Ground Penetrating Radar was recently contracted to locate utilities at a US Steel site for installation of new fire water lines throughout the plant. The project was a multistage contract with approximately 5,000 feet of fire water line installed.

GPRS was given the task of locating all underground utilities and other items along the trenching path. With all of the vital lines for the production and safety of the plant underground, accuracy was a must for this project.

This overhead view of a section of the project shows the conditions and building, rails, and manufacturing that the new water line had to be ran through.

This site had years of updates and new utilities replaced and made for some unique challenges when locating underground. Below are some site photos of another section of the project that shows the amount of buried items in the plant.

The site also had some unique utilities that are not typically seen in other places. We located river water lines, machine steam lines, coke gas lines and machine compressed air lines, just to name a few. The lines ranged from just a few inches below the surface to the deepest located at 16’.

The technologies used on this project included the standard locating equipment (350 MHz antenna and EM locator). Please visit www.simspec.org for an overview of our industry-leading best practices that were applied to this project.

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems, LLC. is very familiar with working closely with countless major commercial projects and contractors. Ground penetrating radar is a great tool to scan areas of post tension cables, rebar, and conduits, including PVC pipes. Ground penetrating radar can also be used to locate underground utilities such as water, gas, electrical, communication, sewer, and other objects prior to digging or excavating. We also offer additional deliverables including non-survey grade satellite image overlay and CAD mapping of our findings. Please contact Ground Penetrating Radar Systems – GPRS to learn how we can assist with your next project. Or contact me directly at Nate.Johnson@GPRSINC.com. 412.508.8426

GPRS does not provide geophysical, geological, land surveying or engineering services. If you need such services, please contact an appropriate professional.