On paper, it could seem straightforward: water is pumped to a different location. In real life, the distances between these two points could be affected by elevation variations or the pressure and solids requirements, as well as storage capacity,, electrical equipment, restrictions on site and changes in the rate of flow.
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For Romtec Utilities, designing a pump station begins by defining those operating conditions rather than selecting equipment from a standard catalog. The preliminary designs and budgetary data are then developed based on the requirements of the project.
The first step is to ask: What Are We Moving?
The result immediately alters the technology.
The flow of household sewage is subjected to substantial fluctuations in the course of a day. The wastewater lift station is necessary whenever gravity conveyance does not or does not work. Engineers therefore need to consider the expected flow, the conditions of peak, pumping capacity, wet-well behavior, discharge requirements, as well as how the facility is operated and maintained.
Industrial water has its own challenges. The fluids utilized in a manufacturing or processing facility might require caustic or oily, or heated to extreme temperatures or pressure. Romtec Utilities designs industrial systems for applications ranging from power generation and food processing to data centers, pharmaceutical waste, and oil and gas facilities.
Rainfall can create a totally different operating pattern
Stormwater systems are often inactive for extended periods and then suddenly be required to deal with massive volumes in the course of a major storm.
A stormwater lift station linked with a detention basin, for example, must work alongside the drainage plan. The runoff is absorbed into the basin. Storage temporarily regulates the volume immediately. A pumping system takes the water it collects to an approved outlet.
Romtec Utilities offered this type of solution to a Norco, California business park. The development required the construction of a pumping station that would empty the detention system of the public stormwater drainage system. The station needed to be designed as a component of the drainage infrastructure that is part of the development, not as a separate piece of equipment.
The word “package” doesn’t have to be used to mean off-the-shelf
The most common misconception is that a package pumping system is simply a predetermined collection of components.
For engineering infrastructure, packing may also refer to coordinating the major pieces into one specific project. Controls, pumps and meters and structures and other equipment can be selected in accordance with the requirements of the project.
This strategy is especially useful in situations where the new system has to be linked with an existing infrastructure. In the case of industrial facilities and municipal buildings, there’s usually enough space or a completely clean environment for installation. The equipment may have to be built around the existing pipe systems, structures as well as electrical systems, and operating schedules.
Capacity Planning has real consequences
It is especially costly when facilities grow.
Romtec Utilities supplied a sewer lift station in Portland International Airport for the PDX Next extension. The new station was built to provide twice the peak-flow capacity of the existing system as the airport’s facilities grew.
This demonstrates a crucial concept of engineering: design conditions should not only be a reflection of what the installation can handle in a typical afternoon. Engineers need to be aware of what happens when demand peaks.
The Work isn’t Complete until the Equipment is delivered
Drawings and calculations will eventually evolve into an operating system. Coordination of installation and documentation are vital to long-term success.
What happens after the construction of a pumping system determines its value. If the flow increases when a major storm hits or equipment requires repair the choices made during preliminary design are evident.
Romtec Utilities combines these decisions to provide a complete pumping solution for a particular project. It assists in turning equipment into infrastructure designed specifically for the conditions in which it will be utilized.