LAN Selected for Yearbook of Engineering Achievement Award for Joseph A. Willhelm Industrial Pump Station

The Civil + Structural Engineer Magazine has awarded civil engineering firm Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam, Inc. (LAN) the Yearbook of Engineering Achievement Award for its work on the Joseph A. Willhelm Industrial Pump Station in Texas City. The award, given under the water, wastewater and stormwater category, was announced in the February 2022 publication of Civil + Structural Engineer Magazine.

This is the first year that the Yearbook of Engineering Achievement Award has been given. The award is to applaud projects that have advanced the industry further through impacts in community or environment, advanced industrial practices or innovative performance. A panel of judges from Civil + Structural Engineer Media staff and a group of professional engineers have selected the winners of this award.

The pump station, named in honor of the Gulf Coast Water Authority’s (GCWA) first general manager, Joseph A. Willhelm, provides 96 million gallons of water per day to GCWA’s major petrochemical and refining customers in Texas City. Completed in July 2021, the new pump station, replacing the original pump station bult in 1949, is the largest capital investment by the water authority in decades. It expands pumping capacity by nearly 25 percent, guaranteeing long-term reliability and accommodation to future industrial growth.

“This project is a great example of team collaboration and innovation to construct a sustainable and resilient new facility to meet the needs of the oil and gas industries without disruption of service,” said Melissa Mack, P.E., LAN Vice President and project manager for the industrial pump station.

The pump station provides fire protection services to GCWA’s industrial customers. A large petroleum refinery is able to process up to thousands of barrels per day, making the cost of a single refinery fire devastating in the terms of human lives and economic loss. The project has improved the safety of these refineries by providing a reliable water source for fire protection services. Another feature of the pump station is that it is hurricane-proof and designed to withstand 140-mile-per-hour (stage 4) hurricane winds. The facility’s resilient design allows continuous operations following a significant weather event.

Sustainable materials were used to build the pump station, including stainless steel, fiberglass and concrete, which do not corrode and will provide a long-life cycle, energy efficiency and decrease life-cycle costs. Construction of the pump station incorporated insulated structural precast concrete panels and steel framing for long-term endurance. Operational noise from the building is reduced by sound attenuation panels, while motor heat is reduced by a robust ventilation system.

The Yearbook of Engineering Achievement Award is the second recognition for the Joseph A. Willhelm Industrial Pump Station. In November 2021, the project was awarded a gold medal from The American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) Texas. The award, given under the Industrial category, will be presented during the ACEC Texas Engineering Excellence Awards Gala at the Hyatt Hill Country Resort in San Antonio on March 28, 2022.