New Organic Digestion Biodigester

The Challenge

The exterior of the building was constructed before Hurckman was contracted and once on site, our project manager determined the building structure was not strong enough to support the miles of piping needed in the biodigester process. The timeline on the project was only six months for piping, and more than nine miles of pipes spanning diameters from ½” to 42” were needed to accommodate the various processes in the plant. Additionally, the construction site spanned a wetlands and essentially was divided into two buildings connected by 400’ gas bridge.

The Solution

Due to the timeline and the large pipes needed on the project, 90% of the work was done in the Hurckman Pre-Fabrication shop. Here, manufacturing was not exposed to the elements and crews were able to better monitor quality and speed of production. The total amount of piping used in the project was staggering. To reduce waste, teams used computer modeling to input all the pipe spools needed and planned out the segments of pipes and cuts to limit waste. This allowed accurate on-site prefabrication and more efficient installation. Hurckman installed a backbone of steel I-beams inside the finished building to create the network of pipe hangars, stands, and specially fabricated pipe supports for the thousands of feet of pipes in the main facility. In order to get cranes and lifts onto the wetlands site to install the piping, crews built gravel crane pads, then had to restore the wetlands by removing the gravel.

The Results

The owner had other facilities, but never build a biodigester plant from the ground up. Fabrication and installation techniques used on this project set the standard for complicated jobs such as biodigesters. As a result, the project was completed in the tight timeframe despite challenges from the weather, site, and sheer volume. The company’s product is a renewable, domestic energy source and one that depends on a reliable piping system to ensure continued production. Hurckman’s ability to deliver this project on time allowed NEW Organic Digestion to achieve production goals.