Ground Penetrating Radar Systems - GPRS - of Greensboro/ Winston Salem area North Carolina was contacted by a general contractor to locate all reinforcement, beams, and conduits within an elevated concrete slab in order to core drill for electrical boxes for tables and desks within a building in Downtown Winston Salem. The general contractor needed to avoid all reinforcement, as requested by the project engineer. They also wanted to avoid all conduits to ensure safe drilling. Ground penetrating radar (GPR) was used to scan larger areas so that the contractor would have options on hole placement. Also, our findings are marked in real time so that the contractor could work directly with GPRS to solve problems and move the cores to clear locations. GPR found the slab to be approximately 5” thick waffle slab with old walker duct for conduits in the slab. When scanning, we were able to mark out the reinforcement; , we found reinforcement in both directions between 2.5’-3” deep. We also found and marked out the beams or ribs in both directions for the client to avoid. GPRS was able to scan and mark the 3’ x 3’ area fairly quickly so the client could move forward with their floor boxes. This was all done in a safe, time efficient, non-destructive way. The radar emits radiation less than 1% of that found to be emitted by standard cell phones. This means practically no hazardous radiation to operators or persons above or below the work zone.

The above photo of the GPR findings near a proposed core drilling location following the Subsurface Investigative Methodology process for the scans. GPRS prides itself in the ability to keep the clients and sites safe by using ground penetrating radar. The goal when marking out an area like this is to make the markings legible and easy to understand;, the above example shows the markings you would expect from GPRS. GPRS offers other services, such as locating underground utilities before drilling soil borings, digging, or excavating, as well as locating underground storage tanks or tank “graves”. If you need anything scanned in the Piedmont Triangle or within North Carolina, give us a call and we will have a SIM certified Project manager on your site as soon as possible. In the North Carolina/South Carolina area GPRS is usually able to get a project manager out to your site to complete the necessary GPR scans within 24-48 hours.

If you have any questions on how we can bring value to your project, please reach out to your local Ground Penetrating Radar Systems, LLC office at midatlanticinfo@gprsinc.com of call us at 919.671.9476. We look forward to serving you on your project.

GPRS does not provide geophysical, geological, land surveying or engineering services. If you need such services, please contact an appropriate professional.