Morrison US installs surge training rig at South West Water site

Morrison Utility Services’ has installed its largest pressure transient valve training rig at South West Water’s Exeter site to better understand network surges.

The bespoke rig demonstrates the potentially damaging consequences of transient surge that can occur as a result of network operations or interventions, and how these can be avoided or reduced using valve and hydrant techniques.

The system consists of a coiled pipe fed by a pump from a tank reservoir, circulating water around a number of test loops and branches.

It simulates a section of operational main and can be adjusted to produce different flow velocities and pressures. The system is equipped with various valves, hydrants, pressure relief valves and other apparatus to replicate various configurations and conditions.

Tony Hanks, technical lead for Morrison US water technologies, said: “This rig is one of the most complex designs of a series of ten rigs within the clean water sector commissioned to date. It will give South West’s trainees and time served engineers, as well as service providers and organisations that interact with the network, a true-to-life experience of managing the effects of transient surge. It will also raise awareness of the key operational good practice that prevents this from happening and improve network integrity and good customer service in the long run.”