Crown Point, IN, used PVC pipe as part of a multi-year sewer infrastructure upgrade project to address aging infrastructure, capacity constraints and environmental issues.
Situation
Situated in Lake County in Indiana’s northeast corner, Crown Point is a small city with a population of around 34,000 people.
As is the case for municipalities across the country, the city’s water infrastructure system was aging. Wastewater pipes were undersized or had reached or surpassed their design lifetimes, and a growing population and increasing demands on the sewer network meant that it was exceeding capacity, with the downtown corridor most acutely affected.
Crown Point is also one of the nation’s 700 or so communities served by combined sewer systems, with a combined sewer overflow (CSO) that discharges into the Main Beaver Dam Ditch and ultimately Lake Michigan.
The capacity issues were causing sewer backups, flooding, and increasing the risk of damaging CSO spill incidents.
Challenge
The city needed to modernize its wastewater infrastructure, building in additional capacity in order to address overflow incidents and to accommodate current and future demands.
Upgrade work also had to meet Indiana Department of Environmental Management environmental standards.
Solution
The city developed a $185M, multi-year sewer network upgrade program, centered on a large-diameter interceptor that consolidated multiple water lines.
The city selected Oldcastle Infrastructure’s PVC pipe for the project, and our National Pipe & Plastics team provided almost 1.9 million lbs of pipe ranging in size from 6 in to 48 in diameter.
To increase transparency and accountability our teams partnered with local distribution partners Ferguson Waterworks and the PVC Pipe Association to provide enhanced specification documentation and to provide an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) to demonstrate the environmental benefits of using PVC pipe.
Outcome
Work began in October 2025, and is expected to complete by 2027. The implementation of the large centralized interceptor reduced network complexity, mitigating blockage risks, as well as increasing pumping efficiency, thereby cutting the energy costs associated with conveying wastewater.
In addition to reducing the flooding and CSO spill risks, the use of PVC pipe increases the longevity of the network, thereby extending asset lifetimes and ensuring that Crown Point’s upgraded sewer network remains in good working order for many decades to come.
“This project is critical to Crown Point in terms of both addressing its outdated sewer network and protecting the local environment, and I’m delighted that we were able to play a part in its success. Aging water infrastructure is a major issue across the United States, and it’s great to see communities tackling that challenge, and doing it with solutions that prioritize longevity.”
Jeff Bridge, President – Water Transmission, Oldcastle Infrastructure
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Pivoting midway through a project, a TerraMod™ high-flow green infrastructure system enabled San Pablo, CA to achieve a regulatory first for the Bay Area.
Background
The Sutherland Avenue Urban Greening Project in San Pablo, California, demonstrates how green infrastructure can succeed in one of the most challenging environments possible: dense urban infill with high groundwater, flood risk, heavy utility congestion, and limited right of way.
Through close collaboration between the City of San Pablo, regulators, engineers, and Oldcastle Infrastructure, the project became a first‑of‑its‑kind high‑flow green infrastructure pilot for the San Francisco Bay Area, showcasing how adaptive design and regulatory flexibility can dramatically improve stormwater outcomes without expanding footprint.
The site
San Pablo is located on the eastern edge of San Francisco Bay, just north of Berkeley and Oakland, and falls under the jurisdiction of the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board (Region 2).
The Sutherland Avenue site lies within the Wildcat Creek watershed, an urbanized, low‑lying basin that experiences frequent flooding. The surrounding neighborhood is characterized by high population density (>10,000 residents per square mile), mixed residential and commercial land use, limited open space, and older infrastructure.
Unlike previous projects, community impact and constructability within a lived‑in neighborhood were central considerations from the outset.
Challenges
This project presented an unusually dense concentration of constraints:
- 35 acres of contributing drainage area
- Extremely high groundwater, less than 3 ft below grade at the project site
- Frequent surface flooding, including:
- Up to 1 ft of water in a 2‑year storm event
- Highly constrained right of way
- Overhead power lines
- Underground water, gas, sewer, and electrical utilities
- On‑street parking and active traffic lanes
- Dense urban infill that left virtually no room for footprint expansion
Traditional stormwater treatment approaches were insufficient under these conditions.
Original design approach
The original design consisted of 20 TerraMod™ precast concrete bioretention structures filled with standard bioretention soil media (BSM), with the system surrounded by geocellular spacing units to prevent soil compaction, increase subsurface storage capacity and expand the effective treatment footprint.
Each TerraMod unit measured approximately 4 ft x 21 ft and included horizontal slots that allowed stormwater to flow from the bioretention cell into the surrounding soil.
Modeling demonstrated that this system design would meet treatment goals at a smaller footprint than alternative treatment options.
Regulatory collaboration and mid‑project innovation
The turning point for the project came during construction.
Through ongoing coordination between The City of San Pablo, Geosyntec Consultants, Carex Engineering, Region 2 regulators, and our expert stormwater team, the project team leveraged MRP Provision 3.C.3, which allows for special pilot projects under challenging conditions.
This provision enabled something that had never been approved in the Bay Area before: the mid‑construction conversion of select bioretention cells to high‑flow biofiltration using StormMix™ media.
Solution: high-flow green infrastructure
Three TerraMod units situated at the most flood‑prone intersection along Sutherland Avenue were converted from standard BSM to incorporate StormMix high‑flow media.
This increased the media infiltration rate by 30x from ~5 in/hr to ~150 in/hr, and added orifice controls to regulate treatment flow without requiring any structural changes to the precast units.
By modifying just three of the 20 bioretention cells, the pilot project achieved outsized performance gains without expanding the system footprint.
Impact
The impact of high‑flow green infrastructure was significant:
- 700 sq ft reduction in system footprint
- >200% increase in treatment credit
- 3.45 acres of added drainage area
Achieving equivalent performance with traditional bioretention trench would have required over 175 linear feet of trench.
Overall the pilot achieved ~80% runoff capture, meeting regulatory targets, and validated high‑flow green infrastructure as a viable strategy for ultra‑constrained urban environments.
Construction and installation
As an active urban infill project, construction required exceptional precision. Installations were carried out directly adjacent to property lines, sidewalks and parking lanes, while horizontal slot alignment between the TerraMod systems and the geocellular spacing units required millimetric accuracy.
However, as the TerraMod units were constructed from precast concrete, this enabled rapid excavation and backfill, preventing the need for slower and less precise cast-in-place procedures.
Once structural components were in place, our stormwater team returned to install underdrains, replace existing fill with clean drain rock, install the StormMix media, apply mulch and install cast‑iron access covers.
Despite the mid‑project pivot, construction stayed on schedule.
System performance and early observations
Performance data immediately following installation highlighted the value of the high‑flow system: during a storm in which 3.5 in of rain fell, the high-flow green infrastructure cells effectively filled with surface water, while surrounding areas experienced ponding.
One year post‑installation, inspections following ~3 in of rainfall showed controlled drawdown, water retained for treatment residence time, and continued inflows from residential sump pumps due to high groundwater.
The system proved particularly effective at intercepting persistent street‑level flows before they could accumulate or overwhelm downstream homes, businesses and infrastructure.
Community impact
Because this project was approved as a pilot, long‑term monitoring is a critical next step.
The City of San Pablo is pursuing EPA funding to support 3-5 years of performance monitoring and water quality sampling under Region 2 oversight.
Educational signage was installed throughout the corridor, explaining the local water cycle and educating residents about the role green infrastructure plays in building neighborhood resilience.
As a result, the project serves both an engineering and community education function.
Conclusion
The Sutherland Avenue project achieved successful deployment of high‑flow green infrastructure in a dense urban corridor, a regulatory first for Bay Area stormwater treatment.
It delivered effective stormwater treatment with major footprint reduction through targeted innovation, improved flood mitigation at a critical intersection, and a scalable pilot model for other urban municipalities.
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Renton, WA turned to BioPod™ to help deliver an award-winning sustainable stormwater management project.
Background
The City of Renton, WA, is a suburb of Seattle that sits on the shore of Lake Washington at the mouth of the Cedar River.
The city receives around 37 inches of rainfall each year, and the highly urbanized Renton Highlands area had no drainage connection to a waterway and few infiltration pipes. As a result, the city obtained a temporary drainage easement that enabled it to discharge stormwater from this area into Upper Balch Pit, a local gravel pit.
This approach served the city for some 30 years, but with the city experiencing persistent and damaging flooding along Monroe Avenue—in some instances at historic levels—even with two additional overflow pipes, it became clear that the gravel pit had reached the point where it was no longer viable for the long term.
In addition, city officials were aware that if the drainage easement were lost then a large, miles-long stormwater drainage pipe would have to be constructed to convey surface water down to the Cedar River—a project that would be costly and extremely disruptive to local residents and infrastructure.
Challenge
The city needed a new, permanent sustainable stormwater drainage system that could accommodate surface water flows from over 250 acres of land in Renton Highlands, employing a combination of treatment and infiltration in order to recharge the Cedar River aquifer while preserving its water quality.
In addition to dealing with typical annual precipitation levels, it needed to be designed to handle the large volumes associated with 100-year and 500-year storm events, assessed at 1% and 0.2% annual probability respectively.
Further, it had to operate in a way that preserves the infiltration capacity of the local soils for up to 100 years.
