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DENVER, Colorado (Dec. 6, 2016) — Burns & McDonnell was recognized at the American Council of Engineering Companies of Colorado (ACEC Colorado) 2017 Engineering Excellence Awards with an Excellence Award and two Merit Awards. 

An upgrade project for the South Adams County Water and Sanitation District earned Burns & McDonnell Excellence Award honors. Currently the largest water and sanitation district in the State of Colorado, the South Adams County Water and Sanitation District needed to meet demand and address effluent permitting changes by expanding and upgrading their treatment facility. Burns & McDonnell assisted the district at all stages of the project, including planning, designing, permitting and construction observation. A highly complex retrofit project, the facility remained in operation and in compliance throughout construction. The upgrade improved energy efficiency, reduced water usage, was completed three months ahead of schedule and came in nearly $80,000 under budget.

“This project was completely custom,” says Andrew Waddoups, Burns & McDonnell project manager in Denver. “We were with the client from the beginning of the project and able to capture all their needs and wants. The facility now uses some of the most sophisticated technologies and treatment systems — and more importantly — is able to better support our communities’ wastewater needs.” 

Burns & McDonnell was recognized with a Merit Award for another upgrade project — the Dodd Water Treatment Facility. This project was a joint venture with Garney Construction and included converting package clarifier/filter units to conventional pretreatment and microfiltration membranes, as well as preparing the facility for future expansion to 15 million gallons per day. The project utilized an alternative delivery method in the form of progressive design-build, which allowed the team to meet the district’s need for seasonal capacity and to achieve goals for water quality, safety and budget. 

The firm also received a Merit Award for a pump station improvements project for the City of Westminster, Colorado — a package of four different pump stations that required repair and rehabilitation. This is one of many projects the city is undertaking to provide a reliable water supply for their more than 100,000 customers. Working as part of a design-build team with Garney Construction, Burns & McDonnell engineered solutions that maximized the functionality of two pump stations, while minimizing the cost to the city. The project team tackled challenges and used innovative techniques such as altering pressure zones in the system and adding a structural deck above a pipe gallery. 

“I’m extremely proud of the design-build and progressive design-build solutions these project teams provided to our clients,” says Mark Lichtwardt, Burns & McDonnell senior vice president and Denver office general manager. “The projects were safe, on-time and under-budget and better prepared our communities for the future.” 

Recipients of the ACEC Colorado Engineering Excellence Awards are rated by a panel of industry professionals and judged on uniqueness and innovative applications; future value to the engineering profession; perception by the public; social, economic and sustainable development considerations; complexity; and successful fulfillment of client/owner’s needs, including schedule and budget.

About Burns & McDonnell

Burns & McDonnell is a company made up of more than 5,300 engineers, architects, construction professionals, scientists, consultants and entrepreneurs with offices across the country and throughout the world. We strive to create amazing success for our clients and amazing careers for our employee-owners. Burns & McDonnell is 100 percent employee-owned and is proud to be No. 16 on Fortune’s 2016 list of 100 Best Companies to Work For.