Streamlining Operations And Maintenance For Orange County, Florida, Public Utilities

摘要

Orange County Public Utilities (OCU) operates a large, complex wastewater system consistingrnof three advanced wastewater treatment plants and over 500 lift stations. For over 20 years,rncentral Florida has experienced rapid, sustained growth. As the wastewater utility expanded tornaccommodate this growth, the process control and SCADA systems had become a mixture ofrntechnologies and were under-utilized.rnOCU embarked on a series of optimization initiatives aimed at curbing cost increases.rnManagement realized that proper use of control system technologies provided a means to controlrntreatment plant operation and maintenance costs. Proper SCADA system deployment wouldrnprovide a mechanism for minimizing SSO events and quickly responding to spills, should theyrnoccur. OCU established a set of objectives for an enhanced process control/SCADA system: 1)rnautomate the operation of the treatment facilities to support a reduced level of operations staff; 2)rnsimplify maintenance of the control systems; 3) provide the same look and feel at each treatmentrnfacility and for the lift station control system; 4) provide a reliable, high speed, method torninterconnect the plants thereby allowing the monitoring and control of any plant or the liftrnstations from any other plant; 5) minimize spare parts inventory; and 6) build the system usingrnnonproprietary hardware and software.rnIn 1998, OCU commissioned the development of a process control and SCADA system masterrnplan. Several technical and project delivery alternatives for meeting the objectives outlinedrnabove were evaluated. A systematic, phased implementation approach was developed. It definedrna six-year plan to install the lift station SCADA system and upgrade the process control systemsrnat each of three treatment plants. Total cost for the systems was estimated at about $16 million.rnDuring the planning phase, the two largest treatment plants were to undergo significantrnexpansions. The South Plant is experiencing a series of expansions estimated to cost nearly $100rnmillion using a design-build process. The Eastern Plant will undergo an expansion estimated torncost $3 million using a standard design-bid-build procedure. The lift station SCADA system wasrnimplemented using a design-build process with a firm bid. To accommodate the goal of arnstandardized approach to software development and to provide consistency and compatibilityrnbetween facilities, OCU retained a process control system (PCS) program management firm.rnThis firm interfaced with the design builders, the consulting engineers, and the contractors tornassure a consistent approach. Contractors were responsible for system software; the programrnmanagement firm was responsible for applications software.rnA single entity responsible to assure consistency and compatibility between all facilities isrnpossible and beneficial despite the project delivery mechanism changing from plant to plant.