Solution: sustainable stormwater management
Having obtained $10.8M of grant funds from the Washington Department of Ecology and $479K from the King County Flood Control District, the city engaged Otak. The engineering consultancy evaluated a range of options with the city, including ponds, vaults, and direct discharge to the Cedar River, but ultimately the project team settled on a new small-footprint stormwater infiltration facility that would be built on the site of the old gravel pit.
Incorporating a large infiltration chamber gallery, the facility was designed to divert flows in order to accommodate higher-volume storm events, and employed a treatment train with pretreatment to capture and remove total suspended solids (TSS) and an underground BioPod™ system to provide the biofiltration required to preserve the quality of the infiltrated water.
BioPod was the preferred water quality solution due to its:
- High-volume flow treatment, with high levels of pollutant removal
- High permeability media, with underdrain
- GULD for Basic, Metals and Phosphorus treatment
Using a custom three-sided precast concrete box culvert from our Auburn, WA facility, the BioPod system was roughly a third of the size of an Olympic swimming pool—around 10 times smaller than typical biofiltration systems—enabling Otak to minimize land take and site footprint, while still delivering the necessary 13 cfs / 5,824 gpm treatment flow rate capacity to accommodate peak flows.
The project also used cement from Ash Grove, and aggregate and recycled asphalt paving from ICON Materials, both also CRH companies.
Impact
Completed ahead of schedule in January 2026, the Monroe Avenue Infiltration Facility is one of the largest treatment facilities in the state of Washington, and handles runoff from some 260 acres of developed land, using its 2.2 acres of underground infiltration chambers to return stormwater to replenish the Cedar River aquifer.
In addition to delivering effective, sustainable stormwater management, the project has also provided a local community asset, a public green space that represents a valuable new local amenity.
The project won in both the Environment $5-25M and Sustainability categories in APWA’s Washington Chapter 2025 Project Of The Year Awards, and also won a Gold Award for Uniqueness and/or Innovative Application of New or Existing Techniques from ACEC-WA.
“The result really highlights our large-scale water treatment ability. We can create any size water treatment solution, and we have a vast ability to customize, even in a state like Washington, where regulations are most stringent.”
– Anna Deiters, Solutions Engineer Team Lead, Oldcastle Infrastructure
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Background
The Lake Sal watershed in Statesboro, Georgia covers roughly 600 acres of mixed land use, including homes, commercial areas, and key transportation corridors. For years, the region faced persistent drainage challenges that strained its aging stormwater infrastructure.
Since the basin funnels runoff into a limited conveyance system, even moderate storms frequently pushed water levels beyond the capacity of existing outfalls, overwhelming nearby roads and neighborhoods.
Challenge
During large storm events, water regularly overtopped Zetterower Road and Northlake Drive, creating hazardous driving conditions and isolating residents. Homeowners near the Lake Sal spillway and downstream along Northlake Drive and Needle Lane experienced repeated flooding in yards and, in some instances, inside homes. The underlying infrastructure was undersized for growing hydrologic demands, yet early evaluations showed that a traditional structural fix such as constructing a regional detention facility upstream would be cost‑prohibitive for the City of Statesboro.
With limited available land, environmental constraints, and a clear need for more storage capacity than the existing lake footprint could offer, the City needed an alternative approach that could deliver meaningful flood mitigation without the cost and disruption of major new construction.
Solution
To achieve a more scalable and financially viable outcome, the City adopted a technology‑enabled stormwater strategy centered on Oldcastle Infrastructure’s SmartCapture™ system, powered by Opti. SmartCapture uses Continuous Monitoring and Adaptive Control (CMAC) to adapt in real time to real-world conditions, adjusting storage within the system to proactively manage stormwater. Oldcastle Infrastructure played a pivotal role by providing the smart-enabled outlet control structure that made this transformation possible.
Working closely with Opti and the project engineer, GMC, Oldcastle Infrastructure integrated the actuated valve assembly directly into a purpose‑built structure before it ever arrived on-site. This allowed the system to be installed quickly and seamlessly, minimizing disruption to the existing lake and surrounding community.
With the new structure in place, Lake Sal transitioned from a static retention system to an actively managed, cloud‑connected asset. SmartCapture continuously monitors NOAA weather forecasts, lake levels, and downstream conditions. When a major storm is predicted, the system automatically initiates a controlled drawdown, typically lowering the lake by about two feet, to create approximately 19.5 acre‑feet of additional storage within the existing footprint. Throughout a storm, the system adjusts releases in real time, optimizing storage capacity and reducing downstream peak flows.
Oldcastle Infrastructure’s smart-enabled outlet structure served as the physical foundation for this adaptive control approach, ensuring that all mechanical and digital components operated as a single, integrated system.
Impact
The shift to digitally managed stormwater provided protection that would not have been economically achievable through conventional construction alone. By combining civil engineering design, cloud-based analytics, and Oldcastle Infrastructure’s purpose-built smart structure, the project delivered a dramatic increase in storage capacity at a significantly lower cost.
The adaptive system cost roughly 60% less than a comparable regional detention project while delivering over ten times the effective storage capacity: 19.5 acre‑feet compared to an estimated 1.5 acre‑feet achievable through traditional alternatives. Since the project reused the existing lake and required only modifications to the outlet structure, it avoided land acquisition, minimized permitting impacts, and eliminated disturbance to wetlands.
The community also benefited from a balanced approach to lake management. Drawdowns occur only when an incoming storm requires additional storage, allowing Lake Sal to maintain normal water levels for recreation and wildlife habitat throughout most of the year. With lower peak discharge rates and expanded available storage, the system reduces flooding risk for downstream neighborhoods and improves resilience for the broader drainage network.
Conclusion
Through the collaboration of project partners, led by Oldcastle Infrastructure’s delivery of the smart-enabled outlet control structure and supported by Opti’s adaptive technology, the City of Statesboro successfully transformed Lake Sal into a responsive, high‑performing stormwater asset. What once required costly structural expansion was replaced with a more efficient, sustainable, and affordable solution. The result is a resilient system that protects residents, preserves natural resources, and sets a precedent for modern stormwater management.
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Background
When IndyCar set its sights on transforming the Arlington, Texas entertainment district into a high‑performance temporary street circuit, the project demanded an infrastructure partner capable of delivering precision, safety, scale, and speed. CRH’s Texas Materials and Oldcastle Infrastructure stepped in as a fully integrated team, combining paving expertise, local manufacturing, and advanced engineering to create the barrier and track systems needed for one of the most scrutinized and safety‑critical racing environments in the world.
The project called for more than concrete. It required a repeatable, high‑strength safety system engineered for impact conditions at over 230 miles per hour, paired with the logistical sophistication needed to deliver nearly 3,000 custom units on an aggressive schedule. Oldcastle Infrastructure became the backbone of this effort, using its local footprint, local talent, and national‑level technical capabilities to bring the vision to life.
Challenges
IndyCar needed a barrier system that had never been produced in Texas at this scale. It required 7,000 PSI compression strength, precise dimensional tolerances, exact reinforcement geometry, and an interlocking design capable of guarding as a continuous safety chain around the entire 2.73‑mile track. Production had to be fast enough to meet a demanding national race timeline, and delivery had to be precise enough to follow the installation road circuit sequence. This sequence was a delicate balance between traffic patterns, road closures, access to area entertainment venues, and race day deadlines.
The project was highly visible, nationally televised, and entirely unforgiving of error. Any variance could disrupt installation, compromise performance, or jeopardize the race schedule. With safety standards set by IndyCar engineering teams and supported by Oldcastle Infrastructure’s expertise in engineered precast solutions, the challenge was to launch an entirely new operation from tooling and process development to full-scale production without the margin for a learning curve. Oldcastle Infrastructure quickly mastered the build requirements and successfully developed a new, efficient production process.
Solution
Oldcastle Infrastructure mobilized its North Texas facilities to manufacture all 2,805 barriers locally, including both straight units and two types of curved segments required for the track. Every barrier was produced using Texas‑sourced aggregates and materials, reinforcing the commitment to being built local at every level.
The Northlake plant was selected as the production hub due to its wet‑cast expertise, floor space, and equipment readiness. Local teams engineered custom solutions such as reinforcement benders, dimensional testing tools, and interlock gauges to ensure the precision needed to meet IndyCar specifications. The engineering and quality teams created a straight‑cement mix design that achieved the required 7,000 PSI strength, eliminating fly ash to maximize consistency.
Each barrier included U‑shaped mesh reinforcement, end‑reinforcing bars, and three full‑length rebars welded across the unit to tie directly into the interlocks. This system ensured the entire barrier line would behave as a continuous chain during impact events. Dimensional accuracy was so strict that interlock tolerances were held within less than one millimeter, verified through custom testing tools and regular dry‑fit checks. Even an overseas quality inspector from Germany validated the production process, confirming reliability and consistency across thousands of units.
Production rapidly scaled from 15 barriers per day to 20 straight and 2 curved units per day, supported by six‑day‑a‑week operations. Despite its tight schedule, the project finished nearly ten weeks ahead of plan, with full production completed in approximately 23 weeks and all deliveries finalized in about 32 weeks. Collaboration across CRH companies, including Texas Materials for paving coordination, ensured seamless integration between barrier placement and track preparation.
