Are there critical utilities that run through this airport project area that need to be diverted?
Where is the nearest electrical or water tap off point for this new airport building?
Why was the electrical cable serving the airport terminal cut off accidentally by the contractor?
These are just some of the questions that an Airport Planner might ask with regards to subsurface utilities at the airport.
Airport Utilities run throughout the airport campus. The information for these utilities (water lines, electrical cables, communications fiber, wastewater, gas etc. is normally found in the as-built drawings of the particular project that constructed it. This means that there is a need to refer to a number of drawings scattered throughout the Plan room or a number of CAD files on the Airport CAD server. Keeping track of this information is important to save time on new projects and reduce the risk of accidental damage to existing subsurface utilities.
This ACRP Synthesis report brings together existing information about how airport manage this information and provides some ideas on how to do this better. Click
here for this report.
ACRP Synthesis Report 34 - Subsurface Utility Engineering Information Management for Airports (2012)
No. of pages: 60
Duration of Research: 1 May 2011 - 31 May 2012
Research Agencies: J. H. Anspach Consulting and Grafton Technologies, Inc.
Cost: $30,000
What is the report about?
- "It identifies ways in which information on subsurface utilities is collected, maintained and used by airports, their consultants, and the FAA to enhance safety during infrastructure development programs at airports. It compares the current state of technology and effective processes from other industry sectors with what airports do today, allowing airports to consider areas for improvement."
What did I like about the report?
1. It provided information on how information on subsurface utilities is collected and maintained by airports.
2. Airport have difficulty collecting, maintaining subsurface utility data and providing it to consultants in an easy manner. This report helps airports to identify cost effective ways of managing the problem. CAD, print etc.
3. Introduces the concept of Subsurface Utility Engineering (SUE), technology etc.
Which parts of the report are useful for planners?
- This report is useful for planners who maintain utility information or are responsible for updating current airport utility maps.
- The concept of Utility Quality Level (QL) that incorporates origin, qualifications, technology, and trust/accountability. ASCE's Standard Guidelines for the Collection and Depiction of Existing Subsurface Utility Data, CI/ASCE 38-02.
"QL is broken down into the following four levels:
• Utility quality level A (QLA)—Information obtained by the actual exposure (or verification of previously exposed and surveyed utilities) and subsequent direct measurement of subsurface utilities, usually at a specific point.
• Utility quality level B (QLB)—Information obtained through the application of appropriate surface geophysical methods to infer the existence and approximate horizontal position of subsurface utilities. QLB data should be reproducible by surface geophysics at any
point of their depiction. The horizontal locations are surveyed to the horizontal positional accuracy requirements of the project or any required statute.
• Utility quality level C (QLC)—Information obtained by surveying and plotting visible utility features and by using professional judgment in correlating this information to quality level D information.
• Utility quality level D (QLD)—Information derived from existing records or oral recollections."
Source: ACRP Synthesis Report 34
