CASE HISTORIES
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[Background]   [Our Challenges]   [Our Procedures]

Background

The sewer project in Anderson, Indiana was in limbo. All that remained to complete the project was to make the final connection between two completed sections. But standing between those two sections was a difficult on-grade bore of 530 feet through a hill full of cobble.

Two previous attempts had been made. Entry from both sides of the hill had been tried. Two different machines had attempted the bore. But success had so far eluded the general contractor, Atlas Excavating of Lafayette, Indiana. Then Brad Ades of Atlas contacted Ed Klein of All-Bore, Inc., an Indiana-based sub-contractor.
All-Bore, Inc. is co-owned by Ed Klein and John Lewellyn. Klein's previous experience in the trenchless industry includes several years working under various drilling contractors, and three years with Vermeer of Indiana. Lewellyn has been in the gas pipeline industry for 20 years, and began working in horizontal drilling in 1996.

When Ades asked him to do this job, Klein knew the odds of success were stacked against him. But he thought, "At least we know what we're up against, and we know what hasn't worked. I think we can do it!"

Klein's confidence was not just blind optimism. He knew he had the equipment he needed, a brand-new Vermeer 80x100 Navigator. And he also knew that he had a crew with more combined experience than most. Ed Klein, his brother John, and brother-in-law Dan Boomershine make up one of the most experienced boring crews in the Midwest, with a total of more than 30 years between them. They have come up against a wide variety of horizontal drilling situations and problems and solved them where others have failed. They have completed projects around the country and around the world. So when Klein said "yes" to Ades, he did so with confidence that they would get the job done.

Our Challenges

There were several factors which made this job particularly challenging. First, the drill site was part of an old landfill area, which made the soil conditions uncertain and changeable. They did know that there was a large area of cobble which would have to be gotten through. A second complication was the depth of the bore. Much of it was at a depth of 48 feet. A third factor was the requirement that the elevation of the bore be held strictly on grade. Because two previously-completed sections were being joined, the hole not only had to be on grade, but it had to start and end at specified depths where manholes were to be dug to join the other sections together. Also, the city engineers required that there be a constant grade with absolutely no "dips" in the pipe. There was very little room for variance in depth, grade, or direction.

Our Procedures

When the All-Bore crew arrived on the scene, the first task was to build a "road" through this densely forested area to allow the D80 to get to the site where the bore could begin. Unfortunately, there was not enough room for the mud mixing system truck to get into the area, so they had to park the truck some 250 feet away and pump the mud in.

When the "road" was ready, the crew setup the D80x100 at the bottom of the hill, approximately 150 feet from the location of the first proposed manhole. After calculating the angle of attack needed to hit the location at the specified depth, they began to drill. After one restart to change to a different drill head, the All-Bore crew bored out at exactly the specified depth. This was the location where the first manhole would be dug to allow connection to another section of the project approximately 150 feet away. Now the really hard part would begin- drilling 530 feet through to the other side of the hill, keeping a constant uphill grade, and coming out at exactly the specified location of the next manhole at the exactly the specified depth.

Using different combinations of drill heads and bits, Dan Boomershine expertly guided the bore through the hill. At approximately 240 feet, he hit a section of very difficult cobble. This really slowed down the progress, but Dan's motto is "Slow and steady. If you're going to get in a hurry, you've got no business trying to bore." And Dan's slow steady pace paid off, getting through the cobble which had stopped the previous two attempts to bore this hill. At about 350 feet into the bore, the difficult stretch of 48 foot deep was reached, and this depth had to be continued for about 200 feet, still maintaining that constant uphill pitch.

The experienced All-Bore crew was able to complete this difficult bore and come out at the second manhole location at the specified depth, staying on grade the entire way.
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