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April 25, 2002 Keeping money from going down the drain
New, innovatively designed drain castings have hit the streets of America -- literally. After nearly two years of research and development, Dennis McNeely of Site Solutions Inc. in Ann Arbor, Mich., brought his Final Cut castings to market last month. He’s targeting Washington and any other state where people show interest, he said, and he expects there will be plenty. That’s because he’s found a way to simplify the normally costly installation or replacement of storm drain catch basins, saving time and money for cities, counties and developers, as well as saving citizens from expensive wheel alignments during street repair projects while asphalt is being applied to old and new roadways. Because the product is new, unveiled on March 20, McNeely’s company is still working on its first contracts with customers. There are no completed projects yet, McNeely said, but he’s looking forward to that phase. One city official who wants to learn more about the new process is Todd Knepper, public works director for Milan, in southeastern Michigan. After seeing an installation demonstration of Final Cut castings, Knepper has encouraged their use for streets in a new subdivision planned for Milan so he can learn more about how the products perform. "In a large 300-home subdivision like the one that’s going into our town this summer, the developers like to lay down a base of asphalt that leaves an inch-and-a-half lip sticking up (above grade) on the catch basins," said Knepper. "The water doesn’t drain well until the final paving is done, when the asphalt is flush to the top of the basin. Until then, drivers have to maneuver around them."
McNeely’s invention seems to solve a lot of basic problems, Knepper said. "The Final Cut product is installed in the curb at a level flush with the first layer of paving, so there’s no bumps and water drains easily," he said. "Then when the street is ready for the final paving, the Final Cut casting can be adjusted to the higher level of the final asphalt paving without having to tear up the road or curbing." McNeely said his new castings are also adaptable for manhole covers or other utility infrastructure covers in roadways, all of them creating problems for pavers. "The issue for municipalities and contractors is that the present methods mean a paving job that requires a single day for the placement of asphalt overlay may require an additional two days for adjusting rim elevations (of catch basins and manhole covers)," he said. "During the time, motorists must weave their way through traffic barricades and workers are subject to traffic exposure during that work." Also, conventional cast iron adjusting rings are limited to grade adjustments that exceed the thickness of a cover by about a half-inch, he said, noting that road commissions and departments of transportation haven’t found thinner steel adjusting rings an acceptable alternative because they are subject to corrosion and bending. With McNeely’s cast iron riser installed, and the old cover discarded, height adjustments can be made in minutes immediately prior to laying the asphalt base. An additional riser can even be added, securing it to the first riser with set screws, then replacing the cover. By providing for drainage even at the base asphalt level, ponds of rainwater that irritate motorists are eliminated. "Final Cut castings simplify road renovation in several ways," he explained. "Labor-intensive projects are completed more quickly, customer access to local businesses is restored more quickly in retail areas and the total cost for overlay placement is reduced."
As for marketing his new products, McNeely is already on the road much of the time. Conducting a cell-phone interview recently on his way to Cleveland, he said he’s prepared to work with municipalities or developers in any state if they show interest. "The savings is not only in cost -- about $345 for a Final Cut product compared to $400 for a typical riser and cover casting -- but in project time, traffic delays, motorist aggravation and bumps that leave a bunch of people needing front-end alignment for their vehicles. There’s even a savings in costs for barricade rentals," he said. Further information is available from McNeely at (800) 542-9052 or on his Web site www.final-cut.biz, which includes a downloadable video of a Final Cut catch basin installation.
Terry Stephens is a
freelance writer based in Arlington. He can be reached by e-mail at features@gte.net.
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