SSE, a locally-based industrial automation company and telemetry specialist, assisted the water and waste water department of the Midvaal Municipality to control its pumping scheme and prevent overflows into local rivers and towns. The tender called for the implementation of a scada-based monitoring system at 21 sewage pump stations and two water reservoirs within the Midvaal Municipality area.
Excelcom, a member company of SSE Holdings, won the bid and deployed an SSE telemetry network operating on a GE MDS SD4 digital UHF radio backbone with an Adroit Scada at the control room. SSE’s Gareth Frost says that the municipality’s challenge was not only to gain control of its pumping scheme, but also to monitor and report with respect to the quality and availability of the system in order to improve service delivery.
A turnkey solution
The Midvaal Municipality’s initial requirement was for the installation of a GPRS-based telemetry system. SSE specialists recommended using licensed UHF digital radio telemetry that proved to be a less expensive alternative with lower operating costs. “The SSE solution delivered by Exelcom provided a reliable and cost effective platform for telemetry communications,” says Frost. “Not only were the up-front costs for the radio network less than the primary offer for GPRS communications, but the long term costs are projected to be lower as the accumulative data charges are nil on the digital radio system.”
Another obstacle was the ultrasonic level control system required in the initial tender. SSE felt that this would not be successful due to the characteristics of the sewage dumps – deep and narrow – being outside the capabilities of the ultrasonic level controllers. A Multitrode Indicator Controller (MTIC) system with 10 sensor probes of varying lengths was recommended as a better option. “The Multitrode level and pump control technology provided a solution with which the engineers were most satisfied,” explains Frost.
Despite having to rebuild MCC panels that were in poor condition, installation was completed on schedule and the system is now operating under a 3-year maintenance contract. According to Frost, some of the advantages the municipality can look forward to include improved up-time for the pumping scheme, reliable pump control, accurate performance data, reliable reporting, immediate alarms for system faults and improved service delivery through access to real-time information on the systems under surveillance.
For more information contact SSE Group, +27 (0)12 663 4331, [email protected], www.sse.co.za
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