Even after calling the utility companies and waiting for them to come out and mark the ground, it’s still way too easy to hit unknown utility lines and it happens all the time. Call811.com explains that calling 811 (this is for the American folks) before you dig, reduces your chance of hitting a utility line to less than 1%. That may seem like a very small percentage, and it is, but with hundreds of billions of dollars in construction spending each year, that 1% is actually spread across thousands of projects. This also does not include poorly drawn as-built plans that result in major maintenance and renovation problems down the road due to mismarked and misplaced utilities.
Manufacturer, 3M, has recently released an Electronic Marker System (EMS) Rope 7000 that emits a radio frequency signal, so that it can be located, even when it gets damaged or cut to help locate the utility lines that it will be installed next to. According to 3M, the rope is virtually maintenance free, has a long life expectancy, and is corrosion resistance. Since the rope does not require a power source to operate, the location system will still work if part of the rope is cut or damaged. In order to find the rope, 3M’s EMS Marker/Tape Locator Model 7420 needs to be used.
“Using the new path marking system, we’re able to mitigate the challenges that often plague other marking applications, such as fear of cut lines, unlocatable utilities, bad digs and miss-hits. Over the life of a project, this may save considerable time, money and provides peace of mind,” said Ed Scott, business development manager of 3M Electrical Markets Division.
The rope can be installed in any open trench up to 2 feet deep and can be installed inside conduit.
The video below of the EMS Rope 7000 is a bit of a cheesy news parody, so I skipped ahead a couple minutes to the more informative part.
In the midst of fierce discourse over the bipartisan infrastructure bill lies a unique opportunity for the United States.