Maynilad taps US consultant for wastewater design

MANILA, Philippines - Metro Manila west zone water concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. has hired a US-based company to help improve its wastewater services in its service area.

Engineering firm Black &Veatch has been tapped to draw up a set of guidelines and performance standards for Maynilad’s sewage collection network and treatment systems.

“We are assisting Maynilad in crafting wastewater design standards and guidelines for them to efficiently implement their wastewater roadmap. Having the right standards in place ensures consistency and efficiency to enable Maynilad to progressively expand Metro Manila’s wastewater service coverage as cost effectively as possible,” said Tse Yau Shing, project director at Black  &Veatch.

In crafting wastewater design standards for Maynilad, Black & Veatch will draw upon its experience in designing and building water and wastewater facilities in Singapore, Hong Kong and other densely populated urban centers worldwide.

Yolanda Lucas, head of program management division of Maynilad, said the collaboration with Black & Veatch would enable the company to conform with global standards in water and wastewater system design.

“The work will help us focus first on our near term expansion objectives, without losing sight over the longer term of being able to upgrade the assets to more advanced systems,” she said. 

The project would cover the development of specifications for construction, testing and commission, as well as design guidelines and standards.

Maynilad provides water and wastewater services to residents in most of Manila, parts of Quezon and Makati cities, as well as the cities of Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Valenzuela, Navotas, and Malabon in Metro Manila. Its franchise area also covers the cities of Bacoor and Imus and the municipalities of Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario in Cavite province.

Black & Veatch first delivered water service solutions in the Philippines in the 1960s. Its first major project was a study commissioned by the World Health Organization to produce a masterplan for Metro Manila’s sewerage system.

The company also developed the deep tunnel sewerage system in Singapore and Hong Kong’s entire sewer and drainage system.