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How U.S. Submergent Technologies Runs: An Interview with Operations Manager Aaron Hood

November 20, 2019
Wastewater Visibility News

U.S. Submergent Technologies (USST) is well-known for taking on difficult — and often dirty — jobs, while making sure their clients’ production systems stay online. USST keeps entire wastewater systems up and running while cleaning system-clogging debris from lift stations, wet wells, tanks, and other structures. For other projects, USST restores important pipe infrastructure to its full capacity, while the system is still in operation. We spoke with USST Operations Manager Aaron Hood to learn a little bit more about how the GritGone Process® using the Combination3® Technology removes hard-to-reach material from wet environments better than anyone else. Aaron, how long have you been with USST? I joined USST in 2014, and I’ve been with the company from the very beginning, helping the team learn and refine our GritGone Process® as well as operations for the Combination3® Truck. When I joined, we had one crew and we had the very first prototype truck. I came on to work as a foreman, which I was able to do once we got more equipment. What did you do before you ran a crew for Submergent? I grew up on a family farm in Fort Pierce, Florida — we grew and harvested oranges and grapefruit — so I knew a lot about how to run machinery, which is really the crux of this business. I also briefly worked on power lines before this. How is USST’s operation different from others?Well, it smells a lot different, I can tell you that! This kind of work required learning the tricks to removing debris from submerged areas. Everyone else has a vacuum and a jetter. We have those but also a downhole pump on the Combination3® Truck. I can take this truck to any job and get the job done. There’s no one else doing this in wet environments. Sometimes I go to meetings with the sales team and explain how we can reach places that others can’t. I explain that we use our downhole pump to release water and remove the solids. Some people are hard to convince. I’ve been on jobs where people want to watch the first few boxes get emptied — it’s something that people haven’t seen before. What do you love about your job? What is rewarding about it?I like the challenge of doing work that hasn’t been done. I love getting something done with ease that other contractors haven’t been
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