A specialist in temporary pump solutions, Vanderkamp describes work recently carried out at Thames Water Coppermills Treatment Works on behalf of Barhale.
The project involved inspecting two 1.5m-diameter outflow tunnels, each being 240m in length, which had to be cleared of approximately 300 tonnes of silt. For Barhale to perform the tunnel cleaning, Vanderkamp provided an over-pumping solution to isolate the tunnels and provide a temporary diversion of the treatment works outflows. It had to manage flows of up to 1,900 litres per second, taken between two separate outlets (one up to 1,400 LPS and the other up to 500 LPS).
The pipework had to cover over 300 metres between outlet and discharge. The site had access constraints and there were two highways to pump over. Discharge was directly into a reservoir and the discharge velocity had to be reduced in order not to disrupt the wildlife habitat. Robustness was a crucial constraint, to ensure uninterrupted operation and continuity of service to customers.
Vanderkamp installed and managed two Flygt C3800 dri-prime pumps and two Flygt C3400 submersible pumps. The two-pump set-up at each outlet had one active and one back-up pump. Over 300 metres of 800mm steel pipework was installed including two 5m-high pipe bridges spanning both highways. Due to required road closures, the pipe bridges had to be installed at night. Power had to be supplied using five 160 KVA generators using HVO fuel.
Another element, Vanderkamp’s proprietary smart PLC, provides efficient power management, so pumps only run at the required rate to manage real-time flow requirements, which results in reduced fuel usage. And 24/7 remote performance monitoring ensuring the temporary pumping solution is continually maintained through the duration of the project.
Installation and commissioning of the pumping solution was completed in a two-week timeframe and the entire programme completed within 11 weeks. Vanderkamp maintained a continuous over-pumping solution throughout, which meant Barhale could clear all 300 tonnes of silt from the outflow tunnels.
