When it comes to water system project design, there are many factors to consider when utilizing Ductile iron pipe (DI pipe). One of the most important is corrosion prevention, and if correctly addressed, there are great opportunities to design your systems with projected life spans extending well beyond 100 years.
As a manufacturer of Ductile iron pipe (DI pipe), we often field questions from water professionals regarding DI pipe, its uses, and how to install it properly. We even receive numerous questions about alternate materials, their differences, their uses, and the best choice for the application. And of course, when you ask, we answer…honestly, even when the answer doesn’t include Ductile iron. In this Iron Strong Blog, we’ll cover a few of our frequently asked questions (FAQ) and provide some solutions. We will continue with this FAQ series in the upcoming months.
Vicinity Energy, headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts supplies many downtown Baltimore, Maryland business corridor buildings with reliable central water services, offering a cost-effective alternative to maintaining in-house cooling equipment. In this Iron Strong Customer Spotlight, we’ll take a closer look at a recent Ductile iron pipe (DI pipe) installation project that will provide a means for sustainable, affordable energy in the Baltimore area for many years to come.
As of October 2020, more than 47,000 wildfires have occurred across 36 U.S. states. Drought is a major factor, as a large portion of the West is currently experiencing the most severe level of drought, dubbed “exceptional drought” by the U.S. Drought Monitor. Humans cause the majority of wildfires with negligence such as unattended campfires, discarded cigarettes or arson, followed by natural causes such as unusually long-lasting hot lightning bolts. (U.S. Drought Monitor, 2012)
How much water can I get through that pipe? What size pipe should I use to carry that much water? Two similar-sounding questions that, in truth, are entirely different. Not to mention, both are missing the keyword to consider in resolving each question, that word being "efficiently." The McWane Pocket Engineer (PE) Flow Calculator quickly and easily answers all three concerns - flow rate, pipe size, and flow efficiency.
How do you go to market? This isn’t a question we get often, but it comes up from time to time. Sometimes we're asked by a vendor we work with who is trying to understand McWane Ductile better. Sometimes a candidate asks the question during an interview or a new sales representative asks while we’re onboarding. Other times we have a hard-working team member at one of our manufacturing facilities trying to understand further what and where the product they make goes and how it gets there. In this blog, we will look at the different bidding processes we encounter on a day-to-day basis that allow us to take Ductile iron pipe to market.
So, the site plans say, "… connect to existing iron pipe." Now that we’ve dug down to it, I can’t tell if it is gray iron or Ductile iron pipe. Are there ways to reliably distinguish between the two without some physical testing on a sample? In this blog, we'll take a closer look at the characteristics and differences between the two types of pipe.
There is a national effort to deny engineers, utilities, municipalities, public entities, and other waterworks professionals the ability to design water, wastewater, and stormwater projects in the manner that best serves the needs of their community. This effort focuses on water system piping but could be expanded to other infrastructure materials, as well. This blog contains a Q&A session conducted with a civil engineer, John Simpson, and a former utility manager, Roy Mundy, regarding Open Procurement.
Cast iron pipe was introduced to the United States in 1816. Since then, numerous other piping materials have been offered and utilized. None were able to supplant cast iron as the leading performer until Ductile iron pipe became available. The introduction of Ductile iron pipe (DI pipe) to the marketplace in 1955 remains among the most significant advancements in the history of the pressure pipe industry. It was quickly recognized as a pipe material with all the established durability of gray cast iron, yet with added strength and resiliency from its innate and lasting flexibility. It was first used for special and severe conditions of high pressure, such as where water hammer and excessive external loads might have existed.
As the name suggests, Ball & Socket River Crossing Pipe manufactured by McWane Ductile is a severe application Ductile iron pipe (DI pipe) product manufactured to meet the demanding requirements associated with crossing rivers, streams, and lakes. In this blog, we will discuss the various installation methods associated with Ball & Socket pipe and basic assembly instructions.
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Looking for answers to your DI pipe questions? Find decades of Ductile iron expertise with installation guides, videos, tip sheets, training resources, and more in our Learning Center.
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