Corrugated Steel Pipe in Vertical Construction Applications

History

Long before the creation of the industrial bread slicer, Corrugated Steel Pipe was invented in the United States.  Corrugated Steel Pipe was first used for hydraulic cross culverts in the early 1900s.   Since the first culvert application, Corrugated Steel Pipe has been used in many different construction applications. 

Efficiently Engineered for Vertical Applications

Corrugated Steel Pipe is fabricated with a sinusoidal corrugation to provide an increase in the strength of the steel conduit.  Thinner gage steel that is corrugated provides an equivalent pipe stiffness compared to thicker smooth wall steel pipe.  This efficiency of raw materials provides a large cost savings to the end user. Standard pipe corrugation is ½” depth.  Deeper corrugation depths of 1”, 2” and 5.5” have been made to allow for a larger range of pipe diameters, increasing the construction applications for vertical pipe.    

Construction Applications for Vertical Pipes

Vertical applications of Corrugated Steel Pipe include caissons for utility poles in electric transmission lines, bridge and building piers, wind tower foundations, crane enclosures, utility sewer shafts, petroleum cellars (pits), and general concrete forms.

Above left: 144” diameter HEL-COR® 5 x 1 Corrugated Steel Pipe used as a crane tower enclosure during the construction of a parking garage in an urban area.	Above right:  132” diameter HEL-COR® 5 x 1 Corrugated Steel Pipe used for a sewer shaft during pipe tunneling of a new sewer line in an urban area.