Quick Action Keeps Largest Water Provider Running

Our client is the UK’s largest water and sewerage company serving over 14 million customers, and supplying 2,600 million litres of tap water to 9 million customers daily.

As the UK’s largest provider of such a vital commodity, it is essential that our client’s equipment is able to function at full capacity. We have been working with our client since 2006 delivering a range of maintenance, test and repair services. Our skilled engineers have delivered quick, efficient results in maintenance and repair for Thames Water that have significantly reduced the financial burden of the work and helped keep the company’s service online for its customers.

Pump Repair

When a large dry weather flow pump at one of the company’s facilities failed, we were able to provide a valuable refurbishment service for our client. At the facility, a number of pumps that had been designed and built in the 1920s and 30s were in need of repair. As a result environmental changes, it became necessary to refurbish the pumping equipment in order to fit new conditions. In the past 10 years, the pumps had suffered various failures, causing significant repair costs for our client. We were called in to address recurring problems with the operation of a seven tonne dry weather flow pump, which had been in use since 1932. We quickly identified the cause of the problem and after engineering meetings advised their special projects team on the best solution.

Refurbishing the pump was the most appropriate approach, taking into account modern bearing, seal and hydraulic design arrangements. By avoiding a replacement – which would have required a total rework of parts of the pipework and pumping station systems – We were able to save our client significant resources in terms of cost, time and energy as well as avoiding disruption to service provision from the station:

  • At an early stage, we created a design study for the refurbishment which included a SolidWorks 3D CAD model of the planned re-engineering. Once the bespoke design for the refurbished pump was finalised, we sourced the components required.
  • Some of these components were manufactured at our specialist facilities and used the business’ Belzona Coating Centre capabilities to add a protective coating that supports efficiencies, cost savings and reduced energy usage.
  • Once the components were manufactured and the pump had been refurbished, it was reinstalled and recommissioned as part of the pumping station.

Thanks to the experience and expertise of the our engineers, the cause of the problem with the pump was discovered quickly, and an appropriate solution, turned around in just three months. By safely and efficiently refurbishing the pump rather than simply replacing it, we helped limit the financial cost for our client, as well as the disruption to the service provided for customers.

Our client has since commissioned us to carry out similar work on further pumps.

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