With excavation a key part of most construction projects, underground pipelines and utilities are particularly vulnerable to damage. However, preventing excavation damage is straightforward to address with Fotech’s Distributed Acoustic Sensor (DAS) technology.
Data from US industry body Common Ground Alliance recorded over 300,000 damage incidents to underground facilities in 2017. Meanwhile, the Institute of Civil Engineers puts the number of UK strikes at over 60,000 annually. Not only do these incidents cost money to repair, if the damage disrupts the supply, operators may lose both revenue and the goodwill of their customers.
Perimeter security Border security LIVEDetect
Using standard telecommunications grade fibre optic cable – often already a part of underground networks – DAS provides an invisible ‘smart barrier’ for underground utility networks, which can detect and pinpoint excavation activity before it is put at risk. DAS delivers the monitoring platform needed to gain comprehensive and real-time visibility of the integrity of underground utilities.
