Forging strong international relationships between companies is an integral component of building the trenchless industry worldwide. The relationship between Perma-Liner and IMS Robotics is a successful example in the trenchless industry. Perma-Liner will tour the US in the week following NASTT’s No-Dig Chicago event, demonstrating several robotic cutting devices of IMS Robotics.

Perma-Liner is one of North America’s leading suppliers of equipment for rehabilitation of sewers and drains and will launch a new low budget lateral cutter – the Micro Cutter Light. This system is a world first in the field of reinstatement cutters. Based on a cutter version, which has already been selling successfully worldwide for many years, the designers have developed a low budget system with almost all the benefits of the well known system but more than the half of the price.

Owner of Perma-Liner Jerry D’Hulster said that this product is a response to the growing demand for favourable equipment for the growing relining sector. With cheaper but effective systems, small companies can also now afford to have access to the relining business and help to protect the environment.

But why is this new cutter unique? The company said that some low budget cutters in the market are controlled manually and it is very hard to control it after bends and cutting precisely. The swivel and rotation movement of the Micro Cutter Light is controlled electrically by a joystick. The designers say that there is no opportunity that control will be lost. The working range is three inches up to six inches and the cutter is able to pass bends of up to 90 degrees. The cutter is fixed in a pipe with a rubber bladder and therefore is also useable in vertical pipes. Although the motor is air driven, the cutting engine is extremely strong, sufficient for all kinds of liners and moreover for strong obstructions including concrete. There is also a mounting for fixing a push rod camera to monitor the cutting process.

The service and repair system is also very easy. Due to changeable single components, the operator is able to change the components immediately, in case of break down.

Perma-Liner has also unveiled new Pull-In-Place CIPP system. This addition will allow installers versatility between the Perma-Lateral air-inversion system and the newly-released Pull-In-Place system.

Perma-Liner Industries was established in 1998 to provide plumbers, contractors and municipalities Cured-In-Place-Pipe (CIPP) systems in North America aimed specifically at the municipal, residential and commercial market and supported by a range of updated and newly developed trenchless repairing techniques. Today the company offers a range of techniques from 2 inch to 102 inch pipe diameters. Here we look at three recent jobs benefitting from the relining and robotic techniques.

Grand Rapids, Michigan

Plummer’s Environmental relined a four inch diameter, 207 feet long, scaled cast iron pipe at a local food processing plant. David VanDyken from Plummer’s said that they had one shot to line this foot pipe and reinstate four lateral connections to the main that ran the length of the plant floor while the plant was closed for the weekend. Only having access from one manhole might have presented a challenge to some, but with a couple of delivery hoses they were able to invert the full 200 plus feet of liner in the one shot. After a three-hour cure they were off and reinstating all of the tie-ins with their mini reinstatement cutter. At approximately 30 minutes apiece for the reinstatements they were in and out in less than one work day!

Dawsonville, Georgia

Townley Construction completed a job at the Historic Hay House in Macon Georgia. The Johnston-Felton-Hay House was built from 1855-1859. Named after the three families that inhabited it for the past three centuries, the house has become a landmark in Georgia dating back to pre-Civil War times. The house had amenities that were unmatched for the time period in which it was built including central heating, hot and cold running water, a speaker-tube system, in-house kitchen, and an elaborate ventilation system. The repair that was performed by Townley Construction was a two inch downspout that was leaking through the wall of the house. This job was completed in less than five hours.

Las Vegas, Nevada

Spartan Plumbing has used CIPP under Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas. Spartan Plumbing found a corroded eight inch pipe under Planet Hollywood that was missing approximately 20 per cent of its pipe throughout the main line on both sides. This section went completely under Planet Hollywood’s restaurant and out the service corridor. This line serviced five other restaurants and twenty stores. Spartan Plumbing started by gently hydro-jetting the cast iron and was successful in cleaning the pipe without a total collapse of the line. Due to the high profile job, it would be nearly impossible for Spagos and Planet Hollywood to be without a sewer line. At midnight Spartan Plumbing shot 132 feet and had it cured by 7.00 am.