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Yukon station declared complete; authority reviews pump-station upgrades, epoxy work and cellular telemetry move
Summary
Staff reported the Yukon pump station is functionally complete after a flow meter installation that required draining roughly 30,000 gallons; the authority heard details on new PLCs, VFDs, epoxy work to limit corrosion (about $60,000 now vs $150,000 later), and plans to migrate telemetry to cellular-based PLCs and to get a cost estimate for an MDC pump station upgrade by September.
Staff told the authority that the Yukon pump station is 100% complete aside from final signal adjustments and flow-meter calibration. During installation staff discovered an expected valve was not present after the meter location, forcing crews to drain about 30,000 gallons from the force main and pump the flow into trucks overnight to install the meter and finish wiring and calibration.
Staff described multiple recent station upgrades across the system: they replaced a starter for Pump 2 at Snowberry, addressed an overcurrent fault at West Farms that sometimes prevents generator starting, and plan wet-well cleaning at Patrick Flood station. For Yukon specifically, staff showed photos of infiltration leaks in the wet well and said those areas were epoxied to reduce corrosion and leaks.
Equipment upgrades included a new touchscreen PLC and three new variable-frequency drives (VFDs) that replace older hardware and provide more alarm and control options (CO fail, temp fail, amp fail, high/low level). Staff said the epoxy protection and newer VFDs will boost corrosion resistance and energy efficiency. They reported the epoxy and associated work cost substantially more if deferred (staff cited roughly $90,000 to buy epoxy and $60,000 to epoxy now, presented as an investment to avoid a $150,000 future cost).
Staff also said future station upgrades will use cellular PLC-based communications rather than the existing radio network to reduce interference and improve reliability. On the MDC pump station, staff said DPC Engineering is completing a final survey and they expect a clearer cost estimate by the September meeting; options under consideration include patching a force main or switching suction-lift pumps to submersible units depending on price.
Staff named contractors involved in recent projects (as transcribed: Fujimi, HESCO, Hosner) and said performance was generally good with three modest change orders, mainly for higher-grade stainless components and a coupler needed for the flow-meter installation. No new formal approvals or budget votes for the upgrades were recorded at the meeting; staff flagged the MDC estimate as a follow-up item for a future meeting.
The meeting concluded after routine business; no public comment was recorded in the transcript.
