The direction of the construction of the future is ecology

The construction of the future probably means modern, more sophisticated and fascinating forms, shapes and functionalities of objects. Further development of technologies and materials used in construction will be largely dictated by enabling the implementation of new construction investments, which at present, as a result of continuous technological deficiencies, remain only in the sphere of designers 'and contractors' dreams. The direction for modern construction and further development of construction technologies will also be the search for solutions enabling the reduction of costs, shortening of deadlines and reducing the nuisance to the environment during the implementation of new construction investments.

However, the factor determining the need for further development in the construction industry will be the improvement of the environmental performance of construction processes. The areas of searching for new technologies used in construction will be lower emission of pollutants and reducing the amount of construction waste. Lower emission of pollutants is also the path towards trenchless technologies.

Ecology is in trenchless technologies

It is well known that the construction of all underground installations with the use of trenchless technologies is definitely a more ecological form of their implementation, compared to traditional excavation methods. Implementation of installations with their use is a significant reduction of all negative factors accompanying the construction: costs, both direct and indirect, time, nuisance for the society. Trenchless technologies are the minimized activities and construction processes as well as the reduction of interference in the existing infrastructure, which directly translates into a reduction in the emission of harmful substances to the environment.

Therefore, in order to make all construction processes more ecological, it is necessary to move towards increasing the role and application of trenchless technologies. They will have to marginalize the open trench technique. For this to happen, trenchless technologies should meet new expectations and requirements set for them by other construction industries. They will have to enable the implementation of underground installations, in an increasingly built-up and tight infrastructure, an ever denser network of underground installations, with minimal or even no interference with the existing infrastructure. In trenchless technologies, continuous development must be carried out to enable their application wherever their current form and current possibilities may prove ineffective. Therefore, the role of the development of trenchless technologies in the future is to ensure their greatest possible possibilities so that all construction works related to underground installations cause the least possible environmental pollution.

Modern trenchless technologies

An area where currently available and applied trenchless technologies are often ineffective is the construction of underground gravity sewage systems. The network of such installations consists of connections and collectors. The assembly of such installations is accompanied by a lot of difficulties and unusual features compared to other typical underground installations. First of all, gravity installations have to be placed with a defined, very precise slope, within a very tight tolerance range. Most often they are installed between two existing sewage wells, which are accompanied by dense existing buildings and road infrastructure, highly loaded with traffic. The places and depths of the foundation of gravity installations are usually accompanied by abundant and abundant underground groundwater. The aforementioned factors make it impossible to perform such installations using commonly known trenchless technologies. None of the commonly known methods, such as microtunnelling technology or screw drilling rigs, are able to provide the required parameters of the installation and the implementation itself in a completely trenchless manner. These machines require starting chambers, which involves the disassembly of the existing sewerage chambers. Therefore, in this area of ​​underground installations, until recently it could be argued that either technology development will occur or they will still be implemented in a trenchless manner, inconsistent with the chosen direction of development, striving for the most ecological possible conduct of all construction investments. The construction market, modern, ecological, has determined the need for the emergence of new, modern, ecological trenchless technologies, replacing excavation technologies harmful to the environment.

Gravity drilling rigs

The area of trenchless technologies was not indifferent to the growing requirements and expectations of the construction market. In view of the growing needs and expectations of the construction market, this area responded with the development of opportunities in the form of developing a modern technology of gravity sewage installations using Gravity Drilling Rigs. This technology enables the installation to be made with very high precision, reaching 0.2%. Contrary to other commonly used trenchless technologies, such as the aforementioned auger drilling rigs or micro-tunneling machines, the Gravitational Drilling Rig enables the implementation of installations between existing sewage wells with typical diameters DN 1000, DN 1200 and DN 1500, from wells to wells, without the need to disassemble them and without the need for any interference with the existing road infrastructure. Modern Gravity Drilling Rig, the interior of an existing well is enough for the work area.

