CONTRACTORS REPORT GROWTH IN NO-DIG PATCH REPAIR
Infrastructure managers are seeing real value in no-dig patch repair, according to contractors who are offering this service.
For the past year, contractors have been able to attend an Energy & Utility Skills accredited course in installation of the WRc approved Pipe Doctor patch repair product from Source One Environmental, before adding the service to their offering. Contractors who have attended the course have related their experiences since gaining accreditation.
Dave Wilson of Lancashire-based contractors Drainaway attended the very first course in October 2012. He commented “We can now offer a full range of services to our customers – from full linings to patch repairs. If we can put a patch in on a job instead of re-lining, then it’s the best option, as it’s an efficient and cost-effective solution. It keeps our customers happy as the disruption to them is so minimal, with no digging up required.”
Patch repair involves sending a resin-impregnated fibre glass mat into the pipeworks wrapped around a packer, which then expands to push the mat against the damaged pipe wall at the required repair location. The repair made is permanent and watertight and an excellent bond is achieved regardless of the pipe substrate.
Repairs of this type can be made on pipes with diameters between 70 and 560mm, with a standard Pipe Doctor kit. Larger diameter pipes can also be repaired using this method, using product that is manufactured on request. There are also versions available to repair damage at bends and junctions.
Mark Whitworth of Scottish contractor Drain Dogs Limited has reported that response to offering Pipe Doctor repairs has been “phenomenal”, particularly from Local Authorities. Some of his clients are so convinced of the benefits of no-dig patch repair that they’re including it on every Bill of Quantity – both for new and refurbished housing stock – within their area.
Mark commented, “I’ve been in business less than 18 months and no-dig patch repair has been absolutely fundamental to building my new business. I’ve performed over 100 in the last 12 months and am expecting to perform over 200 in the coming 12 months.”
Mark has also found that the understanding he gained in the course of how the product can be used has enabled him to offer patch repairs where customers have not considered this method – saving them the costs and inconvenience that a traditional repair, involving excavation and replacement of the pipe, would incur.
Another client who recently requested tenders for installation of Pipe Doctor was a local Housing Association. “They knew of the product and its benefits and had specified it for some repairs around the refurbishment of some tower blocks in Dundee. I was able not just to quote for the initial work but also to explain where else the product could be used in the refurbishment,” Mark explained.
Tony Hickman, responsible for specialist Pipe Doctor training at Source One Environmental, commented, “The take-up of no-dig patch repair continues to gather pace in the market, because the benefits are clear to see. Having an approved product that can be installed by factory-trained operatives offers real peace of mind for the network manager. They can be assured that the repair will perform.”
For more information about the Pipe Doctor product, no-dig patch repair or the accredited course, please contact skills@s1e.co.uk or call 01226 397015.
-ENDS-
PHOTO CAPTIONS:
Pipe_Doctor_Onsite: Onsite, a contractor lowers the Pipe Doctor product into a pipeline to create a repair with no time-consuming excavation.
Pipe_Doctor_Training: Dave Wilson of Drainaway prepares to carry out a patch repair during the first ever Pipe Doctor training course in October 2012.
Established in 2007 and located in Wombwell, Barnsley, the recently re-branded Source One Environmental (S1E) – formerly known as Fernco Environmental - is a global leader in providing innovative, cost effective technologies for the protection of the environment, meeting challenges in the infrastructure rehabilitation and water management markets. The company strives for sustainability, efficiency, reducing disruption and meeting the demands of new legislation, and supports customers with outstanding service and training, adding value and bringing mutual benefit and growth to the industry. Part of the US Fernco group of companies, S1E is sister company to Flexseal – market leader in the manufacture of flexible drainage couplings for the repair of sewer and drainage pipes.
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Julie A. Garrido
Wentworth Communications Ltd
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