Pump Station Evaluation and Rehab Design for BCWS
Weston & Sampson was selected through a competitive process to provide engineering services for the Pump Station 001, a critical asset to BCWS. It is the largest pump station in the BCWS wastewater system, delivering over half of the influent flow to the Lower Berkeley Wastewater Treatment Plant (LBWWTP). The station has been in operation since 1994. In recent years, pump failures have been occurring, resulting in expensive pump rebuilds. The station has also experienced damage and negative impacts caused by hydrogen sulfide related corrosion.
In 2012, Berkeley County Water & Sanitation’s Pump Station 001 began experiencing frequent pump failures necessitating replacement. In lieu of a simple change in pumping equipment, the Weston & Sampson Team was selected to study and evaluate the cause of the pump failures and make recommendations for improvements to modernize the station. The study included:
- A physical model to analyze the approach flow and provide recommendations for mitigating air entrainment, vortexing, and cavitation
- A comprehensive evaluation of the existing electrical system to provide recommendations for creating redundancy, meeting current NEC requirements, and preventing corrosion
- An analysis of hydrogen sulfide gas emissions and recommendations for the mitigation and removal of odor- and corrosion-causing gases
- The development of a calibrated model and comprehensive evaluation of future growth within the service area to select a variable speed, multi-sized parallel pumping system.
Weston & Sampson was selected to design BCWS PS001 Renovation Project incorporating all recommendations from the study. The design incorporated modifications to the existing wetwell, the installation of two different sized pumps for handling average daily and wet weather flows, and phasing of projected upgrades for installation once the anticipated population growth was realized. A modern and robust design was used for a completely new electrical system. The pump station was thoughtfully designed for maintenance, ease of operation, and flexibility within the collection system, and construction was complete in December 2017.