Sustainability Impact
By producing all barriers locally, Oldcastle Infrastructure minimized transportation emissions and supported regional supply chains. Texas‑sourced aggregates and on‑site reinforcement fabrication reduced environmental impact compared to importing components or long‑haul shipping. The barrier system was engineered for reusability, allowing the city of Arlington and IndyCar to maximize return on investment while decreasing material waste for future races or events.
The project strengthened local manufacturing capabilities by developing new production processes, tools, and expertise that now benefit future regional and national motorsport events, including upcoming races in Washington, D.C. This creates a long‑term sustainability advantage not only for materials but also for knowledge and workforce development within Texas communities.
Overall Impact
The success of the IndyCar Arlington project demonstrated how CRH’s vertically integrated model delivers unmatched value: precision‑engineered barriers, locally managed production, coordinated paving operations, and high‑pressure logistics all aligned to meet the demands of a world‑class racing organization.
Oldcastle Infrastructure delivered a safety-critical system validated by independent inspection and built the capability to produce a new product type at national scale. For the region, the project became a local economic win that showcased Texas’ capacity to support high-visibility sporting events, bringing jobs, expertise, and community pride along with it.
Local Oldcastle Infrastructure employees had the chance to visit the completed track to see their work in place, which was an experience that amplified team pride and reinforced the real‑world impact of their craftsmanship. The Arlington track is not just a racing venue; it is a living example of what local manufacturing, local materials, and local talent can accomplish when backed by the resources and expertise of a global leader.
Conclusion
For the IndyCar project in Arlington, Texas, Oldcastle Infrastructure delivered more than barriers; it delivered engineering certainty, community investment, and a model for future motorsport infrastructure. Through unmatched technical rigor, rapid production, and seamless coordination across CRH companies, the project stands as a testament to what happens when local expertise and national capability combine to meet extraordinary needs.
For the Arlington community, the impact extends far beyond race day. It is a story of local jobs, regional pride, strengthened infrastructure, and lasting economic value anchored by a barrier system engineered to perform at the highest level of professional motorsport.
Council Bluffs, Iowa, a community of 60,000 located along the east bank of the Missouri River, has long balanced a strong industrial presence with modern commercial growth.
Global food processors, agricultural manufacturers, and large-scale operations including ConAgra, Tyson Foods, American Games and Barton Solvents anchor the region’s economy. In recent decades, casinos and large data centers, such as Google’s two local data centers, have added further diversity.
Wastewater for the entire community has been treated at the Council Bluffs Water Pollution Control Plant since 1974. Much of the original infrastructure, including its primary clarifiers, pretreatment facilities, and two‑stage rock media trickling filters. remains in service. In 1997, an activated sludge basin was added, increasing treatment flexibility and capacity. Today, the facility manages average flows of 7 Mgal/d, with peak flows up to 30 Mgal/d.
Initially, the headworks relied on two one‑inch bar screens and aerated grit basins. Though durable, this legacy system struggled to remove the region’s fine loess sands, leading to operational challenges downstream.
Challenges
Over time, the plant’s aerated grit basins were no longer capable of achieving adequate grit removal. Fine loess sand, naturally abundant in the surrounding terrain, passed through the original system and accumulated in aeration basins, digesters, and mechanical equipment.
According to the Plant Supervisor, the consequences were substantial. Excess grit was causing premature wear on the sludge dewatering centrifuges, generating recurrent maintenance requirements and costly repairs. Digesters routinely require cleaning, revealing up to three feet of accumulated grit.
The team determined that modernizing grit removal was essential to protect downstream processes, reduce maintenance costs, and extend equipment lifespan.
Solutions
After evaluating multiple alternatives, the City selected an advanced HeadCell® stacked‑tray grit separation system, supported by SlurryCup™ washing technology and Grit Snail® dewatering, solutions engineered by Hydro International.
A key advantage was the ability to retrofit the new system directly into the existing aerated grit basin, avoiding the need for costly concrete replacement, additional pumping infrastructure, or expanded influent channels.
Engineering teams successfully integrated:
- Four 12‑foot, seven‑tray HeadCell units
- Two 32‑inch SlurryCup grit‑washing units
- One Grit Snail dewatering escalator
This configuration delivers 95% removal of grit 75 microns and larger, with very low headloss and no moving parts in the HeadCell itself. During normal flow periods, operators need only run half of the system, reducing energy and maintenance requirements.
The SlurryCup provides high‑efficiency washing and classification, removing fine grit, sugar sand, snail shells, and other dense solids. The Grit Snail completes the process by gently dewatering fine grit without re‑suspending material.
Sustainability Impact
The retrofit has produced long‑term sustainability benefits for the City. With vastly reduced grit carryover:
- Digesters remain cleaner, avoiding the need for frequent shutdowns and landfilling of accumulated solids.
- Centrifuge wear has dramatically decreased, reducing the frequency of major repairs from several times per year to a single repair over many years.
- Lower energy demand and minimized need for new pumping infrastructure contribute to reduced operating footprint.
By reusing existing structures rather than constructing new basins, Council Bluffs avoided the cost, and environmental impact associated with large‑scale concrete work or new pumping stations.
Overall Impact
Plant staff report a substantial and measurable improvement in performance. Grit accumulation in digesters has virtually disappeared. Mechanical equipment life has improved, lowering annual maintenance expenditures by tens of thousands of dollars. Operators appreciate the simplicity of the system, the minimal moving parts, and the consistency of grit capture even under variable flow conditions.
The City’s consulting engineer noted that the HeadCell system’s compact footprint, innovative design, and cost savings made it the most advantageous choice among all evaluated alternatives.
As summarized by the Plant Supervisor, they have seen a number of paybacks. There’s less wear on the centrifuge; they weren’t taking digesters offline to clean them, and they avoided building and maintaining another pump station. This system has done everything we wanted at a very reasonable cost.
Conclusion
The Council Bluffs Water Pollution Control Plant’s investment in advanced grit removal technology has delivered significant operational, financial, and environmental benefits. By leveraging a retrofit‑friendly design and high‑efficiency grit separation, the City modernized a critical part of its treatment process without major structural modifications.
The project resulted in a more resilient, lower‑maintenance, and sustainable headworks system that protects downstream infrastructure and will support the community’s growth for decades to come.
Grand Island, Nebraska, is home to more than 50,000 residents and situated along the Platte River and relies on a wastewater treatment system that manages domestic wastewater as well as significant industrial flows, including discharges from a major meat processing facility. The region’s geology features windblown, silty soils that easily enter surface drainage and, eventually, the sewer system. Combined with a high water table and the need for extensive pumping throughout the plant, these conditions create demanding operational challenges.
By the time the City initiated its upgrade program, much of the wastewater infrastructure was nearly 50 years old. Key components were corroded, undersized, and no longer performing reliably. Recognizing the need for a modernized pretreatment system capable of protecting downstream processes, the City launched a comprehensive refurbishment effort to prepare the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) for decades of growth and regulatory requirements.
Challenges
According to the City’s operations engineer, the plant faced aging equipment, rising flow volumes, and the demands of a growing population. The existing grit basins were inadequate, offering limited redundancy and poor grit removal efficiency. Valves, pumps, and ancillary equipment had deteriorated to the point where replacement was necessary. Additionally, the original grit building lacked odor control, and the Parshall flume and bar screens were undersized and in poor condition.
The combination of silty local soils, industrial inflows, and hydraulic limitations meant that large amounts of grit were reaching downstream processes. This contributed to wear in primary clarifiers, sludge systems, and downstream equipment. To ensure long‑term resilience, the City required a solution that could reliably remove fine grit particles down to 90 microns under both average and peak flow conditions. Redundancy was critical; the plant needed dual treatment trains that could operate independently, both to accommodate peak flows and to ensure continuous operation during maintenance or emergencies.
Solutions
Consulting engineering teams evaluated two primary grit removal technologies: a mechanically induced vortex system and the high‑efficiency HeadCell® / SlurryCup™ / Grit Snail® treatment train, engineered by Hydro International. Both options carried similar capital and installation costs. After visiting a nearby installation in Lincoln, Nebraska, City engineers were particularly impressed by the quality and consistency of grit captured using the HeadCell system.
Ultimately, the HeadCell approach was selected due to its superior fine‑grit performance, minimal mechanical complexity, and lower long‑term maintenance needs. The plant was reconfigured to create two parallel, fully redundant treatment trains, each containing a 12‑foot, 10‑tray HeadCell concentrator, dedicated grit pumps, and a complete SlurryCup washing and Grit Snail dewatering system. The layout allowed both trains to function as mirror images, enabling straightforward operation, easier construction, and seamless integration with the plant’s SCADA system through fully automated control panels.
This configuration provided the performance required: removal of 95 percent of particles 90 microns and larger at the design flow of 13 Mgal/d per train, and 95 percent removal of 150‑micron grit at maximum hourly flows of 30 Mgal/d.
Sustainability Impact
The City’s investment in advanced grit management enhances both environmental and operational sustainability. By removing fine grit early, the plant protects clarifiers, aeration systems, and digesters from abrasive damage, reducing the frequency of equipment repair and replacement. Dewatered grit produced by the Grit Snail contains at least 60 percent solids with minimal organics, allowing for efficient disposal and minimizing hauling costs.
