The City of Durham’s Department of Water Management (DWM) identified the need to replace aging isolation/plug valves at the Lick Creek Lift Station (LCLS) to maintain reliable operation of its critical wastewater infrastructure. These isolation/plug valves, located on both the suction and discharge sides of the pumps, are essential for isolating equipment during maintenance for uninterrupted service. Given complexity of the lift station’s quadraplex pump configuration and the need to maintain continuous operation of the lift station during construction, the City selected McKim & Creed for engineering design and construction administration and observation services. McKim & Creed’s experience with extended temporary bypass pumping operations and lift station upgrades at similar facilities, including recent work at the City’s Eno River Lift Station, provided expertise to guide this project from design through construction.
Notable design efforts include incorporation of existing record drawings for the lift station provided by the City, coordinating with the City on size and type of valves to be replaced, and a detailed temporary bypass pumping specification addressing variability of influent flows and pump redundancy to keep the Lick Creek Lift Station fully operational while the valves are replaced. McKim & Creed will build on prior successful bypass operations on other projects with the City adapting specifications to current conditions and ensuring compliance with North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) standards. Construction will take advantage of existing site features, such as multiple access hatches and above ground force main discharge piping to streamline valve replacement and minimize disruption. By installing new isolation/plug valves previously purchased by the City and coordinating safe, continuous temporary bypass pumping, the project will strengthen the station’s long-term reliability and ensure Durham’s wastewater system continues to serve the community without failure or interruption.