Lexis’ staff follow the American Society of Civil Engineers Standard Guidelines for the Collection and Depiction of Existing Subsurface Utility Data.
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The effective application of SUE has been demonstrated to reduce overall project costs in both the design and construction phases. Accurate utility mapping early during the project lifecycle reduces redesign and unforeseen utility conflicts during construction. Cost-savings per dollar spent on SUE for transportation projects range from $4.62 to $22.21 as found by independent studies performed by Purdue University’s Department of Building Construction Management (commissioned by the Federal Highway Administration) and The Pennsylvania Transportation Institute at The Pennsylvania State University (sponsored by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation), respectively.
Our Team members have experience providing geophysical applications, specifically SUE services to a wide array of clients including transportation, state/local government, hospitals, site/land development, and the oil and gas industry.
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Records Research
Utility Designating
Ground Penetrating Radar
Vacuum Excavation
Asset & Risk Management
3D Deliverables
Records Research
SUE is helpful when existing records of subsurface site conditions are incorrect or inaccurate. A site or facility may have had several utility owners or contractors installing facilities and burying objects over a period of many years. Most often, records are not placed in a single file. Additionally, sometimes pipelines or tanks are removed from the ground but are not removed from the drawings. Lexis will conduct records research and compile information derived from existing records.
Utility Designating
After accurate information is gathered from research, the team can survey and plot detectable utility features. Many design and construction projects take place in areas where a large number of underground utilities already exist such as in cities, airports, and highways. Lexis assist’s clients with obtaining data on these out-of-sight utilities. The Lexis team can use geophysical methods to interpret the presence of subsurface utilities in order to mark their visual positions on the above-ground surface. Current SUE technologies include Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), Multichannel GPR (MCGPR), Laser Scanning (LiDAR), CCTV, Magnetometers, Elastic wave devices and Pipe and cable locators. Lexis can deploy any of these methods and often uses dual-frequency GPR along with a vacuum excavation truck to locate the target utility.
Subsurface Utility Engineering (SUE)
Lexis’ staff follow the American Society of Civil Engineers Standard Guidelines for the Collection and Depiction of Existing Subsurface Utility Data.
​
The effective application of SUE has been demonstrated to reduce overall project costs in both the design and construction phases. Accurate utility mapping early during the project lifecycle reduces redesign and unforeseen utility conflicts during construction. Cost-savings per dollar spent on SUE for transportation projects range from $4.62 to $22.21 as found by independent studies performed by Purdue University’s Department of Building Construction Management (commissioned by the Federal Highway Administration) and The Pennsylvania Transportation Institute at The Pennsylvania State University (sponsored by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation), respectively.
Our Team members have experience providing geophysical applications, specifically SUE services to a wide array of clients including transportation, state/local government, hospitals, site/land development, and the oil and gas industry.
​
Records Research
SUE is helpful when existing records of subsurface site conditions are incorrect or inaccurate. A site or facility may have had several utility owners or contractors installing facilities and burying objects over a period of many years. Most often, records are not placed in a single file. Additionally, sometimes pipelines or tanks are removed from the ground but are not removed from the drawings. Lexis will conduct records research and compile information derived from existing records.
Utility Designating
After accurate information is gathered from research, the team can survey and plot detectable utility features. Many design and construction projects take place in areas where a large number of underground utilities already exist such as in cities, airports, and highways. Lexis assist’s clients with obtaining data on these out-of-sight utilities. The Lexis team can use geophysical methods to interpret the presence of subsurface utilities in order to mark their visual positions on the above-ground surface. Current SUE technologies include Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), Multichannel GPR (MCGPR), Laser Scanning (LiDAR), CCTV, Magnetometers, Elastic wave devices and Pipe and cable locators. Lexis can deploy any of these methods and often uses dual-frequency GPR along with a vacuum excavation truck to locate the target utility.
Ground Penetrating Radar
Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is deployed on every project to support the utility designating phase. GPR can identify the presence of metallic and non-metallic structures such as utilities, vaults, trolley tracks, and underground storage tanks.
Multi-Channel Ground Penetrating Radar (MCGPR) can be deployed to cover larger project areas. MCGPR can be pushed or towed and is typically synced with a GPS unit. Post-processing of data allows for identifying anomalies of interest.
Vacuum Excavation
Vacuum excavation is employed by Lexis on projects that require the highest level of certainty and precision on utility data. Data gathered by this method is the most certain because it requires uncovering and exposing the utility to measure its size, determine composition, and to record elevation. Precise horizontal and vertical locations of the utility can be obtained through the excavation phase. During vacuum excavation, the Lexis team gathers measurements for any subsurface utilities or structures that exist at specific points.
Asset and Risk Management
Buried, existing utilities can create risks for the project owner, designer, and construction firm. Subsurface utility engineering is a vital tool to reduce unforeseen utility conflicts. This type of engineering process creates a reduction in project delays due to utility relocations and can lead to reductions in claims and change orders. Often it can bring about lower project bids and help teams avoid the cost of project redesigns. A comprehensive SUE process may also provide savings in risk management by means of reduced insurance or right-of-way acquisition costs.
3D Deliverables
Because subsurface utility engineering is about performing a thorough utility investigation, our 3D deliverables seek to depict the results of that investigation. Resulting information is used to compare subsurface utility designations with proposed plans during the design and construction process. If all stakeholders are informed of potential conflicts, the process provides project controls that can be transferred into the client's GIS files or project plans.