In a $6 million project, Xylem, leading water technology and pump manufacturer, is providing Godwin dewatering pumps to fill the third set of basin locks on the Pacific Ocean sector of the Panama Canal with 1.7 billion gallons of water. The Panama Canal Expansion Program is scheduled for completion during the second quarter of 2016. It will create a new traffic land and build two new lock complexes, one on the Atlantic Ocean and the other on the Pacific, doubling the capacity of the canal.
The project is the second one that the Authority of the Panama Canal has awarded to Xylem. Earlier this year, Xylem supplied 64 Flygt mixers to prevent the formation of corrosive deposits on the rolling gates during installation.
“We are honored to work with the Authority of the Panama Canal and to be part of this project which expands one of the world’s most important transport routes,” said Colin Sabol, senior vice president and president of Xylem’s Dewatering business.
Xylem installed 15 Godwin diesel-driven pumps, deployed from the United States. In June, the pumps transported up to 122 million gallons of water per day from the Miraflores Lake to fill the third set of locks on the Pacific. During a 22-day period, the project consisted of pumping enough water to fill 90,000 average-sized swimming pools.
In addition to the equipment, Xylem’s engineers are designing and installing the system, which also includes 13,500 feet of 18-inch high-density polyethylene pipeline to transfer the water. Xylem is also supervising the performance of the 15 Godwin pumps with its remote pump monitoring system called Field Smart Technology.
“Xylem is providing its global experience at a local level,” said Jorge Alvarado, managing director for Xylem Latin America North. “With the world’s largest inventory of rental pumps and related equipment, Xylem has the ability to mobilize our vast resources quickly.”