United water and aecom garner top engineering honors for east
providence, r.i., facility
Harrington park, n.j.--(business wire)--united water and aecom are pleased to announce that engineering news-record new england (enr) magazine has named the city of east providence, r.i., water pollution control facility an “award of merit” in new england. united water and aecom completed extensive improvements last year that have made the 59-year-old facility more operationally friendly and efficient. in 2010, united water began its 10-year, design-build-operate (dbo) contract for the city’s wastewater collection and treatment facilities, which provide service to roughly two-thirds of east providence’s 50,000 residents. the award recognizes the $52 million capital upgrade of the 10-million-gallon-per-day facility, which included upgrading the treatment process, replacing the watchemoket cove pump station, building four new pump stations and installing a new 24-inch pipeline. the united water and aecom approach saved the city approximately $4 million by installing the new pipeline along the scenic bike path, instead of along a busy city street. now, residents enjoy a newly repaved and restored bike path, as well as an upgraded wastewater treatment facility. “winning an enr new england ‘award of merit’ award is a fantastic achievement,” said nadine leslie, president of united water’s environmental services segment. “this recognition is a direct result of the partnership and collaboration between the city, the employees and the residents of east providence. united water is proud of our partnership with aecom and the city, to be part of east providence’s solution.” the plant design enhancements were necessary to bring the collection system and plant which was built in 1954 into compliance with new state department of environmental management mandates. in addition to the renovations at the plant, united water has increased flow capacity at both the watchemoket cove and boyden boulevard pumping stations, designed to help eliminate sewer system overflows. “we are delighted to play a role in providing east providence residents with an upgraded wastewater treatment facility as well as a renovated bike path to enhance the overall community,” said scott thibault, aecom regional director, northeast & mid-atlantic design-build. “we are honored enr new england has recognized our collaborative efforts with united water.” “through the dbo project procurement and the design alternatives provided by united water and aecom, the city realized an overall project savings of $13 million from the facility planning estimates,” said stephen coutu, director of public works, city of east providence. “the complex project required high-level wastewater system design, extensive regulatory permitting, project management and administration. i am proud to say that all of this work was completed ahead of the ridem consent order deadlines and within budget. the success of this project would not have been possible if not for the dedicated and experienced team of professionals from united water and aecom. the city of east providence was fortunate to work with this partnership for the design and construction of wastewater system improvements which will serve the city for many years into the future.” enr new england’s independent jury recognized 15 winners in nine categories. united water/aecom took top honors in the water/environment category. about united water united water is one of the nation’s leading environmental companies, providing water and wastewater services to approximately 5.5 million people in the united states. in addition to owning and operating 16 water and wastewater utilities, united water operates 90 municipal and industrial water and wastewater systems through innovative public-private partnerships and contract agreements. founded in 1869, united water is a subsidiary of suez environnement. about suez environnement natural resources are not infinite. each day, suez environnement (paris:sev, brussels:sevb) and its subsidiaries deal with the challenge of protecting resources by providing innovative solutions to industries and to millions of people. suez environnement supplies drinking water to 97 million people, provides wastewater treatment services for 66 million people and collects the waste produced by 50 million people. suez environnement has 79,550 employees and, with its presence on a global scale, is a world leader exclusively dedicated to environmental services. suez environnement, reported sales turnover of 14.8 billion euros ($19.6 billion usd) at the end of financial year 2012. about aecom aecom is a global provider of professional technical and management support services to a broad range of markets, including transportation, facilities, environmental, energy, water and government. with approximately 45,000 employees around the world, aecom is a leader in all of the key markets that it serves. aecom provides a blend of global reach, local knowledge, innovation and technical excellence in delivering solutions that create, enhance and sustain the world's built, natural, and social environments. a fortune 500 company, aecom serves clients in more than 140 countries and had revenue of $8.2 billion during the 12 months ended june 30, 2013.
