For Immediate Release
April 29, 2014
Contact: C. Thad Pope, 803-791-1400 ext. 109
(CAYCE, SC) American Engineering Consultants, Inc. (AEC), a Cayce, South Carolina firm, is the 2014 recipient of the Grand Prize for Small Firms awarded by the American Academy of Environmental Engineers and Scientists (AAEES). The prize was given for AEC‘s entry, titled “Membrane Thickening – A Sustainable Solution,” which showcased the firm’s innovative wastewater treatment design for the City of Cayce’s new 25 Million Gallon per Day Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility.
The award was presented to William H. Bingham, Jr., PE, President of AEC, at the Academy’s Annual Awards Luncheon and Conference on April 24 at the National Press Club in Washington, DC.
“The award validates the hard work our team has dedicated to this important project and represents the pinnacle of success for our firm,” Bingham said. “We are also deeply grateful to the City of Cayce for placing their trust in us and profoundly honored to be recognized as one of the best environmental engineering firms in the country.”
Recipients are chosen by a panel of experts to recognize the best firms in environmental engineering and science in the nation. AEC provided complete engineering design and construction administration for the new $56 million dollar wastewater treatment facility constructed along the Congaree River and serves municipalities and industries throughout Lexington County in S.C.
To protect the river from environmental harm, the facility utilizes multi-staged biological reactors to remove pollutants, including the nutrients, nitrogen and phosphorus, from the wastewater before its discharge into the river. Biological nutrient removal is a process whereby a variety of living microscopic organisms breakdown ammonia and other pollutants into a harmless gas which is vented into the atmosphere.
American Engineering’s design features a unique and sustainable biosolids handling system that overcomes the problem of phosphorus release. The liquid filtered out from the process is clean water of reuse quality and can be used directly as a source of non-potable water for use in irrigation and other process applications within the plant.
As an AAEES Grand Prize winner, this project automatically qualifies for the upcoming 2014 International Water Association Project Innovation Awards Global Competition. The winners of this esteemed international competition will be announced during the IWA World Water Congress and Exhibition in Lisbon, Portugal from September 21-26, 2014.
AEC, Inc.
American Engineering Consultants, Inc. (www.aec-sc.com) is a full service engineering and consulting firm located in Cayce, S.C. and dedicated to serving State, Municipal, Industrial, and Private sector clients. The firm's primary business areas are engineering, surveying, and construction management of Water, Wastewater, Solid Waste, Civil-Site, Roadway Transportation, Stormwater, and Environmental projects. Combining over four decades of construction and engineering experience, American Engineering Consultants, Inc. is focused on delivering innovative and sustainable infrastructure development solutions at a value unparalleled by industry standards.
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