Thursday, December 13, 2012

Top 10 Questions Engineers Ask AdEdge (Part II)


As we discussed last month, we get a lot of questions from customers interested in purchasing a treatment system. While many of the questions our clients ask are about our reputation and customer service, we also receive a number of technical questions from the engineers we work with on proposals and projects. Below are the Top 10 most common questions engineers ask us before choosing a treatment system.

1. What are the standard dimensions of your systems?
Space is a major concern when designing a treatment system. If a system doesn’t fit on your site, then it’s not the treatment system for you. All of our treatment systems are custom-manufactured based on our customer’s needs, so the standard dimensions vary based on a number of factors. Adjusting each system based on vessel size, number of vessels and configuration ensures that no two systems are exactly the same.

2. What are the standard electrical requirements for your systems?
The standard electrical requirement for our systems is at least 115V for the control panel—the electrical component of the treatment system.

3. What is the standard headloss through your system?
Headloss refers to a drop in pressure in a treatment system. The standard headloss through an AdEdge system is typically 1 to 2 psi, although it varies based on the filtration rate and configuration of the vessels.

4. What are your standard mechanical components?
The standard mechanical components include filtration vessels, electric automated butterfly valves, pumps and a control panel.

5. What type of piping is used on your skids?
AdEdge offers both PVC and stainless steel piping. Typically, stainless steel is used in high-pressure systems, while PVC is best for low-pressure units.

6. What is the difference between modular and skid-mounted systems?
Skid-mounted systems are assembled at our manufacturing facility and are ready for hookup and operation when they arrive at your site. The vessels and major mechanical components are mounted on a stainless steel frame as a complete packaged unit. Modular systems are designed to be a low cost alternative to packaged skid-mounted units where the components are shipped loose for assembly by a qualified contractor or installer. Modular systems typically require less engineering, space and infrastructure than skid mounted systems.

7. How does your system work with on-site SCADA control?
The AdEdge treatment system fully integrates with any on-site SCADA system, allowing the operator to monitor, make changes to and gather information about the operation of the system from a central location.

8. Do you provide remote monitoring of your systems? 
Managing multiple treatment systems can be difficult, and we understand that not every operator can make site visits as often as they’d like. AdEdge’s newest product, the InVue remote monitoring system, allows operators to manage multiple sites from any location with a wireless or cellular connection.

9. What treatment technologies does AdEdge use for their systems?
AdEdge offers a variety of treatment technologies, including adsorption, coagulation, filtration, ion exchange, membrane and chemical feed. Each option has its individual benefits and we can help determine which is best for each customer’s site.

10. What are the standard components of the supporting documentation AdEdge provides its customers? 
AdEdge includes a comprehensive submittal package and O&M (operation and maintenance) manual with every treatment system. This includes spec sheets for all the mechanical components of the system, system design basis, engineering drawings, quality control reports, field log sheets and chemical feed and backwash calculations.