One of the primary water transmission pipelines for a large Metro Atlanta water system failed catastrophically after more than twenty years in service. The failure was discovered when surface water was seen in the center lanes of Interstate 85, a primary traffic corridor outside of metro Atlanta.

MME assembled a multidisciplinary team to evaluate the water leak and investigate the situation. MME’s ground penetrating RADAR team successfully identify the water leak and its path from the pipeline to the surface.

MME’s remote CCTV inspection team identified the exact location of the internal pipeline rupture. After initial inspection, a team of metallurgical, civil, structural and welding engineers performed a comprehensive failure analysis, including the design of a long-term, trenchless repair. MME identified poor quality control practices during initial construction as the primary cause of failure, specifically with respect to welding and backfill. MME managed the reconstruction project, including non-destructive inspection of the repair welds, and successfully re-established water transmission without disruption of service to the system as a whole.