Trenchless Technology: Geneva Pipe & Hamilton Kent Team Up on Venice Beach Microtunnel
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The Venice Beach Dual Force Main Sewer project utilizes a microtunneling solution to construct a new 54-inch pressurized main.
Since 1960, Venice Beach, California, has relied on a 48-inch force main sewer to manage wastewater in the community. Now, more than 60 years later, the aging system is at risk of overflow or failure. To increase capacity and avert a potential sewage spill, the Los Angeles Department of Public Works designed the Venice Dual Force Main Project.
The project adds a 54-inch pressurized main running parallel to the existing system, installed via microtunneling and supported by 1,710 linear feet of 72-inch reinforced concrete jacking pipe supplied by Geneva Pipe, which serves as a carrier for the new force main. Crossing beneath the Marina del Rey basin and under other high ground water coastal areas, the pipe connections required a specially designed Hamilton Kent O-Ring gasket to ensure a water-tight seal under high pressure.
In this article by Trenchless Technology, Heather Christensen and Kody Mangum of Geneva Pipe and Precast and Pardeep Sharma of Hamilton-Kent discuss their collaboration on this project, including the unique challenges and innovative solutions that helped make the Venice Beach microtunnel a success.