1. Using Acoustic Inspection to Prioritize Sewer Cleaning
TJ Johnson – Delta Systems Environmental
Alex Churchill – InfoSense Inc

2. DELTA SYSTEMS ENVIRONMENTAL
Product Line…
Sewer Line - Rapid Assessment Tool (SL-RAT) rapid acoustic inspection in minutes
Hach Flow – wireless, open channel flow meters for collections systems and plants, non-contacting sensors
Accusonic – large pipes or channels, demanding applications, high accuracy
Dorsett SCADA – Simple and Powerful
DSE Services – instrument calibrations, startup services, installations, consulting
Siemens* - magnetic flow, level & pressure

3. PRESENTATION OUTLINE Acoustic Inspection Overview
Acoustic Inspection Economics
Case Studies
Conclusion

4. What Is The Problem?
Overflows are a Symptom – Not the Problem

5. Problem – Condition Information
Example
Charlotte, North Carolina
~4 miles
Five Year Overflow Record – Different Color / Year
Overflow locations – “Random”
>90% in pipes less than 12”
Historical GIS – Helpful – But Insufficient
Where & When to Deploy Cleaning Resources
Cost Effective & Timely Condition Information

6. Inspection Tool Portfolio
ACOUSTIC
Manhole Inspection
Zoom Camera
CCTV/Robotic Camera
Pipe Wall Defect Scanners
Pipe Profiling / Robotic Multi-Sensor
Push Camera

7. Active Acoustic Pipe Inspection Background
Patented technology
Gravity-fed sewer focus
Developed in Charlotte with CMUD as key partner
Over 50M feet inspected with over 100 municipalities
Rapid assessment helps better focus cleaning and CCTV resources

8. How Does It Work?
Receiver
“Listens”
Transmitter
“Yells”

9. SL-RAT Assessment Scale

10. CCTV Robot was Able to Pass Through Root Fibers
Visual Comparison
Blockage Assessment 10
Blockage Assessment 5
CCTV Robot was Able to Pass Through Root Fibers
Blockage Assessment 7
Blockage Assessment 2

11. Validated by U.S. EPA Study
“The results of this demonstration of the SL‐RAT show promise for the application of this technology as a tool for cost‐effective, pre‐cleaning assessment and post‐cleaning quality assurance. The application of this technology in an overall collection system O&M program should enable wastewater utilities to optimize their sewer cleaning efforts and free up valuable resources to more effectively implement critical CMOM and asset management programs.”
“Rapid assessment approaches and tools provide an avenue to significant pre‐cleaning inspection cost savings that could be achieved through reduced inspection and non‐productive cleaning costs.”
Source: U.S. EPA “Demonstration of Innovative Sewer System Inspection Technology: SL-RAT™” June 2014

12. SL-RAT Acoustic Inspection Cost
4/8/2015
Cost Evaluation
SL-RAT Acoustic Inspection Cost
U.S. EPA Study (June 2014) $0.149/ft
Less than 1/10th the cost of CCTV inspection cost performed in same study
Cleaning cost is typically $1.00/ft

13. How Much Cleaning Is Wasted?
Acoustic Inspection Results ~ 50 Million Feet of Pipe
Target Historical Problematic Areas
>65% Pipes Essentially Clean
<15% Need Immediate Action
Cleaning a Clean Pipe ⇒ Wastes Resources
Not Cleaning a Dirty Pipe ⇒ SSO
14% Poor
18% Fair
68% Good
Acoustic Score #

14. FINANCIAL IMPACT Assumptions: Cleaning cost is $1.00/ft
Acoustic inspection cost (SL-RAT) is $0.15/foot
Inspect 10,000 feet of sewer pipe per day (using acoustic inspection)
50% reduction in cleaning

