Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/625129
C o n s t r u c t i o n M a r k e t p l a c e 9 Tu e s d a y, J a n u a r y 1 9 , 2 0 1 6 PREFABRICATED LIFT STATIONS DELIVER FASTER FIX FOR PRIVATE SEWER UTILITY Valley Rural Utilities (VRU) applied a more efficient and less site-disruptive alternative to resolve pump station fail- ures along the wastewater collection system serving a lakeside residential service area near Lawrenceville, Indiana. Age and deterioration, shoddy original construction and inadequate capacity further aggravated the original clog-prone pumps as the development of Hidden Lake exceeded the original design capacity for 200 home sites in the service area acquired in 1995. "We experienced overflows and up to six pump outages a month that cost us at least $250 per incident," a utility spokesperson said. The private utility decided to replace the eight most clog- prone duplex stations. Replacing the pump stations, rated 110-gpm to 660-gpm, was complicated by some facilities located 100 feet off the roadway in steep topography that presented unavoidable disruption of cus- tomer home sites and mature landscap- ing. Completing the replacements as fast as possible while the existing stations remained active were other priorities in the project management plan. HREZO Engineering Inc., the VRU consultants, identified a more practical alternative than traditional demolition and rebuilds of the designated precast concrete facilities. Instead, the engi- neers recommended removing the pumps and converting the wetwells into junction basins that would continue to collect sewage from the service lines. The wastewater would then flow by gravity through a single discharge outlet into new, prefabricated fiberglass lift stations adjacent to the converted facili- ties. The six-foot fiberglass wetwells would install in 14- to 16-feet deep, fresh excavations from where their pumps would advance the sewage to a down- stream regional plant. The two-part Flygt TOPS (The Optimal Pump Station) package lift station consists of a fiberglass wetwell equipped with the recently introduced Flygt Adaptive N- Pump. The Adaptive N-Pump's superior clog resistance derives from an impeller designed to move axially upwards when encountering most bulky rags, cleaning and personal hygiene wipes, or other tough flow debris so that it can pass smoothly through the pump throat. In the Hidden Lake replacements, the added volume of the prefabricated wetwells also instilled enough added capacity to handle the past shortfalls and the projected future growth in additional connections. The Water Environment Federation recognized the enhanced hydraulics of the clog-resistant Adaptive N-Pump as the "2011 Most Innovative Product." The engineering features not only clear built-up material on the pump impellers but clear the drag that strangles pump energy efficiency, the utility learned. "Our first station entered service two years ago and has used less than half the elec- tricity of the old pumps," a second utili- ty spokesperson said. Flygt helped to preserve the expe- dited schedule by acting as the single source for the integrated TOPS wetwell/pump package, including all accessory hardware, easy access split aluminum access covers, the control panels and a Flygt AquaView SCADA management software system. One sta- tion also was equipped with an optional Mix-Flush valve with a 15-second blast of recirculated wastewater at the startup of each pump cycle that flushes and churns up solids from the bottom of the wetwell. Following competitive bids, the work was completed late in 2013. For more information, stop by booth #C1553. GENERAL SHALE'S NEW PRODUCTS FEATURE INSPIRING COLORS, INNOVATIVE TEXTURES By Dawn Henning, Director of Marketing and Retail Sales, General Shale Three new innovative brick collections, an addition to the company's high-quali- ty Arriscraft building stone family and a dozen new colors of brick and stone highlight the latest masonry offerings from General Shale. Noted for perform- ance, texture and tone, these new selec- tions provide industry professionals with a broad palette of fresh and striking options. "From single-family residential to multi-family commercial applications, these products provide a wealth of style options for architects, builders and designers," says Charles Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer of General Shale. "We're proud to introduce these versatile, elegant choices for a range of traditional and contemporary projects." Harnessing the aesthetics of historic brick