Trenchless!

Trenchless technology

This technology is amazing! Putting in a new pipe or electric cable without having to dig a trench, and it saves you money too. Trenchless technology, as the name implies, stands for subsurface construction works where less trenches or no continuous trenches are required to be dug. It is a rapidly growing sector of the construction and civil engineering industry specially in the growing economies like China and India. It can be defined as "A family of methods, materials, and equipment capable of being used for the installation of new or replacement or rehabilitation of existing underground infrastructure with minimal disruption to surface traffic, business, and other activities."

Trenchless technology can be broken down into two primary types:

Trenchless construction refers to such construction methods as tunneling, microtunneling, horizontal directional drilling also known as directional boring, pipe ramming, pipe Jacking, moling, auger boring and other methods for the installation of pelines and cables below the ground with minimal excavation.

Large diameter tunnels such as those constructed by a tunnel boring machine (TBM), and drill-and-blast techniques are larger versions of subsurface construction.

The difference betweenTrenchless and other subsurface construction techniques depends upon the size of the passage under construction. If a subsurface construction doesnot permit the person entry it is termed as Trenchless.

Trenchless rehabilitation refers to such construction methods as sliplining, shotcrete, gunite, cured-in-place pipe, thermoformed pipe, grout-in-place pipe, pipebursting, mechanical spot repair, and other methods for the repair, rehabilitation, or replacement of existing buried pipes and structures without excavation, or at least with minimal excavation. Trenchless

Rehabilitation methods are generally more cost-effective than traditional exhume (dig) and replace methods and are common tools in modern water and sewer asset management programs around the world.

The trenchless technology industry is represented by several industry associations in addition to standing committees within almost every water and sewer related industry association. The National Association of Sewer Service Companies was established in 1976 and is the oldest such association with a trenchless focus. The Indian Society for Trenchless Technology or IndSTT is the apex organization to promote Trenchless Technology in South Asia. It was established in 1995 with its head office at New Delhi. The International Society for Trenchless Technology, established in 1986, has 25 active national trenchless technology societies associated with it. Several organizations bring out Technical Journals for sensitizing the readers about such techniques. No Dig India is the official Journal of IndSTT and its copies are hosted on the web for easy access.