Field Engineer of Smith and Loveless, Mr Manuel Lara (centre) shows Minister for Communications and Works Hon. Mark H. Vanterpool some of the features of the Formula X pump station following its commissioning yesterday, July 24, 2013. At left is CEO of BIO-SAFE, Mr Patrick Mitchell. BIO-SAFE was contracted to source and install the state of the art equipment. Photo: VINO

The Formula X pump station is equipped with two 25 horsepower pumps with each having the capacity to pump some 620 gallons of sewage per minute. Photo: VINO

Once the water rises at a certain level in the sewer, a flotation mechanism will cause the second pump to kick in as a backup. Photo: VINO

CEO of BIO-SAFE, Mr Patrick Mitchell (second from left) hands over the key to the pump station to Minister Vanterpool at the commissioning ceremony in the presence of Acting Director of Water and Sewerage Department, Perline Scatliffe-Leonard (left) and Field Engineer of Smith and Loveless, Mr Manuel Lara (right). Photo: VINO

The Formula X mounted pump station, which has cost government some $163, 000, was sourced from Kansas-based Smith and Loveless, a company that boasts some 60 years of engineering and manufacturing expertise.

Asked whether the days of sewage in the streets of Road Town may be over, Hon. Vanterpool said “I would hope so but I would have to be frank and say that this is part of the overall project. We have done some new piping where some of the pipes have collapsed and are still collapsing. So there is another stage that we are working on to bring some pipes across and there is another stage where some more pipes are going to come further down from by Simply Delicious/Cutlass Tower. There is an RFP out on bids for that and when the overall project is completed then I can more safely say that we wouldn’t see sewage on the roads.”

According to the Minister, sewage used to build up at the pumping station causing a backup which would then spill on to the streets. "So now based on what we are testing and seeing from yesterday (July 23, 2013) it’s all the way down at that level since yesterday and once the pumps operate at that it should remain that way without having backups that we were having.”

The upgrading of the Road Town Pump Station was guided by the CBE Engineering team led by Mr Samuel Macintosh; however, the pump was sourced and installed by BIO-SAFE, led by CEO Mr Patrick Mitchell.

“Today all of the work has culminated in what we see here. From a technical standpoint it is considered an upgraded system to be able to move the sewage more quickly out through the drainage systems and avoid the backing up that was happening as much as it was over the past several years and proving a sort of medium term solution to what we are looking for here in the growing need for sewerage treatment throughout the Territory,” said Hon. Vanterpool.

Long Term Plan

The long term plan for the Road Town Pump Station, Hon. Vanterpool said, is to build a, “deeper well” pumping station, in the area. “We want to say that we recognise some of the issues and problems that surrounded it. We have an issue with the land that we are looking to acquire in the future.” The Minister said Government is working closely with the owner of the land where the pump station sits to exchange the property for another piece of property on Wickham’s Cay or nearby.

According to Mitchell, the new system installed is a Formula X non-clog system that is state of the art. “We look forward to having other stations upgraded with the same type of pumps installed at Road Town. We know those pumps are working very well, from yesterday (July 23) to today, its performance has been very good and it has been doing some 620 gallons per minute, which is good... We started it full with everything overflowing in the streets.

Field Engineer of Smith and Loveless, Mr Manuel Lara said the Formula X is a “great” system that is fully automated and easy to operate. “Most of the time just one pump is going to run but if the water level continues to rise there is a second pump that will run at the same time. Anyone with little training can control the station,” Mr Lara assured.

According to Macintosh, CBE Engineering worked very hard with BIO-SAFE to identify a suitable pump for the site, “and this pump, as Patrick says, is a state of the art pump. One of the main features of the new pump as opposed to the other pumping units that were submerged at the bottom of the well is that this pumping unit is all above ground so if there is any problem it is very easy to carry out the repairs.”

Explaining the reason sewage often spilled on to the streets, Mr Macintosh said the old pumps used to break down just about every other week or so. “One of the biggest problems was that the system was very old, pipes were leaking and there is a lot of undesirable stuff coming in and mixing with the sewage, like stones and sticks and other particles. Before now there was no way of screening and keeping those things out of the pumps so over time those things would wear down the impellers of the pump and shorten the lifespan of the pumps... We have put in some brand new screening systems so before the sewage gets to the pump it will be screened and all the dangerous stuff will be taken out before it gets to the pump.”

The engineer also said the average flow at the Road Town Pump Station was about 400 gals per minute but this could increase depending on the weather and peak hours. Storm water, he said, should be easily handled owing to the capacity of the two pumps.

The pump station currently directs sewage to Slaney Point where it is discharged some 700 feet offshore at a depth of about 110 ft.

New Pump Station could be a back up when Biwater builds deep well- Vanterpool

Meanwhile, Hon. Vanterpool said Government was not willing to wait until Biwater was in a position to build the deep well pump station in Road Town, and hence moved to have the state of the art unit installed in the interim. He said the unit would not be discarded once Biwater steps in with the deep well pump station.

“The deep well that Biwater is to install is still on track. We couldn’t wait for Biwater to do it but it could be a back up when Biwater installs the deep well.”

Asked if there were any overruns for the acquiring and installing of the unit, Hon. Vanterpool said the contract was $163, 000 and as far as he knows, the contractor, BIO-Safe hasn’t asked for any more money.”

Others at the commissioning ceremony were Deputy Secretary in the Ministry of Communications and Works, Mr Anthony McMaster and Acting Director of Water and Sewerage Department, Perline Scatliffe-Leonard.