Switchgear & Motor Control Center Replacement O’Brien Water Reclamation Plant

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Client Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD)
Prime / Subcontractor PRIME
Location Skokie, IL
Dollar value $3,787,999.83
Year 2018 - 2020

Switchgear & Motor Control Center Replacement O’Brien Water Reclamation Plant

The O’Brien WRP has been in service since the 1890’s.  In such harsh environments, electrical equipment quickly falls into disrepair.   Several pieces of electrical equipment did not meet current NEC requirements and replacing them had to be conducted all while maintaining the day-to-day operations.

Retrofitting equipment to suit Class 1 Division 1 environments is an undertaking that takes a specific skills and knowledge. BEI’s crews were more than qualified to undertake these tasks.  Five separate Motor Control Centers were replaced.  Each requiring it’s own planning to identify critical loads and temporary power them.  Crews worked 24/7 until each was functioning according to the customers specification.  Two units were relocated outside classified areas to new buildings.  BEI managed the new building construction from the ground-up.

A 4000A lineup of Low Voltage Switchgear provided power to all remote aeration batteries and final settling tanks.  A 1MW portable generator was used to power loads while two BEI crews worked 24/7 with rotating twelve hours shifts to remove and replace the switchgear. The lineup was tested and commissioned per requirements and specifications.