The design for most sewage and storm water
pumping stations has taken on a new look as environmental and
safety concerns have increased. The “Lets hide
everything in the ground” approach is no longer reasonable.
Generators required to avoid spills during power failure need
lots of air and typically must be located above ground. Locating
electrical and control equipment along with the generator above
ground can avoid having two or sometimes three operators
inspecting stations in order to meet current OSHA requirements.
S&B has addressed these issues by
designing systems that will permit continuous monitoring from a
control center and routine station inspections and operational
tests to be performed by one person. Considering that most
lift stations are typically visited three to five times weekly, a
considerable savings of manpower can be realized.
A typical new installation would consist
of a stand alone, pad mounted, S&B MCC/RTU System in a Nema
3R enclosure containing all the motor controls and an
intrinsically safe instrumentation package to operate the pump
station. It would be mounted adjacent to a pad mounted
generator with its controls and integral automatic transfer
switch also mounted in a Nema 3R enclosure. The wet well,
level sensors, pumps and valves would still be underground.
The Nema 3R construction eliminates the need for a building
unless dictated by other requirements.
The S&B MCC/RTU uses MCC construction,
S&B’s Model 6000-P4 Pump Station Controller/RTU for
control and monitoring and a UL913 listed instrument package to
meet intrinsic safety requirements. This system permits
testing the equipment and monitoring operations from the Master
Control Center or by using the Operator Interface Module (OIM) on
the panel. The system allows operators to check and observe
any alarm history, check pump hours and cycles, start and stop
each pump, observe wet well level, compare power meter readings,
etc. Access hatches to wet well and/or dry well can be
opened when at the station and equipment visually inspected
without having to climb down inside.
For existing pump stations, the Model
6000-P4 and associated wet well controls provide many of the same
benefits. This package would interface with the existing
starters and include the wet well level sensors and a UL913 panel
for mounting in the station. The Controller/RTU can be
mounted above ground or if not practical, in the dry well. If
mounted in the dry well, we suggest mounting the OIM module just
under the access hatch so it can be used by the operator without
entering the station.
For both new and existing stations,
operation and management of these important facilities are
enhanced by these systems. The features of the S&B
MCC/RTU and Model 6000-P4 Pump Station Controller/RTU are
described on the attached data sheet.
The RTU’s can communicate directly
with a Master Telemetry Unit for both supervisory control and
station monitoring. For other systems, it is furnished with
an automatic telephone dialer for alarms and status. For
more information, contact your S&B Field Engineer at
425-644-1700.