Because the HeadCell system includes few mechanical components, energy usage and maintenance needs remain low. The reuse of the original grit building structure also avoided the cost, and environmental impact associated with constructing new concrete basins or expanding plant footprints. The addition of odor‑control accommodations and improved pumping reliability further enhances the plant’s environmental compliance and overall resilience.
Overall Impact
During commissioning, the new grit removal equipment endured an extreme challenge: a year’s worth of accumulated construction debris, sediment, grease, and grit from the replacement of the North Intercept sewer line was pushed through the new treatment trains. The system operated without issue, handling one of the harshest loading conditions it will likely ever encounter.
According to the consulting engineer, the high removal efficiency, minimal mechanical requirements, and long-term maintenance savings made the HeadCell system the superior choice. The system performs far better than previous equipment and is meeting the City’s objectives for redundancy, reliability, and fine-grit removal.
The improved grit system supports the entire plant, protecting critical downstream assets including clarifiers, aeration processes, and digestion facilities. With a 50‑year design life and built‑in ability to handle significant peak flows, the new pretreatment infrastructure positions Grand Island to serve its growing population for decades.
Conclusion
The City of Grand Island’s decision to modernize its headworks using advanced grit removal technologies has transformed the efficiency and resilience of its wastewater treatment operations. Through careful evaluation, forward‑thinking engineering, and a commitment to long‑term sustainability, the City implemented a high‑performance, low‑maintenance solution designed to meet both present and future demands.
As part of UC San Diego Health’s $3 billion Hillcrest Medical Campus expansion, the organization initiated major improvements to Bachman Place, a 0.6‑mile connector road linking Hillcrest and Mission Valley in San Diego, CA. The road serves dual roles: a public access route and a critical entryway to UC San Diego Health facilities.
Upgrades included widening the roadway to 43 feet, adding dedicated bike lanes, incorporating a 5‑foot pedestrian sidewalk, improving lighting and signage, upgrading utilities, and enhancing travel safety for the steep 9-11% grade corridor.
Given the roadway’s unique ownership status and its importance to both commuters and hospital operations, the improvements required high‑performance, long‑lasting infrastructure solutions.
Challenge
The project team faced significant site constraints due to the roadway running through narrow canyon terrain. Designers had very limited locations available for stormwater treatment and utility placement, forcing the biofiltration system to be installed beneath a pedestrian walkway-an unconventional configuration requiring careful engineering.
Since UC San Diego Health would be solely responsible for roadway maintenance, the organization needed low‑maintenance, robust stormwater BMPs that would minimize lane closures and reduce long‑term operational costs.
Additionally, the City of San Diego rarely approves non‑vegetated proprietary biofiltration systems, creating regulatory hurdles. The steep grade, major utility relocation, environmental review delays, and the need for strong third‑party performance validation further complicated the design and approval process.
Solution
Oldcastle Infrastructure partnered with the engineering team early in the design process to provide specialized stormwater and utility solutions tailored to the project’s space, slope, and ownership challenges. The BioPod™ Biofiltration System was selected for its compact footprint, durable non‑vegetated media option, and reliable third‑party maintenance interval data, making it ideal for installation beneath pedestrian infrastructure while still meeting stringent water quality requirements.
Oldcastle Infrastructure also supplied custom precast components to support utility relocation and structural needs along the steep canyon corridor. Through a comprehensive preconstruction and technical support process, Oldcastle Infrastructure helped model hydraulic performance, address loading concerns, streamline installation sequencing, and provide documentation that enabled the City of San Diego to approve two non‑vegetated proprietary systems-an uncommon achievement. This combination of expertise and product capability delivered a tailored stormwater strategy that met UCSD’s long‑term operational priorities.
Sustainability Impact
The BioPod systems contributed to a more sustainable roadway by delivering reliable stormwater treatment within a constrained environment where traditional vegetated BMPs were not feasible. Their low‑maintenance design reduces long‑term resource consumption and minimizes disruption to vehicle flow, lowering the environmental impact associated with frequent maintenance closures.
The precast components provided by Oldcastle Infrastructure supported efficient installation, reduced onsite construction emissions, and created durable, long‑life infrastructure aligned with UCSD’s goals for future‑ready campus development. By enabling effective pollutant removal on a steep, highly trafficked corridor, Oldcastle Infrastructure’s sustainable solutions helped enhance environmental protection for the surrounding canyon ecosystem.
Overall Impact
Completed in June 2025, the project delivered a safer, wider, and more efficient roadway equipped to support future medical campus growth. The enhancements improved mobility for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians while significantly reducing commute times-estimated by UCSD to save drivers up to 30 minutes.
Oldcastle Infrastructure’s stormwater and utility solutions played a critical role in resolving space, maintenance, and regulatory challenges, reducing long‑term ownership costs, and ensuring the roadway performs reliably under demanding site conditions. The approval and successful deployment of non‑vegetated proprietary systems also set a precedent for innovative stormwater management in dense, topographically complex areas.
Conclusion
The UC San Diego Hillcrest North Access Road project demonstrates how early collaboration and engineered precast solutions can overcome significant geographic and regulatory constraints. Oldcastle Infrastructure’s BioPod solution and precast components enabled the project team to deliver a high-performing, low‑maintenance, and environmentally responsible roadway that supports both public circulation and hospital operations.
This project highlights the importance of selecting adaptable, high‑performance infrastructure solutions, especially when working within narrow, highly regulated, and environmentally sensitive corridors. Oldcastle Infrastructure’s involvement ensured a successful outcome and reinforced its role as a trusted partner in complex, sustainability‑driven infrastructure projects.
The City of Melbourne, Florida, has been working for nearly a decade to restore the Indian River Lagoon, one of the most ecologically significant waterways in the state.
Since 2015, Melbourne has installed baffle boxes as part of its stormwater infrastructure improvement program.
These structures intercept pollutants carried by stormwater runoff before they enter the lagoon, helping protect water quality and marine life. The initiative was funded by a voter-approved 0.5 cent sales tax dedicated to lagoon restoration projects.
Challenge
The Indian River Lagoon has faced severe pollution issues caused by stormwater runoff carrying trash, debris, sediments, oils, and nutrients. Without effective treatment, these pollutants degrade water quality, harm fish and shellfish, and contribute to algal blooms.
Melbourne needed a solution that could fit within existing stormwater systems, handle large debris loads, and provide advanced pollutant removal, including macro-plastics and hydrocarbons, while remaining easy to maintain.
Solutions
Oldcastle Infrastructure provided precast Nutrient Separating Baffle Box® (NSBB®) systems engineered to deliver high-performance stormwater treatment. These systems feature multi-chamber designs that slow water flow, allowing sediments and debris to settle while skimmers capture floating trash and oils.
The NSBB units are designed for easy installation in both new and retrofit applications, minimizing disruption and reducing construction costs.
Key features of this system include:
- Debris-trapping chambers that catch and retain trash and macro-plastics before they break down into micro-plastics
- Integrated oil skimmers that remove hydrocarbons and chemicals from stormwater
- Precast construction, ensuring durability and simplified installation in tight urban spaces
- Easy maintenance access, allowing for efficient cleanouts using standard equipment.
Sustainability Impact
The baffle boxes installed in Melbourne remove over 4,000 pounds of harmful pollutants annually and have already captured nearly 94 cubic yards of trash in 2025 alone.
By intercepting pollutants at the source, these systems prevent contamination of the lagoon, protect aquatic ecosystems, and reduce the risk of micro-plastic pollution.
Additionally, the precast design supports long-term sustainability by reducing lifecycle maintenance and enabling scalable deployment.
Overall Impact
Melbourne’s stormwater program demonstrates how Oldcastle Infrastructure’s baffle box technology can deliver measurable environmental benefits.
The city has successfully implemented 18 installations since 2015, with plans to add one new system each year, and work is currently underway on what will be the largest baffle box in the world, located near Melbourne Orlando International Airport.
The NSBB system being implemented in the project measures 30 x 31 x 24 ft, and is expected to remove over 3,300 lbs of nitrogen and over 470 lbs of phosphorus each year from stormwater collected from the 854-acre drainage basin situated just north of the airport.
Projects such as these have significantly reduced pollutant loads entering the lagoon and have improved water quality in the sensitive marine environment, reinforcing the city’s commitment to environmental stewardship.
Conclusion
Oldcastle Infrastructure’s Nutrient Separating Baffle Boxes have played a critical role in Melbourne’s lagoon restoration strategy.
By combining proven stormwater treatment technology with durable precast construction, these systems provide reliable pollutant removal, easy maintenance, and long-term protection for one of Florida’s most important waterways.
As Melbourne continues to expand its program, Oldcastle Infrastructure remains a trusted partner in delivering sustainable stormwater solutions.
Using AI to target water line repairs
Losing water to undetected leaks, a utilities company in Georgia used AI technology to target downtown water line repairs and address an annual revenue loss of up to $238K.
The challenge: Targeting water line repairs
A utilities company in the third-largest city in Georgia supplies its local residents and businesses with over 15bn gallons of clean water each year.
