32nd Microtunneling Short Course Held in Arizona

The 2025 Microtunneling Short Course – the 32nd anniversary of the event – was held May 6-8 in Scottdale, Arizona, with more than 150 people in attendance. The venue was Scottsdale Stadium, the spring training home of the San Francisco Giants. It was the fourth year in a row that the course was held at this venue, with the previous courses being held in Colorado.

The course was founded in 1993 by Tim Coss (Microtunneling Inc.), Levent Ozdemir (Ozdemir Associates) and Bernie Krzys (Benjamin Media/Trenchless Technology magazine) as the only event focused on the then-emerging installation technology. It continues to be the largest gathering of professionals dedicated to microtunneling technology, attracting attendees and presenters from four continents.

The course itself covers all aspects of mircotunneling from leading experts in the field, covering planning, design, construction, equipment, case histories and more.

One of the highlights of the course is the presentation of the Microtunneling Achievement Awards during the banquet dinner. This year’s honorees were:

• Ben Clark, Derrick Corp.: Ben Clark serves as the global manager for civil applications at Derrick Corporation. With a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Hamilton College, Ben has over 20 years of experience at Derrick, with the majority dedicated to overseeing the company’s civil construction business unit.
• Don Del Nero, WSP: Don Del Nero is vice president and senior director of tunnel engineering at WSP USA, a leading engineering and professional services consultancy. In his role at WSP, Del Nero integrates his expertise and creativity into tunnel infrastructure of all types, while embracing the firm’s transformational approach to projects and fostering a collaborative and ‘future ready’ working environment. Based in Atlanta, Del Nero has more than 30 years of underground engineering experience, including more than 100 miles of tunneling and trenchless underground project experience. He holds a minor in geology, BS in Civil Engineering, MS in Geotechnical Engineering.
• Tim Pearia, Frank V Coluccio Construction Co.: Tim Pearia is a project manager/superintendent/engineer with Frank V Coluccio Construction Company. He has more than 50 years of experience in the construction industry, including tunnels and microtunnels for sewer, water, and electrical; railroad rehabilitation projects, water tunnel rehabilitation projects, and open cut utility projects. He has managed multiple concurrent multi-million dollar projects tunneling, microtunneling, jet grouting, drilling and blasting, core drilling, and geotechnical testing.
• Tom Rosenberg Roetzel: Thomas Rosenberg focuses his practice on construction law and leads Roetzel’s Construction Law practice, which has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the best law firms nationally and regionally for construction and construction litigation from 2012 to 2025. Tom is a Fellow in the American College of Construction Lawyers and served on its Board of Governors. He is a past Chair of the American Bar Association, Forum on Construction Law. He has served as Counsel for the North American Microtunneling Association since its founding in 2012.

In addition to the banquet dinner, held at the Museum of the West in Scottsdale, networking events included a pre-event Rooftop Reception at the Canopy Hilton in Old Town, and a welcoming reception overlooking the baseball field on May 6. Lunches and coffee breaks provided ample networking opportunities.

Main event sponsors were Northwest Pipe Company, Trinity Products, Tunnel Service Group and United Underground Precast. Other sponsors were: AECOM, Akkerman, Bradshaw Construction, BT, Delve Underground, Derrick, Down2Earth, Herrenknecht, Hobas, Huxted Trenchless, Jackcontrol, Kilduff Underground Engineering, Michels, Northeast Remsco, Option X/Adapt X, Stiver Engineering, Super Excavators, Thompson Pipe Group, Uretek and VMT.

The same group will host the 18th Tunneling Short Course Sept. 9-11, 2025, at the University of Denver in Colorado. The event will be held in conjunction with the one-day Risk Management in Underground Construction course on Sept. 8. For information visit tsc.tunnelingonline.com.