Modernizing a 29-Year-Old Pump Station with Gorman-Rupp: Flood Resilience and Proven Performance on Lake Ontario
How Siewert Equipment Helped One Town Upgrade Its Infrastructure Without Starting From Scratch
The Challenge
When the Town’s original pump station was installed in 1996, it was built to last and it did. Nearly 29 years later, the station had delivered decades of reliable service. But as Lake Ontario water levels rose over time, the station found itself designated within a DEC floodplain, creating a new and urgent challenge: how do you protect critical wastewater infrastructure from an evolving flood risk without tearing everything down and starting over?
Rather than pursuing the costly and disruptive route of constructing flood walls, the Town and Siewert Equipment arrived at a smarter solution, elevating the station approximately two feet to reduce flood exposure while preserving the core equipment that had served the community so well.
The Approach
Siewert Equipment worked closely with the Town to engineer a cost-effective upgrade that honored what was already working. The existing pumps were carefully removed, refurbished to like-new condition, and reinstalled in the station, avoiding the significant expense of full pump replacement. At the same time, the control panel was upgraded with a new, current-generation duplex pump controller to enhance performance, monitoring, and long-term serviceability.
The entire station was brought into Siewert’s local shop for refurbishment and returned with the requested modifications, including a new, taller enclosure designed to meet current operational and regulatory requirements. The result was a modernized, flood-resilient station delivered efficiently and with minimal disruption to the community it serves.
Why Gorman-Rupp Made the Difference
One of the key advantages of this project was the flexibility that comes with Gorman-Rupp pump technology. Because Gorman-Rupp pumps are belt-driven, the team was able to utilize the existing motor and simply adjust the pump speed to accommodate the increased suction lift created by the station elevation. No new motors, no major mechanical overhaul.
That kind of adaptability is not accidental. Gorman-Rupp pumps are 100% engineered, manufactured, and tested in the USA, and are fully Buy American Build America (BABA) compliant. For municipalities navigating federal funding requirements and procurement standards, that matters. For engineers and operators who depend on performance day in and day out, it matters even more.
Results
What began as a flood risk mitigation project became an opportunity to extend the life of proven equipment, modernize controls, and deliver a station built for the next several decades of service. By refurbishing rather than replacing, and by leveraging the inherent flexibility of Gorman-Rupp’s belt-driven design, Siewert Equipment helped the Town achieve a resilient, cost-effective outcome that meets today’s regulatory standards without sacrificing the reliability they have always depended on.
