CROSS BORE PREVENTION AND LOCATING SERVICES

What is Cross Bore Prevention and Why Does It Matter To Me?

  • Diagram showing natural gas pipelines going underground from a house to the street, with a cross bore indicating a conflict between sewer and gas lines.

    Cross Bore Prevention

    Use of robotic cameras that travel down sewer mains and launch an auxiliary camera into the sanitary service lateral coming from a residence or building. The auxiliary camera is equipped with a sonde that transmits a signal that is received above ground by a locator technician. The technician follows the signal to trace the path of the sewer lateral and confirm depth to surface.

    This information is then captured on a diagram and used by directional drilling operators to assist them in horizontally drilling new gas line services. Without this integral step, utility customers and installation crews would be in danger of potential gas leaks or explosions.

  • A construction worker using a handheld metal detector on a sidewalk.

    Providing Accurate Location and Preventing Catastrophic Accidents.

    Gas utility service providers rely on contractors like Taplin to perform locating services. Without this integral step, utility customers and installation crews would be in danger of potential gas leaks or explosions.

  • A portable sewer inspection camera setup with a monitor, keyboard, and camera attached to a long pipe, located on a patch of grass near a street with an orange traffic cone in the background.

    Supporting Gas Utility Efforts to Update Community Gas Mains

    Our company is contracted by local municipalities and utility service providers to conduct this important safety check prior to new gas lines being installed. If you see our trucks and crews in your neighborhood, it’s because either your city/township OR your utility provider has hired us to keep you safe!

  • A person wearing work gloves, gray pants, and brown work boots is using a long tool to loosen or secure a drain pipe outside a yellow house with vinyl siding. The person is kneeling on gravel and holding an orange container.

    Accessing Properties

    Occasionally our work requires us to access homeowner property and sometimes even enter a residence in order to access a lateral sewer line. When that happens, our crews will make contact with necessary homeowners (either in person or via a doorhanger left for the resident to review and schedule for the crew to return), explain the situation and answer any questions they may have about the process. Taplin employees will always be in a marked company vehicle, will be wearing required safety gear and should always have their company photo ID badge displayed. Always ask to see crew member credentials if you’re unsure.

  • Logo for Work That Matters Taplin Environmental Services, featuring a truck and a wrench in black and red text.

    Taplin: A Name You Can Trust

    Family Owned with Nearly 75 Years of Industry Experience. Headquartered in Kalamazoo, MI with offices across the state we are Michigan’s premier environmental services provider and we operate guided by our six core principles: INTEGRITY | SAFETY | CUSTOMER FOCUS | INTENSITY | TRAINING | TEAMWORK

Meet the Team

If you have any questions or concerns about our crews or our work, please fee free to contact the Cross Bore Locator leadership. As a property owner, you may receive communications about the work from them as well.

A man with a full beard and a shaved head wearing a gray collared shirt, looking directly at the camera against a plain light-colored background.


  • Sr. Project Manager | Underground Infrastructure, Cross Bore

    Kyle has been a valued Taplin employee for nearly 15 years and has extensive experience in cross bore prevention and locating services.

    ✉️kylevena@taplingroup.com

    📞313-590-5803

A man wearing a blue hoodie and a yellow safety vest with orange reflective stripes, standing in front of a beige wall.
A man with a shaved head, glasses, and facial hair, smiling, wearing a black t-shirt, standing against a plain light-colored wall.

  • QAQC Technician | Underground Infrastructure, Cross Bore

A worker in a neon safety vest and hard hat operates equipment from a vehicle labeled "Taplin Environmental Services." The setup involves cables and hoses extending into open manholes on a street, with orange traffic cones placed around for safety.
Construction site near a bridge by the water with two white delivery trucks and orange traffic barrels.
Construction worker in a yellow safety vest and helmet working at a street inspection site on concrete pavement, with orange traffic cones nearby.
A robot with six wheels and a cylindrical metal component on top, placed on a textured metal surface in an industrial setting.
A construction worker in a yellow safety vest, kneeling on the grass, hammering a stake into the ground near a row of baseball bats displayed on a wooden rack outdoors in a park.
A white utility van marked 'Taplin' parked on a residential street with orange traffic cones around it. Two workers in safety vests are working on the grass beside the street, and there are trees and houses in the background.
A small hole in the ground with muddy water, broken pieces of red brick, and some debris and grass around the edges.
A plastic PVC pipe installed in a trench for water or sewage piping, with yellow electrical wires alongside and muddy dirt surrounding the trench.
Underground plumbing pipe installation with three white vertical pipes in a trench.