With new technologies making pipe inspection and maintenance quicker and easier, SECA is continuing to expand its offering for a growing market.
It has been a strong year of growth for Sewer Equipment Company Australia (SECA) – Australia’s leading equipment supplier for the cleaning, testing, inspection and rehabilitation of pipes, sewers and drains.
With a move of its Brisbane office to the Gold Coast and an addition of a further two full-time technicians, SECA is continuing to expand its presence in Australia and forge a path to make sewer and pipe maintenance faster and safer than ever.
At the heart of this approach is WinCan, the CCTV pipe inspection software that SECA has been selling and supporting since 1999. WinCan helps asset owners and contractors collect, manage and analyse data about a pipe network.
Now with WinCan WebFlex, data hosting, project creation, generating and exporting reports and a host of other functions are available via a browser, with team members being able to log in and access what they need from the office or remotely on mobile devices – ensuring staff in the field have the relevant data at their fingertips.
WinCan can display inspection data on a GIS map, allowing assets and observations to be easily selected.
The newest development from WinCan is WinCan Enterprise. This is the ultimate cloud-based solution for digitising and managing sewer inspection and maintenance processes. It connects all stakeholders – including service providers, municipalities, engineers, and rehabilitation firms – ensuring seamless data flow and efficient collaboration. With WinCan Enterprise, every step of the workflow is integrated: from work order creation and sewer cleaning to pre- and post-rehabilitation inspections and long-term maintenance planning.
By eliminating data loss and manual data exchange, WinCan Enterprise simplifies workflows and keeps all essential information centrally accessible.
“There are now five government agencies managing work processes, workflows and data through WinCan Enterprise,” SECA Managing Director Mark Quealy said.
“This provides project management consistency across different projects and greater visibility and control of data from and to contractors via the Cloud. GIS integration ensures faster and more accurate data collection.”
“The demand for our easy-to-use WinCan embedded HD inspection systems from contractors, local governments and water authorities has exceeded our expectations.
“There is a real need for equipment to not only do the job, but is easy to use. Users are looking for simple workflows that allow data to be shared via Cloud, which is why we are seeing rapid adoption of WinCan as it’s a gamechanger in this field.”
An exciting development in the area of pipe inspections is the use of AI, with WinCan WebFlex using this technology to scan CCTV footage captured by an operator and identify defects – speeding up the process of locating issues.
“We have a number of customers already utilising WinCan’s AI tool to help them get consistent survey results, improve efficiencies and get a quick assessment of a pipe,” Quealy said.
“AI is a major focus area moving forward, as we remain true to our values of innovation leadership.”
Cutter prototype
At the trenchless exhibition No-Dig Down Under, which took place in Melbourne in September, SECA took the opportunity to showcase a prototype of an electric cutter being developed by iPEK.
The cutter is an attachment for pipeline inspection crawler systems and is expected to be released next year.
“The cutter connects to our existing Rovion tractor system without the need for any additional cables or hoses, expanding the system’s already extensive capabilities,” Quealy said.
“Most cutter systems on the market today are a stand-alone product, which are costly and take up a lot of real estate – they often come in its own truck and with a separate operator. Therefore, having the same operating system and controls as the camera system it will make for easier training and staff onboarding.
“By switching the head from a camera to a cutter without any additional cable reels, hoses or control units will save many Rovion customers, time, money and flexibility on jobs.”
Quealy explains that the cutter is by no means a replacement for a full dedicated cutting system, but will be ideal for handling those smaller jobs where calling a full cutter truck to site is not cost effective.
“We are looking forward to extensively testing this product soon in Australia, in Australian conditions and pipes prior to releasing it for the Australian market,” he added.
Rise of trenchless methods
With SECA positioning itself at the forefront of a growing market in trenchless technologies and methods, Quealy said that with continuously expanding water and wastewater infrastructure needing to be managed, having access to less invasive and costly services that can extend asset life is vital.
“Defects, infiltration and water ingress in pipes is a major issue which asset owner are constantly trying to manage, and rehabilitation is the main method for solving these issues rather than outright replacement,” Quealy said.
“Depending on the application this could be via a Trelleborg patch liner system, Quicklock mechanical seals that camera operators drive into place with the inspection crawler or completely relining the pipe.
“There is also growth in the number of inspections of new assets and pipelines in new developments, with requirements to patch these before the system is in use.
“Overall, there are significant environmental benefits from trenchless technologies, with reduced waste, less disruption and sustainability gains from data-driven rehabilitation.”
For more information, visit seca.com.au