In 2017 and 2021, PICA inspected a total of 8 miles of 36-inch diameter CMLC steel pipe and C303 bar- wrapped (concrete cylinder) pipe on a Southern California Water District’s Aqueduct #2 and Aqueduct #1 pipelines using Remote Field Testing (RFT) technology and PICA’s unique deflatable tool platform that allows insertion and extraction of tool components through 18-inch diameter access openings.

Both pipelines had experienced failures prior to PICA’s inspections. On the Aqueduct #2 steel pipeline, PICA found that 98% of the pipe was in good condition, even though PICA’s technology also found several locations of significant wall loss that was caused from external corrosion. The District made spot repairs to this pipeline and replaced certain sections. These improvements will enable the District to operate this critical raw water delivery pipeline well into the future. In 2021, under an emergency inspection, PICA identified over 350 locations of wall loss over the 2.2 miles inspected on their Aqueduct #1 bar-wrapped pipe. District personnel entered the pipe and validated PICA’s findings at several of these locations and subsequently made the necessary repairs to the pipeline that will enable them to return the pipeline to full service and extend the asset’s life substantially.