Client: Evapco Australia Pty Ltd
Location: AirTrunk project, Derrimut Victoria (major data centre) 
Year Completed: 2020
Job Type: Industrial cooling tower installation of four units for the climate control of the Stage 3 data centre

FlowMatrix received an urgent call from Evapco NSW to assemble and install four brand new cooling towers for the Stage 3 data centre at AirTrunk Derrimut Victoria. The NSW / Victoria border had been shut due to COVID so there was no way to have their own fitters and project managers carry out this critical installation. The containers had arrived at the port of Melbourne and the cooling tower installation was scheduled for completion within six weeks. 

FlowMatrix quoted the project, won the job, set up the project and COVID compliance, unpacked the parts from the containers, assembled the basins, casing, coil sections, fan drives, and set up for cranage onto the rooftop. 

The four units were craned in, positioned on the plinths and we fitted the access platforms. Testing and commissioning completed. The project was successfully delivered on time. 

Client: HydroChem Pty Ltd
Location: DFO South Wharf, Victoria
Year Completed: 2021
Job Type: Commercial cooling tower repair

FlowMatrix BAC crossflow cooling tower repair at DFO Melbourne. 

The steel basin was badly corroded to a point where holes were leaking water and chemicals onto the ground, into storm water. Two basins required a coating system to eliminate the corrosion and to stop the water leaks. To carry out the coating, the fill pack on a BAC needs to be replaced to gain access to the basin area 

BAC crossflow cooling towers are fitted with cross flow OEM (original equipment manufacturer) sheets that are supported by steel bars that go through holes in the sheets. These sheets slide over the bars and interlock into each other. Once the sheets are in place, they are encased between the casing walls, forming a solid fill pack that is 1300 mm wide from front to back. This design of fill pack installation is very difficult to remove and near impossible to put back in, so FlowMatrix always cuts the old fill pack out for disposal. 

To avoid the same issue for future repairs we install modular PVC Brentwood fill pack blocks that are easy to remove, power wash outside of the cooling tower, and refit. This is perfect for compliance with government regulations to clean the interior surfaces of cooling towers, as a maintenance team can remove, clean, and replace within a day.

What we achieved with this rebuild:

• Eliminated the corrosion in the basin area right up to the underside of the coil. 
• The RepelCoat coating system we applied to the corroded steel basin area is a three-coat system designed to be flexible to move with the cooling tower, hard wearing to be walked on, chemical resistant to cope with all the water treatment conditions, and smooth for ease of cleaning. 
• Installed modular PVC blocks that are 300 mm wide x 600 mm deep and only weigh approximately 10 kg when clean. So easy to handle, clean and refit. 
• Eliminated the corroded steel bars that the old sheets hung on and installed non-corrosive fibreglass supports underneath the fill pack blocks. Their FRP supports are easily removed to wash the basin out in minutes. 
• The basin is easier to wash out dirt, scale and bacteria while the new modular fill pack material is in its place. This is due to how we installed our FRP fill pack support system to allow easy maintenance, as that is a critical design requirement of all our installations.

OEM companies will say that their hung sheet fill pack has superior cooling performance which may be the case on a brand-new installation. However, it is all downhill from there once in operation, as the sheet surfaces clog up with dirt and scale. Cleaning sheet fill pack is near impossible as it cannot be easily removed, it is very hard to separate to clean in position as it is tightly packed, and it is 1300 mm from front to back which is a very long way to wash dirt and scale out. 

Modular block fill pack has superior cooling performance within six months. It can be power washed easily by removing it, which is possible for many years. If something damages the basin, the fill pack is easily removed to have the basin repaired. If you have a sheet fill pack, it would need to be replaced again. 

Move forward with modern modular cooling tower repair solutions, not back to the past. 

Client: Pullman Quay Grand
Location:  61 Macquarie St, Sydney NSW 
Year Completed: 2022
Job Type: Commercial cooling tower repair

The Pullman Quay Grand in Sydney contracted FlowMatrix to repair two Marley Temcel cooling towers. The scope of work was to install new air intake louvres, new fill pack, stand-alone drift eliminators and the replacement of 4 motors and fans.

Pullman relies on their air-conditioning system to ensure their clients are cool and comfortable during a stay. The cooling tower plays a big part in keeping the air-conditioning working correctly. The new fill pack was required to restore the original design cooling performance duty, the new air intake louvres to stop water & chemical splash out onto the ground, new drift eliminators to stop water & chemical loss into the air, and the fan drives to move the air to obtain the required cooling of the water. 

The Pullman, like all hotels, needed a quality repair at a reasonable price. With so many clients they also needed the components and the installation to be best practice to reduce the biological risk of Legionnaires disease, which is what we delivered. 

FlowMatrix delivered performance, government compliance, modular design, motors to withstand water & chemical attack, safety, and risk control. 

Client: HydroChem Pty Ltd
Location:   Coles Store Support Centre, Victoria
Year Completed: 2021
Job Type: Commercial cooling tower repair

The Coles Store Support Centre cooling tower upgrade.

The two Evapco cooling towers required the supply and installation of new air intake louvres, new fill pack and a full interior reseal to stop water and chemical loss. 

The other main requirement was to supply and install access platforms. This is to allow maintenance people and technicians to inspect and service the internal critical components in line with State government regulations. Ladders had already been installed by an access professional to the fan drive area, but this did not solve all of the cooling tower access requirements. 

FlowMatrix specialise in access platforms, ladders, and walkways for cooling towers both for external and for internal access. Our designs are based on the requirements of state law to control Legionnaires disease in addition to Australian standards for access.

We must design, supply, and install access solutions that allow the ongoing maintenance and the internal cleaning of all critical components. This includes the fan drives, the water distribution system, drift eliminators, air intake faces, fill pack or coil, isolations switches and valves, access hatches, and the basin. We also consider confined space entry requirements and working at heights to get the access correct.

The Coles Store Support Centre cooling towers now have complete access to all critical components. This was achieved by installing new platforms and ladders, and modifying the existing access to the fan drives to complete the process.