The ISTT, which was established in 1985, beginning with a one-time conference, has been instrumental in educating and promoting the benefits of Trenchless Technology around the globe for over 25 years. The members of the ESC are an important part to the board and help in running an efficient day-to-day society, and are empowered to act for the full board.
When or how did you first become involved in the trenchless industry?
The first time I saw Trenchless Technology in action was probably about 20 years ago in university; it was love at first sight! I got involved with the industry about seven years later, mostly with underground mapping in relation to horizontal directional drilling (HDD) projects.
Which organisation are you from and how long have you been on the ESC?
I am from TST Engineering, a group of companies that specialise in underground mapping and location, as well as other side services. I am also responsible for international relations for IATT. I was elected onto the ESC during the 2010 ISTT No-Dig held in Singapore, and this is my first mandate.
What has been the most memorable project you worked on?
It is hard to say – probably the underground mapping project for the Light Rail and the Metro in Dublin, Ireland. Six years of pushing the limits of technology and procedures to build new standards and create new limits. However, probably the most challenging project is the one I am directing right now in Italy; the pilot project for the national GIS infrastructure in relation to underground networks.
What do you see as the most important role and/or responsibility of the ISTT?
Besides the promotion activities that ISTT develops every year, the association can be a worldwide reference for training and standards of our industry. The society can also be a stimulus to push co-operation between Affiliated Societies maximise results using cross border co-operation.
How do industry initiatives, such as conferences and publications, help you in promoting Trenchless Technology in your country?
These activities are indeed very valuable for the promotion of the technology for the single countries. This is due to the fact that promotion is mainly related to new products or technology, and publications and conferences are mainly built on state-of-the-art material.
What are some of the main challenges your country is facing with Trenchless Technology and how do you think these can be overcome?
Probably the biggest challenge is to break the common habit of using classic technology instead of trenchless. Some of the reasons this happens is related to the knowledge of the matter itself, not spread as the classical one for obvious reasons, and this can be overcome with promotion of Trenchless Technology.
Another aspect to be considered is the inertia of new ideas for how trenchless can become common use. This aspect should not be considered of secondary importance, because it is part of human nature. The best way to overcome this is to change the load of balance between the technologies facilitating to the use of trenchless – for example, during authorisation procedures or reducing the time for the acquisition of all the permit for the project. This is one of the directions we are following in Italy right now; the IATT is consulting with lawmakers to pave the way for trenchless.
Continuing our new feature, Trenchless International introduces you to another member of the ISTT Executive Sub-Committee. Here we speak to Enrico Boi from the Italian Association of Trenchless Technology (IATT), who says he fell in love with trenchless at first sight.
