Case Study: Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District (SRCSD)

SRCSD Partners with Emerson to Improve Operations and Reduce Costs with Ovation®

A five-year plan prepared by SRCSD identified the challenges associated with a rapidly expanding service area while meeting increased environmental regulations. Major changes to the wastewater treatment pant computer system were required to overcome these challenges. The facility's original process control system, installed in 1982, had several issues. Among other problems, it had no redundancy and no mechanism for automatic restart when power was lost. When SRCSD set out to replace the aging process controls, plant managers knew its staff would only accept a centralized system designed and programmed through a true partnership with the supplier and engineering consultant. SRCSD had two specific needs for the project.

First, it wanted its staff involved in programming the new system, which would mean a contract with a large training component. Second, SRCSD wanted to minimize installation time — in water and wastewater treatment plants, control system installation can be lengthy due to the fact that the facilities must remain operational during the upgrade. SRCSD enlisted EMA Services, Inc. as its contractor and selected the Power & Water Solutions division of Emerson Process Management as the third team member. SRCSD partnered with Emerson to modernize the aging controls while maintaining the previous investments in the I/O system. Emerson provided a technically sound solution by implementing Ovation® expert technology.

Results

• 25% under overall project budget with the help of timely SRCSD and Emerson implementation
• $5 million estimated savings by retaining previous I/O
• $110,000 saved in testing and training costs using an on-site trailer
• Installed seven months ahead of schedule
• Flexible system design opened the door for future installation of an Ovation SCADA Server for improved communications with remote pump stations