Wessex Water Services Ltd recently used the Steve Vick International Pipe Handler when replacing a 1 km stretch of existing rising main with 280 mm high pressure PE pipe.
The regional water and sewerage company, which serves 2.8 million customers across the south west of England used directional drilling to replace the sewerage pipe which ran across farmer’s fields on the outskirts of Salisbury. In order to replace the 1 km stretch, several different lengths of pipe needed to be inserted, ranging from 70 m to 120 m. To achieve these lengths, individual 12 m sticks of PE were butt fused together.
The SVI Pipe Handler was used to pull the pipes that had already been joined into place, these pipes sometimes extended over many metres in length. Once the pipe was in place the pipe handler unloaded the next 12 m stick and lifted it into the correct position for butt fusion.
Traditionally, when manoeuvring PE pipe on site, an excavator bucket and sling would be used. However, this can cause the pipe to swing and become unstable which can be a hazard to operatives. The benefits of using the Steve Vick International Pipe Handler are that it is a single person operation which requires a one stage set up for the whole process. Once in place the pipe handler can be controlled entirely from the cab, avoiding the need for any operatives to handle the pipe. This reduction in the man handling of the pipe not only improves safety but is also more time efficient.
The Pipe Handler is a highly efficient addition to the tools available on site. It enables sticks of PE to be loaded or unloaded safely from storage racks or trucks and loaded into the butt fusion machine. The Pipe Handler is also designed to slipline pipe by gripping the PE, positioning it in the excavation and inserting the pipe.
There are three models in the range handling pipe diameters from 250 mm up to 900 mm in diameter. Each model is capable of handling various diameters using shell inserts. Website: www.stevevick.com
