flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

California wastewater agency wins with radiant technology

Sponsored Content Industrial Facilities

California wastewater agency wins with radiant technology

Since the facility produces its own electricity using three natural gas generators, the water flowing through the slab would be heated with a heat exchanger in one of the generator’s exhaust.


By Viega | August 17, 2015

Installing Viega Climate Mat® for BBARWA

When most people think of radiant heat or hydronic snowmelt, the usual applications are warm floors, heated sidewalks and snow-free driveways. Viega Radiant Design Services in Nashua, NH, has designed and quoted thousands of projects like those, but occasionally they receive requests for assistance with out-of-the-box projects.

The Big Bear Area Regional Wastewater Agency (BBARWA) in Big Bear, CA, contacted Viega Radiant Design Services with a project that needed an innovative solution. A byproduct of the water treatment process is sludge, composed of 25% solids and 75% water. Since the sludge must be hauled by truck to an off-site disposal area, BBARWA needed a way to reduce the water content and weight of the sludge, making it less expensive to haul. BBARWA tried several different methods to dry the sludge with only marginal success, so they decided to devise a new system that would be more effective, more efficient and would reduce the odor complaints.

Viega Radiant Design Services worked on the specifics of the slab heating system design, focusing on what would be required to generate enough heat from the slab to meet the sludge-drying objectives. Viega design engineers used finite element analysis (FEA) to determine the optimum tubing size, spacing and install-depth in the slab based on the water temperature supplied from the diesel generator’s exhaust. Due to the shape and size of the 315- by 60-foot heated slab, it was clear that this project was an excellent application for Viega’s revolutionary Viega Climate Mat® system.

Since the facility produces its own electricity using three natural gas generators, the water flowing through the slab would be heated with a heat exchanger in one of the generator’s exhaust, making it an efficient co-generation system. Within the first year alone, the new system saved approximately $200,000 in transportation and fuel costs.

Viega Climate Mat® system

The contractors were impressed with the speed and ease of installation of the Viega Climate Mat and appreciated the support provided by Viega throughout the entire process, from design to installation.

“Anything you said you could do, you did it,” said Plant Manager Fred Uhler. “They were topnotch guys from the sales staff, to the design support. They were excited about the project. It’s great to work with people like that.”

Once the covered drying bed building was completed, the system went into operation in June 2014. Within a few months, it became clear that this unique application of radiant heating was a resounding success. In 2015, Uhler reported that the system was performing beyond expectations and even better in the low-humidity winter months.

“This system is self-operational, and I’ve had zero maintenance issues with it from Viega’s side of things,” Uhler said. “It couldn’t be any better.”

Additionally, the project received the California Water Association Desert Mountain Award for Innovation.

While conventional radiant heating and snow melting projects are everyday business for the Viega team, projects like the Big Bear Area Regional Wastewater Agency covered drying bed are prime examples of how Viega can design and deliver innovative solutions that improve lives, reduce energy usage and help protect the environment.

For more information on Viega system solutions, visit Viega.us.

Viega
800.976.9819
insidesales@viega.us
www.viega.us

Related Stories

Industrial Facilities | Mar 12, 2020

Cutting cost on flooring could cost your next industrial project big

It’s underfoot, sure, but the floor coatings in your manufacturing facility should be top of mind.

3D Printing | Sep 17, 2019

Additive manufacturing goes mainstream in the industrial sector

More manufacturers now include this production process in their factories.

Giants 400 | Sep 11, 2019

Top 95 Industrial Sector Contractors for 2019

Fluor, Clayco, Jacobs, ARCO, and Gray Construction top the rankings of the nation's largest industrial sector contractors and construction management firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.

Giants 400 | Sep 11, 2019

Top 85 Industrial Sector Engineering Firms for 2019

Jacobs, Fluor, IPS, CRB, and SSOE head the rankings of the nation's largest industrial sector engineering and engineering architecture (EA) firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.

Giants 400 | Sep 9, 2019

Top 70 Industrial Sector Architecture Firms for 2019

AECOM, Stantec, Ware Malcomb, FSB, and Macgregor Associates top the rankings of the nation's largest industrial sector architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.

Giants 400 | Sep 9, 2019

2019 Industrial Sector Giants Report: Managing last mile delivery

This and more industrial building sector trends from Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report. 

Industrial Facilities | Mar 10, 2019

The burgeoning Port San Antonio lays out growth plans

Expansions would accommodate cybersecurity, aerospace, and defense tenants, and help commercialize technologies.

Industrial Facilities | Feb 28, 2019

*UPDATED WITH IMAGES* Rooftop park and ski slope on Amager Bakke waste-to-energy plant set to open in April

The park is designed to act as a ‘green bomb’ for the surrounding area.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category


Warehouses

California bill would limit where distribution centers can be built

A bill that passed the California legislature would limit where distribution centers can be located and impose other rules aimed at reducing air pollution and traffic. Assembly Bill 98 would tighten building standards for new warehouses and ban heavy diesel truck traffic next to sensitive sites including homes, schools, parks and nursing homes.



halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021