“Time is a primary currency traded on any given construction project. At Ground Penetrating Radar Systems, our everyday efficiency in operations allows us to respond to the immediate needs of our customers, often within 24 hours or less.” (www.gprsinc.com)

A Chicago contractor needed to locate any utilities at one of their project sites. They wanted to install a new platform inside of the cell tower enclosure. They wanted to do this without digging into and damaging any underground utilities within the enclosure, which could shut off power to the cell tower as well as potentially harming a worker in the area. The contractor hired Ground Penetrating Radar Systems (GPRS) to come in and mark out the utilities within the cell tower enclosure, as well as tracking the public utilities back to the utility poll that they came from. The scope of the project consisted of the enclosure and street leading to the utility poll.

Using the SIR-3000 we were able to locate and paint out the path of the communication (orange), electric (red), and unknown lines (pink). The utilities were clearly marked out with different colored paint so the contractor could tell each utility apart. Thanks to our service the contractor was able to install the new platform without any mishaps or damage repairs. All of our project managers are OSHA certified and come to every project site with the correct PPE.

Our state of the art GSSI GPR equipment can send radio signals into the ground that send back in real time data for onsite interpretation. The radio waves are safe for workplaces so there is no need for stoppage in work for floors below or around scan areas. The specific equipment that was utilized for this job was the GSSI 400 MHz GPR Antenna. Using the 400, we are able to scan up to 6ft into the ground and more accurately detect any metal utilities, voids, or other unknown anomalies in the ground. GPRS also uses the RD-8100 Locator to locate live power and radio frequency (RF) signals underground. We can also detect utilities in or underground via induction or conduction with an exposed or known surface utility line.

GPRS project managers are commonly called for scanning for utilities, voids, underground storage tanks (UST’s), or even unmarked graves.

At GPRS safety is one our #1 priority, when saw cutting or drilling the last thing you or our project managers want, is to hit a surprise conduit in the slab. While you may think that there is nothing in the slab, there is an unfortunate number of clients that call because they were proven wrong. The price of one of our project managers is well worth the price compared to the costs of repairing a mishap later on.

If you have any questions about GPRS applications or would have a need for GPR, feel free to contact Parker Schings at (224) 422-7284 or through email at parker.schings@gprsinc.com.

If you are outside the Chicago area, GPRS is nationwide so please visit the contact page to find your closest local Project Manager.