Nomination for AWA Infrastructure Project Innovation Awards

Charters Towers Water Treatment Plant Aquatec Maxcon

Aquatec Maxcon and Charters Towers Regional Council's "Collaborative Design Approach and Use of Innovative Process Technology to Upgrade the FEJ Butcher Water Treatment Plant" was shortlisted as a finalist in the 2021 Australian Water Association (AWA) Queensland Water Awards for the Infrastructure Project Innovation (Regional) Award.

The Infrastructure Project Innovation Award (Metro and Regional) recognises significant and innovative infrastructure projects within the water industry that drive prosperity and sustainability. Projects that may be included in this award are those which involve new or upgraded infrastructure (physical or digital) which have delivered improved outcomes for the organisation, community and/or industry.

Judging criteria for the award includes the following:

Whilst we did not win the award this year, we are extremely proud of what we have achieved at Charters Towers and we are thrilled to have been nominated and been presented with the opportunity to share our achievements with a wider audience.

A little bit about the Charters Towers Water Treatment Plant Upgrade Project

When put out to market during December 2017, the Charters Towers contract was originally a refurbishment project. The initial aim was to reuse the already existing assets present in the plant without building new infrastructure. Had this original plan gone ahead, the plant is likely to have struggled to achieve quality targets. Aquatec Maxcon’s alternative offers incorporated innovative, modern and more efficient technologies as alternatives to the requested refurbishment.

The Alternative Options presented by Aquatec Maxcon were as follows:

Both of these alternative options meant that new assets would be constructed whilst the existing plant was still running. Once the new assets were commissioned, the old assets would then be taken off line, with no interruption to supply.

Charters Towers Reginal Council considered the options available and agreed to select a revised process for the construction of the new plant.

The Benefits of the Alternative Options

The new direction offered several benefits to the region including:

Through this innovative and collaborative process, the project teams of Aquatec Maxcon and Charters Towers were able to interactively identify and replace process bottlenecks before the final design was completed. Aquatec Maxcon worked openly and collaboratively with Charters Towers Regional Council. Major process equipment items, in particular the filters, were identified as inherently limiting to the plants capability and, even when refurbished, would likely restrict the plant's capacity compared to alternative approaches.

Successes and Benefits of the Project

Aquatec Maxcon is proud to have been nominated and presented with the opportunity to share our achievements at Charters Towers.

Charters Towers Award Nomination Innovation Aquatec Maxcon

Charters Towers Aquatec Maxcon Award Nomination