GPRS (Ground Penetrating Radar Systems, Inc.) was hired by a local dredging and marine construction company in March 2020. They planned to dredge roughly 1,300 linear feet of the Manistee River and excavate contaminated soil from roughly 3.5 acres on the shoreline. The role of GPRS was to locate the existing utilities within the proposed excavation areas and determine if any underground utilities were crossing the river from shoreline to...

A Detroit contractor needed to locate the public utilities at one of their project sites. They wanted to drill soil borings around a gas station for soil testing. They wanted to do this without drilling into and damaging any underground utilities within the area, which could shut off power to a gas pump, or cause a gas leak, as well as potentially harming a worker in the area. The contractor hired Ground Penetrating Radar Systems (GPRS) to...

A Detroit contractor needed to locate any conduits inside of the concrete slab at one of their project sites on a local college campus. They wanted to cut into the concrete so they could set up an electrical line that could be used to feed power for a new machine. They wanted to do this without cutting into the conduits shutting down power to a nearby machine, or injuring a worker. The contractor hired Ground Penetrating Radar Systems (GPRS)...

“Time is a primary currency traded on any given construction project. At Ground Penetrating Radar Systems, our everyday efficiency in operations allows us to respond to the immediate needs of our customers, often within 24 hours or less.” (www.gprsinc.com)

A Detroit contractor needed to locate any utilities or conduits inside and underneath the concrete slab at one of their project sites in the...

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems (GPRS) was recently hired to complete a concrete scanning job for saw cutting at a local University in its maintenance service garage. A regional contractor called GPRS to come out and scan an area to be saw cut in order to remove an old hoist and replace it with a newer and more heavy-duty hoist. Adjacent to the saw cut area were multiple electrical panels with various conduits entering the slab. This setting...

GPRS recently received a call from a local Detroit contractor to assist in a major renovation of one of the infamous buildings in the heart of downtown Detroit. The project consisted of a major renovation of the outside of the building which included all 3 entrances, parking lots, landscaping, sidewalks, and some of the facilities infrastructures.

The infamous building is located right next to Hart Plaza, one of downtown Detroit’s local...

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems was recently contracted to complete a site investigation prior to major renovation and construction at the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) truck assembly plant in Warren, MI. This plant employs over 2,500 people and FCA is investing $1.5 billion in renovations and new construction to modernize the facility. As a result of this investment 1,400 new jobs are expected to be added and the production of the Ram...

GPRS recently completed a concrete scanning project at the Ford Automotive Campus in Dearborn, MI. The project that GPRS was working on was being overseen by Walbridge Construction and Devon Industrial Group. The scope of the project was fairly extensive as they are planning to demo a couple of rooms inside of a product development building. The rooms being demoed require large operating equipment to be inside of the main structure....

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems, LLC (GPRS) of Michigan was contacted by a major national general contractor to locate rebar, conduits and post tension cables within the concrete flooring of a new multi-tenant high-rise project in downtown East Lansing, Michigan. The project remains under construction; however, several ground floor tenant spaces have been leased out and are undergoing site specific modifications which include embedding...

GPRS was first contacted by Paula McElroy, history and social studies teacher at Marlette High School in Marlette, Michigan. Paula teaches one of the only high school archaeology classes in the state. Her request was to use ground penetrating radar (GPR) to scan a few select areas around the high school known to contain historical artifacts.

The current building has been used as the high school since its construction in 1967. But,...

GPRS was recently contacted by a large private institution in the Detroit, Michigan area for a major sprinkler renovation. The facilities department stated that over the past several years multiple contractors have had numerous line strikes damaging several areas containing underground utilities. After meeting with a GPRS consultant they decided that not only was it a good idea to have several areas scanned but to have a full site...

DTE was founded in 1849 and is one of the nation’s largest natural gas utilities. The corporate headquarters is located at One Energy Plaza in Detroit Mi. DTE is a Detroit based diversified energy company involved in the development and management of energy related business’s nationwide. The company services 3.5 million customers in Southeastern Michigan. The entire DTE footprint spans 25 states in the U.S and has more than 10,000 employees....

Often prior to selling or developing properties, the parties involved need to determine if any underground storage tanks are still present on site before a final transaction can take place. Nobody wants to be stuck with the cost and headache of removing any unknown underground storage tanks with a property they just purchased. Ground Penetrating Radar is an excellent tool to utilize when determining if any UST’s are still present at a...

