It’s a great day on the job site, and your crew is running hard—you're making up for lost time, possibly due to weather delays. You're expecting your next load of Ductile iron pipe (DI pipe) any minute, and your goal is to unload your pipe as safely and quickly as possible. Before you let the truck take off, you need to understand and follow these guidelines before receiving your pipe.
After being in the water and sewer industry for almost 15 years, I can safely say a question I hear frequently is “Can Protecto 401™ be used in potable water service applications?” And that is exactly what we are going to talk about in this Iron Strong Blog. We all know it when we see it, the pipe with the red bell and spigot. It sticks out like a sore thumb so that it can be noticed without any confusion. But where can it be used and what is its purpose?
If you're like most people, you probably don't sit around thinking about how much Ductile iron pipe (DI pipe) weighs so in this Iron Strong Blog we are going to tell you where to find the weight of the pipe and why it is essential to familiarize yourself with the weight of the pipe.
In this third installment about Sustainability and Resiliency for our Iron Strong Blog, we are focusing on the resiliency of pipe and pipelines as a result of natural disasters such as storms, floods, and wildfires. While earthquakes and seismic events also need to be considered, much has been written on those aspects and we will discuss them in our next installment. Resiliency means many different things to many different people, and its definition is often a matter of perspective and need. Put simply, resiliency is the ability to survive, resist, or recover from damage due to some external hazard.
Over the years, I have spoken with numerous engineers, utilities, and municipalities, and there seems to be a disconnect when it comes to the overall understanding of when and where cement-mortar-lined pipe can be used in wastewater applications. Due to these grey areas, engineers and owners often specify specialty linings for an entire project when the line could have been specified as either cement-mortar lined ductile iron pipe only or a mixture of specialty lined and cement-lined pipe.
A common question that many sales reps in the Ductile iron pipe (DI pipe) industry have heard over the years is, "Are you sure you’ve quoted the 3” and 4” pipe correctly?” Once that price is confirmed, the follow-up question from the customer is usually “Why in the world does it cost so much?” Well, there are many reasons for the higher cost, and in this Iron Strong Blog, we will offer some insight into that question.
Question – What is the difference between Ductile Iron and Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)? Answer – Many things, but some groups may attempt to “muddy the waters” with inaccurate information regarding the two materials.
With the information that follows, we will take a closer look at what really separates Ductile Iron from PVC and why it matters.
Got Certification? Does your fabricated Ductile iron pipe meet the current ANSI/AWWA C115 / A21.15-11 Standard for fabricated pipe?
Products intended for contact with potable water shall be certified to the requirements of NSF/ANSI 61. The certification shall be accomplished by a certification organization accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) AWWA Standard, ANSI/AWWA C115/A21.15-11 Section 4.1.2. This standard includes water service pipe, water distribution lines, water treatment plants (WTP), and commercial and industrial services lines.
In this second installment of our Iron Strong Blog on Sustainability and Resiliency, we will focus on recycling and the recyclability of various pipe materials. As you may know, Ductile iron pipe is made from recycled iron and steel scrap, making it not only a recycled product but a recyclable product.
Okay, since that fact has been stated, why read further? Well, besides being the only primary full-size-range piping product made from recycled material, you should know why this is important to you, me, and everyone else. We will look at the impact of recycling on cities and towns as well as countries and the planet.
Sustainability and Resiliency are today's buzzwords, especially concerning water and wastewater systems, but what does this really mean to you, the designer, manager and/or operator? Utility people today are bombarded with the answer to this question, and we believe that there is no one answer because every system is unique and experiences different priorities and different challenges.
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