Infrasense Locates Utilities for Local College and Post Office Rehab Projects Using GPR
(PRWEB) July 31, 2013 -- Infrasense has recently completed multiple utility and rebar detection projects around Massachusetts using ground penetrating radar (GPR). Infrasense engineers used GPR to locate and mark out reinforcing steel in floor slabs for dormitory rehab projects at Framingham State University and Lasell College in Newton, Massachusetts. Infrasense also scanned floor slabs at a Post Office facility in Reading, Massachusetts, to locate embedded electrical conduits and determine slab thickness and rebar depth. These projects require accurate information for implementing rehab construction projects so that existing structural components and utilities lines are not damaged. For the dormitory projects, the timely location of these subsurface features will enable the dorms to be ready when the students arrive in the fall.
Infrasense was subcontracted by local construction management firms to carry out the work at Framingham State University and Lasell College. The GPR scans from preselected areas provided information for the structural engineers, architects, and utility subcontractors to work together to plan renovation work effectively. Infrasense worked directly with the USPS to perform floor slab scans at a postal sorting facility to locate electrical conduits running through or below the floor, and to determine the thickness of the slab. The information provided by Infrasense is being used in the planning process for the installation of new postal sorting machinery that will be anchored to the floor. In addition to using GPR, Infrasense worked with Radar Solutions International of Waltham, Massachusetts, to utilize an electromagnetic induction technique to locate areas where live electrical conduits were present in the floor.
Ground penetrating radar is a nondestructive evaluation technique that operates by transmitting short pulses of electromagnetic energy into the concrete, using a boxed antenna attached to a survey vehicle or rolled along the slab. These pulses are reflected back to the antenna providing a record of the properties and thicknesses of the layers within the slab. GPR can detect the depth and spacing of reinforcing steel or other metallic objects, as well as the thickness of concrete slabs. It is also able to detect subsurface deterioration of a slab through changes in the radar signal through the concrete. GPR is an especially useful tool for projects such where access is difficult, such as a recent project carried out by Infrasense to confirm anchor bolt locations, recently performed in the roof of the Ted Williams Tunnel.
ABOUT INFRASENSE, INC.
Since 1987, Infrasense, Inc. has applied the most current technologies to the most difficult challenges in subsurface scanning. Infrasense’s engineers are able to nondestructively extract critical information from a diverse range of structures. The firm has conducted research to advance the field of subsurface detection, while also providing valuable information to clients across the country. To learn more about Infrasense and the services we provide, visit our website: http://www.infrasense.com.
Ken Maser, Infrasense, Inc., http://www.infrasense.com, (781) 648-0440, [email protected]
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