Pioneering Trenchless Engineering

Ed Douziech discusses the rapid evolution of HDD industry

Ed Douziech is a pioneer in trenchless engineering, having seen the industry evolve over three decades from directional drilling to a full suite offering that covers engineering design right through to final approvals. Trenchless engineering has experienced significant growth in the construction sector since Ed was the lead on the first Canadian HDD crossing in the late 1980s, driven by technological advancements and increased demand for efficient, cost-effective, and minimally invasive methods for installing and repairing underground infrastructure.

“In the early days there was no engineering framework for this work, there was just the actual directional driller – which was me – and we would do the design as the rig was setting up behind me,” Ed explains. “There was no front-end support back then for this kind of work. I think it's safe to say, I was one of the earliest directional drillers in Canada.”

Over the past 35 years, Ed has worked on projects around the world as a driller and then as an executive leading companies in trenchless engineering across multiple disciplines, including environmental, geotechnical operations, as well as large-scale trenchless projects, pipeline construction, reclamation/remediation, and municipal and integrity trenchless work. With more than 14,000 successful trenchless designs in North America, Asia, and Europe, Ed has received multiple awards for technical achievement and success.

14,000 successful trenchless designs

Today, Ed is proud to lead Lauren’s fully integrated trenchless engineering team along with his skilled colleague, Trevor Miles. With more than 12 years of experience in pipeline and construction engineering, Trevor’s primary specialty is the design of Major Trenchless and Minor Trenchless pipeline crossings. He is responsible for developing and/or coordinating the development of major and minor trenchless crossing designs including calculations, major trenchless (HDD, DPI) design profiles, minor trenchless (GHAB, HDB, etc.) design profiles, buoyancy control calculations, trenchless profile stress calculations, pullback force calculations.

“I’ve been fortunate in my career to provide trenchless engineering and design capabilities to some of the largest and most dynamic projects in the country, including Trans Mountain Expansion Project, ATCO’s Inland Loop, Inter Pipeline’s CLX4, and FortisBC’s EGP Woodfibre Project,” says Trevor.

For Ed, ‘integrated’ is the key word, and what ultimately attracted him to Lauren. By fully integrating the trenchless discipline within Lauren’s project delivery teams, “we are able to deliver significant cost and scheduling efficiencies, and our clients get increased accountability and reduced stress with one point of contact,” he says. “Lauren has an excellent reputation for delivery, and they’re built for this type of capability. We can customize solutions to fit every type of project, big or small, and then execute on time and on budget.” 

Lauren’s trenchless engineering specialties include Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD), Direct Pipe Installation (DPI), Micro Tunneling (MT), and all Horizontal Auger Boring (HAB) methodologies. There is fascinating work being done within each of the specialties. For example, Micro Tunnelling (anything below 60 inches) may not get the same public visibility as large tunnelling (for roads or rail through mountains, for example) but it is responsible for some amazing feats in complex urban settings. 

“Micro tunneling solves a lot of problems in certain geotechnical settings. I did the largest micro tunneling project for EPCOR in downtown Calgary, to install the high voltage lines between several substations. There was no disturbance to the streets or the LRT lines,” Ed says. “Nobody even knew we were there.”

Direct pipe installation (DPI) is a modification of HDD to install steel casing as it's progressing through the design. “And that steel casing is used as a conduit for everything else. Again, it's a solution to difficult conditions.

‘One contract, one contact’

Fletcher Evans, Lauren vice-president of project execution, says clients are realizing important benefits from integrated trenchless services at Lauren, or what he calls ‘one contract, one contact’.

“With our integrated project team approach and proven industry experience, clients get everything they need under one roof and with the reduced stress of one contract. One project manager is accountable from start to finish, with clear oversight of the entire team. Clients have one project manager, one cost controller, and one project engineer, all working as one team to set the project up for success.”

While Ed has witnessed huge evolutions in trenchless technology, it’s still the people behind the project who make the difference. He feels it is an important part of his job to train and educate the next generation of engineers on both sides of the project.   

“Both at the firm and on client side, education is vital so that we have a shared understanding of the amazing capabilities we have at hand. And as fast as technology changes, trust is still the key to a successful project.”

Visit Lauren’s trenchless engineering services here for more information on how we can make your next project a success – and stress-free.