Ocotillo Water Reclamation Facility

Project Overview

A 10 MGD to 15.5 MGD water reclamation facility expansion that consisted of a new treatment train and supporting facilities. By conducting early procurement of long-lead equipment, collaborating closely with the primary Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), and self-performing 60% of the project the team was able to efficiently sequence and install complex wastewater systems ahead of schedule.

During construction, the project team proactively sought opportunities to reduce overall project costs and increase value for the City in the form of direct cost savings. These savings allowed the City to prioritize the replacement, rehabilitation and procurement of items that were not in the original design scope. Also, a phased startup approach was implemented to allow primary, secondary, and solids handling facilities to sufficiently come online and optimize individually, in lieu of commissioning the entire plant at one time.

A major challenge for this project was maintaining operations of the existing facility during construction activities. There were over 30 scheduled shutdown events that required close coordination between the plant operations team and the project team.

The scope included:

• A new joint headworks facility
• Biological nutrient removal (BNR) process
• A membrane bioreactor (MBR) process
• Full solids handling and dewatering facilities

Upgrades to supporting facilities included:

• Membrane clean-in-place (CIP) facilities
• A blower/pump building
• Sodium hypochlorite disinfection
• A new joint reclaimed water storage reservoir and effluent pumping facilities
• Administration and maintenance facilities
• Site-civil elements and miscellaneous electrical, instrumentation and controls