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Sturgeon Falls installs badly
needed water storage tank
N
estled in the town of Sturgeon
Falls, Ontario, stands a new,
46 m tall, 652,000 litre capacity composite elevated
tank (CET) system, which represents a
town transitioning from one era to the
next.
The former paper mill town, located
in West Nipissing, is now primarily a
tourist haven for fishing and wildlife. It
was in dire need of a new water storage
tank for some 8,000 residents as its old
one was deteriorating rapidly.
"The access ladder on the old tower
was in very poor shape, and it was
strongly recommended by a consulting
firm to condemn the tower," says Peter
Ming, Manager of West Nipissing’s Water
and Wastewater Operations. "Leaks, due
to corrosion, occurred numerous times
and we had to get a welder to spot weld
them. The only way to do this was to borrow a bucket lift from the City of Greater
Sudbury. It cost us $10,000 each time we
needed to use it."
After the old water tower was deemed
inaccessible in 2009, the Municipality
was awarded a $2 million grant from the
Canadian government's Community Adjustment Fund Program. It required that
the replacement tank had to be finished
within budget and by a firm deadline of
March 31, 2011. Otherwise funding
could be revoked.
With such stringent stipulations, Mr.
Ming contacted AECOM's Sudbury office to help find a system that fit within
the grant's parameters. The two technologies selected for the request for proposal
were a glass-fused-to-steel Aquastore
tank, supplied by Greatario Engineered
Storage Systems, and a welded-steel elevated storage tank. Due to lower capital
and maintenance costs, the Greatario system was the one chosen.
Greatario and AECOM focused on a
design that would make the construction
aesthetically pleasing. The team specified
a pedestal configuration that offered a
different appearance to other Greatario
www.esemag.com
CET constructions, while still remaining
within budget.
"With glass-fused-to-steel, there is no
extra cost or time for sandblasting or painting in the field, which means shorter construction timelines," says Scott Burn, Vice
President of Greatario. "There was also
concern about excessive noise and sprays
that could potentially be harmful to the adjacent residential neighborhood. These do
not occur with a factory-coated tank."
Mr. Ming was also familiar with Aquastore glass-fused-to-steel tanks, being a
Greatario and
AECOM focused on
a design that would
make the construction
aesthetically pleasing.
former employee of a Sturgeon Falls area
paper mill. "I was charged with treating
industrial wastewater at the mill. We used
anaerobic digesters with tanks supplied by
Greatario for the treatment, so I knew the
tank would hold up for this purpose. We
were also looking for something that
would minimize maintenance costs 20 or
30 years from now," says Mr. Ming.
With initial construction beginning in
April 2010, it was anticipated that the
majority of the tank portion of the construction would have to be done in unfavorable working conditions. Construction
of the concrete pedestal was completed
one week ahead of schedule. Then, glassfused-to-steel panels were raised one-byone and were assembled, using jacks
directly on top of the pedestal. Workers
stood on a walkway less than one metre
wide and successfully built the tank,
while weathering the dangerous seasonal
wind gusts off Lake Nipissing.
According to Chris Cecchetto, Project
Manager of AECOM, building a welded
steel CET construction during inclement
weather conditions would have been very
costly and present a longer construction
time. "All glass-fused-to-steel panels are
manufactured in a controlled environment in an off-site factory, and they've all
been QA (Quality Assured) and QC
(Quality Control) tested before being
shipped. We're basically just bolting panels together. Welding and painting during
early spring months, with frequent low
temperature conditions, poses some significant challenges. Glass-fused-to-steel
can be assembled in any sort of weather
conditions."
In spite of the obstacles, the new
Aquastore CET was fully operational in
November 2010 and has serviced customers with no complications. According
to Mr. Ming, the Canadian government
was satisfied with the timeliness of the
construction. Only minor site restoration
remains, which will be completed after
the grant deadline. All remaining costs
are fully covered by the Municipality.
For more information,
E-mail:[email protected]
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