architecture, General Shale's Impressionist Series employs longer units with shallow face heights to achieve a distinctive, contemporary style. Available in two colors, Wexford and Yorkshire, the Impressionist Series is available in full and half-units, and can be cut to any size. Echoing the look of a weathered Western landscape, the company's Canyon Series bears a texture unlike any other in the industry. Available in three colors – Grand Canyon, Ruby Canyon and Saltcreek Canyon – this new series includes Lightweight Queen, Lightweight Engineered and Lightweight Engineered Modular sizes. Rugged textures and organic colors are the hallmark of the Tudor brick series, which lends unprecedented depth and historic charac- ter to modern designs. Offered in a Lightweight Queen size, Denver Tudor is available in four colors: Britannia Tudor, Catalina Tudor, Galveston Tudor and Mosswood Tudor. Arriscraft's new texture-rich stone series, Matterhorn Building Stone, com- bines tumbled edges with straight lines for a clean, natural overall finish. Manufactured almost entirely from reclaimed material, the stone bears increased depth and color saturation, and is available in two stone sizes and tones. Arriscraft has also added two rich, dynamic colors, Infinity and Infinity Onyx, to its Citadel ® "old world" build- ing stone series. Builders looking for additional options in lighter tones can select from the company's Coastal, Ocean City and Woodhaven Tudor brick colors. Woodhaven Tudor offers a rustic, vintage aesthetic, pro- viding a time-worn look in a modern product, along with Cumberland Tudor, an earth-toned brick. Additional earth-toned offerings include Sandy Hill, a variegated brick, along with Shadow Grey Tudor and Surfside, textured bricks pre- senting a uniform look. New red-toned brick colors include River Shoals, which has a wide range of color variation throughout, and Brick Town and Southern Brick. General Shale is also reintroducing its highly popular do-it-yourself Entertainer Round Outdoor Fire Pit. Comparable in size to the Gathering Fire Pit and ideal for limited outdoor spaces, the Entertainer now features an all-new design. For more information, visit www.general- shale.com, email dawn.henning@ generalshale.com or call 800.414.4661. PROFESSIONALS GET ORGANIZED WITH SWATCHDECK APP An interview with Founder Brad Bolinger of SwatchDeck Inc. CM: What is SwatchDeck ® ? BB: SwatchDeck is a free interactive home design and decorating app for iPad ® and iPhone ® that allows profes- sionals or do-it-yourselfers to discov- er, store and share the products and materials used inside and out of proj- ects today or for the future. CM: How did you come up with the idea for SwatchDeck? BB: Working in the decorating field as a contractor, we always ran into prob- lems documenting and storing the products we used on our hundreds of customers' projects. Purchasing mate- rials from multiple suppliers only made organizing more difficult. We found the need to have an app that was capable of discovering and storing products from many suppliers. CM: How can building suppliers list their products on SwatchDeck? BB: Building and construction manu- facturers and suppliers can list their products for free on the app with very little time investment. We have created an easy to use product management interface for our supporting manufac- turers. Every product is tagged with the manufacturers' logo that becomes a clickable link to their website. CM: How can professionals use SwatchDeck for their business? BB: There are a number of different ways that the app can help contractors stay organized and create more sales. Showing customers products and materials available quickly is priceless in today's fast-paced market. Orders can be shared through email to the sup- plier for ordering or to customers for approval. We can also work with builders to create a branded app that their customers can use to decide on materials and finishes for their new home. CM: What kind of prod- ucts and materials can be listed on SwatchDeck? BB: There really is no limit of items that can be listed on the app. Tile, roof- ing, flooring, décor, landscaping, sid- ing, appliances. If it goes in, out or on a home, it can be listed on SwatchDeck. CM: What is the best way for readers to find out more about using the app or listing their products? BB: Visit our website at w w w . s w a t c h d e c k a p p . c o m . Manufacturers can email us at sign- up@swatchdeckapp.com to get started. Learn more about the app at swatchdeckapp.com or email contact@swatchdeckapp.com.