Tighe & Bond, Inc. and PRIME AE Group Recognized as ACE Award Winners by Connecticut Society of Civil Engineers
Tighe & Bond, Inc. and PRIME AE Group have been honored by the Connecticut Society of Civil Engineers for their work at the Francis T. Patnaude Intermunicipal Pump Station in Middletown, Connecticut. The Achievement in Civil Engineering Awards or “ACE” Awards honors the design and construction achievements of Connecticut civil engineers.
The City of Middletown authorized the construction of the pump station and force main as part of the Mattabassett Regionalization Project. This project connects the city to the Mattabassett District’s Water Pollution Control Facility, which processes wastewater from half a dozen communities then discharges clean water into the nearby Connecticut River.
Connecting the city to the Mattabassett District’s facility was crucial, as the original 53-year-old sewage treatment plant needed repairs to provide a higher level of treatment to better protect the water quality of Long Island Sound. The most cost-effective and efficient solution was to shut down the existing treatment plant and construct a pump station to have wastewater flow five miles north to be processed at the Mattabassett District’s regional facility. Faced with this challenge and the risk of costly repairs and upgrades, the city sought to join the district and make an investment that would not only improve wastewater treatment but also benefit the community.
Tighe & Bond provided the electrical, instrumentation and control, HVAC, odor control, plumbing, and fire protection design for the new pump station facility. Their experts also oversaw project administration through construction services. During construction, PRIME AE Group and their subconsultants handled the site civil and geotechnical work associated with both the force main and pump station contracts, as well as daily construction observation.
Since the completion of the pump station in November 2019, taxpayers no longer need to invest in continued repairs to the old facility or contend with the smell of a wastewater plant in their neighborhood. The amount of nitrogen being discharged into Long Island Sound has also been reduced by approximately 150,000 pounds per year. The decommissioning and demolition of the original wastewater facility has also been a catalyst for Middletown to invest in the city’s future by using valuable riverfront property for future entertainment and recreation opportunities.