Dissolving Floor Calls For An M&C Solution

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Water recycling centres are never out of action, so when a leading regional water company came to M&C Engineering with a need for a new floor, we knew we were in for a complex operation.

While hydrogen sulphide had literally dissolved the sub-frame, the original floor structure had been designed specifically for the centre, and needed to be retained. First taking it up to clean and make good, we then took the opportunity to raise it slightly, taking it further out of future harm’s way.

We then designed and built a new floor using glass reinforced polymer (GRP) which was installed while also repositioning the hand rails to fit the raised platforms. Selected for its non-corrosive properties, GRP is also beneficial for sites such as Clacton Water Recycling Centre as it requires no painting and can also incorporate abrasive elements to reduce slipping.

As always, turnaround was also important, so planning and making sure all elements were in place and ready to be installed was key. Our team of three, plus crane support took just five days, from removal of the first pieces of damaged flooring until completion.

Ferric Sulphate Dosing Plant

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When a leading regional water company needed to add a new ferric sulphate dosing plant at the Cliff Quay Sewage Treatment Works in Ipswich, they knew M&C Engineering had the tools, the training and the tech for the job.

What was the brief?

Waste water requires a number of treatments to remove unwanted elements before it can be flushed back into circulation. One such element is phosphate, which can be removed by dosing with ferric sulphate.

Making the job slightly more complex, we needed to build the plant to be fully mobile, allowing it to be moved to other similar sites. Cliff Quay also has an unusual flow split, so a unique mechanism needed to be designed to spread the dosing across the entire incoming, pre-treatment flow.

How did you go about it?

With the aim of reducing man hours, the new plant measures the incoming flow, then doses at a predetermined rate, set proportionally to the inlet flow. This is controlled by a programmable logic controller (PLC) which has a full colour HMI operating panel for display and control purposes.

The new plant is made up of one 30,000 litre storage tank, two inverter driven pumps, a PLC and HMI. The fully bunded 130m pipe – from pumps to dosing point – has no joins and treats accurately a crude inlet flow rate of 75-1100 litres a second.

We also designed a unique new v-notch delivery distribution bar, allowing the correct spread across the incoming flow.

As with the plant we installed in Clacton, earlier this year, this one is a fully portable, self-contained unit, including local lighting, an emergency shower, wash down and delivery point.

What was the timeframe for this project?

From briefing to commission, this project took the teams at M&C eight weeks to complete – delivered on time and on budget.

Water Works – showcasing our services at IOS Market Day

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As the water industry moved into the sixth asset management period since privatisation back in 1989 – otherwise known as AMP6 – 2015 has been a key year for the modernisation of the country’s water infrastructure. We’re pleased to be working with the likes of Morrison Utility Services, Kier, EPS and Qelec on the AMP6 Integrated Operational Solutions (IOS) programme, and we were delighted to have been invited to their Market Day to showcase the range of services that we offer to the wider industry.

Joining key figures from across the industry, directors James Couch, Richard Shipp and Gary Robb set up in a sizable exhibition space at the event on 23 September 2015, which was bustling with project managers from across the marketplace.

James said: “This was the first event we’ve been to where we’ve been able to bring all of our new branding together, showcasing our offering to great effect. We had some fantastic feedback from many of the people at the event and we’ve made a number of new key contacts as a result.”