Underground Construction - April 2018 - 39

Left: SippTech's LD 48/144 large-diameter robot is in final assembly and testing. Right: Kent Weisenberg, SippTech CEO and chief technology officer, discussed
SippSteel during an Emerging Technologies session at UCT 2018.

added. "Continuous, real-time
control and monitoring of thickness and fiber pitch (the distance
between individual filaments)
certify the lining meets all design
requirements."
The robotic system enables
versatility that hasn't been possible with traditional SIPP technologies. It can navigate pipe bends
and valves, for example. And it
can be operated by umbilical or
autonomously, providing lining
lengths of more than a mile from
one access point.
The composite lining structure design is based on the pipe
diameter, working condition,
and optimal combination of lining thickness and dimensional
filament pitch applied inside the
lining.
"Adjusted according to the
liner's structural requirements,
the pitch is typically reduced
to apply more filament and increase the lining's resistance to
internal pressure, commonly
referred to as hoop strength,"
said Weisenberg.
In large-diameter pipe applications for exceedingly high internal pressure and/or overburden,

additional, modular, robotic
segments may be attached that
enable the rigid lining material
to be applied in multiple layers
in one pass. This allows the filament to be repetitively applied
within the rigid material matrix
to create multiple reinforcement
layers.
Also, when pipe will be subjected to a high potential of
bending and/or shear forces,
such as in elevated systems,
longitudinal fiber reinforcement
is incorporated in the robotic
process.
In all these ways, SippSteel elevates SIPP to a new level of pipe
rehabilitation that is smarter,
faster, more precise and consistent, safer, lower-cost and
versatile, as well as fulfilling the
structurally independent liner
requirements.

Monumental moments
Getting there has involved innovative and painstaking research
and development. The multidimensional, composite lining
system represents the company's interconnected process of

conceptualizing, designing, engineering and manufacturing proprietary polymeric materials, and
robotics for their installation.
Now, in the final analysis phase,
SippTech is also benefitting from
strong, strategic partnerships.
The Trenchless Technology
Center (TTC), at Louisiana Tech
University, has provided ongoing
support and collaboration on the
advancement of SIPP, and was
awarded a contract for final verification of the scientific testing
and empirical data on SippSteel.
"This new SIPP technology has
high potential to drive the pressure pipe rehabilitation industry
forward in the very near future,"
said John Matthews, Ph.D., director of the TTC and principal
investigator on the SippSteel
project. "It is also a monumental
moment for the TTC, as this is
the largest contract ever awarded
to us from a private company."
In another agreement, SAK
Construction is the sole national installation contractor for
SippSteel. The O'Fallon, Mo.,
company, which serves the municipal, energy and industrial markets, "has delivered the

most-advanced, field-proven
products to rehabilitate
pipes globally for years," said
Weisenberg.
SippTech is currently in the
final stages of assembly and
testing of its LD 48/144 robotic
system, and will officially launch
this technology with SAK in late
June. Its first real-world implementation will be structurally
independent rehabilitation of
both 60- and 72-inch, high-pressure, water transmission lines in
early July.
"I am extremely proud of
our SippTech team, as well as
sincerely appreciative of all
the support provided by SAK
in expediting this launch,"
said Weisenberg. "Since our
prelaunch presentation on
SippSteel at the UCT show this
past February, the sincere requests for potential implementation of our technology, from
both the municipal and industrial sectors, have been rewarding
and inspiring, to say the least."
FOR MORE INFORMATION
SippTech,
(844) 378-7477, sipptech.com

UConOnline.com | APRIL 2018

http://www.sipptech.com http://www.UConOnline.com

Underground Construction - April 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Underground Construction - April 2018