DAF Monthly Message June 2017

DAF Monthly Message
WATER TREATMENT PLANT, NEW PRE-TREATMENT SYSTEM
June 2017
Editor: Amy Cloud ()
Project Engineer: Freeman Anthony (360/778-7924, )

Are workers still on a four-day schedule?
Not anymore. Since construction activity has hit its stride, the contractor is likely to resume a five-day work schedule, adding back Fridays, in order to keep progress maximized. They’re still likely to start work at 7 a.m. and work past 5 p.m.

What’s happening at the site now?

This month the visuals started going vertical.

Plant drains and floor drains were placed this month - under and throughout the waterproofing which is under the reinforcement steel in the foundation (base slab.)

And the wall reinforcement steel has been connected to the base slab reinforcement. Concrete was poured 2-feet thick for the base slab. Once that was poured and the formsremoved, then the crew was able to begin layout for wall panels. The reinforcement steel for the walls (pictured here)is in place on the poured and cured slabs.

Meanwhile the electrical crew has been busy placing the conduits that we’ll need for upgrading to the new transformer, which is set up to handle more electricity as needed. A new Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS) was placed on its pad in the basement of the current water treatment plant. The ATS can recognize if power (from Puget Sound Energy) is out; it will automatically start the large generator at the plant and switch over to it for power.

And then what?

Over the next few months, wall steel will be placed for the DAF and wall forms will be poured/filled with concrete. Forms will be moved to get all walls poured and then the upper concrete floors and the basins will be poured in a sequence. AN electrical switchover to the new Transformer and the new ATS will take place.

Also good to know:
As always, weather conditions could influence activity at the construction site. Flaggers are posted at the corner of Arbor Court and Silver Beach Road, and near the intersection of Silver Beach Road and Lakeway Drive, entering Whatcom Falls Park.

By the way, if you’ve missed any of these monthly updates, they’re archived on the City’s website. From the home page, “search” Capital Projects and then DAF. You’ll find the Monthly Messages going back to November 2016.

And… why are we doing this?

This is to make sure the City's drinking water - drawn from Lake Whatcom - is as clean and safe as it can be. We're building a Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF) pre-treatment plant to remove as many as particulates as possible from the water, in order to maximize the City's Water Treatment Plant efficiency. For more project information, click here.