We usually capture three GPS positions for each utility - one to the left, one where we will intersect and one to the right. Now with the mapping tools, we go out there with a cell phone and a 6.6-foot (2 m) stick.
“We used to have to take a measuring wheel out to a jobsite to plot utilities. “South Carolina’s DOT requires permits for most roadway crossings, but they are very particular about any bores that are greater than 2 inches (5.1 cm) in diameter,” Carlson said. According to Carlson, the bulk of his company’s work is for electric utility companies, and Vermeer Projects has been invaluable for DOT-permitted road crossings, where they have to prove how they will drill a shot and how they plan to avoid all the utilities. Pinnacle Construction was also an early adopter of Vermeer Projects +BorePlan productivity tools. “And, when I heard about Vermeer Projects productivity tools, I knew we had to give it a try.” “BoreAid design tool gave us the ability to plan and present more three dimensional, which is extremely helpful for larger-diameter bores,” Carlson explained.
“I knew taking the time to plan jobs would make us more efficient, more professional, and would help us avoid potential utility strikes and other safety concerns.”Ĭarlson upgraded Pinnacle Construction’s planning process when the Vermeer BoreAid® design tool was introduced.
#Vermeer Atlas Bore Planner software
“We purchased the Vermeer Atlas Bore Planner® computer software long before anyone else we knew of was talking about planning,” Carlson explained. Planning toolsĪround the same time that Carlson started Pinnacle Construction, horizontal directional drill manufacturers began to introduce technology that could aid in planning. After the locates are called in, Pinnacle Construction crews spend time talking through what potential challenges they may face on a job, long before any machine shows up onsite. The process starts by examining the bore path, identifying any potential underground obstacles and then determining how the crew will avoid them. “So, when it comes to drilling, it never made much sense to me to show up on the jobsite, stick the bit in the ground and push it through until it comes out the other side.” Commitment to planningįrom Pinnacle Construction’s first drilling jobs to their jobsites today, Carlson has trained his team to diligently plan for every scenario before work begins. “I’m an analytical person, and I’m used to processing data to make decisions, troubleshoot and train,” he said. When Carlson completed his service in the Navy and got into horizontal directional drilling, he developed a similar approach to his business. Diligent planning and training meant we were all prepared for whatever came our way.” “We practiced every potential scenario that could happen - flooding, a hydraulic line rupture, electrical fire, loss of propulsion or any other kind of life-threatening situation. “I learned then that you don’t take a multi-billion-dollar submarine out to sea without a good plan,” Carlson explained. Using the information he gathered, Carlson helped officers and the ship’s captain make decisions as to where to go, what to do and where not to be. He studied submarine electronics and was responsible for analyzing threat signals when a submarine was out at sea. The success Pinnacle Construction experienced with the airport job can be attributed in part to proper planning Carlson had been preparing for a project like this one for several years.Ĭarlson’s journey started when he joined the United States Navy after high school. And, we hit it - dead center! I couldn’t have been prouder of my team and everyone else we recruited to help us with the job.” Starting from the beginning “We had the airport’s director of operations, IT supervisor, IT manager and several other dignitaries waiting near the exit hole, just to see if we could do it. “I didn’t realize I could hold my breath for that long,” joked Carlson.
For Erik Carlson, owner of Pinnacle Construction & Directional Boring, Inc., in Charleston, South Carolina, that story happened on the day his team completed a 285-foot (86.9 m) bore under the entrance roadways at the Charleston International Airport - hitting a 20-inch (50.8 cm) diameter exit hole in a wall directly below the airport’s baggage carousels. Many horizontal directional drilling contractors have that one success story that brings a smile to their face just thinking about it.