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Aerial view of a construction site with cranes, machinery, and workers, surrounded by greenery and distant cityscape.Aerial view of a construction site with cranes, machinery, and workers, surrounded by greenery and distant cityscape.

The US’s largest progressive design-build project 

We helped Houston expand its Northeast Water Purification Plant to 400 mgd, supporting the city’s growth while reducing groundwater dependency. 

Client

City of Houston

Location

Houston, Texas

Connect with an expert

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Randy Rogers PE, BCEE
Technical Services Unit President

Delivering a $1.8B effort in partnership with Houston and four regional water partners 

The Houston Waterworks Team, a joint venture between CDM Smith and Jacobs, successfully delivered the largest project of its kind in the United States. 

Over 8 million work hours with zero lost-time accidents 

Safety was a hallmark of this effort, with remarkable performance on a long, complex project. 

Massive scope and scale 

For example, this project featured the largest installation of 40-inch diameter dual-purpose centrifuges of any WTP in the U.S.

Innovative treatment approaches 

With Lake Houston’s water’s “flashy” character, the design allows the plant to switch treatment approaches as needed. 

Collaboration that drove success 

Bringing together city staff, regional partners, advisors, designers and builders made the city’s vision a reality. 

Achieving the city’s goals for rapid water supply growth with an ambitious schedule required extensive collaboration between all players involved, making this project ideal for a progressive design-build approach. “We all worked together to make this effort successful,” said Randy Rogers, the project’s engineering manager. “In our collaboration center, we brought together members of the Houston Waterworks Team, staff from the city of Houston and their advisors, representatives of the regional authorities and their advisors—all together under one roof. Every time we modified or progressed the design, our constructors provided input and gave us feedback on the cost and schedule impacts. Our experts constantly traded ideas and found ways to improve the design. Working with each other and with the city, we were able to deliver all the benefits of design-build and make the city’s vision a reality.” 

Curious to learn more?

Connect with an expert to find out how we delivered this project.

Rogers_Randy_2022.jpg

Randy Rogers

Unit President

Randy is a nationally recognized expert in water process and facility design, operations, and construction, with experience in project management, process control and O&M.

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