Contractor initiated defects

A growing problem with underground infrastmcture is the coordination of buried assets among multiple owners such as the water and sewer municipalities with oil and gas companies and power companies, who are often sharing limited underground real estate. There is often some uncertainty in the precise location of all buried infrastmcture and sometimes this information has not been properly researched by contractors prior to performing work. Several recent CFRP repair projects resulted from contractor initiated defects. 

In both of the cases above, where contractor initiated defects occurred, the defect area was first repaired using patch and weld methods, followed by installation of a stand-alone CFRP liner. The CFRP pipeline upgrade was designed to resist all internal pressure and external loads, among various other criteria. 

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