Ground Improvement

American Securities LLC, a New York-based private equity firm, today announces that it has completed its significant investment in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (ADS), the largest producer of corrugated polyethylene pipe products in the world. Based in Hilliard, Ohio, ADS is a 40-year-old, privately-held company serving the storm and waste water industry. Equity for the investment was provided by American Securities Partners V, L.P., a $2.3 billion private equity partnership. Barclays Capital acted as financial advisor to ADS.

This year, China's government released a textile industry plan for 2009 through 2011. It includes support and targets for more than doubling geotextile production. Learn more here.;

Pacific Gold Corp. (PCFG) has announced that Nevada Rae Gold, Inc., (NRG) a subsidiary of PCFG, has received permission from the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) for its' Engineering Design Change to build a field hosting 8 additional geotextile tubes at the Black Rock Canyon Mine. The Company has ordered the appropriate liners and parts, and the Company plans to begin construction on the field as soon as the supplies are on site. Once completed, an as built review by the NDEP will be required prior to the operation of the new field of geotextile tubes.

As 2017 opens, the first acquisition announced in the industry is that of Terrafix by Hans Geo Components. The geosynthetics growth move combines the Hanes Companies’ distribution network for...

New for the next CONEXPO-CON/AGG exposition, to be held in 2011, is the co-location of the 2011 International Concrete Exposition, also known as ICON Expo. The shows will be held 22-26 March 2011 at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, USA. ICON Expo is organized by the National Concrete Masonry Association (NCMA) in conjunction with other leading industry groups, and serves the needs and interests of the concrete products industry, including producers, suppliers, designers, architects, and specifiers. The expo rounds out exhibits with product demonstrations, a robust education program and social networking events. Read more in the release.

GeoAmericas 2012, the second Pan-American Geosynthetics Congress, will be held 1-4 May 2012 at the Libertador Hotel in Lima, Peru. It will be organized by IGS Peru, under the auspices of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS). The congress will highlight the main topics in the geosynthetics industry and applications. Keynote lectures and selected papers will be presented on the main themes: Geosynthetics in Enviromental Applications; Geosynthetics in Dynamic Applications; Geosynthetics in Hydraulic Applications; Geosynthetics in Mining Applications; Geosynthetics in HIghways Applications; Geosynthetics in Sanitary Applications; Case Histories; and New Geosynthetics Products. Stay current with the latest at the event website, www.geoamericas2012.com. Learn more here.;

Textile materials are being used in some interesting ways in the efforts to soak up oil approaching the shores of the Gulf of Mexico in the wake of the explosion and sinking of BP's Deepwater Horizon oil rig off the coast of Louisiana late last month. Textile World received reports of two such efforts just this week -- one more high-tech and one less so, but also having potential to help minimize the effects of the spill on the coastal ecosystems. Learn more here.;

Wall Herald Corporation has agreed to pay approximately $20 million for past and future cleanup costs incurred by the federal government at the Monitor Devices Superfund site in Wall Township, N.J., according to a settlement filed today in federal court in Trenton, N.J., the Justice Department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today.

The U.S. needs to spend more than $1 trillion between now and 2035 to upgrade its aging water system, if pipes are replaced at the end of their useful lives, according to a report by the American Water Works Association. "Postponing infrastructure investment in the near-term would raise the overall cost and increase the likelihood of water main breaks and other infrastructure failures," the report noted. The ASCE has reported that $9.4 billion per year needs to be invested between now and 2020. Learn more here.;

The massive coal ash retention pond breach in Tennessee has reignited debate about how best to dispose of coal ash. Too often, ash is buried in unlined cells. And, increasingly, opposition is being raised over the construction of unlined cells. Though it will cost more in the short run, the construction of proper waste containment cells, with liners and fully engineered, reinforced earth walls, seems to be the right solution.

TRI/Environmental has steadily (often quietly) added to its testing and training business over the years, but 2008 may have its most significant. New hires (including industry veteran Rich Lacey) have strengthened the efficiency and skill of TRI's work; new testing equipment has greatly expanded the company's capabilities, especially in geotechnical areas; TRI has achieved AASHTO's American Materials Research Laboratory (AMRL) certification; electrical resistivity testing training continues with participants coming from all over the world; the Denver Downs large-scale testing facility is maturing; and much more. It's been an important 2008 and bodes well for a strong future. Read TRI's annual letter for the full story.

The amount of nonwoven roll goods exported from the U.S. increased last year by 6.8% compared to 2000. While this is good news, it needs to be tempered by the fact that U.S. imports increased by a whopping 13.5% last year too. Over a five year period, in fact, the gap between U.S. imports and exports of nonwoven roll goods has narrowed considerably.