All works can be performed in any ground conditions and at any depth and in the presence of groundwater. New technology in the field of trenchless techniques has broadened the horizons of using these techniques. All installations of a similar type will be able to be implemented fully trenchlessly, i.e. ecologically, in accordance with the direction of development of the construction industry of the future. The use of excavation technologies in the case of demanding gravity sewage systems is a thing of the past. This is the role of trenchless technologies in the construction of the future. Make all underground work possible with their participation. Eliminate environmentally harmful, highly costly and burdensome excavation technologies. Using the example of modern gravity drilling technology, we can see that there is still a lot to be done in the field of trenchless technologies. One should only take due care to popularize these new technologies and possibilities.

From October 2020, MIDO joined the ranks of DCA, an international organization that brings together all entities working for trenchless technologies. The Drilling Contractors Association (DCA-Europe) was established as a European association by leading contractors in the horizontal drilling industry in December 1994. Horizontal directional drilling (HDD) was established in the late 1970s in connection with the wells used in exploratory drilling . Directional drilling has become a world-renowned alternative to crossing underground obstacles when installing pipeline systems, both technically and economically. The main goal of the organization is to maintain, promote and further develop technical standards for controlled drilling and trenchless technologies in Europe. The organization aims to popularize and improve the conditions of use, standardize procedures and quality assurance, as well as develop and research for trenchless technologies. The association is a forum for the exchange of experiences and best practices for contractors, clients and authorities.

We are pleased to announce that during the 8th International Conference on Trenchless Technologies NO-DIG POLAND 2018, the technology of horizontal precise steered drilling we use, won the recognition of the international jury by awarding it a distinction.

Developed by Terma Sp. z o.o. and the Gravity Drilling Technology we use, is a highly innovative device for gravity installations - sewage and rainwater systems, which require exceptional precision of the set gradient of the installation. The device was created as a response to the market requirements for trenchless installations. Unfortunately, these requirements were not met by any device and any technology available on the market. This technology allows for the implementation of almost any installation using the trenchless method, regardless of ground conditions and regardless of the building conditions around the planned installation. It also allows for the renovation of existing channels and for pulling casing pipes into heating installations with high precision.

The elements that distinguish our solution from the technologies available on the market are:

• installation from the starting well to the final well, without any interference with the existing infrastructure, without any additional excavations. Work begins in the well and ends in the well. Installations are made from wells DN 1200 or larger. The design of the machine allows it to be inserted through a typical DN 600 manhole
• performing installations at groundwater depths or at significant depths, up to 15 meters (it is possible to perform installations at much greater depths, although we have not met with such depths so far)
• the drilling machine can be operated directly at the bottom of the well (in new wells) or directly from the base plate, without the need to completely disassemble the landing or to trim the well
• the drilling machine can work directly under the cover of the well or space-limiting elements, such as reduction rings, reducers, etc., without the need to disassemble them
• performing gravity installations within a very narrow tolerance range of up to 0.2%
• construction of an installation from a starting well with low mechanical strength
• installation without blocking the flow of sewage
• work in soils with drilling classes: II, III, IV, V (sand, gravel, clay and soft rocks, medium: marly limestones, order clay, marls, sand shales, rubble, concrete obstacles)
• the possibility of post-construction correction of the installation and getting rid of local shortcomings of straightness
• reduction of the impact on the surrounding natural environment as a result of not interfering with the surrounding groundwater (no need for dehydration, which deprives the soil of microorganisms and changes its structure)
• no reduction in compaction, our solution allows you to even thicken the zone around the pipe to be laid and around the well (the excavated material is mostly reamed and pushed, a small amount is removed from the borehole)
• ensuring the improvement of work safety in terms of the successful implementation of the installation. Other technologies, such as microtunnelling technology, are associated with the risk of installation failure and, moreover, high costs associated with damage to the drilling machine itself. It happens when we encounter hard obstacles such as boulders or empty chambers along the route of the installation
• simplification of the estimation of installation costs depending on the difficulties, both known to us before starting the task, and those unexpected, resulting from the work - dealing with any obstacle, such as a pebble or an empty chamber, requires repeatable procedures based on the same activities and materials
• reduction of installation time, depending on the installation depth and difficulty, in the range of 20 - 50%. For our technology, there is no need to build starting chambers and drain them, which is the case with the use of larger and heavier machines, and to place them in these chambers. This saves us time up to several hours, which is half of the time spent on the installation. Drilling itself takes a comparable amount of time.