Oakland County, Michigan (February 6, 2008)

Construction work is slated to begin next week to repair four segments of concrete sewer pipe in Northville. Constructed in the mid-1960s, the pipes have deteriorated from prolonged exposure to hydrogen sulfide gas. Three of the segments are along Griswold Street between Main and Butler Avenue. The fourth runs along the north side of the Mill Pond between Novi Street and Oakland Avenue.

In determining how to best repair the pipes with the least amount of disruption, engineers at the Oakland County Drain Commissioner’s office decided that a process known as cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) lining would work best to rehabilitate the aging pipes.

Since its development in the United Kingdom in 1971, the process has been increasingly embraced by municipal infrastructure engineering groups around the world because it offers an economical alternative to traditional open-cut replacement techniques.

During the non-disruptive, “trenchless technology,” the inversion of a felt tube is inserted inside the damaged pipe. Heat is used to cure the resin-saturated tube, which effectively forms a tight fitting “pipe within a pipe.” Not only does the liner provide the strength necessary to restore the structural integrity of the pipe, it also guards against further degradation.

To complete the rehabilitation, sewage flowing in the pipe must be temporarily rerouted around the section to be lined. Large, generator-driven pumps will be put into action. Some impact to traffic at the Main and Griswold intersection will be inevitable.

“But rest assured, traffic control devices, including signage, barricades and ramps will be utilized to make the construction zone as safe as possible while maintaining access to homes and businesses, said Mike McMahon, project engineer with the Oakland County Drain Commissioner’s Office.
 
McMahon said he expects the work to take approximately three weeks at a cost of about $280,000.