Distributing this volume of water is no small feat—the utility company’s water supply network encompasses over 1,300 miles of pipe and over 67,000 active and inactive connections.
Like many utilities across the US, however, this water infrastructure is aging, and the miles of pipe and thousands of connections are at risk of leaks.
When it comes to non-revenue water—water lost to leakage after having been abstracted, treated and pumped—Georgia is one of the more progressive states in the US, having required utilities to conduct annual water loss audits since 2012.
As a result, its city leaders knew that the network was losing water—the 2023 water loss audit indicated that its non-revenue water loss could be as high as 27%—but what they didn’t know was where the leaks were.
The solution: CivilSense™ real-time leak detection
Following a consultation with Oldcastle Infrastructure’s smart water consultants, city officials identified CivilSense™ real-time leak detection as a potential solution.
CivilSense™ is the only AI-powered water asset management solution to combine predictive risk assessment with targeted real-time leak detection, and the utilities company opted to deploy the real-time leak detection capability on a focused, high-priority area of the network.
They selected a 20-mile section of the water distribution network covering around 100 blocks in the heart of the city’s downtown area. The area under investigation was a business district containing critical city infrastructure, which would result in significant economic and civic disruption in the event of a major line break.
CivilSense™ field experts deployed 202 acoustic sensors across the targeted section of the network and created a total of 650 investigation sessions. These investigation sessions gathered acoustic data that was fed into the CivilSense™ AI for analysis.
The AI, powered by FIDO Tech, performed comparative analysis using its curated library of more than 2.3 million acoustic signatures to generate Waypoints that indicate potential leaks in the system.
What is a Waypoint?
A Waypoint is an acoustic signature that the AI has assessed to be consistent with a leak based on comparison against a comprehensive library of previously detected and validated acoustic signatures. Waypoints are validated and pinpointed using sensors and a technique called correlation, which confirms and then precisely determines the location of the leak.
Field teams used the results of this analysis to redeploy sensors upstream and downstream of each of the leaks, using cloud computing to validate and pinpoint the location of each leak via a technique known as correlation. The leaks were then marked up to direct water line repairs.
The outcome: water line repairs to save up to $239K
The CivilSense™ team created 650 investigation sessions, from which the AI generated 52 Waypoints. Of these Waypoints, CivilSense™ correctly determined that 19 were previously undetected leaks in the targeted section of network and pinpointed their locations for repair.
The leaks were discovered across a range of network infrastructure assets, including distribution mains, meter valves and vaults, curb stops and hydrants. The largest leak detected was on a main line valve, and was assessed to be losing around 10 gallons per minute.
In total, applying AWWA nominal volumetric values, the leaks were assessed to be losing a combined volume of 93.7 gallons per minute, which equates to around 49.2M gallons of water every year.
With local residential and commercial water rates ranging from $2.01 to $4.86 per thousand gallons, this represents a revenue loss of between $98K and $239K every year.
By revealing this loss and enabling the Georgia utilities company to conduct water line repairs to address the leaks, CivilSense™ is helping the city address aging infrastructure issues, develop water supply resiliency, and improve its finances.
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The City of Chehalis, Washington, located midway between Portland and Seattle, faced growing challenges with its aging wastewater treatment plant.
Originally built in 1948 and upgraded several times, the plant could no longer meet projected flow rates or stringent Department of Ecology permit requirements.
To address this, the city launched a design-bid-build project for a new Chehalis Regional Water Reclamation Facility, designed to treat an average flow of 1.3 million gallons per day and peak flows exceeding 10 million gallons per day several times per year. The new facility also included a reclaimed water program to irrigate a 250-acre poplar tree plantation, requiring advanced treatment processes. While grit removal was not initially a top priority, the city needed a system that was simple, reliable, and required minimal moving parts.
Challenge
Shortly after start-up, a pump malfunction caused high-grade silica sand from the effluent filters to bypass the intended recirculation path and enter the plant drain system, sending large volumes of sand back to the headworks. This unexpected event posed a serious risk of overwhelming downstream processes, including Sequencing Batch Reactors (SBRs), and could have led to costly shutdowns and equipment damage.
Solution: Grit King®
The facility installed two 11-foot diameter free-standing Grit King® units and a grit classifier as part of its headworks design. Oldcastle Infrastructure’s Grit King system, engineered by Hydro International, uses advanced hydrodynamic separation to remove 95% of grit 150 microns and larger at peak flows of 13 million gallons per day. When the sand filter malfunction occurred, the Grit King® units captured the excess sand, preventing it from reaching critical downstream processes.
Operators increased grit discharge frequency to manage the additional load, and the plant continued operating without interruption. The system’s all-hydraulic design, minimal moving parts, and ease of installation proved invaluable.
As the Wastewater Superintendent noted, “Construction of the new system was easy. It was delivered to the site, and the contractor bolted it in place within days.”
Sustainability Impact
The Chehalis facility incorporates sustainable practices, including reclaimed water reuse of up to 3.5 million gallons per day for irrigation, production of Class A biosolids sold to local farmers, and reduced maintenance and energy use thanks to the Grit King’s pump-free design.
By preventing grit accumulation in SBR tanks, the system reduces cleaning frequency and associated resource use. Annual cleaning of one SBR now reveals only a wheelbarrow of grit compared to what could have been significant buildup without effective grit removal.
Overall Impact
The impact of the Grit King® system has been substantial. The plant avoided costly downtime during a major equipment malfunction, reduced maintenance costs, and improved operational reliability. The grit removal system has been virtually trouble-free since installation, producing cleaner grit with fewer odors and requiring minimal intervention.
As the superintendent summarized, “The Grit King system has worked great without any problems. It has been virtually trouble free.”
Conclusion
The Chehalis Regional Water Reclamation Facility demonstrates how investing in a robust grit removal system can safeguard operations, even when grit removal isn’t initially considered critical. The Grit King system not only met design requirements for simplicity and reliability but also proved its value during an unexpected event, ensuring uninterrupted service and long-term sustainability.
Background
The city of Queen Creek, Arizona, has doubled in population from 35,500 to over 80,000 over the last 10 years, and is projected to reach 150,000 residents at buildout, with an average annual growth rate of 6-7% (according to Queen Creek News). Over the last five years alone, more than 8,000 building permit applications for single-family homes have been filed in Queen Creek.
Within this city, the construction of retail and mixed-use spaces has surged to meet the needs of the community, with hundreds of thousands of square feet of new retail space, homes, and entertainment complexes replacing vacant corners across major intersections.
Hudson Station is one of those up-and-coming developments.
This 90-acre, mixed-use community was designed to support the city’s rapid growth, featuring commercial spaces, single-family homes, and townhomes. Nearly 50% of the town’s budget is dedicated to capital infrastructure, including roads, wastewater, and parks.
Challenge
Flood mitigation is a primary stormwater objective in Arizona, especially during monsoon season when intense rainfall can overwhelm surface drainage systems. Solutions used must not only store stormwater but also promote deep infiltration to recharge groundwater and comply with strict regulatory requirements.
Arizona’s unique soil and environmental conditions make stormwater management particularly challenging. A major issue is the caliche layer—a highly impermeable surface layer that prevents rainwater from naturally infiltrating the ground. Combined with roads, parking lots, and other infrastructure, this significantly limits groundwater recharge. Regulations also require stormwater to be managed onsite and engineered to withstand 100-year flood events, meaning that systems must capture, filter, store, and infiltrate water effectively to protect communities today and into the future.
These dynamics create added pressure for developers and landowners to maximize investment while delivering safe and engaging places to live and work. The Hudson Station project was no exception; its stormwater management system needed to meet onsite storage requirements while supporting optimal land use for amenities like turf areas.
Traditional open-bottom systems limited to depths of only seven feet are not ideal in these conditions as water cannot infiltrate effectively through caliche. This limitation increases risk for stakeholders—including developers, municipalities, and contractors—while the burden of failure ultimately falls on the community. Past failures, such as a sinkhole and CMP storm drain collapse at a nearby Chandler shopping center, highlight the consequences of unreliable systems. Combined with tight site layouts and rising costs, these factors demanded a solution that could deliver performance, reduce risk, and maximize usable land.
Hancock Builders, a leading multifamily housing developer and builder, served as the general contractor for Hudson Station. Ownership of stormwater risk typically falls on project stakeholders, but the impact of failure is shared broadly. For Hancock Builders, finding a reliable solution was critical to project success.
Installation added another layer of complexity. Petra, the earthwork contractor responsible for installing the stormwater system, needed a solution that could be integrated seamlessly with grading and drainage plans, installed safely under Arizona’s soil conditions, and completed without introducing additional risk or delays. Petra’s role was essential in ensuring the system performs as designed and supports the overall project timeline.
Solution
To meet these challenges, the team selected MaxCapture™, an integrated system combining StormCapture® and MaxWell® drywells. StormCapture is a robust underground stormwater detention system with a closed-bottom design engineered for Arizona soils.
