Surveys and Inspections 

Non-Winter Distribution Main Leak Surveys:

• Main Surveys are performed from mid-March to April comprising half of the company’s distribution mains. The following year, the other half of the distribution system is surveyed. This is a Massachusetts regulatory requirement that is more robust than the 3-year federal requirement cycle.
  
  
• Walking Surveys are performed yearly, from April to December. Walking surveys check each service line from the main in the street to the outlet side of the gas meter. These surveys are completed over a 3-year period with one-third of the surveys completed each year.
  
  
• Business District Surveys are performed annually between the months of September to December of our cast iron distribution system. These surveys test all available openings in gas, electric, telephone, water and sewer manholes. Additional surveys during this period include service inspections of schools, hospitals, churches, and theatres.
  
  

Winter Surveys: 

• Frost Patrol Surveys: From January to late March each year there are Frost Patrol Surveys of our entire cast iron and wrought iron systems which takes two technicians 5-7 work days to complete in the City of Fall River and one tech 2 work days to complete in our North Attleboro area. 
  
  
• Downtown Patrol Surveys: During this time we conduct a Downtown Patrol of our cast-iron mains which checks all mains Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays each week in Fall River and North Attleboro. 

NOTE: If your gas meter is located inside, it is important that we get inside your building to conduct the inspection. 

Because our natural gas distribution system in Blackstone, South Bellingham and Wrentham is updated with modern material, those service areas are not part of our winter surveys.  

Regulator Stations Inspections:

The Company has regulator stations throughout our system that control the pressure in our gas distribution system. On a yearly basis, at minimum, our gas technicians inspect all of our regulator stations. Each regulator station has two regulators in it; a Worker and a Monitor. The Worker regulates pressure and the Monitor acts as a fully functioning backup if the Worker ever failed. Both units are tested to ensure that they are functioning properly.