The Manhole

The Manhole
Name	The Manhole
Type	Access cover
Material	Cast iron
Invented	19th century
Country	United Kingdom

The Manhole is an access point used to enter underground utility, drainage, and service networks such as sewerage, stormwater, and telecommunications. It provides entry for workers, equipment, and inspection and connects to systems maintained by agencies and companies across cities in Europe, North America, and Asia. The term has applications in civil engineering projects overseen by agencies like Metropolitan Water Board, United Kingdom, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and Paris Sewer Inspection Service.

Overview

Manholes are vertical openings typically found in urban infrastructure networks managed by authorities including London Fire Brigade, New York City Department of Transportation, City of Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation, Chicago Department of Transportation, and Toronto Water. They are commonly associated with materials sourced from foundries such as Bradford Foundry, Birmingham Metalworks, Bethlehem Steel, U.S. Steel, and Vulcan Ironworks. Standards and regulations from bodies like British Standards Institution, American Society of Civil Engineers, International Organization for Standardization, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and European Committee for Standardization inform dimensions, covers, and load ratings. Historic municipal programs including initiatives by Metropolitan Board of Works, New York Public Works Department, Paris Municipal Works, Tokyo Sewer Authority, and Berlin Wasserbetriebe shaped modern placement and integration with networks such as Thames Water, Consolidated Edison, Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, and Beijing Drainage Group.

Design and Construction

Design factors for manholes reflect engineering practices from firms like Arup Group, AECOM, Jacobs Engineering Group, WSP Global, and Bechtel Corporation. Structural design references include projects and codes from ASCE 7, Eurocode 2, AASHTO, NHBC, and BSI EN 124. Materials include cast iron, ductile iron, concrete, polymer composites supplied by manufacturers such as Saint-Gobain, BASF, 3M Company, Owens Corning, and CRH plc. Construction techniques evolved alongside infrastructure schemes like the Great Stink, London sewer construction, Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, Emscher Valley redevelopment, and Boston Big Dig. Drainage and stormwater conveyance link to historic engineering works by Joseph Bazalgette, John Snow, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Ferdinand de Lesseps, and Gustave Eiffel. Modern sealing, gasket, and frame systems reference suppliers and innovations from Honeywell International, Dow Chemical Company, Dupont, SKF, and Emerson Electric.

Uses and Access

Manholes provide access for inspection, cleaning, repair, and connection for networks run by utilities such as Verizon Communications, AT&T, BT Group, Deutsche Telekom, and China Telecom. They facilitate operations for rehabilitation programs associated with agencies like United States Environmental Protection Agency, Environment Agency (England and Wales), Ministry of the Environment, Japan, and Agence Française pour la Biodiversité. Access is used during campaigns or incidents handled by London Fire Brigade, New York City Fire Department, Tokyo Fire Department, Paris Fire Brigade, and Los Angeles County Fire Department. Equipment from contractors like Fluor Corporation, Kiewit Corporation, Skanska, Tetra Tech, and Veolia is lowered via steps, ladders, or hoists based on standards from National Association of Sewer Service Companies and methods tested in programs by University College London, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Tokyo, École des Ponts ParisTech, and Technical University of Munich.

Safety and Hazards

Hazards associated with manholes are managed under guidance from Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Health and Safety Executive, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, and International Labour Organization. Risks include confined space hazards cited in case studies from National Transportation Safety Board, U.S. Chemical Safety Board, Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, and incident reports involving agencies like New York City Police Department and Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. Control measures reference equipment by MSA Safety Incorporated, Drägerwerk, Scott Safety, 3M Personal Safety Division, and protocols in manuals by NFPA, ISO, ANSI, and IEC. Rescue operations have occurred in responses coordinated by London Ambulance Service, New York City Emergency Medical Services, Tokyo Metropolitan Medical Response Team, Paris SAMU, and Los Angeles County EMS.

Maintenance and Inspection

Routine maintenance connects to asset management systems used by organizations such as Siemens, IBM, Oracle, SAP SE, and Hexagon AB. Inspection methods include CCTV surveys developed with equipment from Rexroth Bosch Group, Olympus Corporation, FLIR Systems, Inuktun Services, and techniques validated by research at Imperial College London, Stanford University, University of California, Berkeley, Tsinghua University, and ETH Zurich. Rehabilitation techniques reference lining systems from BASF, Sika AG, Hexion Inc., BASF Construction Chemicals, and trenchless technologies advanced by NoDig International, Herrenknecht, The Robbins Company, and Michels Corporation. Funding and capital programs are administered by institutions including World Bank, European Investment Bank, Asian Development Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, and national ministries such as U.S. Department of Transportation and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

Cultural and Historical Significance

Manholes have appeared in literature, art, and media tied to creators and works like Charles Dickens, H. G. Wells, James Joyce, J. R. R. Tolkien, Agatha Christie, Franz Kafka, George Orwell, Edgar Allan Poe, Homer, and Dante Alighieri. They feature in films and television produced by studios including Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, Toho, and BBC Television and in novels set in cities such as London, New York City, Paris, Tokyo, and Rome. Visual artists and photographers like Henri Cartier-Bresson, Ansel Adams, Walker Evans, Banksy, and Marcel Duchamp have incorporated urban infrastructure motifs into works exhibited at institutions such as the Tate Modern, Museum of Modern Art, Louvre, National Gallery, and Smithsonian Institution. Historic sewer tours and exhibitions have been organized by Musée des Égouts de Paris, London’s Hidden Tours, New York Transit Museum, Museo delle Acque di Roma, and municipal heritage programs supported by UNESCO, ICOMOS, English Heritage, National Trust (United Kingdom), and Municipal Museums.

Category:Infrastructure