In a team effort that included the area’s conservation district, an engineering firm, and Flowtronex’s Waterworks division, they found a way to conserve more of the district’s water and energy. Officials discovered they could reduce costs by applying technology developed by Flowtronex PSI of Dallas.
As a result, three Flowtronex modular pumping systems have been installed at the district. One of the systems is replacing an outdated stick-built pump station while the other two will add new capacity. The new stations will pump water from canals to residential areas for irrigation using untreated secondary water.
"We were looking at areas in our existing gravity-fed system to install booster pumps out of the reservoirs to pressurize the upper zones," said Terel Grimley, general manager for the South Ogden Conservation District and Weber-Box Elder Conservation District. "This would enable the district to provide better and more reliable service to our customers."
Where there is very low pressure, residents traditionally have installed their own booster pumps. "It is very costly and inefficient for the residents to install, operate and maintain their own boosters," noted Grimley. "While we initially considered adding stick built pump stations, we soon realized modular was a much better option due to the fast turn around and the compactness of available systems."
Although they minimize space requirements, these systems also pump a large volume of water with flow ranges up to 18 million gallons per day. In addition, two stations in particular were designed to be easily expanded to 25 to 30 million gallons per day when necessary.
The conservation district learned of Flowtronex from the Salt Lake City engineering firm of Montgomery Watson, which created a master plan for the district. The engineering firm told the conservation district that modular systems such as those built by Flowtronex offered a single source for accountability and service. Because the Ogden area is experiencing population growth, Montgomery Watson saw Flowtronex’s modular solution as the fastest way for the district to meet customer demand and ensure water conservation directives would be followed.
"We believed Flowtronex was the right fit for these projects because the company could deliver systems on site that are ready to operate and easy to use," stated Darrel Evensen, senior engineer with Montgomery Watson. "And according to water district personnel, that’s just what occurred."
When the first unit arrived via semi trailer truck, the conservation district personnel were pleased to see that it was certainly a turnkey system.
"The fact that it was pre-tested and ready to perform has made this installation easy," explained Merv Lambright, superintendent of operations and maintenance for the water district. "I believe that our new standard systems will also reduce maintenance time and costs."
However, conserving water was not the only benefit of the modular pumping system, which also includes advanced water conservation and energy management software. Flowtronex’s latest patent-pending software, APS, tracks the System Head Curve for a given installation and utilizes the output of sensitive meters to adjust pressure and flow to meet user demand more efficiently. The result is lower energy consumption and less system leakage.
"Water and energy conservation ARE no longer bell-and-whistle features," added Gram. "It is a necessity in today’s market place."
For further information, contact Flowtronex PSI at 800-786-7480.
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