15. FINANCIAL IMPACT (cont’d)
Upfront equipment cost ~$25,000
10,000 ft/day of inspections  50,000ft/week Acoustic operating cost – $7,500/week
Cleaning reduction (50%) 25,000 ft/week  ~$25,000/week
PAYBACK PERIOD of LESS THAN TWO WEEKS

16. CASE STUDIES
Hillsborough County, FL
Augusta, GA

17. About Hillsborough County Public Utilities
4/8/2015
About Hillsborough County Public Utilities
Utility founded in 1967
System has grown by acquisition
Population served ~500,000
2,417 miles of sewer
Proactive with excellent system performance
Not Under Consent Order

18. System Screening – “Base of the Spear”
Implementation History
Ran pilot study with contractor in 2013 – inspected 135k feet in 2 weeks – good results
Purchased 2 SL-RAT’s – mid 2015
Deployed – North & South
Run with 2 person crews per SL-RAT
Averaging ~7500 feet PER 8 hour crew day
Plan out inspection areas based on grid-by-grid
Focused
Cleaning & CCTV
Acoustic Screening

19. Hillsborough County Results
4/8/2015
5% Poor
9% Fair
86% Good
Acoustic Score #
Histogram of Acoustic Scores
> 4,000 segments inspected in ~8 months of work
Saved pre-cleaning for ~3,400 segments
>900,000 Feet (172 miles)

20. Using Acoustics To Drive Resource Decisions
100%
BEFORE
CCTV Inspection
Pre-Clean
AFTER
15%
CCTV Inspection
Pre-Clean
Acoustic
“Low “
Acoustic Score (0-6)
85%
“High”
Acoustic Score (7-10)

21. Cost Saving Impact $50k Investment
~ $135k in operating costs for acoustics
Reduced pre-cleaning savings potential ~ $760k
Net savings => $575k in 8 months

22. AUGUSTA, GA
Founded 1822
Combined operations with Richmond County in 1996
Population Served 190,000
1,100 miles of sewer pipe
Covers ~260 square miles
Under GA EPD Consent Order

23. System Screening – “Base of the Spear”
Implementation History
4 SL-RAT’s – purchased between 2/13 and 7/15
Run with 2 person crews per SL-RAT
Averaging ~7,500ft PER 8 hour crew day
Plan out inspection areas based on tax-maps
Combined with manhole inspection program
Acoustically screening entire system ~ 1x per year
Acoustic Screening
Focused
Cleaning & CCTV

24. Inspection Results So Far…
16.7% Poor
18.6% Fair
64.7% Good
>20,500 segments inspected in ~30 months of work
>20,000 manholes located and inspected
>700 miles

25. SSO Rate Is Down Over 50% Since 2011
TTM SSO Rate
Trailing 12 Month SSO’s/Month
SSO TREND

26. Discharge Volumes Are Down Too

27. Key Learnings The SL-RAT is simple, reliable, and easy to use
Keep up with the data! Backlogs can get overwhelming
Forces discipline in visiting every manhole – identify issues, LOCATE BURIED MANHOLES, update GIS records, etc
Has focused efforts on the ~40% of segments that are Poor or Fair
Requires teamwork to achieve full potential – cleaning crews, GIS, inspection crews – must all work together

28. SL-RAT in Virginia City of Virginia Beach – multiple uses, CMOM
WVWA (Roanoke) – 2 units, inspections dept
Fort Belvoir Va – saved tens of thousands of $$
American Water – Dale City Va – every day use
Waynesboro Va – GIS integration

29. CONCLUSION
4/8/2015
Acoustic Inspection is an Effective Method to Assess Pipes for Blockages
Quick / Simple Protocol
Low Cost
Easy / Safe
Acoustic Inspection Makes Financial Sense
Acoustic Inspection Enables CBM Capability
Acoustic Inspection Does Not Replace Cleaning or Detailed Inspection
Triage/Prioritization Tool
Helps Focus Cleaning and CCTV resources

30. QUESTIONS? 877-PIPECHK (877-747-3245) achurchill@infosenseinc.com