Goulburn-Murray Water (GMW) recently reached a milestone for a program that has created significant savings.
Flume gates are an essential part of GMW’s delivery network. They measure and control the amount of water passing through channels to ensure irrigators receive water when they need it.
While flume gates are generally quite durable, GMW has thousands of them in its delivery network, and some inevitably break down, get damaged, or have components that need repairing.
With new flume gates typically costing between $35,000 and $80,000, GMW established a program to repair and reinstate defective gates.
GMW Stores Project Officer Paul Wilde oversees the program and said a clear process is now in place to ensure the need for new purchases is minimised.
“Any flume gate that fails is now taken to our Tatura workshop,” he said.
“Our Workshop Technicians then inspect and repair the gates’ gearboxes, winches, and motors, so that they are ready for use once more.
“We have created a register of all the flume gates in the system, and their different sizes and specifications. We prioritise repairing the gates according to demand, so when a gate in our network fails, we already have a replacement ready to go.
“Having this data means when we replace a flume gate, we can get a crane to remove the faulty flume gate and then immediately install the repaired one, so we’re only having to hire a crane for one site visit instead of two.”
With the process GMW has established, the average expense of repairing a flume gate is just over $5000, approximately a tenth of the cost of buying a new flume gate.
On 13 June, GMW installed its 100th flume gate that had been repaired through the program during the 2023/24 financial year.
GMW Infrastructure Delivery Services general manager Warren Jose said this represented significant growth in the program.
“During this financial year, we have repaired and replaced more than twice as many flume gates as the year before,” he said.
“The savings the program is creating are considerable, and it creates efficiencies we can pass on to customers, so we are eager to continue developing it.”