Recently awarded a 1st place designation at the 2015 Engineering Excellence Awards Competition through the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) of Idaho, the Idaho Falls Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) Secondary Improvement project was a success.
As the community grew, so did its need for secondary treatment upgrades at the city’s Wastewater Treatment Plant. The $21 million project was originally identified as a key improvement in the City Sewer Facility Plan for just that. The project was completed in May 2015 both on schedule and on budget. Though the typical construction change order percentage is 5%, the change orders only totaled 1.1% for this project.
A total of 11 applications were submitted for Excellence in Engineering through the ACEC of Idaho last year, and the award was for Category F Water and Storm Water Engineering. “The innovation level was very high for this project as it presented effective solutions to real world problems,” said the ACEC award committee during the application review.
Designed by Murray, Smith & Associates, Inc. and Pharmer Engineering, LLC, the facility displays an innovative approach. They did this by producing a project definition report that guided the project toward a very successful solution for the new aeration basins, blower building and anaerobic selector basin.
“We are very pleased with the aeration control technology that this improvement has allowed us to implement,” said Chris Canfield, assistant public works director. “This technology has allowed us to accommodate changes in treatment requirements of our industrial customers who have recently implemented pre-treatment technologies.”
“Careful water quality monitoring since the construction of this project has shown the system design to be functioning at a higher level than anticipated. The elevated performance of the treatment plant helps ensure the city meets water quality permit standards," Canfield said.