Compressed Air and Power Solutions Australia (CAPS) has been selected as a finalist in the Water & Wastewater category of the 2013 PACE Zenith Awards for their adaptation of equipment to meet the demands of an innovative water recycling project. The prestigious annual Zenith Awards publicly-recognise and reward companies that show leadership in engineering and technological excellence and innovation in several industry categories.

CAPS supplied four Robuschi ROBOX positive displacement blowerswhich are used to aerate water during treatment and to provide backwash to clean membrane filters at Yarra Park Recycled Water Treatment Plant in Melbourne. The blowers are in operation 24 hours a day, with two in standby mode. “What makes CAPS’ role special in this case was the collaboration that occurred with our partner to ensure we had the best solution to meet the needs of this ground breaking project,” said Sri Srinivasan, Product Manager – Blowers at CAPS.

This multi-million dollar project to construct Victoria’s largest underground recycled water treatment plant at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) had tight constraints for installation and access. Recognising this, CAPS sourced the most appropriate equipment—meeting the size, control and servicing criteria—from its extensive range.

The design and construction requirements stipulated minimal impact on Yarra Park. Deciding to bury the plant underground in a 12 by 4.8-metre diameter structure achieved this aim but increased the constraints on the equipment that could be used. “The blower solution had to fit into the very confined space in the ‘bunker’, with the four units installed side by side with very little space between them,” said Srinivasan. “Service access normally occurs at the back and sides of machines but the constraints of the site meant the selected machines had to have maintenance access and control via top and front panels.”

The CAPS blower solution is now one of the key parts of the treatment plant and it is not uncommon to see engineering students in the bunker, learning how the CAPS solution, plant design and other key equipment are dramatically reducing water usage at the MCG.