SUMSF Panel Discusses a Canadian Subsurface Digital Twin and the Canadian Underground Infrastructure Register Project
An informative discussion recently took place in hopes to reduce the billion-dollar infrastructure damage occurring in Canada every year during excavations.
Steve Slusarenko, CEO of Westmount Emprise Inc.
During the March 22, 2022 SUMSF live stream panel presentation on developing a subsurface digital twin for Canada, the topic of the Canadian Underground Infrastructure Register project was also discussed. Steve Slusarenko, CEO of Westmount Emprise Inc. (WEI) moderated the panel discussion. The panelists included Lawrence Arcand, 4 Sight Utility Engineers President, Wilson Phillips, Underground Infrastructure Lead at Professional Surveyors Canada, and Geoff Zeiss, Between the Poles Principal.
Wilson Phillips, Underground Infrastructure Lead at Professional Surveyors Canada.
Phillips discussed how registries work and how beneficial one would be for this topic. He spoke about the amount of investigating, and figuring out what systems would, and make things better, both in Canada and beyond. He is currently working on long-term registry models to see what will work in this situation.
Arcand says the topic of the Register and having a digital twin for Canada has been a topic of discussion for a long time. Many people he has talked to wonder why there isn’t a map of underground utilities already.
Geoff Zeiss, Advisor at Minnesota Underground Utility Mapping Project and Between the Poles Principal.
Zeiss spoke on the differences and challenges between jurisdictions, mandates, regulations, and voluntary systems regarding underground utilities. He says there are many ways to deal with these situations and share the needed data.
Lawrence Arcand, President at 4Sight Utility Engineers
Arcand says the benefits of the project for stakeholders are endless. He discussed the obvious need for accurate information at all the different stages of construction, and how the information can be used. He says the better the data, the better off everyone will be in the future. Phillips says the project is beneficial to stakeholders and others because of the importance of getting updated data at all times.
The Canadian Underground Infrastructure Register project aims to improve damage prevention by providing accurate and current information.
Right now, the initiative aims to reduce underground utility damage. In the future, the aim is to develop a subsurface digital twin for Canada.
You can watch the information packed presentation on YouTube below.
