Q2 2022: Concrete Grade Rings Deteriorating And Increasing In Price

The second quarter of 2022 brought with it some interesting, industry changes, and some unique customer inflow and infiltration situations that we helped to solve.

Concrete Grade Ring Pricing Is On The Rise

Based on our own findings, and comments from others in the industry, the price of concrete grade rings is on the rise. This poses a challenge for public works departments and municipalities who are likely already facing budget and workforce challenges.

Couple the increase in pricing for concrete grade rings with ongoing supply chain issues, and the propensity for concrete rings to break, and you’ve got a situation that makes you want to shy away from tackling inflow and infiltration issues. Which is not the route to go.

For those departments that are facing these challenges head on, we recommend the PRO-RING. The PRO-RING is made of Expanded Polypropylene (EPP), which means that it will not break, is lightweight and won’t cause worker injury. In addition, our warehouse is stocked – in other words, no supply chain issues here.

Square Catch Basin & Round Manhole Casting

A public works department was facing major infiltration issues because a brick chimney had deteriorated due to excess infiltration between the square catch basin and the round manhole casting. While this is a unique issue, it is not an insurmountable issue…if you use the right product, specifically a square grade ring, and a set of round PRO-RINGs.

Thinking creatively about the square/round situation enabled us to provide the public works department with a solution that not only stopped their infiltration issues, but also eliminated the need for a complicated brick installation.

Salt And Chemicals Causing Infiltration Issues

A common theme that we heard from new customers in Q2, was that the winter months caused major damage to the concrete and mortar rings that they were using. In truth, it wasn’t the weather that cause the damage, it was the salt and other road chemicals used to clear the snow and ice. These chemicals caused the concrete rings to deteriorate or corrode, which in turn caused their inflow and infiltration issues.