A key advantage of StormCapture is its solid base slab, which includes openings only directly above the MaxWell drywells. This design ensures that scour at the bottom of the system does not inundate the drywell with sediment, preventing clogging and failure. StormCapture’s closed-bottom design ensures water containment and system integrity in Arizona’s clay-rich soils, unlike open-bottom systems that risk long-term reliability issues. It also offers superior design flexibility, accommodating varied pipe angles and inverts
Beneath StormCapture, MaxWell drywells enable deep infiltration and groundwater recharge without consuming surface space—critical in Arizona’s clay soils for long-term water stewardship. The Maxwell was designed for the project backed by more than 50 years of soil and area topography knowledge. This experience ensures that the drywell is designed and installed at the proper depth and provides reliable water infiltration for decades to come.
The Oldcastle Infrastructure team partnered with the designers early, using GIS data and thousands of drill records to provide precise specifications for the site. Petra also played a vital role in installing the system safely and efficiently, ensuring alignment with the developer’s strong safety culture.
Other dynamics that made this project successful include the partnership between Oldcastle Infrastructure, the engineering group, and Hancock Builders. Oldcastle Infrastructure provided engineering support early in the process, using the online design tool and working with engineers to ensure that the integrated system was quick and easy to incorporate into grading and drainage plans, streamlining approvals and reducing redesign costs.
Impact
The integrated system offers multiple benefits for the project. Total project cost optimization was achieved despite rising material prices, while space efficiency allowed developers to meet municipal requirements for green spaces and amenities. Oldcastle Infrastructure’s in-house manufacturing of cover plates and tie-off points improved safety during installation, reducing fall hazards and supporting Petra’s installation process.
Sustainability was also a major win for Hudson Station. MaxWell supports groundwater recharge, reducing runoff and replenishing aquifers. StormCapture’s modular design minimizes excavation and material waste, while its durability ensures decades of service life, lowering lifecycle emissions. The system is also engineered for 100-year storm events, ensuring resilience against rare, high-intensity rainfall—a critical consideration given recent significant rain events in Arizona.
Outcome
Hudson Station stands as a model for how advanced infrastructure solutions can overcome regulatory compliance, rising costs, and tight site constraints. By leveraging Oldcastle Infrastructure’s StormCapture and MaxWell systems, and partnering with engineers and contactors for expert installation, the project achieved cost efficiency, sustainability, and enhanced livability, all while meeting Queen Creek’s vision for a thriving, resilient community that seamlessly blends with its surroundings.
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How a small Ohio village solved maintenance challenges
Background
While the village didn’t need a large wastewater treatment plant, it wanted the benefits of a high-performance grit removal system like the Grit King®, which has been proven to protect downstream processes and improve plant efficiency. The Village of Shiloh is a small community in north-central Ohio with a population of around 690. Located east of Ohio’s famous Amish Country, Shiloh has a strong Amish and Old Order Mennonite influence.
The Problem
Shiloh owns and operates its own wastewater treatment facility, which treats approximately 50,000 gallons per day (189,270 L/d) at average flows and up to 725,000 gallons per day (2,744,424 L/d) at peak flows. Historically, the plant had no grit removal system. The original headworks consisted only of a manual coarse bar screen. Treatment included primary clarification and a trickling filter system, but due to the rudimentary headworks, the facility was becoming increasingly difficult to maintain.
Labor availability was another challenge. The Village had no full-time staff at the wastewater treatment plant and relied on a certified operator to visit once or twice a week to ensure compliance with EPA requirements. This operator also managed several other small treatment facilities in the region, leaving little time for additional maintenance at Shiloh’s plant.
The Solution
With limited staffing and increasing maintenance demands, Shiloh needed a very low-maintenance grit removal system that could provide advanced grit management performance and protect downstream infrastructure under all conditions with minimal supervision. The system had to be simple to install, require little contractor time, and avoid extensive custom site work.
The Village found its ideal solution in Oldcastle Infrastructure’s Grit King® Compact system. This pre-packaged grit removal system was easy to install, fit within the plant’s budget, required minimal maintenance, and could meet the facility’s needs well into the future. The Grit King® Compact, engineered by Hydro International, delivers all the performance of industry-leading grit separation technology in a fully integrated system that outputs clean, dry grit ready for cost-effective disposal.
To keep costs manageable for small plants, internal components in low-wear areas are constructed of durable plastic rather than stainless steel, reducing material costs without compromising performance. The Grit King® Compact is specifically designed for smaller plants, providing total plant protection with very little maintenance—addressing Shiloh’s operational challenges and staffing limitations.
The Outcome
By installing the Grit King® Compact, the Village of Shiloh secured a reliable, low-maintenance grit removal solution that protects its treatment processes, reduces maintenance demands, and ensures compliance with environmental standards. The system’s simplicity and durability make it an ideal fit for small communities with limited resources, delivering long-term performance and peace of mind.
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Protecting an award-winning plant
The Noman M. Cole, Jr. Pollution Control Plant (NMCPCP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, just west of Washington, D.C., is one of the most recognized wastewater treatment facilities in the United States.
Background
The plant has earned 19 consecutive Platinum Peak Performance Awards from the National Association of Clean Water Agencies—a distinction achieved by fewer than a dozen of America’s 16,500 wastewater treatment plants. NMCPCP discharges into a tributary of the Potomac River, which supplies drinking water for most of the six million people living in the D.C. area.
In addition to traditional wastewater treatment, NMCPCP operates a robust water reuse program. The plant initially treats water to a level suitable for irrigation and industrial applications, and 2-3 MGD (7.6–11.4 MLD) of this pretreated gray water is used internally for plant operations. A pipeline also delivers reclaimed water to Covanta Fairfax, Inc., where approximately 560 million gallons are used annually to operate cooling towers at their 80 MW energy recovery plant. Reclaimed water is also used to irrigate the nearby Laurel Hill Golf Course and county parks, replacing the need for 400 million gallons of drinking water each year.
The Problem
Despite its advanced operations, NMCPCP had no headworks grit removal system. An aging cyclone/screw classifier sludge degritting system was ineffective at removing the large amounts of grit present in sludge. This outdated system provided little protection and was nearing the end of its usable life.
At this facility, excess biosolids are dried, incinerated, and the resulting ash is hauled to a landfill for disposal. Since the cyclone/screw classifier failed to capture grit, significant amounts remained in the ash, increasing landfill volume, handling, and hauling costs, ultimately driving up operational expenses. Cyclone/screw classifier systems typically remove grit 212 microns and larger, leaving finer particles in the 75-212-micron range to pass through and impact downstream sludge treatment processes. Additionally, the system required frequent liner changes, causing costly maintenance and downtime. The plant needed a more robust technology capable of removing finer grit particles and reducing operating and maintenance costs.
The Solution
NMCPCP partnered with Oldcastle Infrastructure to conduct a field trial of the SlurryCup™ and Grit Snail® Advanced Sludge Degritting systems, engineered by Hydro International, to verify its performance in this challenging application. After the trial delivered outstanding results, the plant selected six 42-inch (1.1 m) SlurryCup units and three 2 yd³/hr (1.5 m³/hr) Grit Snail quiescent dewatering escalators. Since installation, the system has significantly reduced maintenance and operational costs while protecting mission-critical biosolids operations from the damaging effects of grit.
The SlurryCup and Grit Snail offer several advantages. It removes over 90% of particles as small as 75 microns (with a specific gravity of 2.65) and captures up to 20 times more grit than a cyclone/screw classifier. Its first-flush solids handling capacity minimizes grit loss, and the classified grit has low organic content (less than 20% volatile solids), reducing disposal volume. The system produces grit with 60% total solids content, operates as an enclosed system for improved odor control, and significantly reduces operations and maintenance costs.
The Outcome
The SlurryCup and Grit Snail continue to provide exceptional performance, protecting NMCPCP’s sludge treatment processes and reducing costs associated with grit-related maintenance and landfill disposal. By implementing advanced sludge degritting technology, NMCPCP continues to uphold its reputation for environmental excellence while improving operational efficiency.
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Background
The Montrose Boulevard Improvement Project, led by the Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) in partnership with the City of Houston, focuses on upgrading one of Houston’s most important north-south corridors: Montrose Boulevard, a vital route connecting residents and visitors to major destinations such as the Museum District, Houston Zoo, Texas Medical Center, and the Ismaili Center. The improvement aims to improve mobility, safety, and sustainability while preserving the character of the neighborhood.
Oldcastle Infrastructure played a critical role in the project by supplying reinforced concrete box culverts and pipe for the stormwater drainage system. The contract value was approximately $2.5 million, with manufacturing completed at the North Houston plant. Work began in April 2025 and was completed in January 2026.
The project involved installing roughly 2,200 feet of box culvert and 1,000 feet of reinforced concrete pipe to upgrade stormwater infrastructure. These improvements were essential to address chronic flooding issues in the Montrose area. In addition to drainage upgrades, the project delivered new sidewalks, crosswalks, and improved street lighting to enhance pedestrian safety and accessibility. Roadway surfaces were resurfaced for smoother travel, and mature trees were preserved wherever possible, with additional trees planted along Montrose Boulevard to improve aesthetics and environmental impact.
