The scope of work will consist of construction improvements including removal and replacement of raw wastewater pump No.2, associated piping and accessories; painting of the new pump and piping; start-up and testing and incidentals, for a complete and fully functional system.

The CEM Program was made possible through a generous donation by the Filanc family in 2006 and as a result, SDSU officially renamed its construction program to the J.R. Filanc Construction Engineering & Management Program.

Please visit us at Booth #79

For more information about RMSAWWA please click here.

Come join us. We’ll be in Booth 35
at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort
in Phoenix, AZ – September 11-14, 2011

The 26th Annual WateReuse Symposium will be held September 11-14, 2011 at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort in Phoenix, AZ. Presented by the WateReuse Association and cosponsored by the American Water Works Association and the Water Environment Federation, the Symposium will feature more than 100 technical presentations, technical tours, a national legislative and water policy outlook session, receptions, an awards luncheon, and the ever-popular exhibition component.

For more information please click here.

Gary Silverman has devoted all of his 28-year career to the water and wastewater industry. He is a registered professional civil engineer in California and multiple other states and has earned the credential Board Certified Environmental Engineer from the American Academy of Environmental Engineers. He holds a Masters of Science degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering and a Bachelors of Science degree in Civil Engineering, both from Colorado State University.

Mr. Silverman has a well-rounded and comprehensive background having worked in both the public and private sector directing, managing and executing a diverse range of complex projects. His experience includes water and wastewater system infrastructure design, treatment facility design, treatment process evaluations, alternative analyses, water supply planning, and water quality and regulatory investigations.

In his new position as Director of Design Engineering, Gary will serve as the Design Manager for design-build projects in the areas of new water/wastewater treatment facility construction, facility expansions, alterations, upgrades, and repair and maintenance. Responsibilities will include participation in business development activities, management of external specialty engineering subcontractors, long term development of internal design capabilities, assistance with pre-construction services on all design-build and construction manager at risk projects, and value engineering/change order support on design-bid-build construction projects.

Filanc is proud to announce that with Gary, we will have all design-build capabilities in-house for projects ranging from less than $1 million to approximately $30,000,000. As the economy has changed, we have shifted with the needs of the economy and in response to our competition. To our knowledge, this is the first time in our industry and region that a contractor of our capacity has brought design in-house to offer truly integrated design-build services.

Gary’s enthusiasm and innovative skills will take Filanc to the next level in the design-build arena. He will play a critical role in our organization as it grows over the next decade and beyond. Prior to joining Filanc, Silverman served as Project Director with PBS&J and Managing Engineer with Brown and Caldwell, and is a well known and highly respected professional in our industry. His past project experience includes the Carlsbad Seawater Desalination Plant EPC Binding Offer for Acciona Water/Poseidon Resources, the St. Andrews Sewer Pump Station and Force Main for the City of Poway, and the Otay Mesa Trunk Sewer, for Pardee Homes and the City of San Diego.

In memory of Pete, AGC funded a bronze relief that was beautifully sculpted by the 2010 2010 AGC San Diego President, Diane Keltner. The relief will be placed in the SDSU School of Engineering to insure that Pete’s efforts will never be forgotten. The dedication was held on October 15th at SDSU by 2008 AGC President John Daley Jr. and Dr. Ken Walsh, Director of the program. Many people came to honor Pete Filanc on this day including members and staff of AGC San Diego, as well as family and many SDSU students and program alumni.

SDSU President Stephen Weber presided over a ceremony in recognition of this significant contribution, during which he announced that the college had officially renamed its construction program to the J.R. Filanc Construction Engineering and Management Program. During the commemoration, President Weber remarked on how the compelling arguments of Pete Filanc and other AGC members were the determining factor in the University’s decision to pursue the new program.
With the Filanc’s gift combined with the $2,000,000 previously pledged by AGC San Diego members, the J.R. Filanc Construction Engineering and Management Program is now primed to become one of the best construction programs in the country.

To learn more about SDSU’s J.R. Filanc Construction Engineering and Management Program, visit http://www.engineering.sdsu.edu/

Henry J. Mills Water Treatment Plant
Chemical System Upgrade

Metropolitan Water District of
Southern California

[testimonial]The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) Henry J. Mills Water Treatment Plant is one of five filtration plants in MWD’s water distribution system. To support continued growth in Southern California MWD undertook several projects to upgrade the facility’s capacity from 160 million gallons per day (MGD) to over 325 MGD.

One of the projects was the upgrade to the existing chemical storage facility, which was performed by Filanc. The goal of the project was to increase storage capacity and to improve the safety of the storage of chlorine gas and liquid on the site. Filanc’s scope included construction of a new chlorine containment facility, including tank truck unloading and storage buildings, evaporator room, and chlorine scrubber areas. The firm also constructed a new fluorosilicic acid unloading area, storage, and injection facility with a roof canopy.

The project was completed in July 2009; the Filanc team met all of MWD’s budget, schedule and exacting quality performance expectations on the project. Highlights of the chemical system upgrade include:

Construction Phasing
When Filanc began work on the chemical system upgrade, the plans called for the chemical storage facility, which consisted of two separate storage areas on the site, to be constructed as one project. However, MWD required that the chemical system remain operational throughout construction. The original solution, to build and operate a temporary facility during construction, was not feasible due to the impact on the schedule. Therefore, Filanc proposed splitting the construction into two distinct phases: build the storage facility on the north side first, and then construct the south side facility. This approach would allow MWD to transfer operations over to the north facility while construction continued to the south facility to maintain operations without the need of a temporary structure.

The original design of the chemical storage facility did not accommodate a phased construction approach. Therefore, the Filanc team worked closely with MWD, the designer and other stakeholders to identify changes needed to allow the project to be built in two phases. For example, some of the components of the electrical system required to operate the first phase were shown as being part of the second phase of the project. The team worked together to relocate electrical equipment and control panels to allow the first phase of the facility to go online while the second phase was being built.

Communication
Filanc and MWD engaged in a partnering program for the work on the chemical system upgrade. The team held two formal partnering sessions, one at the start of the project and one before the second phase commenced, to outline the goals of the project and the communication expectations for the team. Filanc maintained open lines of communication with MWD and set goals identifying potential issues including solutions that would benefit the project’s objectives. Filanc provided monthly report cards to all partnering stakeholders to keep the team informed about the status of the projects. These report cards as well as other issues were discussed by the team at regular informal lunch meetings. Proactive communication was particularly important in planning the transfer of operations from the existing facility to the new facility. Filanc held meetings with the plant’s operations and maintenance teams prior to the transfer to coordinate how the start up would happen. These meetings ensured that the transfer occurred smoothly without disrupting the plant’s operations.

Quality
The Filanc team’s experience with fluoridation facilities taught them that the quality of the piping was particularly important. Fluorosilicic acid is extremely corrosive; if the piping work is not done correctly, damaging corrosion can occur. Filanc worked with a proven piping fabricator for the bulk of the piping and also self-performed the welding to ensure that qualified welders were using the proper equipment. As a result, the fluoridation facility was operational to meet an early completion milestone without any quality issues.

Safety
Filanc is committed to all aspects of safety on the job site including risk control, active employee participation, safety training, work site hazard identification and control, and a continuously updated safety program. The project went over 38,140 Man-hours with no lost time incidents or accidents.