Ground Penetrating Radar technology is versatile in that when investigating to locate certain subsurface objects it can also determine if anything else significant is in the area. GPR provides real-time results which can allow a project manager to interpret data and mark the findings on the surface in a clear manner. These methods help to create a safer environment by locating subsurface utilities, underground storage tanks, voids,...

GPRS of Michigan worked for a new client at Central Michigan University to scan multiple areas in one of the University’s rooms that were part of a new addition on campus. GPRS was called out to locate the rebar in the concrete slab prior to the contractor doing some coring. There are always numerous projects going on at Universities, so being able to work on campus while creating a new relationship between GPRS and a new customer is always...

GPRS of Michigan recently mobilized and worked for an environmental contractor who was performing numerous soil borings at a nationwide supply store and needed to clear these soil boring locations prior to drilling. Having GPRS come out and scan for underground utilities prior to drilling is paramount to ensure safety and that the job is completed in an effective time frame so that the store doesn’t see any ill effects from the project....

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems of Michigan was recently hired by a Detroit area hospital to help locate electrical conduits or other unknown obstructions prior to saw cutting. Multiple areas of concrete floor were to be saw cut in order to repair a broken unit located in the mechanical room. Without any accurate site plans of what was in, or just below the concrete floor, the contractor decided to hire GPRS. The above pictures illustrate...

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems has worked several times for the John E Green Co. on the new Greektown Casino Hotel project in downtown Detroit, MI. The hotel is a new 30 story cast-in-place concrete structure with post-tension cables. John E Green is the lead mechanical contractor on the job and has needed to move and add several hole penetrations for their piping.

John E Green has hired GPRS to scan and locate the post-tensioning...

When a Michigan based electrical contractor needed to check for conduits in a metal pan deck slab at Somerset Collections in Troy, Michigan, they called Ground Penetrating Radar System, LLC. Prior to core drilling, they needed a safe and effective way to help eliminate the possibility of coring through a conduit and shutting off power to the stores throughout the mall. GPRS was able to mobilize to the site and scan the areas using GPR...

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems of Michigan recently visited a local college to locate pex tubing/radiant heat lines within an elevated concrete slab. A general contractor working at the university had plans to core drill multiple holes through the concrete slab for new drainage, but could not take the risk of core drilling through one of these lines. The project manager on site was able to scan the multiple potential areas where the...

GPRS of Michigan was called out to scan outside of Lansing Catholic High School to locate any utilities or other obstructions to clear two areas for soil borings. GPRS successfully located and marked any possible utilities or obstructions so that the school was comfortable with the findings before completing the soil borings. Since the facility was built over 60 years ago, and the "as-builts" weren’t up-to-date, GPRS was able to locate...

A general contractor working at a Detroit Edison facility in Michigan recently contacted GPRS to help locate private utilities that one call services would not locate. The contractor was installing a new security fence at the entrance of a parking lot along with a new card reader and camera. Installing the new conduits for this system required the excavation of a trench along the front of the property and up to the building. Any...

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems of Michigan recently assisted on a project near Ann Arbor, Michigan at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital. A general contracting firm was renovating two different suites in the hospital to become new CT scan rooms. There were multiple cores that needed to be drilled for new plumbing and electrical lines. The contractor’s main concern was shutting part of the hospital down because a conduit was hit while drilling. GPRS...

Having information on what lies beneath the concrete floors prior to saw cutting is essential to ensure the safety of the workers involved with the demolition. Also, having information on the location of existing embedded conduits and plumbing throughout a project area helps everyone to devise a plan as to where future utilities should be placed.

A plumbing contractor was working on a project inside a university building in Ann...

Prior to saw cutting concrete floors, it’s important to have as much information as possible as to what lies beneath the surface. A lot of times during construction of buildings, conduits, and other utilities will be placed in the actual concrete or just beneath the concrete. Sometimes as-built drawings of the utilities and their locations are inaccurate due to the shifting of utilities during the actual pour of the concrete slab. Plus,...

