Route 1A—A Comprehensive Management Route of Large Diameter PCCP Mains

A study was performed to examine the comprehensive prestressed concrete cylinder pipe (PCCP) management strategy implemented by Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Department (MDWASD), the fifth-largest water utility in the United States. The strategy developed targets safely and effectively extending the serviceable life of MDWASD's large-diameter pipe assets where replacement is cost-prohibitive and preventing catastrophic failures in a high-density urban environment. The strategy is built upon recurring electromagnetic inspections and continuous acoustic fiber optic (AFO) monitoring, but is augmented using visual and sounding practices, leak detection, transient pressure monitoring, design checks, finite element analysis, remaining useful life, and capital planning studies. A 12-year study of Route 1A, a 54-in. transmission main, will serve as the conduit to showcase the pipeline management strategy and the operational implementation throughout MDWASD's 240 mi of PCCP mains and how a failing pipeline can be stabilized and managed for years to come.