McCarthy’s Houston Waterworks team was awarded three separate contracts on the project – the early works Central Plant foundations package, the raw water Intake Pump Station which began in early 2019, and the balance of the Central Plant which will be complete in 2024. The NEWPP project’s first 80MGD phase will be operational in early 2023, and the overall 320MGD plant will be in full operation in early 2025.
“We are pleased to be part of this exciting and massive project and are excited that McCarthy was able to successfully deliver the largest water filtration project in the U.S.,” said Doug Slattery, project manager for NEWPP. “McCarthy’s ability to self-perform gave us a competitive advantage on this project, as we combined our technical trades to create an internal joint venture with the necessary skills for each component of the project.”
McCarthy’s scope included driving 30 piles into water with a depth of 16 feet, requiring all equipment to be fully submersible. In addition to the pile driving component, McCarthy was tasked with cast-in-place concrete placement over water, precast concrete erection, and a large bore mechanical process piping phase that involved installing 108-inch-diameter pipe. McCarthy installed 193 steel pipe piles in total. Underneath the main structure of the station, piles are 128 feet long and 30 inches in diameter, as Lake Houston has a clay bottom, and the large diameter was designed to achieve the necessary structural capacity. McCarthy self-performed each scope, as well as process equipment installation, concrete work, metal installation, and earthwork.
McCarthy faced the added challenge of working around an active intake station already drawing water from Lake Houston, as all pile driving work took place surrounding the existing facility. McCarthy was also able to put in 200,000 man hours with no recordable incidents.
