Suez to improve Rainbow tank staircases

SUEZ North America will install additional tank fall protection improvements at Rainbow Municipal Water District reservoirs.

Rainbow’s board voted 4-1, with Helene Brazier casting the dissenting vote, Aug. 25, to approve a change order to the 2018 contract.

“This adds some additional safety enhancements for our steel reservoirs,” Tom Kennedy, general manager of Rainbow, said.

In October 2018, Rainbow approved a $1,528,626 contract with Suez to install staircases in the district’s steel water tanks and railing systems on the top of those tanks. The contract covered all 12 of Rainbow’s steel reservoirs and will install the staircases and railing systems over a seven-year period.

Rainbow staff members currently must climb ladders to reach the top of the water tanks, and with no railing at the top the staff members must wear safety harnesses while climbing the ladder and must attach a cable to an anchor point on the center once they are on the roof. It requires the performance of multiple safety tasks both correctly and in the proper order to avoid falls or other accidents.

Anchor points corrode or might not be constructed properly, and the anchor points might not allow adequate inspection of the edges of the tanks. The necessity of staff having proper safety gear doesn’t allow for a tank to be inspected immediately if a problem is suspected.

The ladder is difficult to maneuver even without safety gear, and the bulk and weight of the safety gear increases that difficulty. The use of restraints also requires special training, and since it is not feasible to train all staff members in the proper use and implementation of the fall protection devices and procedures only a limited number of personnel are able to access the top of the tanks.

The system of ladders and safety harnesses requires two staff members to be present for tank inspections. The staircases and railings will allow monthly inspections to be performed by one person and will also create a time savings due to eliminating the need to put on and take off safety gear. The elimination of the need to wear and carry safety gear will also make carrying tools and equipment easier for employees or contractors.

Suez had a contract to provide tank maintenance, and when Suez submitted the proposal for the staircases and railings the company addressed scheduling the repainting of the tanks around the stairway and railing installation of the specific tanks. The schedule for installing the staircases and railings also involved keeping the tanks in operation during months of high water usage.

Suez has completed the staircase and railing for the Gomez Tank. As the staircase was being installed both Rainbow and Suez realized that it lacked the proper landings which ensure that if a person falls they do not fall all the way down. The stairs were also constructed at too steep of an angle to meet state Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements.

The drawings for the stairs were reviewed by Rainbow staff before the start of construction. The landings and steepness were not addressed during the design phase.

“It was not caught at the staff level,” Kennedy said.

Rainbow and Suez agreed on a division of the cost to redesign, demolish and construct new stairs at the Gomez Tank. Suez will pay for two-thirds of the overall cost, and Rainbow will pay for one-third. That cost sharing is only for the Gomez Tank since the drawings and construction for the other tanks under the contract have not yet begun.

The landing and the angle of the stairs will not be the only change to the contract.

“Staff has identified some other items that need additional work,” Chad Williams, acting district engineer for Rainbow, said.

During the work on the Gomez Tank district staff noticed that the existing conduits and cables for the tank radio communications were mounted to the existing ladder mounts. Those conduits and cables run to a radio antenna mounted on top of the tank. Solar panels which provide power for the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system are also mounted on top of the tank with the conduits, and cables connect to the SCADA system.

The conduits for the SCADA system are attached to the ladder mounts on most of the tanks, as is the radio equipment mounted to the existing guardrails. As these are removed for the addition of the new stairways and railings, the addition of new rigid conduits mounted to the side of the tank will be necessary. The contract amendments include relocating and replacing the existing conduits with rigid steel conduits.

Rainbow staff has also identified security measures at three of the tank locations. Metal cages which encompass the stairway and have a locked gate will increase the level of security and discourage if not outright prevent the public from climbing to the top of these tanks.

The additional features will add $248,849.22 to the contract amount.

Joe Naiman can be reached by email at [email protected].