Throughout Walden’s existence, some of the most common jobs have involved tanks. Walden is often hired to perform many different jobs related to tanks but there are three types of jobs which many of our clients do not know are directly related. These are the design, installation oversight, and as-builts design for both Underground Storage Tanks (USTs) and Above Ground Storage Tanks (ASTs). All three of these jobs in the respective order above should in reality be part of the same tank installation job. Although a client can hire multiple consulting firms to perform each part of a tank installation job, it is not necessarily the most cost-efficient approach.
Tank Design and Permit Approval
In the beginning of a tank installation job a client will approach the firm with the intent of installing a tank on their property. The client may have some idea of certain constraints such as capacity, location, content, etc. With these constraints the consultant will scope out a tank from a manufacturer that meets the needs of the client and follows any pertinent regulatory demands. In addition to tank information and design, the consultant must also provide any site-specific details which may be found on a a site survey such as utility locations, infrastructure, property lines, etc. In the case of USTs, further information will be needed such as boring logs. Required documentation must be included as part of the submittal package. After the submittal, corrections and or comments may be provided by the regulatory agency and a resubmittal correcting any issues may be necessary.
Tank Installation
Once the plans have been approved by the necessary regulatory agency(s) and with the approval of the regulatory agency(s) the second step can begin. The consultant will find a contractor to perform the most economic, time efficient, and quality work. The consultant will be responsible for writing the contract with the contractor to look after the interests of the client. The consultant will then be responsible for overseeing the installation of the tank to meet the specifications in the plans and for making decisions and taking notes of any deviation from the original plan.
Tank As-Builts
Following the tank’s installation pertinent regulatory agencies will require the submittal of tank as-builts. Tank as-builts are a set of drawings which describe the process of the tank’s installation as it happened in the field. Tank as-builts will also show any changes from the original submitted drawings.
Now that we have gone through each of the parts of a tank installation job, we can now discuss why it is a more cost-efficient approach to use the same consulting firm for the full installation process. If you have hired a company to design a tank, it is best to follow up with the same company to perform the tank’s installation. The company will already be familiar with you, the project, and the Scope of work involved. The consultant will not have to take time to familiarize themselves with the project. More importantly the consultant will follow the drawings. Having the same consultant who designed the tank and oversaw the installation develop the as-builts will also be more cost efficient.
The consultant will already have the original drawings and will be able to make quick changes in order to provide updates on what was performed in the field and what changes were made to the original drawing. If a different consultant is hired to design As-Builts, not only will it require a lot of research but they might not be as detailed since the consultant was not present during the time of the tank installation. The consultant will not be able to attest to many of the tank installation details unless they are physically visible to them. This is especially true for USTs.
Call Walden for more information!