Solids Handling Improvements at the Zeeland Clean Water Plant
Moore+Bruggink is an engineering firm in Grand Rapids, Michigan. As such, we take on a wide range of clients, including municipalities such as the .
For this case, our team of water and wastewater engineers were asked to make improvements to the solids handling process at the . At the end of the project, we were able to save the client money while making design considerations for the future.
Here’s how we were able to help the City of Zeeland with their clean water plant.
The Client: City of Zeeland
The Zeeland Clean Water Plant serves residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the City of Zeeland, Zeeland Township, and part of Holland Township. Each day, the plant cleans about 2.1 million gallons of wastewater through a physical and biological nutrient removal process. This process cleans the wastewater so the plant can return it to nature without harming the local watershed.
The Scope of the Project
We designed and built a new solids handling building that included a new gravity belt thickener, thickened solids discharge pump, filtrate recycle lift station, a new reclaimed process water supply pump, miscellaneous site piping, and site improvements.
The goal was to reduce the client’s solids disposal volume, improve their reuse water usage, and enhance space utilization within the facility.
Problems We Solved for the Client
There were three major problems that we solved for the Zeeland Clean Water Plant, which are listed below.
Problem #1: High Cost of Solids Disposal
The rising cost of biosolids disposal was a major concern for the City of Zeeland. They needed to improve their solids handling process in a way that decreased how much they’d need to spend on solids disposal.
The client’s new machine takes more water out of the solids to create more space in their storage tanks. This saves them money each year. It also means less volume of solids dispersed on the land. Typically, the solids would go to farm fields for animal feed crops and other agricultural purposes.
Problem #2: Old Equipment
Our water/wastewater engineers replaced the client’s old equipment that was about 30 years old and near the end of its lifespan. They also designed and constructed a new building to house the client’s new solids handling equipment. This new building has enough space that the client has the option to add a new piece of equipment to their facility if they choose to go with a different disposal method in the future, such as landfill.
Problem #3: High Humidity Was Corroding the Existing Equipment
At the start of this project, we noticed that the client was keeping their existing solids thickener in a small building next to some electrical equipment. The problem was that the humidity in that room was corroding the equipment over time. To solve this issue, our wastewater engineers designed and built a new building for solids handling.
Hire Moore+Bruggink For Your Next Project
Moore+Bruggink is a full-service engineering company in Grand Rapids, Michigan. As such, we’d be more than happy to come up with real-world, innovative solutions that change the way you run your business. To learn more about our engineering, survey, and inspection services, please call Moore+Bruggink Consulting Engineers at (616) 363-9801 or fill out our online contact form.