Determining the paths of conduits or any other sub-surface obstructions is essential prior to saw cutting concrete floors. By knowing where the utilities are located it can help make the job get completed with a much smoother process. Ground Penetrating Radar & Radio Detection are both excellent tools to perform the task of locating utilities when a trained professional is operating the equipment.

An electrical contractor had a...

Anytime saw cutting is to take place it’s imperative to locate any conduits/pipes that may be embedded or just beneath the concrete slab. By having information as to what is below surface will allow the saw cutters to proceed with confidence that they won’t compromise any existing utilities. Ground Penetrating Radar & Radio Detection when operated by trained professionals helps to promote a safe working environment for all teams...

Prior to core drilling concrete elevated slabs, it’s imperative to have information on what is embedded inside the slab. In many instances during construction of buildings, conduits, and other utilities will be placed in the actual pour of the concrete floor. In some cases, the structural integrity of a building could be compromised if any reinforcing steel is cut. Knowing the pattern of reinforcing steel is extremely important in those...

GPRS of Michigan received a call from a homeowner in regards to a new home construction that she was having built for her son. The home had just had the concrete poured walls done and was waiting to move forward on the project. Unfortunately, the builder failed to have the building inspector come out and inspect the walls before and after they were poured. Since a proper inspection was not completed concerning the reinforcing required,...

GPRS of Michigan was hired to scan multiple floors of an apartment building in Ann Arbor to locate reinforcing in the concrete prior to the contractor coring new holes to run new conduits throughout the existing floors. GPRS was able to successfully locate and mark-out the reinforcing in the concrete and provide depths to those anomalies so the contractor could avoid them in the coring process. GPRS can provide contractors with the...

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems (GPRS) was recently hired by a general contractor to conduct a GPR survey in Waterford, Michigan. Our scope of work was to survey a section of the floor to locate conduits prior to saw cutting. GPRS uses non-destructive testing equipment to locate post-tension cables, rebar, conduits, or other obstructions in concrete. Using GPRS is a safe, cost effective way to make sure you can safety drill or cut through a...

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems mobilized to a project in Detroit, Michigan to search for underground storage tanks and other obstructions/debris. The site was approximately 10 acres in size which use to contain multiple buildings and warehouses before being demolished. It was unknown if any underground storage tanks or other potential hazards were buried on this site. Using GPR, we were able to locate six underground storage tanks on site....

Ground Penetrating Radar Systems, LLC. was contacted by a general contractor to help locate conduits running in or just below the concrete slab in Eastpointe, Michigan. Plans were to saw cut a small trench around the perimeter of a mechanical room inside an elementary school to install a crock and new drainage lines. In order to even attempt at saw cutting the floor, the contractor needed valuable information on the location and depth of each...

Determining any potential environmental liability is incredibly important when looking into purchasing land which was formerly used for manufacturing or industry. Underground storage tanks (UST) which were abandoned in place can be a significant environmental hazard and discovering an unexpected UST can lead to a costly removal and cleanup. A GPR survey can determine whether any underground storage tanks remain in place from former site...

GPRS of Michigan was called out by an out-of-state contractor who was installing a new luggage scanning machine at an airport in Manistee, MI. The contractor was drilling anchor bolts for the new equipment and needed to make sure that he didn’t hit any conduits prior to drilling. GPRS marked out any potential conduits with tape.

GPRS of Michigan has successfully completed numerous projects in cities like Muskegon, Saginaw, Mt. Pleasant,...

Often prior to selling or developing properties, the parties involved need to determine if any underground storage tanks (UST) are still present on the sites of former gas stations. Nobody wants to be stuck with the cost & headache of removing any unknown underground storage tanks with a property they just purchased. Ground Penetrating Radar is an excellent tool to utilize when determining if any UST’s are still present at a...

Anytime there is a need to conduct floor penetrations inside a building, it’s important to have information as to what is embedded in the concrete slab. A contractor doesn’t want to mistakenly drill through conduits or tension cables. The more information that can be provided as to what is embedded in the slab, the better the plan of attack can be.

The pictures you see below are from a local attraction in Orlando, FL. The demolition contractor was removing a curb when they unknowingly broke a main feed line for the sprinkler system. This would normally not have been something difficult to remedy. However, they did not know where the shut-off valve was for the system. With this problem hundreds of gallons of water were wasted and the ground will have to be repaired prior to work...