Our clients come to us for information they need to complete their projects, whether it be to bolt a piece of furniture into the floor, or to saw cut a trench to run an electric duct bank. In order to give them the most accurate information possible, keeping up with the latest technology is paramount. There are constant advances in GPR technology, acoustic imaging, and electromagnetic utility designation. Different manufacturers make these advancements at different times. In order to stay up to date, you have to be willing to invest in various tech from multiple manufacturers. At Trinity, we believe we have found that sweet spot between Screening Eagle’s Proceq and GSSI’s StructureScan.
As with everything, there are advantages and disadvantages to every piece of technology. GSSI’s StructureScan Mini operates at a frequency of 2700 MHz, while Proceq’s GP8000 operates at a range from 200 - 4000 MHz. The type of slab or wall we are scanning may dictate which scanner we dispatch our technicians to a site with. Additionally, we decide on which piece of equipment to use depending on what our clients are looking for; the type of information they need, the type of deliverable they are looking for, whether or not we are scanning from a lift, etc.
If we are scanning a wall from a lift that is 10 ft. in the air, we will use GSSI’s StructureScan Mini, as it is a scanner with a built-in screen, so our technician can scan with one hand and mark findings with the other hand. Proceq’s GP8000, GP8800, and GP8100 units have to be used with an iPad, which have the potential to make scanning cumbersome in certain situations. Screening Eagle has developed an iPad mount that could help with more awkward scans, and are likely to improve it for easier scanning in these situations.
We may have a client who needs the information yielded from a scan to be put into a formal report for engineering purposes. In this case, we will utilize Proceq’s scanners to take advantage of Screening Eagle’s Inspect software. The data collected from Proceq antennas can be seamlessly transferred into their reporting software, which generates a final engineering-grade report complete with scan data, visuals, and measurements.
As far as technology, we believe that Screening Eagle and GSSI are the leaders in the field of GPR scanning. When it comes to different pieces of equipment, there are pros and cons to everything. Trinity Subsurface, LLC is committed to staying current with the technology we use to give our clients the information they need to complete their projects safely, efficiently, and accurately. No matter what type of information they need, deliverable needed, or field conditions, we want to always be able to come up with solutions to reduce the lead time needed for data collection.