Challenges
One of the most significant challenges for the project was replacing the outdated drainage system, which relied on undersized 48-inch and 54-inch pipes. This infrastructure could not handle heavy rainfall events, leading to frequent flooding. The new design required installing large 10×10-foot box culverts beneath Montrose Boulevard to provide both conveyance and detention capacity. These culverts were engineered to manage approximately 1.6 million gallons of stormwater, reducing peak runoff and alleviating pressure on downstream systems like Buffalo Bayou. Integrating this system beneath a reconstructed roadway added complexity, as it had to align with mobility improvements while minimizing surface disruption and preserving trees.
Logistical challenges also played a major role. Montrose Boulevard is a high-traffic area with limited space for staging and maneuvering equipment. Deliveries of oversized culverts required strategic scheduling. Unlike typical projects where many trucks can deliver daily, this job required staggered deliveries—sometimes one or two trucks per day, other times five trucks every other day—based on site capacity and traffic conditions. Trucks were spaced 20-30 minutes apart to avoid congestion at the job site.
Additional obstacles included unexpected utility conflicts. Fiber optic and cable lines discovered during excavation could not be relocated, forcing the contractor to develop a creative workaround. Using an excavator, they temporarily pulled the lines aside with ropes during culvert installation and then let them fall back into place. Weather also caused delays as heavy rains during installation led to sediment buildup inside incomplete culverts, requiring cleanup and pushing the schedule back by several weeks.
Solutions
Oldcastle Infrastructure provided innovative solutions to overcome these project challenges, while sister company CRH Americas Materials supplied asphalt. One of the most notable was the custom box culvert design. Original plans called for large junction boxes at four locations with elevation drops of two and four feet. Instead of manufacturing massive junction boxes, Oldcastle Infrastructure engineered custom oversized box culverts (14×10 and 12×10) with internal drop walls. This approach allowed for continuous installation, time savings for the contractor, and the elimination of the need for complex on-site construction. These custom components were cast at the North Houston plant and represented a unique engineering achievement for the team.
Strategic delivery planning was another key solution. Oldcastle Infrastructure worked closely with the contractor to schedule deliveries based on site capacity and traffic conditions, ensuring smooth operations despite space limitations.
Impact
The Montrose Boulevard Improvement Project significantly enhanced roadway safety and reliability by reducing flood risk. The addition of sidewalks, crosswalks, and lighting created a more pedestrian-friendly environment, while resurfaced roads improved accessibility and durability. Preserving mature trees and planting new ones contributed to the neighborhood’s charm and environmental health, reinforcing Montrose Boulevard’s role as a welcoming corridor for residents and visitors.
Sustainability Impact
This project aligns with sustainability principles by protecting and restoring water resources and creating cleaner urban spaces. Improved stormwater management reduces flooding and prevents pollutants from spreading into streets and waterways.
Durable concrete solutions ensure long-term performance compared to alternatives like plastic, which lack the necessary strength and hydraulic efficiency for this application.
The inclusion of green spaces and pedestrian-friendly features further supports sustainable urban development and community well-being.
Conclusion
Oldcastle Infrastructure’s solutions were specified for the project due to a strong, long-standing relationship built on trust and flexibility. Oldcastle Infrastructure’s willingness to provide custom solutions, such as oversized culverts with drop walls, demonstrated its commitment to supporting the customer’s needs. This collaboration not only solved complex engineering challenges but also reinforced a partnership that will continue to drive future projects.
The Montrose Boulevard Improvement Project exemplifies how innovative engineering, strategic planning, and sustainability can transform urban infrastructure. By addressing flooding issues, improving mobility, and enhancing community amenities, this project sets the standard for resilient, sustainable development in Houston and beyond.
Improving performance and increasing capacity for a wastewater treatment plant retrofit project
Retrofitting a HeadCell®, SlurryCup™, and Grit Snail® grit removal, washing, and dewatering system provided a significant performance improvement over Fox Lake WWTP’s aerated grit basin.
Background
The Fox Lake Wastewater Treatment Plant in Illinois faced a critical challenge with its aging aerated grit basin (AGB). The existing grit removal system was at the end of its useful life and needed to be replaced. The plant had two key requirements for the upgrade: the new equipment had to fit within the existing footprint, and it needed to eliminate grit deposition in the grit basin, which was extremely difficult to remove.
Fox Lake’s plant supervisor discovered the HeadCell® stacked tray grit removal system at the WEFTEC conference in Chicago. He was impressed by the stacked tray concept, which reminded him of lamella systems he had seen before. The design offered increased surface area for grit separation, which would significantly improve performance while staying within the space occupied by the old AGB.
The Problem
The existing aerated grit basin was underperforming. Prior to taking it out of service, a grit study was conducted to evaluate its efficiency. At design peak flow, the AGB should have been removing grit particles 225 microns and larger, and at lower flows, it should have captured even finer particles. However, testing during low flow conditions of only 824 gpm (52 L/s)—when the AGB should have removed all sand particles 50 microns and larger—revealed that the separator was only capturing 58% of incoming grit.
The downstream cyclone/screw washing and dewatering system performed even worse, retaining just 17% of the material delivered to it. This reduced the overall system efficiency to only 10% of influent grit captured. The plant needed a solution that could dramatically improve grit removal efficiency and prevent grit from depositing within the plant.
The Solution
To achieve the required performance, Fox Lake needed to double the surface area for settling grit. The stacked tray design of the HeadCell® allowed the plant to significantly increase surface area while remaining within the existing footprint. An isolation wall was poured to section off part of the old aeration basin, creating a dry pit for the grit pumps, while the remaining space housed the HeadCell® trays. A SlurryCup™ and Grit Snail® replaced the old cyclone/screw washing and dewatering system, providing advanced grit washing and dewatering capabilities.
The Outcome
Testing on a day with flows of 9.4 MGD (36 MLD) proved the new HeadCell® system to be 88% efficient overall. The HeadCell® grit collection chamber achieved 95% efficiency, and the SlurryCup™ and Grit Snail® washing and dewatering system retained 93% of the grit delivered to it. The retrofit provided a significant performance improvement over the previous aerated grit basin, ensuring better protection for downstream processes and improved plant reliability.
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Using AI to target water line repairs
Losing water to undetected leaks, one forward-looking Georgia city used AI technology to target downtown water line repairs and address an annual revenue loss of up to $238K.
The challenge: targeting water line repairs
When it comes to non-revenue water (NRW)—water lost to leakage after having been abstracted, treated and pumped—Georgia is one of the more progressive states in the US, having required utilities to conduct annual water loss audits since 2012.
As a result, municipal leaders at one Georgia city knew that the water distribution network was losing water—a recent water loss audit indicated that its NRW loss could be as high as 25%—but what they didn’t know was where the leaks were.
With a water supply network comprising over 1,000 miles of pipe and over 50,000 active and inactive connections, the local water utility distributes over 12 bn gallons of clean water every year. Like many utilities across the US, however, this water infrastructure is aging, and the miles of pipe and thousands of connections meant that reliably detecting and locating leaks was a challenge.
The solution: CivilSense™ real-time leak detection
Following a consultation with Oldcastle Infrastructure’s smart water consultants, city officials identified CivilSense™ real-time leak detection as a potential solution.
CivilSense™ is the only AI-powered water asset management solution to combine predictive risk assessment with targeted real-time leak detection, and the city’s water utility opted to deploy the real-time leak detection capability on a focused, high-priority area of the network.
They selected a 20-mile section of the water distribution network covering around 100 blocks in the heart of city. The area under investigation was a business district containing elements of critical city infrastructure, which would result in significant economic and civic disruption in the event of a major line break.
CivilSense™ field experts deployed 202 acoustic sensors across the targeted section of the network, and created a total of 650 investigation sessions. These investigation sessions gathered acoustic data that was fed into the CivilSense™ AI for analysis.
The AI, powered by FIDO Tech, performed comparative analysis using its curated library of more than 2.3 million acoustic signatures to generate Waypoints that indicate potential leaks in the system.
What is a Waypoint?
Field teams used the results of this analysis to redeploy sensors upstream and downstream of each of the leaks, using cloud computing to validate and pinpoint the location of each leak via a technique known as correlation. The leaks were then marked up to direct water line repair activities.
The outcome: water line repairs to save up to $239K
The CivilSense™ team created 650 investigation sessions, from which the AI generated 52 Waypoints. Of these Waypoints, CivilSense™ correctly determined that 19 were previously undetected leaks in the targeted section of network, and pinpointed their locations for repair.
The leaks were discovered across a range of network infrastructure assets, including distribution mains, meter valves and vaults, curb stops and hydrants. The largest leak detected was on a main line valve, and was assessed to be losing around 10 gallons per minute.
In total, applying AWWA nominal volumetric values, the leaks were assessed to be losing a combined volume of 93.7 gallons per minute, which equates to around 49.2M gallons of water every year.
With local residential and commercial water rates ranging from $2.00 to $4.86 per thousand gallons, this represents lost revenue of between $98K and $239K every year. Add in variable production costs, and the real losses are far higher.
By revealing this loss and directing repair teams to conduct targeted water line repairs to address the leaks, CivilSense™ is helping the city to address aging infrastructure issues, develop water supply resiliency, and improve its finances.
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Background
Located just 20 miles from downtown Phoenix, the city of Chandler, Arizona, has experienced massive growth over the past four decades. In 1980, the city had a population of less than 30,000. Today, it exceeds 250,000, driven by the rapid expansion of technology and major employers like Intel®, which employs nearly 12,000 people in the region. This population boom placed significant strain on the city’s wastewater infrastructure.
