Considerations for Management of a Large-Scale Watermain Relining Program

What does it take to rehabilitate up to 60 km of watermain per year? What are the challenges? How much does it cost? What are the savings? Why structural lining vs. full replacement? The city of Toronto has been facing these questions for several years. Growing in size each year, the city’s rehabilitation program plans to renew 37 km of distribution watermain by cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) structural lining in 2018. This paper discusses how the city manages a program of this scale, including: considerations for identifying priority assets in need of renewal, selecting rehabilitation vs. full replacement, public communications management, data management, design and planning requirements, identifying staff resources for owner and consultant, qualifications for contractors, specifications for liners, quality control of liner installations, life cycle costs, and construction scheduling. CIPP for pressure pipe offers a number of benefits to the owner when compared with typical open cut replacement, but also presents a number of additional challenges that with appropriate planning and resources can be managed efficiently.