Erbil and Sulaimani Water & Wastewater

• Location: Kurdistan, Iraq
• Client: General Directorate of Water & Sewerage; Ministry of Municipalities & Tourism; Kurdistan Regional Government
• Partners: Biwater International Limited
• Year: 2015
• Sector: Water & Utilities |
• Specialisms: Civil Engineering | Flood Resilience | Geotechnical Engineering | Process MEICA | Structural Engineering |

The 1.4M population of Erbil and Sulaimani’s 900,000 population required 1.6Bn litres of potable water each day, however only 730M litres per day were available, hence new water treatment and distribution infrastructure were urgently required. Wastewater treatment infrastructure were also a necessity for the increase in supply.

In response, Biwater International Limited developed an infrastructure solution for the client. In 2017, the client appointed Pell Frischmann as the Independent Engineer to undertake review of the Design-Build contractor’s design.

What we did

Pell Frischmann undertook an intensive four-month design review of:

• More than 3,000 documents produced by the Design-Build contractor’s design for Hawler 4 intake and water treatment plant;
• The twin transmission mains;
• Various reservoirs and booster stations and the distribution mains in Erbil.

In Sulaimani, the review covered:

• Dukan 1 and Dukan 2 water treatment plant refurbishment;
• Various box culverts and the sewage treatment plant.

During our design review, we scrutinised all available source data and documentation which extended to over 3,000 documents. We reviewed surveys, investigations, design standards, specifications, calculations and drawings including collaborative engagement with the Design-Build contractor’s technical leads to understand the rationale underpinning their proposed design solutions.

We organised the infrastructure design documentation into 10 design review sub-packages. On each, we produced a design review report and a design verification report with evidence of any non-compliances. Our design report confirmed whether the designs were in general accordance with the Employer’s Requirements and Design Criteria (which formed part of the Water Services Agreement between the client and the Design-Build contractor). Where the information was unclear, we raised technical queries for the Design-Build contractor to address.

Outcomes

Our comprehensive Design Review report provided the client with a clear status for the design, undertaken by the Design-Build contractor to date, including the requirement for any further surveys and investigations to be undertaken. We confirmed whether the design was in accordance with the client’s Water Services Agreement contract document including all aspects of their technical specification included in their Employer’s Requirements and Design Criteria documents.

Our key recommendations included the preparation of an Implementation Plan by the Design-Build contractor during the Development Phase, as well as undertaking a comprehensive raw water sampling and testing regime to support the overall design basis for the water treatment and wastewater treatment plants.

Completion of the final design review report enables the client to move the project into the next phase.

Masood M. Karrash, General Directorate of Water and Sewerage:

Pell Frischmann provided specialist, multi-disciplinary design review of the Design and Build Contractor’s design on this major water supply and wastewater project in Kurdistan. The cost of the water and wastewater project is US$1,165M and is being undertaken as part of the Kurdistan Regional Government’s significant infrastructure improvement programme. The services were provided between November 2018 and April 2019. Pell Frischmann provided a detailed, comprehensive and competent service and can recommend them to you.

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