Actuator upgrade for Australia ’ s
Upgrades at a critical water treatment plant have ensured an uninterrupted future water supply .
Text & images by Acrodyne
oldest water supply
Limitorque MX10 on a buried 1350mm BfV main inlet valve
Acrodyne has recently been involved in a valve actuation upgrade at Australia ’ s oldest water supply treatment plant . Located near Melbourne , the Yan Yean Reservoir was built in 1857 , and at the time of its completion , it was the largest artificial reservoir in the world .
The project
While the plant is currently on standby , recently the end-user has expressed its intent to upgrade the facility to enable continuous use of the Yan Yean Reservoir . This will be particularly important during summer months when demand for water is high . Bringing the reservoir back online will help meet
Various Limitorque actuators on butterfly valves
Melbourne ’ s future water demand and also provide storage for local emergency services such as firefighting .
The solution
When the water treatment plant was built in 1993 , it was supplied with over sixty Limitorque electric actuators , including the Limitorque LY to the Limitorque L120 . However , as part of the planned upgrades and improvements in technology and process , the plant owners are looking to upgrade 47 of those original actuators with the next-generation Limitorque MX and QX electric actuators . In recent times , the actuator on the 1350mm main inlet butterfly valve was replaced with the Limitorque MX-10 electric actuator on an extension spindle , driving a buried service gearbox to the valve . The inlet valve takes advantage of the actuator ’ s modulation control features that provide accuracy and control of the flow into the plant .
The result
For many years Acrodyne has serviced this flagship facility , maintaining the 60 + Limitorque actuators on the site through its sales and servicing team to maintain the integrity of the equipment at the treatment plant .
54 Valve World February 2023 www . valve-world . net