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Firewater South Loop Upgrade at Chemical Plant
Firewater South Loop Upgrade at Chemical Plant Morrison Hershfield
The NOVA Chemicals’ firewater system was originally constructed in 1978. In 2005, a piping system condition assessment was completed and it identified significant corrosion in the existing carbon steel piping which comprises the majority of the fire protection system. This Morrison Hershfield project involved replacing the majority of the firewater piping, hydrants, monitors and isolation valves (PIVA’s) within the identified upgrade area.  The steel piping that was replaced consisted of a variety of diameters from 600mm to 100mm.  The majority of the steel piping was replaced with HDPE using such trenchless technologies as directional drilling and boring.
The detailed design stage involved creating a hydraulic analysis of the firewater system using water modeling software. Morrison Hershfield produced several reports starting with a Design Basis Memorandum (DBM) and working through several risk analysis (HAZOP) meetings before eventually developing several Construction Work Packages (CWP’s) in preparation for construction tendering.  Morrison Hershfield also assisted NOVA with a material procurement strategy and construction supervision.  The scope of work was also expanded to replace a large section of the existing 100mm PVC water line.

Due to the cost of this project, the construction has been phased over several years. The first phase will involve modifications/upgrades to the firewater pump house and the following phases will complete the replacement of underground piping within the identified upgrade area.

 Morrison Hershfield's role included:

  •  Gathering information on the existing system
  • Completing the preliminary and detailed design stages involving a risk assessment (HAZOP) of the proposed changes and isolation plan, hydraulic modeling analysis of the firewater piping system, and creating several Construction Work Packages (CWP’s).  Morrison Hershfield assisted in producing an isolation plan that maintained 10,000 GPM at 100 psi during the entire construction stage to meet insurance requirements
  • Assisting NOVA Chemicals with a material procurement strategy and prepare cost estimates, provide construction isometric drawings and technical specifications
  • Providing part-time on-site field engineering support during construction activities

A sophisticated isolation plan eliminated the need to use a temporary piping system during the various improvements which assisted in minimizing construction costs and effort.  The newly designed distribution system improved the redundancy within the pump house and the looped piping system ensures water can flow from at least two directions to any area.

Significant efforts have been made by the team of Morrison Hershfield and NOVA Chemical personnel to ensure that the work met all safety and fire code requirements while producing a cost-effective solution.

Firewater South Loop Upgrade at Chemical Plant 0Morrison Heshfield

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