News
Barge Wins ACEC-GA Engineering Excellence Award for V.D. Parrott Jr. Water Treatment Plant Improvements
21 / February / 2024
The American Council of Engineering Companies of Georgia has recognized Barge for its innovative planning and design, helping transform the V.D. Parrott Jr. Water Treatment Plant (WTP) into a state-of-the-art facility equipped for the future. We received an Engineering Excellence Honor Award in the "Water Resources or Waste and Storm Water" category at the 2024 Georgia Engineering Excellence Awards on February 23. Today, the treatment plant stands as one of the largest membrane filtration water plants in the Southeast, significantly enhancing the quality of life for the Dalton community.
Situated in Dalton, Ga., the V.D. Parrott WTP is vital to the region's infrastructure. Collaborating with Dalton Utilities in Dalton, Georgia, Barge assumed the role of Engineer of Record and led the $76.1 million multi-phased capital improvements plan (CIP) to enhance the core WTP infrastructure to extend its lifespan and elevate water quality standards. This would significantly improve plant operations, automation, water quality, safety, and long-term regulatory compliance while retaining the ability to return the plant to the original 50 MGD to promote future economic growth.
The V.D. Parrott Jr. WTP upgrades exemplify how CIP development can provide a blueprint of how a project can efficiently and safely evolve over time. In this scenario, the commitment to an aged facility was an extraordinary effort by Barge's design team. Intense pilot studies and research pointed to leading-edge equipment, processing, and automated needs for the future. Clever repurposing of spaces and buildings required innovative design and creative demolition when needed. Notably, excavating an expansive 72-inch tunnel through solid rock facilitated the construction of a new raw water pump station, resulting in significant cost savings and time efficiencies.
A complex project of this size, depth, and longevity required commitment and innovation to complete in a multi-phased effort. Throughout the project, Barge's team of designers replaced critical chemical treatment systems to minimize risk and uphold regulatory compliance far into the future. Completing these intensive planning efforts to match unknown future regulatory requirements added an extra challenge. New water pumping facilities demanded innovation to save time and millions of dollars on the project and designing a new membrane filtration system required significant structure development and timely state regulation approvals to keep the demanding project on schedule.
Today, the V.D. Parrott Jr. WTP stands as one of the largest membrane filtration water plants in the Southeast, significantly enhancing the quality of life for the Dalton community.
