City of Auburn Water Treatment Plant Improvements

The Challenge

Auburn’s James Estes Water Treatment Plant was originally constructed in the 1960s and had a capacity of 8 million gallons per day (MGD). To meet growth demands, the City of Auburn wanted to increase capacity by 50% to 12 MGD. Due to budget constraints, the City decided to phase the expansion of the plant by making modifications to different components over time, based on need. The phasing of the construction activity and completion time was critical due to the need to have the plant at full capacity during construction.

The Solution

Barge Design Solutions began by renovating settling basins and replacing mechanisms that were installed with the original construction. It also repaired basin walls, including repairing leaks and sealing cracks in the basin floor. A protective coating was also installed on internal basin walls to extend the life of the basin concrete.

The next phase involved removing five existing liquid chemical tanks and installing four new larger tanks and containment structures, all without interrupting plant operations.

The final phase involved increasing the storage capacity by abandoning one clearwell and demolishing a second clearwell to make room for a new 500,000-gallon in-ground reservoir. New pumps were installed, and existing pumps on a third clearwell were replaced to increase pumping capacity. As part of the upgrade, an existing pump room was converted into a dedicated electrical room.

The Result

The Barge team's expertise in water treatment plant design and construction enabled the successful expansion of the James Estes Water Treatment Plant. Their ability to balance the need for increased capacity with the constraints of budget and operational continuity demonstrates their commitment to delivering sustainable and reliable water infrastructure solutions.