When a residential property, commercial business or municipality decides to upgrade or replace its current pumping system, there are many questions. Will it meet the user’s needs not only on day one but for years to come? Can it adjust as needs change, and what can be done to future-proof it for a variety of possibilities? Should they consider drives, controls and other additions? If they do, will the system be easy to operate, maintain and service?
This is where engineers and other system design professionals can make a big difference in anticipating future challenges, explaining what is possible and setting the stage for installing a smarter, expansion-ready system. Durability and performance are only one part of a pumping system’s long-term viability. Scalability and ease-of-use are becoming more important as owners and operators recognize that today’s advanced pumping systems are not only built for efficient long-term operation but can also last well into the future if they are designed for easy expansion. For engineers, this means recommending a system that can adapt to what is next.
What Does It Mean To ‘Future-Proof’ a System?
Many new systems are replacing ones that have been in use for 20 to 40 years or even longer. Needs and technological capabilities have evolved since these systems first went in, and these advancements in performance and efficiency are expected to continue. At the same time, some may wonder if the new systems will last as long. The answer comes down to the initial life cycle design and overall long-term needs of the space. For example, consider this scenario: a building owner leases space to a clothing boutique. After several years, the boutique owner moves out and a restaurant moves in. Two years later, a laundromat wants to occupy the unit. Can the system accommodate these varying needs without a costly overhaul? Selecting the right system upfront can ensure it does. The key is to optimize for scalability, use and demand.
Designing for Versatility
In addition to making leased spaces more adaptable, there are other situations that prove foresight can lead to an initial design that provides benefits long into the future. Consider the needs of a school building constructed in a rural area in the 1950s—a common sight across the United States. Over the years, many of these communities experienced growth and expansion while still relying on outdated well and water pumping systems. Today, these buildings are now in need of renovations that can provide room for the current students as well as space for expansion down the road. What would a situation like this mean for a school’s aging water pumping system that had been installed decades ago?
In one such case, a middle school in the Midwest decided it was time to reevaluate its system and brought in a water well professional to assess its current submersible pumps. It discovered not only an aging system but an inefficient one: two six-inch, 100 gallons per minute (gpm) pumps were running in wells on a basic in-parallel setup supported by a bulky (yet undersized) 86-gallon tank. The design of the current installation was causing rapid cycling of the pumps and created accelerated wear on the overall system and its components, due in part to the frequency of starts and motor overheating. Ultimately, this led to increased maintenance of the pumps and motors. If the new system employed a similar design, it could lead to additional issues: premature motor failures, motor spline and bearing damage and decreased usage life of control components, such as pressure switches and relays.
The school needed a solution that would help regulate the motors, allowing them to operate more efficiently. Its engineering firm recommended a new duplex constant pressure water system consisting of a variable frequency drive (VFD) paired with two new submersible turbines, one for each well. Combined, this would optimize operation to meet water supply demands and the school’s irrigation system during critical in-class hours or idle time.
Over the long run, it would also mitigate rapid cycling on the system, preventing heat exposure and helping to alleviate future expenses related to service costs and downtime.
In addition to offering a solution to the district’s immediate challenges, the duplex pumping system delivered long-term performance and scalability features. With more construction and renovation anticipated, the system’s scalability provides room for expansion with built-in lead/lag and alternation capacity for up to eight drives.
By running the motor to meet the demands of the application, the VFD is expected to reduce energy costs associated with water supply and irrigation by up to 50% for long-term savings. Built-in diagnostics and protection—including surge, short circuit, underload and overheating controllers—ensure that maintenance is reduced for years to come.
High Efficiency Solutions Become More Accessible
If a current system is already running with a VFD, or one will be added, scalability and high efficiency solutions work hand-in-hand, especially in continuous-run applications. These require tremendous power, and a high-efficiency permanent magnet (PM) motor can help save on operational costs every time the motor runs.
PM motors run with an efficiency rate of about 90% to 94% which is 10% to 12% greater than standard induction motor constructions. Additionally, select VFDs have been enhanced to seamlessly be paired and perform with PM motors in addition to traditional systems powered by induction motors. It is not only easier to consider upgrading from a traditional system to one that is compatible with PM technology for more efficient operations, but it is also a less involved process to set up a VFD. In some cases, users might experience a setup that feels as intuitive as installing a plug-and-play drive.
Adding Pressure Boosting Capabilities
Sometimes the need for scalability comes from changing demands within a given space. Consider a multifamily high rise, an office space or even a hotel. Many high end or mid-level hotels are renovated on cycled schedules, and these renovations include updated decor and the latest in showering and plumbing fixtures. From rain shower heads to body sprays and more, water delivery and pressure can become an issue that affects the end user experience. That is where scalable pressure boosting systems come in.
A pressure boosting system that is designed and built for scalability can provide a solution that serves long into the future. These systems may start small yet allow for growth; a duplex system can accommodate a third or fourth pump in the future. These pumps can be added with minimal system disruption when it is time to expand. By comparison, imagine the time, expense and service interruption involved in replacing an entire system that is not scalable. From a building owner standpoint, these systems can also be easier to house, maintain and install. The right systems can be plug-and-play with their pump and control counterparts. It is important to select systems with components that are designed to work together for optimal performance.
When evaluating a pressure boosting system, also consider the footprint today and the space it will require to expand. Will it occupy an entire room or a simple utility closet? Real estate is at a premium everywhere. Using floor space for a mechanical room can be out of the question in some buildings.
Multi-Pumping Systems
Which sounds better for a system: running one pump continuously without giving it a break or running several pumps on alternating schedules to vary capacity with the demand? If a building owner knows that the demand within their space varies, several pumps—responding to alternating requirements—can provide a more flexible and cost-effective solution that is built for the future.
A college housing facility is one example of this in action. In this case, the pumping system will experience increased usage during the morning when students are getting ready. During the day, water usage falls as students head to class. Then, it increases again as students wind down for the day or head out for the evening.
Having pumps operating continuously not only overuses energy but unnecessarily increases operational costs and can cause premature system failure.
Instead, an electronic controller such as a VFD can maximize usage of a system’s pumps at different times.
As water demand increases, the system instantly responds by starting and operating one or more pumps at the proper speed. This helps meet the flow requirements while ensuring the water pressure stays constant from fixture to fixture. This type of system can also adapt to generate cost savings when there are longer breaks in usage, such as during summer break, spring break, etc.
As these pumping systems are programmed to alternate and distribute operating hours equally between the pumps, owners benefit from optimizing their investment by extending their pumps’ life cycles.
Multi-pumping systems not only provide a solution for future scalability but immediately address varying demands while mitigating components’ wear due to alternation.
Keeping the Future in Mind
Whether a space is residential, commercial or mixed use, growth and change are a part of life. Engineers and other system design professionals can help plan for this by considering and anticipating future challenges.
Installing a pumping system that can accommodate change can make all the difference for a system’s long-term viability and contribute to energy cost savings from day one.