LATA has provided engineering management of the Motor Wheel Disposal Site (MWDS) Superfund site since 1995 and continues with system operations. The MWDS project encompasses:

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• Groundwater modeling and treatment

• Site investigation

• Design and implementation of remote operations

Work Performed: LATA served as lead engineer for the design, implementation, and integration of a comprehensive SCADA system at MWDS.

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• The treatment system encompasses three separate extraction zones, over 3.5 miles of pipeline through city streets and an outfall 1.5 miles to the Grand River.

• LATA provided the different extraction zones with separate “slave” Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) and power distribution networks that communicate to the “Master” PLC at the site via Radio telemetry.

• The system comprises five separate Allen-Bradley SLC-5/03 programmable controllers communicating via Metricom 928 Mhz spread spectrum radios.

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The design also allows LATA the ability to add additional remote nodes without compromising the initial investment in hardware and software. LATA:

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• Designed and constructed the electrical and control

• Performed the Programmable Logic Controller and the Human Machine Interface programming

• Performed Factory Acceptance Test of the panels before delivery

• Provided the system integration on-site during startup for remote operation of the system

 

The system has maintained a high operational uptime of >92% due to the level of sophistication of the controls systems LATA designed and installed. Data gathered remotely allows for ongoing optimization of the system leading to a high system throughput.