Dubai Metro Relies on More Than 700 Critical Pumps

The Dubai Metro is a driverless, fully automated metro rail network in Dubai, a city in the United Arab Emirates. The red line and green line are fully operational. Three further lines are planned for future development. The first two lines run underground in the city center and on elevated viaducts in other parts of the area. All trains and stations have air-conditioning, made possible by platform edge doors.

Energy consultancy Atkins provided full multidisciplinary design and management of the civil works on Dubai Metro. Architecture firm Aedas designed the stations that are a part of the system. Guinness World Records has declared Dubai Metro to be the world's longest fully automated metro network with a route length of 75 kilometers.

Pump Systems

One pump company won the contract to provide the pumps for dewatering and sewage system purposes. The project included a total of 49 stations (29 for the red line and 20 for the green line). The manufacturer provided 790 pumps, including the following:

• chilled water pumps
• chilled water pressurization pumps
• dewatering pumps
• sump pumps and foul pumps
• booster water pumps

They also provided installation, testing and commissioning. The sewage system that had been in place had frequent failures and overflow problems, which caused safety, environmental and cleaning concerns. In addition, the users were experiencing annual costs for sludge removal and cleaning after overflow. The pump manufacturer visited the site and proposed a solid-separation system that they went on to commission, install and maintain for the user.

Installation Difficulties

While the manufacturer was installing the system, they experienced pressure vessel and system-pipe failures. To correct the situation, they either replaced or modified the control panels and installed a variable frequency drive (VFD). The VFD saved the user energy as well as power costs. The cost savings are expected to outweigh the cost of the control panel within one year.

Conclusion

The new pump system has allowed the transportation system to experience smooth operation. All pumps that are a part of the system can be run with a VFD, leading to energy and cost savings. The manufacturer eliminated direct online starting, leading to even more energy savings for the user.