PITTSBURGH — The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DCWASA), which operates the Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant, has embarked on a multi-year, multi-partner capital investment program to enhance operational efficiency and assure long-term reliable treatment and compliance with environmental regulations. An important part of this overall program is adoption of a long-term automation strategy that calls for an integrated approach for monitoring and controlling plant processes, water distribution and wastewater collection. Emerson Process Management’s Ovation® expert control system is an integral component of this comprehensive automation strategy.A technical paper titled “Successful Implementation of a Large PCCS/SCADA Program Provides Valuable Lessons for Utility Managers,” will highlight how DCWASA and its partners are successfully managing this comprehensive project. The technical paper is co-authored by Bob Werner, Walt Bailey, Salil Kharkar, Rich Louis, and Hiram Tanner, all of DCWASA; Bob Manross, Phil Guyer and Jim Schultz, all of EMA Inc.; and Tom Kizer and David Cooper, both of the Power & Water Solutions industry center of Emerson Process Management. It will be presented 1:30 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 2, at WEFTEC ’05, the 78th Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference of the Water Environment Federation, taking place Oct. 29 – Nov. 2, 2005, in Washington, D.C.“This project, slated to finish in 2010, interfaces to construction of 16 new facility upgrade projects,” explained Cooper, lead technical engineer for Emerson’s Power & Water Solutions industry center. “Upon completion, the control system will centralize monitoring and control of plant processes. Having plant-wide information available from an integrated system will allow for more streamlined decision making.” According to the authors, conceptualizing, designing, construction and startup up a project of this size and scope is an exercise in complexity, necessitating the use of proven methods, tools and skills. Challenges and opportunities that must be addressed include:
The evaluated bid process;
Scheduling and coordination of design and construction efforts;
Development of project-specific standards for programming and communication interfaces; and,
The role of inspection and testing to ensure projects fit and work well together.The ability to adjust to a dynamic environment is key to the success of such a comprehensive project. Change, both planned and unplanned, is constant on a project of this magnitude. Through the multi-year life of this project, technology will continue to evolve, so steps have been taken to incorporate these advances. The willingness for all parties to work together toward a common goal was also extremely important for the continued success of the project. “Any utility management team that is contemplating or pursuing a comprehensive automation project will benefit from understanding the lessons learned at DCWASA,” concluded Kizer, project manager for the Power & Water Solutions industry center of Emerson.About Emerson Process ManagementEmerson Process Management (www.emersonprocess.com), an Emerson business, is a leader in helping businesses automate their production, processing and distribution in the power, water and wastewater treatment, chemical, oil and gas, refining, pulp and paper, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, and other industries. Emerson's Power & Water Solutions division (www.emersonprocess-powerwater.com) is a global supplier of advanced distributed process control and information systems. The Pittsburgh-based company is a recognized leader in developing plant-wide process control solutions for the power generation, water treatment and wastewater treatment industries. Power & Water Solutions plays a key role in the Emerson mission of combining superior products and technology with industry-specific engineering, consulting, project management and maintenance services. Emerson brands include PlantWeb®, Ovation®; SmartProcess®; FisherÒ; MicroMotion®; Rosemount®; Mobrey™; Daniel™, DeltaVTM™ and AMSTM Suite.About EmersonEmerson (NYSE: EMR), based in St. Louis, is a global leader in bringing technology and engineering together to provide innovative solutions to customers through its network power, process management, industrial automation, climate technologies, and appliance and tools businesses. Sales in fiscal 2004 were $15.6 billion. For more information, visit www.GoToEmerson.com.
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