.
Acoustic Technologies: A sensitive acoustic reader is used to read background sounds, such as water flowing. This is perfect for locating leaks or other damage in water lines or other lines with a flow.
Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR): This method utilizes radar pulses to image the subsurface, producing a geological cross-section of the soil based on the electrical properties of the ground. GPR uses electromagnetic radiation in the microwave band of the radio spectrum, and detects reflected signals from subsurface features.
As you can see, there are several options available to contractors to help find the locations of subsurface utilities.
If you have any questions about Subsurface Utility Mapping or if you have a construction project that you need completed right the first time, please contact Reliable Contracting by calling 410-987-0313 or visit our website.
Reliable Contracting maintains a reputation as a leader in the construction industry. Our clientele includes builders, developers, individuals and government agencies. With projects ranging in cost from $10,000 to over $10 million, Reliable can be seen working on Maryland’s roads, highways, airports, office parks, shopping centers, hospitals, churches, and residential neighborhoods earning our reputation by providing clients with consistent quality and dedication to their projects.
Reliable Contracting Company serves the following and surrounding Counties: Annapolis, Queen Anne’s, Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Baltimore City, Calvert, Caroline, Charles, Howard, Prince George, St. Mary’s, Talbot, and Washington D.C.
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