“It was a normal day on the job while working for the city of Hayward, California. Later that morning, I got word that an earth moving contractor hit our transmission main. My stomach turned because it is one of two feeds that supplies water all the way up the hills of Hayward in a series of 250-foot lifts (elevation gains)…”
The following article was recently featured in McWane Ductile’s Modern McWane magazine and tells of one water professional’s experience when faced with what could have been a catastrophic event, and the decisions he made to resolve a very large pipeline problem.
The more than 75 years of ongoing research on iron pipe corrosion and the use of polyethylene encasement has led to this type of corrosion mediation becoming the accepted industry practice for protecting ductile iron pipe. So, the question many may ask is; “Since I had such success with standard polyethylene encasement, why should I now use V-Bio Polyethylene Encasement instead?” To best answer this, it’s imperative to look at what specifically V-Bio provides that is not available with standard polyethylene encasement.
“Why should I use Ductile iron pipe?”
The question is ostensibly meant to include “instead of other types of piping material.” Well, the reasons are vast and vary depending on project requirements. Since we aren’t talking about a specific project, we’ll look at the general overriding reasons Ductile iron pipe is the best choice for your piping projects.
Can McWane Ductile provide bonded coatings? A good question recently posed and more frequently asked due to a greater recognition of potential corrosive environments. To correctly address this question, some other questions need to be answered first.
If your company provides any goods or services to a governmental entity, such as the Small Business Administration (SBA), Department of Transportation (DOT), or Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and similar state agencies and municipalities, you may be familiar with requirements to have a percentage of the work performed by Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs). Many federal, state, and local entities have passed laws and regulations to encourage the use of DBEs in government contracts.
Moving Forward
Presently, in our industry, two essential components of a successful business include providing water professionals with high-quality, sustainable products in a timely manner, as well as offering outstanding customer service.
However, continued success in our industry depends on the ability of a company to make continuous improvements. In other words, if we do not move forward, we are not only standing still but moving in reverse.
When designing or constructing ductile iron pipe utility projects, there is often a discussion of about what joint to use for restraint at the fittings - TR Flex® fittings or the more common Mechanical Joint (MJ) fitting with retainer glands?
As a contractor or engineer, what is important to you? Time, flexibility, or cost? Let me guess, you want all three. Below we will look at some of the items to consider that may assist you in this decision.
McWane Ductile offers multiple services for our customers extending far beyond manufacturing ductile iron pipe. From design to installation, we take great pride in providing education to water professionals throughout the water industry.
Touring a McWane Ductile Iron Pipe plant is a unique and memorable experience. You get the opportunity to see firsthand how we take just a few simple raw materials and convert them into the strongest, most reliable, most time-tested pipe material on the market today.
One thing that has often confused users (whether I’m talking with engineers, distributors or contractors) is the difference between “Thickness Class” and “Pressure Class” pipe. While both refer to a specific metal wall thickness of the pipe barrel, in this article we will discuss the history of the two class standards, and what class of ductile iron pipe you should use in your application.
In a continuous effort to make your job easier, we have developed an online submittal builder to quickly and neatly package your personalized presentation.
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Looking for answers to your DI pipe questions? Find decades of Ductile iron expertise with installation guides, videos, tip sheets, training resources, and more in our Learning Center.
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Stop struggling with those hard-to-figure field calculations and put ease and efficiency right at your fingertips with our Pocket Engineer for mobile and desktop devices.
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