Gippsland Water
Wastewater treatment plant improves sewage pump performance and saves on maintenance costs with the installation
Project Background
For over 14 years the Moe Wastewater Treatment Plant has been effectively and successfully processing sewage. Located in Gippsland, Victoria, the medium-sized plant services a population of 22,000. Its average daily flow is five mega litres per day.
‘Between February and the start of December 2010 our submersible pumps were choking about once a fortnight. The sewage pumps were no longer capable of effectively handling the rags and other solid material in the inflow’, explained Adrian Harper, Senior Engineer Wastewater Treatment Group, Moe Wastewater Treatment Plant.
According to Adrian, the entire exercise was time consuming, inconvenient, expensive and negatively impacted on the plant’s performance. ‘Between February and December 2010 we spent some $27,000 just on getting the contractors in to clean the pumps’, said Adrian.
By about May the situation had become untenable and Adrian and his colleagues were keen to find a permanent and effective answer to the choking pump problem.
The Gorman-Rupp pump has made a huge, positive impact on the processing efficiency of our plant… we are no longer wasting money on cleaning the pumps fortnightly
– Adrian Harper, Senior Engineer, Moe Wastewater Treatment Plant.
The Options
Impressed with the solutions that Hydro Innovations had exhibited at a trade show, Gippsland Water invited the company to assess their dilemma and provide a workable option. After exploring the site and the needs of the plant, Hydro Innovations suggested that it consider installing an above ground Gorman-Rupp self-priming pump. To evaluate Hydro Innovation’s solution as well as to explore the pros and cons of a self-priming pump versus a submersible pump with a cutter impeller, Gippsland Water initiated an options study. The study confirmed that a self-priming pump would be a workable solution.
‘We had never used above ground, self-priming pumps at the plant before, and although we were happy to think outside the box, and the study had confirmed that such a solution was viable we weren’t entirely convinced. So we asked Hydro Innovations if we could trial the pump for three months which they readily agreed to because they were certain the self-priming pump would meet our needs, explained Adrian.
The Solution
Hydro Innovations provided the plant with a Gorman-Rupp T8A3S-B above-ground self-priming centrifugal pump in December 2010. By mid-December the pump was installed and in use. According to Garry Grant, General Manager of Hydro Innovations, the Gorman-Rupp T8A3S-B self-priming centrifugal pump is a purpose-built sewage pump that is fitted with an aggressive self-cleaning wear plate. The wear plate has been specifically designed to change the shape of solid waste and stringy material so that the pump does not clog. In addition, if any choking does occur, the centrifugal pump can be easily and quickly unclogged via the removable cover plate and without the need to disconnect piping. Better still, it can be done with only one operator and without the need for a lifting device.
‘It’s now April 2013 and our Gorman Rupp self-priming pump has been in operation for 2 years. It did slightly block a couple of times but it still kept pumping and overall it has made a huge, positive impact on the processing efficiency of our plant. It performs very well and delivers 110 litres per second at 8.9 metres of total head. Also, we are no longer wasting money on cleaning the pumps fortnightly. Plus, the down time associated with this as well as the inconvenience have been eliminated. If the pump does need cleaning the design of the centrifugal pump lets you do it quickly and of course, it’s done above ground so we don’t have to worry about OH&S issues arising. Another big plus with Gorman Rupp pumps is that if you do get a malfunction occurring in the motor you can just replace the motor. This isn’t possible with submersible pumps. If there is a motor problem you have to change the entire pump,’ said Adrian.
With no regrets about having purchased a Gorman-Rupp self-priming pump, Gippsland Water has replaced its other submersible pump at the Moe WWTP with a self-priming pump.
The Pumps
The Gorman-Rupp Super T Series self priming centrifugal wastewater/sewage pump has been the world benchmark for this technology since 1963 (over 50 years!). They have been designed for economical, trouble-free operation, with superior solids handling capability and a large inspection cover to access pump internals for service or blockage removal.
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The Gorman-Rupp Super T Series self-priming centrifugal wastewater/sewage pump has been the world benchmark for this technology since 1963 (>50 years). They have been designed for economical, trouble-free operation, with superior solids handling capability and a large inspection cover to access pump internals for service or blockage removal.
Advantages include:
- Self-Priming pump has the ability to mount high and dry above the wet well (not in it)
- Low cost of ownership
- Greatly reduced OH&S issues – no more working over water/heights/cranes/heavy swinging weights
- Surface-mounted pumps with easy access for monitoring or service
- Advanced safety features including pressure relief valve to protect operators
- Improved maintenance features to greatly reduce maintenance time and costs, with removable rotating assembly
- A variety of materials of construction to handle abrasive and/or corrosive fluids
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Australia Wide
Hydro Innovations is proud to distribute a broad range of quality, reliable and industry-leading industrial pumps and aerators.
We are also delighted to share that Hydro Innovations is proud to be the exclusive distributor of Gorman-Rupp Pumps.
Gorman-Rupp is the world leader in self-priming centrifugal wastewater pump technology, and invests heavily in R&D, and in training for their international representatives – like Hydro Innovations.
This puts us in an excellent position to make the very best recommendations for our Australian customers.
Our other suppliers, Ragazzini of Italy and EDUR of Germany, are also world leaders in their respective technologies (Peristaltic Pumps – Ragazzini, and Specialist centrifugal pumps – EDUR).
We carry a very large inventory of pumps and spare parts for all of these brands, to help us to deliver industry-leading service.
