About
About Pacific Sewer
Effective, Proven Solutions for Municipalities and Contractors
Since 1979, Pacific Sewer’s chemical root control has provided solutions for municipalities along the West Coast and across America. We are the nation’s oldest provider of chemical root control services, and are the only U.S. contractor that offers an ultra-high pressure precision jet cutting system to municipalities and general contractors. We offer services including:
- Chemical root control
- Root Removal
- Pipeline inspections
- Removal of Concrete
- Root Prevention
- Hydro Demolition
- Robotic Precision Jet Cutting
- Sewer Line Root Control
- Removal of Grout and Tuberculation
YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
million
FEET OF ROOT CONTROL
+
HAPPY CUSTOMERS
Our History
Since its founding, Pacific Sewer Maintenance has always been a family-operated business that brings unique solutions to a traditional industry. But the company’s story begins with an industry-changing innovation.
In 1967, Fred Horne developed the world’s first chemical sewer line root control product. Collaborating with the University of California Davis on a two-year testing and research study, they analyzed every suitable herbicide product available at the time to determine the most effective solution for sewer line roots. The formulation of metam-sodium and dichlobenyl that was developed continues to be the choice by Pacific Sewer today.
The product, machinery, and processes developed during those tests triggered the creation of a brand new industry: chemical sewer root control. Horne’s son-in-law, Richard Gayman, watched this progress and formed Pacific Sewer Maintenance in 1979, becoming the first Southern California contractor to utilize a hydro-jet for large sewer line cleaning, the second contractor to provide CCTV sewer inspection, and the only contractor at the time to provide chemical sewer line root control. In 2003, Richard’s son Scott Gayman became CEO of Pacific Sewer, continuing the family tradition of innovation by launching new services and technology to move the company and industry forward.
Now Pacific Sewer remains at the cutting edge of the industry, using geographic information systems to provide real-time reporting from the field, empowering crews with up-to-the-minute reports, and eliminating the need for costly and bulky sewer map books in the field.
In 2017 Pacific Sewer began providing innovative, robotic high-pressure services to clear pipeline obstructions.
Scott Gayman, President and CEO
Having worked in the family business since he was 15 years old, Scott is a third-generation leader in the industry.
His grandfather, Fred Horne, developed chemical sewer root control with the help of the University of California Davis in the 1970s. His parents, Richard and Mary Gayman, incorporated PSM in 1979 and began building long-lasting relationships with municipalities and contractors along the West Coast and beyond.
For nearly 40 years, Scott has been involved in every facet of PSM, working his way from field assistant to running field operations for multi-year contracts, including a four-year project in Egypt for the United States Agency for International Development. In 2003, he was appointed CEO of PSM, and now co-owns the business with Victoria Volmer. He is the company’s project and personnel manager, overseeing repairs, maintenance, ordering, custom equipment design, specialized machining and collaborating with his accomplished team of experts.
Scott’s hands-on approach to project management and leadership create a lead-by-example environment, and he prides himself on never asking a team member to perform a task he can’t or won’t perform himself. He also serves as head of operations, driving PSM’s business development, contract submission and development, strategic planning and marketing vision.
A believer in constant progress and educating others, Scott is a frequent speaker and participant in industry trade shows and conferences, and facilitates ongoing training for his team. He is an alumni of the highly sought after Goldman Sachs 10K Small Businesses Program, an intensive multi-week program designed in partnership with Babson College, the nation’s top-ranked school for entrepreneurship.
Victoria Volmer, CFO
As Co-Owner, Office Manager, Vice President, and Corporate Secretary of Pacific Sewer, Victoria plays a key role in managing daily business functions, ensuring seamless operations across multiple departments, and maintaining strong relationships with employees and clients. Victoria oversees critical administrative functions, including data management, billing, accounts payable and receivable, compliance with city, state, and federal regulations, as well as managing insurance and licenses. She also handles payroll, bookkeeping, and human resources tasks, ensuring that the company stays aligned with industry standards and legal requirements. A dedicated liaison to both employees and the Local Apprenticeship Union, she ensures that all apprenticeship programs and employee requirements are met.
Victoria takes pride in fostering a company culture rooted in fairness, integrity, and mutual respect, and always maintains an open-door policy to support both employees and leadership alike. She believes that the company’s success is directly tied to the collective efforts of its employees, and is committed to ensuring the workplace be a consistently supportive and thriving environment.
Pacific Sewer Robotics
In addition to our industry-leading chemical root control treatment, Pacific Sewer provides innovative, robotic high-pressure services to clear pipeline obstructions. With targeted, high-pressure water, this service breaks down obstructions — from large root masses and grout to tuberculation and concrete — from a pipeline or confined space.
PSM was one of the first to offer robotic high-pressure obstruction removal in the United States after the technology had already been utilized in Europe for well over a decade.
The system uses water pressurized up to 15,000 PSI in pipes ranging from 6 to 42 inches. The high-pressure water can break up the hardest concrete without ever using a grinding tool, and allows work on sewer lines without digging or causing major disruptions. The technology has allowed us to service pipes under active airfield runways in Missouri, subway tunnels in New York and city streets across the West Coast.
Every two years our robotics technicians return to the manufacturer in the Netherlands for additional training for new equipment and technology upgrades and ongoing service training.
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