Corrosion Engineering Services

Piping Failure Investigations

A piping failure investigation examines why a pipe leaked, perforated, ruptured, or lost wall thickness and what the available evidence supports doing next.

Service overview

What this service involves

Piping failures rarely have one useful data point. Calicore reviews the failure location, pipe material, age, service environment, coatings, soil exposure, operating history, and the physical character of the damage.

The investigation can combine site observations, soil corrosivity testing, thickness or condition data supplied by the project team, sample coordination, and engineering interpretation. Conclusions distinguish supported findings from possibilities that require further testing.

Step by step

How the process works

The exact scope is matched to the project, but a typical assignment follows these steps.

  1. 01

    Preserve the evidence

    When practical, the failed section, deposits, coatings, adjacent soil, photographs, orientation, and repair observations are preserved before cleaning or disposal.

  2. 02

    Reconstruct the event

    We document the failure location, flow direction, operating conditions, repair activity, and timeline.

  3. 03

    Test credible causes

    Pipe material, pressure, water or process conditions, coating, soil, maintenance records, and targeted samples are compared with the damage pattern.

  4. 04

    Explain the findings

    The report distinguishes supported contributing mechanisms from possibilities that need additional evidence.

Review criteria

What the owner needs from a piping failure report

The record must separate the physical evidence from interpretation and show how the failure sample and site conditions were handled.

What you receive

Typical project deliverables

  • Failure-site documentation
  • Evidence and operating-history review
  • Soil or deposit sampling and testing coordination
  • Cause assessment and repair or monitoring recommendations

Common project needs

When this service is useful

  • Water and wastewater pipelines
  • Buried metallic piping
  • Recurring leaks or localized perforation
  • Owner, contractor, or claims investigations

Frequently asked

Piping Failure Investigations questions

Can you investigate both internal and external corrosion?+

Yes. The scope can consider internal service conditions and external soil, coating, moisture, and electrical exposure, subject to the evidence available.

Do you provide destructive laboratory metallurgy?+

Calicore can document and coordinate sample testing with an appropriate specialty laboratory when metallography or advanced materials analysis is needed.

Request a proposal

What to send us to begin

Send a short description of the work, any plans, specifications, or photographs you have, and tell us what you need the service to provide. Include a project location if it applies.

Request a proposal