Committee approves Suncoast change order, staff describes CIPP lining to extend pipe life

The Tuscaloosa City Projects Committee approved change order number 1 with Suncoast Infrastructure, an additive closeout for the 2024 sanitary sewer rehabilitation project totaling $4,418.

Committee members heard staff explain that the city uses camera inspections and a condition-scoring system to prioritize lining work and avoid costly open-cut replacements. “We have an inventory of camera footage for a lot of our system. We're continuously, camera inspecting our sewer system and that and we have a scoring system...so when the pipe is in a damaged condition but not damaged enough to where we have to replace it, we're gonna line it,” said staff member Brian.

Why it matters: Staff said lining restores the pipe structure without digging up the street, roughly halving the cost compared with full replacement. “That saves about that's about half the cost of...digging it up and replacement,” Brian said. A councilmember emphasized the city’s proactive approach: “So we're not waiting for something to screw up or something to happen. We are being proactive,” the councilmember said.

Details and process: Staff said the change order reflects final work quantities performed in the field. “We had 2,700 foot, pipe we were gonna line. And then we got construction. We ended up doing 2,800,” Brian said, describing the reconciliation that produced the additive change order. Staff also said one location involved rehabilitation of a 15-inch concrete pipe over Greensboro Road.

Local impact and costs: Staff said the lining work generally adds about 50 years to the useful life of the lined pipe and will not change customers’ sewer bills: “It won't have any impact on the bill. It basically just takes a pipe that has a depleted life and extend the life of that pipe for another 50 years,” Brian said. The project included lining in multiple locations (staff said 12 lines were addressed and characterized them as roughly 50 years old).

Outcome: The committee approved the change order by voice vote.

Ending: Staff and the committee characterized the work as routine infrastructure maintenance undertaken to reduce the risk of future failures and limit future capital replacement costs.