Total construction spending contracted by 4.8 percent in the first quarter of 2010 and is not expected to see positive growth until the last quarter of 2010, according to the Second Quarter U.S. Construction Briefing by IHS Global Insight's Construction Service. The residential construction sector, led by single-family construction, is seeing a rebound in activity. Low mortgage rates and low prices will result in improved affordability, which, when combined with income growth, pent-up demand and returning employment, will result in growth in the sector in 2010. Nonresidential construction, which is still being impacted by high vacancy rates and tight credit conditions, will continue to shrink throughout 2010 and will bottom out in the fourth quarter of the year.

(Houston, TX) – May 20, 2014 – GSE Environmental (www.gseworld.com) continued its long-established tradition of being the global leader in the geosynthetics industry with the official opening of its...

GeoAmericas 2012, the second Pan-American Geosynthetics Congress, will be held 1-4 May 2012 at the Libertador Hotel in Lima, Peru. It will be organized by IGS Peru, under the auspices of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS). The congress will highlight the main topics in the geosynthetics industry and applications. Keynote lectures and selected papers will be presented on the main themes: Geosynthetics in Enviromental Applications; Geosynthetics in Dynamic Applications; Geosynthetics in Hydraulic Applications; Geosynthetics in Mining Applications; Geosynthetics in HIghways Applications; Geosynthetics in Sanitary Applications; Case Histories; and New Geosynthetics Products. Learn more.

The 25th International Conference on Solid Waste Technology and Management 14-17 March 2010 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The agenda has been announced and includes 160 presentations from 40 countries. Field trips are also involved in this international gathering. Learn more at the event website. Learn more here.;

In addition to their own chapter/national events, chapters of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) support quadrennial regional conferences. In 2016, multiple events will take place, bringing together the Americas,...

The organizers of GeoHalifax 2009 (20 - 24 September 2009) have released the conference's latest e-newsletter. (Interested readers can subscribe to the feed via the conference website.) Some of the highlights: registration will continue through the conference; the exhibit hall is sold out; and more than 400 abstracts were submitted. Presenters can use the online submission system for PowerPoint files. GeoHalifax 2009 is hosted by the Canadian Geotechnical Society (CGS) and the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH). Learn more here.;

Raven Industries, a manufacturer of geomembranes, vapor barriers and other geotechnical, agricultural and architectural materials, will be in the exhibition hall at the EPA's Brownfields 2011 Conference in Philadelphia, 3-5 April 2011. The company reports that it will feature its new Absolute Barrier™ geomembrane and its popular VaporBlock® Plus™ high-performance under-slab gas barrier. Visit the company at Booth 309.

The International Erosion Control Association 2018 Conference and Exhibition (IECA 2018) is fully ready for attendees to reserve accommodation and register for the conference. The program has been set...

New research out of Texas A&M's Department of Crop and Soil Sciences published in Crop Science, vol. 51, May - June 2011 shows the AirField System brings a tremendous reduction in irrigation frequency and overall water usage, outstanding root growth and depth, and an almost perfect perched water table, resulting in extreme playability, and more playable hours per year.

Rapra has announced the publication of Tank Linings for Chemical Process Industries by V.C. Chandrasekaran. Rubber linings can be used as passive protection against the corrosion of plant and equipment in the chemical process industries. Rubbers act as sacrificial materials reacting or un-reacting with the corrosive media. Rubbers age but their life cycle is good enough to protect the metals against corrosion and erosion. This book describes exactly how to use rubber as a lining in tanks and how to overcome problems associated with this technique.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is releasing action plans developed by 16 electric utility facilities with coal ash impoundments, describing the measures the facilities are taking to make their impoundments safer. The action plans are a response to EPA's final assessment reports on the structural integrity of these impoundments that the agency made public this February. Coal ash was brought prominently to national attention in 2008 when an impoundment holding disposed ash waste generated by the Tennessee Valley Authority broke open, creating a massive spill in Kingston, Tennessee, that covered millions of cubic yards of land and river and is regarded as one of the worst environmental disasters of its kind in history. Shortly afterwards, EPA began overseeing the cleanup, as well as investigating the structural integrity of impoundments where ash waste is stored.

The International Erosion Control Association (IECA) has recently completed work for the world's largest retailer, Walmart, on an online version of its stormwater training program. The project was an 8-month endeavor resulting in the creation of 7 training modules, with more than 6 hours of online content. IECA utilized 5 of its members to help write the content and several additional members also edited and reviewed content. Read more.

ASTM International has launched a revamped online version of its flagship magazine, Standardization News (SN). The magazine's new website, which is available free to all visitors at www.astm.org/standardization-news, offers more frequently updated ASTM news that is organized into new industry sector gateways. These gateways serve as web portals to comprehensive news and information about ASTM standards development activities, meeting and training course dates, publications and more.