The City of Tampa’s Water Department is installing eight new 40-foot-long pumps and motors at the David L. Tippin Water Treatment Plant as part of its High Service Pump Station project. Once in service, these pumps will help deliver drinking water to over 725,000 residents who live or work in the department’s service area.
The process to install the pumps will take multiple days and will require two cranes to move each individual pump over the existing building structure before being lowered in place. The pumps are expected to go into service in the upcoming months. They will replace the current pumps, some of which were originally built in the 1920’s.
The pumps are an important part of the High Service Pump Station project. Once completed, the state-of-the-art High Service Pump Station will help the Water Department meet the City’s future drinking water needs by improving reliability and efficiency of the facility’s treated water and distribution system. Currently, the facility treats more than 80 MGD (million gallons a day) of drinking water and stores it onsite. The High Service Pump Station transfers the drinking water to the water distribution system. If needed, the new High Service Pump Station will be capable of delivering drinking water at a max rate of 160 MGD on a temporary basis.
The $95 million High Service Pump Station project is funded through PIPES, the Progressive Infrastructure Planning to Ensure Sustainability. The $2.9 billion funding plan is transforming the City’s 100-year-old water and wastewater infrastructure.
Water Production Manager John Ring will be available at the David L. Tippin Water Treatment Facility, located at 7125 N 30th Street, to discuss the installation of the new pumps and the benefits to Water Department customers with the media. Please contact Liz.Hall@Tampa.gov to arrange an interview.
Additional information about the High Service Pump Station:
- Each pump and motor set weighs approximately 35,000 pounds.
- Each pump can pump up to 25 MGD.
- Each motor has a 900-horsepower rating.
- In total, the pump station was designed for a peak operating flow rate of 160 MGD. That’s enough capacity to roughly fill an Olympic-size swimming pool every 6 minutes.