Wavetronix

Wavetronix, a developer of traffic monitoring technologies, established its new global headquarters in Springville, Utah, south of Hobble Creek and Interstate 15. The private commercial development includes its own wastewater management infrastructure, consisting of newly constructed sanitary sewer pipes and manholes connecting to Springville City’s public system. Wastewater leaving the Wavetronix site is conveyed through the City’s collections system to the Springville Waste Water Plant, located just two miles away. Once in service, ownership of the newly constructed wastewater infrastructure will be assumed by Springfield City.

Springville City required all manholes in the new development to be protected against corrosion. This requirement is due to the burping the sanitary sewer system was experiencing being in close proximity to the water treatment plant. With an extremely shallow elevation change, air is able to move freely up from the treatment plant through the wastewater system. The resulting burping produces gases that can accelerate the corrosion process in standard concrete manholes. To meet this specification, Geneva Pipe and Precast offered a solution with six Perfect Lined Manholes, each 60-inches in diameter, ranging in depths from 3-feet to 6.25-feet. The lined manholes act as junction structures between 8” SDR-35 sanitary sewer piping.

The composite nature of the concrete with mechanically embedded protective liner in the Perfect Lined Manhole serves a dual function for this project. The acid-resistant HDPE/FRP liner allows the wastewater system to remain chemically inert and free from corrosion, while the traditional reinforced concrete structure provides the material strength required to carry traffic loading for the parking lot above. In addition, the innovative joint design of the manhole incorporates rubber gaskets that allow for the system to be completely leak proof.

The geography of the area presented a challenge for project design and construction. Bringing the project site up to final grade required the contractor to truck in thousands of yards of soil. However, after the site was prepped, the contractor found that installing the Perfect Lined Manholes was actually easier than standard manholes. Once the connecting PVC pipes were in place, the process was complete—there was no grouting necessary. According to Colby from Western Utility, a subcontractor of Sunroc, “As long as our grades were spot on it was ‘smooth sailing!’”