Engineering Technician Dave Beam (left) and Managing Director of Water Resources – North Phil Burns inspect progress on the pump station construction in Excelsior Springs.
McClure Engineering Company’s (MEC) water resources department recently designed three pump stations to address the burden of aging infrastructure and the changing needs of growing communities in Missouri.
One of the recent pump station projects was the replacement of the Pleasant Hill School District’s two aging pump stations. Due to the school’s growth and expansion over the years, the initial pump station was located inside a classroom closet. The second pump station was located outside, adjacent to the classroom addition. By replacing both pump stations and combining flows into one, the system’s power consumption and maintenance needs were reduced.
The project involved removing the old station from inside the building, so the construction had to be completed and the new pump station operational before school was back in session.
The second pump station project in Excelsior Springs, Missouri, focused on resolving the chronic maintenance issues that had resulted from fibrous flushable materials that the nearby hospital and nursing home were putting into the system. Without a grinder, bar screen or strainer, the materials were plugging the system, which had also become undersized for the population it served.
“The new system, which includes chopper pumps designed to handle the fibrous waste, increases reliability, and prevents failures and potential overflows,” said Phil Burns, managing director for water resources. “Additionally, the new system will require less operator attention and strain on the city’s maintenance staff.”
In addition to the design work, MEC completed the survey, easements, power and control, and SCADA system coordination for the project.
The third pump station was needed to provide sanitary sewer services to a new development in Platte City, Mo. MEC engineers investigated, designed, and presented the City with several options to provide sewer service to the new development, so they could evaluate force main alignments, lengths, and costs. With new development, there is space in the wet well to expand the capacity by adding larger pumps as the area grows.
The completed pump station in Platte City, Missouri, will serve a new development.
