Pine Bluff Natural Gas Line
AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
LOCATION: Pine Bluff, Arkansas
SIZE: $3,320,475
PRIME CONTRACTOR: AACON General Contractors
AWARD DATE: September 2021
COMPLETED: May 2023
The U.S. Army Contracting Command–Rock Island awarded AACON General Contractors a Firm-Fixed-Price contract for the replacement and modernization of the natural gas lateral distribution system at Pine Bluff Arsenal (PBA) in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. The project objective was to bring the system into compliance with DOT, ASME, and UFC standards while ensuring uninterrupted operations across more than 60 active buildings throughout the military installation.
Site Preparation: AACON began by mobilizing crews and equipment to designated laydown and staging areas across the installation, ensuring minimal interference with active base operations. Open trenching, sloping, and shoring activities were carefully sequenced to maintain safety and accessibility. Excavation routes were coordinated with PBA engineering staff to avoid conflicts with existing utilities and minimize surface disturbance. Directional boring was performed under roadways and paved areas to maintain traffic flow and protect existing infrastructure. Environmental and stormwater protection measures were implemented throughout construction to maintain compliance with Unified Facilities Guide Specifications (UFGS) and federal stormwater permitting requirements.
Work Features: AACON replaced aging underground lateral distribution lines with new High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) piping designed to meet DOT, ASME, and UFC performance standards. The work included installation of warning tape and sand backfill per UFGS 33 11 23, replacement of legacy analog meters with government-standard smart meters, and phased tie-ins to main gas headers and building-level meters to prevent service interruptions. AACON coordinated daily with PBA DPW staff to sequence system shutdowns and restarts, ensuring continuous gas availability to mission-critical facilities.
Upon completion of all tie-ins, AACON provided AutoCAD as-built drawings, performed final site grading, and restored all disturbed areas with fescue reseeding. During demobilization, AACON and PBA personnel identified a previously unmapped natural gas line servicing several warehouse buildings that was not receiving gas flow. Working collaboratively with the Army Contracting Command, AACON developed and executed a Time & Materials change order to locate, trench, and tie the unknown line into the new system. This rapid, solutions-oriented approach prevented a prolonged outage and eliminated the need for costly remobilization.
Despite the complexities of unknown utilities and the operational constraints of a secure military environment, AACON delivered the base contract ahead of schedule and without safety incidents. The modified work was executed seamlessly and with minimal impact to the overall timeline—achieving full system functionality and operational continuity across the installation. AACON’s coordination with multiple stakeholders and technical responsiveness ensured complete restoration of gas service with only a five-day time extension, reinforcing the company’s reliability and capability in delivering critical infrastructure projects within active federal facilities.
