Underground Construction - January 2018 - 6

NEWSLINE LATEST INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS
Proposed Standard Aims To Reduce Plastic
Pipe Production Contamination, Costs
A standard proposed by ASTM
International's plastic piping
systems committee aims to
use best practices to prevent contamination in manufacturing polyethylene pipe and fittings. Manufacturers could use the WK56697 standard to
prevent contamination from virgin resin, reprocessed pipe (rework) and
other sources during production. Supporting the responsible use of rework
and other materials provides an additional benefit of limiting waste and
reducing costs.
"With this standard, the manufacturer would control the process to
prevent contamination from all sources," said Eugene Palermo, president
of Palermo Plastics Pipe Consulting and ASTM member. "Once the standard
is completed, it can be brought forward to organizations such as NSF International for guidelines in plant audits. It can also be brought to regulatory
bodies that may control the amount of rework in PE pipe."
Pipe buyers and users could also find the standard helpful due to the
planned inclusion of a checklist for a plant audit.
Committed to serving global societal needs, ASTM International positively impacts public health and safety, consumer confidence, and overall
quality of life by integrating consensus standards - developed with its
international membership of volunteer technical experts - and innovative
services to improve lives.

Florida DEP Invests $90 Million In Water
Quality Improvement Projects
Florida Department of Environmental Protection has provided more than
$90 million toward the recent completion of seven water quality improvement projects in Central and South Florida. The funding was awarded
through the Division of Water Restoration Assistance's various funding
resources and programs.
Completed projects were in Apoka, Gasparilla Island, Largo, Martin and
St. Lucis counties, Sebring and Stuart, FL.
"We are pleased to partner with water management districts, cities and
local municipalities to fund infrastructure needs," said Drew Bartlett, DEP
deputy secretary for ecosystems restoration. "Projects ranging from septic
to sewer conversions, and aging pipe replacement to shoreline stabilization and nutrient reduction are vital to helping Florida's springs, rivers and
waterways meet water quality goals."

ucononline.com

Xylem Acquires Pure Technologies
Xylem Inc., a leading
global water technology company,
has entered into a
definitive agreement
to acquire all
the issued and
outstanding
shares of Pure
Technologies Ltd. for CAD$9.00 per share in cash, representing an
enterprise value of USD$397 million.
Pure Technologies provides unique diagnostic and analytics
solutions and services, based on proprietary technologies, to
address key water and wastewater infrastructure challenges. It is a
leader in intelligent leak detection and condition assessment for
water distribution networks, a rapidly growing market driven by the
increasing adoption of digital solutions to improve utilities' capital
and operating efficiency.
"The addition of Pure will strengthen Xylem's position as a leading provider of intelligent solutions that address the water industry's
most persistent problems," said Patrick Decker, Xylem president and
CEO. "Aging infrastructure is a top concern of water utilities around
the world, and infrastructure assessment is an attractive, growing
market that directly addresses this challenge in a cost-effective way.
"Pure's solutions strongly complement the broader Xylem
portfolio ... creating a unique and disruptive platform of diagnostic,
analytics and optimization solutions for clean and wastewater
networks," he added.
The partnership actually began earlier, through the companies'
July 2017 exclusive commercial agreement for Xylem to represent
Pure's products and services in parts of the Middle East, India and
Southeast Asia.
Pure reported consolidated revenue of CAD$126 million and
CAD$21 million in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for the 12 months ending Sept.
30, 2017. Xylem expects to achieve at least $12 million in annual
cost synergies within two years of closing, including elimination of
redundant public company costs, and procurement and footprint
consolidation opportunities. Expected revenue synergies include
accelerated international growth and cross-selling of complementary customer solutions.
Xylem will finance the transaction with cash and low-interest,
short-term debt. The transaction is subject to various customary
closing conditions, including receipt of Canadian Court, Pure shareholders' and regulatory approval under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act
(United States). It is expected to close in the first quarter of 2018.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Xylem Inc., (914) 323-5700, xylem.com
Underground Construction January 2018

http://www.xylem.com http://www.ucononline.com

Underground Construction - January 2018

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