Best Practice | Bürkert Collaboration with Kempsey Shire Council

BEST PRACTICE | KEMPSEY SHIRE COUNCIL

Smart water monitoring down under Municipal water treatment service saves time and money with an integrated water quality monitoring solution.

Bürkert Best Practice

SMART WATER MONITORING EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS COLLABORATION WITH KEMPSEY SHIRE COUNCIL

Kempsey Shire Council is a local government utility that is responsible for providing water and wastewater services to the Kempsey District, 350 km north of Sydney. At the South West Rocks recycled water treatment plant, final treatment of effluent includes ultra-filtration, UV disinfection and the addition of chlorine, all of which are required to achieve the necessary standards of water quality.

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Providing high quality water supplies is an essential service delivered by municipal authorities and untility companies around the world. Bürkert’s Type 8905 offers an automated solution for precision monitoring, saving them time and money.

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Maintaining water quality requires constant monitoring and testing to ensure accurate measurements are being taken.

Traditionally this has involved time-consuming calibration and maintenance. Kempsey Shire Council in New South Wales, Australia, however, has decided to do things differently and turned to Bürkert Fluid Control Systems for an automated precision monitoring solution that saves them time and money.

To ensure that the water quality standards were being maintained, the shire council used a monitoring station, equipped with sensors for measuring pH and chlorine.

However, these sensors used reagents to establish the measurements and as an ageing system, it was becoming unreliable and required a lot of maintenance. Of greater

Type 8905 Online Analysis System is a compact and modular system for monitoring all important water parameters on one platform.

concern was the fall-off in accuracy and the need for more

“I liked being able to talk with their water industry specialists

frequent recalibration, which required increasing levels of

and local engineers at any time when I had specific ques-

operator intervention.

tions, and felt comfortable that Bürkert were confident in their knowledge of the system and my application needs.”

Improving accuracy in water quality monitoring

Data accuracy and the minimal drift of results is very impor-

Michael Coleman, Area Sales Manager for Bürkert, takes

tant in establishing water quality standards and ensuring that

up the story: “We were in the process of looking at poten-

local and federal legislation is being met. Proving the capabil-

tial markets for one of our latest innovations and happened

ities of a monitoring system in a demanding recycled water

to be talking to representatives at the treatment works. We

treatment plant can take time. Therefore, the treatment

had an opportunity to discuss the features and benefits of

works decided to install three Bürkert water quality analysis

our Online Analysis System Type 8905 for water at a time

systems for performance evaluation.

when they were experiencing a few issues with their own installation.”

Flexible installation due to compact modular design of monitoring system

Following the initial approach, alternative systems were also

One of the first advantages was the compact modular de-

considered and compared to Bürkert’s solution. However,

sign of the system that makes it very flexible in terms of in-

several benefits stood out, not least the significant improve-

stallation. The component parts consist of an integrated HMI

ment in accuracy and the huge reduction in maintenance.

display, input/output modules, sensor cubes and a cleaning system, all of which can be wall or panel mounted, and in

Tristan Nowland, an Instrument Technician, who has been

Kempsey’s case, built into an existing cabinet.

involved in the installation and operation of the new water analysis system, reflects on the depth of Bürkert expertise:

Once installed, the individual sensor modules or ‘cubes’ are

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essentially ‘plug and play’ on a dedicated backplane,

This simple integration helps to reduce the time between a

which meant the engineers from the treatment works

deviation from process parameters and the remedial action

soon had the complete system functioning effec-

required to correct the situation.

tively. There is a simple process to set up the alarm parameters for each sensor cube, ensuring that any

Tristan continues: “After ten months in operation, the ac-

anomaly in the process is identified quickly.

curacy has been excellent; there has been no drift in either the chlorine or the pH measurements. Additionally, the

Greg Morrow, Instrument Technician, at the South

amperometric chlorine MEMS sensor chip is not affected by

West Rocks plant, commented: “We are very

chloramines, providing true chlorine analysis. Another major

pleased with the new system. Since it was installed,

benefit is the fact that the cubes are not reagent-based,

there has been no need to recalibrate the chlorine

and so the maintenance requirement for this system is

or the pH sensor cubes and their performance has

greatly reduced. The Bürkert system is very advanced. The

been verified using portable laboratory equipment

initial investment came at a higher value, however, the re-

such as a DPD1 photometer reference test for free

duction in maintenance resources required, meant that the

chlorine. Furthermore, the sensors’ response time

investment has been worth it.”

to changes in our process has been virtually instant, far exceeding the performance of the alternatives we

The installation at South West Rocks highlights several

looked at.”

advantages of the Online Analysis System Type 8905 to the municipal water sector. It has a very compact footprint,

Integrated communication with existing protocols

making it easy to install in existing cabinets and its modular

The Bürkert Online Analysis System can communi-

the application. The ability to maintain its accuracy without

cate with existing control protocols and with person-

repeated calibrations has delivered tangible savings in time

nel both on and off site, ensuring that any deviation

and money for the water treatment plant.

design allows each system to match the requirements of

from the water quality criteria is notified immediately.

How you benefit from future-proof automation technology: StabIe process reliability: Microelectromechani-

Reduced maintenance: Constructed for optimal

cal systems technology (MEMS) allows for preci-

measuring and data output requiring small meas-

sion measurements, with little-to-no drift.

urement samples and a fast response time. Equalling low maintenance and a long service life.

Compact design: Modular sensor and electronic

Reliable quality: All Bürkert components are

system: up to 6 measurements in one housing unit

subject to strict quality criteria and regular quality

or up to 30+ analysis sensor cubes in one büS

controls.

system.

“I liked being able to talk with their water industry specialists and local engineers at any time when I had specific questions. �

Tristan Nowland, Instrument Technician at Kempsey Shire Council

WE LEARN FROM YOU EVERY DAY – INCLUDING WHEN WE THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX.

When it comes to dealing with liquids and gases, Bürkert today is a sought-after partner all over the world. Why? Probably because we have been learning for and from our customers for more than 70 years now. This enables us to always think that crucial step ahead – or even sideways.

We make ideas flow.

For your added value. Let us prove it to you – we look forward to your challenge.

Bürkert Fluid Control Systems Unit 8, 15 Columbia Way Baulkham Hills NSW 2153 Australia Phone: 1300 888 686 Fax: 1300 888 076 sales.au@burkert.com www.burkert.com.au AU | 01/2019