Underground Construction - November 2021 - 24

Ancient Roman Construction Methods
Still Connect to Modern Pipeline Work
Joe Pikas | Technical ToolBoxes
It's interesting to note that it is easier to find ancient Roman
history documentation about its infrastructure system (i.e., all
roads lead to Rome), buildings, water/via-ducts and stadiums, than
find a document about a U.S. pipeline built within the last 50 years.
How are we to comply with the Protecting Our Infrastructure of
Pipelines and Enhancing Safety (PIPES) Act of 2020 Act?
I just read a great article in National Geographic on the ancient
Roman Roads linking that world to our reality. What interested
me at first glance was the groma (transit) that was used to build
roads and other infrastructures. It brought back memories of my
pipeline engineering construction days.
My first job with a large pipeline company was the 1966
construction of one of the first 42-inch pipelines in the U.S.,
located in New Jersey, near Washington's crossing on the
Delaware River, to Princeton and then to Morgan, N.J. Reading
the article, I realized the methods and instruments used on that
project were similar to the Romans' groma.
We used a K&E transit instrument, which is somewhat more
advanced than the Romans' use of poles for stakes and up to five
plum bobs for alignment. Their " telescope " consisted of pacing
back 100 steps and aligning the plum bobs. Conversely, we used
crosshairs in a scope and probably yelled out the same commands
to the guy who was putting in the stakes for alignment of the
pipeline, compared to their setting poles for alignment of roads or
other structures.
What is interesting is that the Romans used polla (stone)
tablets with inscriptions that date back to 132 BC, whereas we
used yellow-paper, field engineering survey books. You can say
that their data survived wars, fires and hackers over the years,
compared to our common paper. I would even say that their data
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24 NOVEMBER 2021 | UCONonline.com
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completely compliant with little or no problems.
Pipeline engineering construction procedures
The procedures for determining how, when and where a pipeline
is constructed is more complex today than the earlier, 1950s and
'60s installations.
Preliminary planning and route selection, including rightof-way
acquisition, is more restricted. A good example is when
pipeline operators are restricted to stay within the power line and
other rights of way to minimize costs.
Pipeline design now requires more HDD crossings, due to
environmentally sensitive areas like wet-lands and other water
bodies. This also includes crossings of roads, railroads and other
(foreign) pipelines.
There are many phases and details of pipeline construction,
including:
* Clearing and grading
* Unloading, hauling, storing and stringing of pipe
* Ditching, bending, welding, lowering and laying pipe
* Determination of open cut, jack bore, HDD crossings
* Line pipe coatings, field joints and tie-in welds
* Valves, isolating flanges, taps, test leads and cathodic protection
* Cleanup and restoration
* Hydro testing and revenue operations
It should be noted that pipeline construction does not include
compressor, pump, meter station and related facilities. These
are considered separate construction engineering projects. In
addition, pipe manufacturing (mill) and coating applications must
be done before any of these activities can begin.
Ancient Rome versus today
Not too much in the way of specifications has changed since the
ancient Romans. For example, here's the wording on a pipeline
construction specification:
Ditching
* Contractor shall dig the pipeline ditch at the designated offset
or on the staked line provided by company.
* When ditching across or adjacent to roads, highways, railroads,
ditches, etc. where extra ditching is required, contractor shall
at no additional cost, excavate the additional depth necessary
to meet the requirements of the company.
It is interesting to note that the Romans used a public bidding
process and private contractors were awarded projects, like
today's standards. They also used criminals for their laborers and
military engineers to design and supervise the work.
Similarly, many of the Roman roads were built for military
type of operations, not unlike the interstate highway system
that was originally built and started by President Eisenhower
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Underground Construction - November 2021

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