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Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf recently announced the investment of $117 million for 25 drinking water, wastewater, and non-point source projects across 19 counties through the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority (PENNVEST). The funds will be leveraged to strengthen the state’s clean water efforts through continued improvements to drinking and wastewater facilities, as well as line replacements to address legacy contaminants like lead and PFAS. The state’s water utility company, Pennsylvania American Water, has also planned its own yearly upgrades to improve its infrastructure of water and wastewater treatment and pipeline systems.

Vacuum excavation features roots dating back to the 1800s, when the mining industry began leveraging pressurized water as a safer, cleaner way to break up soil and dig. The method eventually took hold across the United States and Canada as a popular option at underground construction sites.

Trenching is ranked as one of the most dangerous types of construction work in the United States, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), with an average death rate of 40 construction workers per year. Within mere minutes of being caught in a trench cave-in, workers are at risk of suffering serious injury or peril. Given the significant soil excavation hazards, it’s necessary for construction teams to implement safe practices, including conducting tests to classify soil types prior to digging.

The mixture of cement, sand, gravel and water, otherwise known as concrete, is leveraged for a wide array of construction projects. While the material has plenty of characteristics that make it ideal for applications like foundations, sub-grade walls, footings and more, it is also weak in tension and susceptible to cracking in response to shrinking or creeping under sustained loads. Therefore, it often requires the use of rebar for reinforcement.

Concrete construction and foundation services are an essential component of civil construction, and they encompass the range of functions associated with forming and installing structural concrete for foundations, sub-grade walls, footings and other building applications. These efforts require smart, safe approaches to structural excavation and backfill, concrete formwork design and installation according to spec, concrete reinforcement installation, and concrete placement and finishing.

Traditional forms of excavation, like those involving hydraulics, backhoes and hand tools, are being increasingly replaced by hydrovac methods that offer major pluses in critical capability categories such as accuracy, efficiency and safety. From operator accidents and strikes on utility lines to project delays and site damage, the reasons why more conventional approaches are becoming outdated and less utilized are varied and many. The use of less invasive and more precise equipment is now the preferred option, with powerful hydro excavation trucks facilitating significant transformation in the industry.

Some might call the use of hydro excavators for various types of construction and utility projects a growing trend. The truth, however, is that hydro excavation is not a fleeting concept. What might have once been considered a niche method has quickly become an integral and widely adopted function of the excavation process.

Traditional excavation approaches, or those that employ mechanical excavators, have long been relied on for digging up ground areas at various types of work sites. In many cases, the use of these machines and methods is still appropriate and practical, usually when and where ensuring precision is not a major factor.

Excavation is among the most hazardous construction operations, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Because construction projects involving excavation have the potential to seriously endanger the lives of work crews, it’s critical to apply safe excavation practices at your work site.

Because formwork not only controls the concrete’s position and alignment, but also bears the weight of materials, equipment and workers, it must be expertly planned and applied. Here, we’re breaking down the specific elements of superior concrete formwork to help you develop an approach that meets the needs and specifications of your construction project.

Given the many smart advantages to vacuum excavation for a range of projects, there’s no mystery as to why this method has become so popular in the industry. Construction operators have increasingly opted to leverage this technology to keep their crews safe, optimize project plans, minimize risk and maximize profitability.