Adding Transitions

The following paragraph was written by the contractor for a nuclear power plant. The audience is a regulator at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and the purpose of the paragraph is to convince the regulator to waive one of the regulations. In this paragraph, transitional words and phrases have been removed. Add an appropriate transition in each blank space. Where necessary, add punctuation.

As you know, the current regulation requires the use of conduit for all cable extending more than 18 inches from the cable tray to the piece of equipment. __________ conduit is becoming increasingly expensive: up 17 percent in the last year alone. __________ we would like to determine whether the NRC would grant us any flexibility in its conduit regulations. Could we __________ run cable without conduit for lengths of up to 3 feet in low-risk situations such as wall-mounted cable or low-traffic areas? We realize _________ that conduit will always remain necessary in high-risk situations. The cable specifications for the Unit Two report to the NRC are due in less than two months; _________ we would appreciate a quick reply to our request, because this matter will seriously affect our materials budget.