State-of-the-Art Tools and Techniques for Multidisciplinary Condition Assessments

The City of Tampa owns and operates the David L. Tippin Water Treatment Facility (facility). The facility processes surface water from the Hillsborough River and is permitted to withdraw an average annual daily flow of 82 mil gal per day (mgd), with a permitted maximum-day capacity of 120 mgd. Originally built in the 1920s, the facility has undergone expansions and upgrades and houses thousands of assets that are currently in service. The facility’s major systems include mechanical bar screens, Actiflo™ systems, conventional coagulation systems, ozone, biofilters, chemical feed systems, gravity thickeners, pump stations, and clearwells. Since a majority of the existing assets range from 15 to 40 years in service, a comprehensive master plan was undertaken to determine the remaining useful life and functionality of those assets considering, among other factors, their size, age, efficiency, reliability, and process complexity.

The following disciplines and respective scopes of work were required to complete the assessment:

• Mechanical – Inspection of process and nonprocess mechanical equipment, chemical feed and storage systems, and pumping systems.

• Structural – Inspection of water-bearing structures, building superstructures, and structural components of mechanical equipment.

• Architectural – Inspection of each building interior and exterior; roofing; lighting; lavatories; heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC); and fire suppression systems.

• Electrical – Inspection of electric power supply and distribution systems, building electrical systems, and electrical components of mechanical equipment.

• Civil – Inspection of onsite paving, roadways, drainage, and easily accessible lift stations and manholes.

Instrumentation and controls, and assets under $5,000 in value and not critical to plant operations, were not evaluated under this project. In order to complete this task in the most efficient manner, the AWWA Research Foundation “Water Treatment Plant Infrastructure Assessment Manager” (Manager) software was utilized in conjunction with a newly developed android tablet software and field tablets.