The Chandler Airport Water Reclamation Facility (WRF) was built in 1998 and is one of three WRFs in the area. Given the scarcity of water in south-central Arizona, Chandler reclaims and reuses 100% of its wastewater. The effluent meets Class A+ water standards, allowing direct use in lakes, golf courses, aquifer recharge, and landscape irrigation. In 2009, the plant underwent a major expansion to treat 15 MGD (57 MLD). At the time, the $76 million project was the largest capital improvement in the city’s history. Over two decades, the facility expanded four times to reach its current capacity of 27 MGD (102 MLD). Despite these upgrades, one critical issue remained unresolved: grit removal.
The Problem
From the start, the plant operated without a grit removal system. As flows increased, grit accumulation caused severe operational challenges, including frequent maintenance across multiple processes, reduced operating capacity, shortened equipment life, and increased energy costs due to grit-laden aeration basins. To manage the problem, the plant hired contractors every two to three years to remove accumulated grit—a costly and labor-intensive process that consumed hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Determined to eliminate this recurring expense, Chandler engaged Wilson Engineers to evaluate grit removal technologies. Independent testing revealed that 79% of influent grit was larger than 300 microns, but a system designed for 300-micron removal would only remove 27% of grit when settling velocity was considered. A design targeting 106-micron Sand Equivalent Size would capture 99% of influent grit. The influent grit testing confirmed that the HeadCell® system with a 106-micron design would provide the solution the Airport WRF needed.
Located adjacent to a busy municipal airport, the plant had limited space for a new headworks grit removal system. Given decades of experience struggling with unchecked grit, the Airport WRF wanted a low-maintenance separation system with minimal moving parts and a proven track record of fine-grit removal performance.
The Solution
Wilson Engineers evaluated aerated grit basins, mechanically induced vortex systems, and stacked tray grit separation. They determined that the HeadCell®, a stacked tray grit removal system engineered by Hydro International, was the best solution. The HeadCell® has no moving parts, and its stacked tray design provides increased surface area in a very small footprint. With nearly 1,000 installed units worldwide, HeadCell® offers decades of independently verified performance.
In the summer of 2018, Mortensen Construction installed an Advanced Grit Management® system consisting of HeadCell®, TeaCup®, and Grit Snail® units. This configuration provides total plant protection for peak flows up to 45 MGD (170 MLD), with 95% removal of grit 106 microns and larger at peak flows and 95% removal of grit 75 microns and larger at average flows. After start-up, the new system’s performance was independently measured on-site, and the results exceeded expectations.
The Outcome
The new grit removal system transformed operations at Chandler Airport WRF. It eliminated costly grit cleanouts, protected downstream equipment, reduced energy consumption, and extended equipment life and reliability. By investing in a proven solution, Chandler resolved a decades-long challenge and secured sustainable, efficient wastewater treatment for a rapidly growing community.
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- See the latest generation of the TeaCup®, the OpTeaCup®
The Situation
The Philadelphia Zoo is home to some of the most iconic wildlife in the region, and when plans for a new flamingo habitat began, the project required reliable infrastructure.
Oldcastle Infrastructure’s Telford plant was selected to deliver a custom drainage solution that would support the habitat while meeting strict environmental and operational requirements. What started as a straightforward precast slab installation quickly evolved into a specialized drainage system designed to manage runoff and protect the health of the flamingos.
The Challenge
The initial scope of the project involved installing large precast slabs; however, during construction, the contractor identified a critical need for drainage and filtration components to ensure proper water management.
This presented two challenges:
- The design required smaller, highly customized components outside Oldcastle Infrastructure’s typical large-scale product range.
- The zoo remained open to visitors throughout the project, demanding precise scheduling and unconventional delivery routes through pedestrian pathways.
- The solution had to fit within the habitat footprint, maintain water quality, and be installed without disrupting zoo operations.
The Solution
Oldcastle Infrastructure responded by engineering a tailored system of trench drains and catch basins equipped with specialized filter media. Each drain featured a durable grate for debris protection and easy maintenance access, while the underlying filter media captured impurities before stormwater exited the habitat. Components varied in size—from compact units to taller structures—but all were designed for durability and performance.
Production and installation were completed in phases between September 2024 and January 2025. Materials were transported via flatbed trucks and escorted through zoo pathways during early morning hours to avoid visitor traffic. Once onsite, the team installed trench drains and catch basins, followed by filter media placement.
Despite logistical complexity, Oldcastle Infrastructure’s adaptability and engineering expertise ensured the project was completed within six to eight weeks.
The Outcome
The custom drainage system plays a vital role in maintaining a clean, sustainable environment for the zoo’s flamingo habitat. By effectively managing runoff and filtering impurities, Oldcastle Infrastructure supported the Philadelphia Zoo in achieving its environmental goals while enhancing the visitor experience.
For the Telford team, the project was more than just another job—it was an opportunity to contribute to a space that the community can enjoy for years to come.
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Leak detection technology reveals 22 previously undetected leaks
The City of Hailey, Idaho, deployed a new AI-driven leak detection technology on 62 miles of its water distribution network and found 22 previously undetected leaks that were losing a total of 59 million gallons of clean water every year.
The challenge:
The City of Hailey is a small city situated in Idaho’s Wood River Valley, with a population of a little over 9,900 people. Though both the Big Wood and Little Wood rivers run through the region, Hailey’s water distribution network was in need of attention.
Between 2019 and 2023 the city estimated that some 29% of the water that it was producing was not reaching consumers. This unaccounted-for water, or non-revenue water (NRW), reached 50% during the winter months.
The city identified three possible causes of this NRW:
- Leaks in distribution system pipes
- Faulty or inaccurate water meters
- Unmetered connections
The problem with leaking water pipes, however, is that they are invisible, and therefore difficult to locate—or even detect—with any degree of confidence using traditional detection methods.
To address this, city leaders solicited assistance from specialized leak detection companies.
The solution: CivilSense™ real-time leak detection technology
Solution selection
City leaders asked Eric Landsberg, PE of Clear Solutions Engineering to evaluate leak detection technologies and services from three different providers: Echologics, Asterra, and Oldcastle Infrastructure.
Echologics offered leak detection technology that the city’s workers would install and operate. Relying on existing city resources to undertake both deployment and analysis was considered unviable as the city’s workforce was already stretched thin.
Asterra offered analysis of satellite imagery, using data over a range of wavelengths to identify areas where soils were saturated, suggested the possible presence of a leak. However, local geography is characterized by rocky terrain that does not retain water, meaning that this technique would be unsuited to the requirement.
Mr Landsberg instead recommended that the city use Oldcastle Infrastructure’s CivilSense™ solution, an AI-driven risk analysis and real-time leak detection technology that uses acoustic sensors and an AI trained on over 2.3 million acoustic signatures to detect, locate and size leaks in the water distribution network.
Landsberg recommended the CivilSense™ approach because of its “turnkey” nature, in which the CivilSense™ team would deploy sensors and the AI would conduct the analysis, as it avoided adding to the resource burden on the city’s workforce. He also noted the fact that its >93% accuracy meant that it delivered superior leak detection than either competitor.
The project
Oldcastle Infrastructure deployed CivilSense™ on a 62-mile section of the water distribution network, including mains, service lines and related infrastructure.
CivilSense™ field experts deployed acoustic sensors across the targeted section of the network, and created a total of 807 investigation sessions. These investigation sessions gathered acoustic data that was fed into the CivilSense™ AI for analysis.
The AI, powered by FIDO Tech, performed comparative analysis using its curated library of more than 2.3 million acoustic signatures to generate 220 Waypoints that indicate potential leaks in the system.
What is a Waypoint?
A Waypoint is an acoustic signature that the AI has assessed to be consistent with a leak based on comparison against a comprehensive library of previously detected and validated acoustic signatures. Waypoints are validated and pinpointed using sensors and a technique called correlation, which confirms and then precisely determines the location of the leak.
The field teams used the results of this analysis to redeploy sensors upstream and downstream of each of the Waypoints, and—using cloud computing and a technique known as correlation—this additional acoustic data enabled the AI to eliminate Waypoints that were not leaks, and to validate, locate and size the Waypoints that were leaks. The leaks were then marked up in situ to direct the resulting repair activity.
The outcome
The CivilSense™ team created 880 investigation sessions, from which the AI generated 220 Waypoints. Of these Waypoints, CivilSense™ analysis identified 22 previously undetected leaks in the targeted section of network, and pinpointed their locations for repair crews.
The leaks were discovered across a range of network infrastructure assets, including main lines, service lines and fire hydrants. Of these, seven were assessed as large leaks, six as medium and four as small. In addition, CivilSense™ was able to pinpoint the location and assess the sizes of five leaks that were known about but which could not be located.
In total, applying AWWA nominal volumetric values, the leaks were assessed to be losing a combined volume of around 59.2M gallons of water every year.
By revealing this loss and enabling the City of Hailey to conduct targeted repairs to address the leaks, CivilSense™ leak detection technology is helping the city to drive sustainable water management, improve system efficiency and make budgetary savings that can be reinvested into the community.
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