MWWA 2020 Conference & Tradeshow

Western Canada Public Works departments face a constant struggle with managing operations budgets, time, and safety throughout the province. One of the most prevalent conditions that need to be addressed in both these aspects are confined space entry requirements and procedures – specifically in air release valve chambers. Costly and time-consuming operations to perform maintenance on these valves has led manufacturers to look at methods of increasing operator safety while alleviating budget costs.
Recently, the Taza Exchange on the Tsuu T’ina Nation and the Castle Waterline near Crowsnest Pass utilized emerging technology in combination air release / vacuum valve technology in order to eliminate the manhole chamber that is typically required for this type of installation. This paper will review these two projects for the view of specification, installation and operation in the form of separate case studies.
The purpose of this White Paper is to review the results in terms of monetary cost to the municipality – as determined by comparing capital costs as well as maintenance costs; as well as time and safety factors for municipal operators. In addition to a technical review, having both the specifying engineer from MPE and technical representative from H-Tec will allow for dedicated information for all aspects of the installation and maintenance of this project.