Romtec Utilities partnered with the project team for the Grass Valley industrial booster station to deliver a reliable water pressure system for a new development in Missoula, Montana. This pump system supports both everyday water use and high-demand fire protection needs. The project is part of a larger infrastructure effort led by Grass Valley Holdings, with engineering support from WGM Group in Bozeman.

Romtec Utilities designed and supplied a fully integrated industrial booster station that meets daily water demand while also providing the capacity required for fire protection. In addition to serving the industrial development, this booster station is also designed to support the nearby Grass Valley residential neighborhood. This combined service approach ensures consistent water pressure for both industrial and residential users in the growing area.

The booster station was designed as a four-pump setup to provide redundancy, operational flexibility, and long-term reliability. During development, the final owner and operator of the station were still being determined. Possible owners included a newly formed utility organization or the City of Missoula. Because of this, the system has to meet strict design standards and pass review by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.

The Grass Valley industrial booster station is located in Missoula, Montana, serving both the Grass Valley industrial development and the nearby residential neighborhood. This area is experiencing growth, which increases the need for reliable water infrastructure.

The booster station was built as a new, standalone potable water facility designed to increase and stabilize water pressure across the service area. The pump system includes an outdoor control building provided by Romtec, Inc. that houses and protects critical equipment and controls.

Missoula, Montana, is a growing community with expanding industrial and residential developments. Systems like this industrial booster station are important for supporting safe, efficient operations and ensuring long-term water reliability for both businesses and residents.

Romtec Utilities was initially contacted by WGM Group during early planning for the Grass Valley Gardens residential development. As the industrial project advanced with the same development team, Romtec Utilities applied a similar system design and control strategy for both projects.

This approach helped create consistency, but it was decided to design the industrial booster station in such a way that it could also effectively support the residential area.

During the regulatory review phase, WGM Group submitted Romtec Utility’s preliminary design package to MT DEQ. Following the first round of DEQ comments, the developer opted to proceed with full design development. This process ensured that the industrial booster station met all state requirements while remaining flexible for future ownership and operation.

The Grass Valley Industrial Booster station was engineered as a quadplex booster system capable of meeting both normal operating demands and emergency fire flow requirements. Major system components include:

• Jockey pump: Grundfos CR 10-5, rated at 50 GPM at 74 PSI.
• Daily Pumps: two Grundfos CR 64-2-1, each rated at 264 GPM at 74 PSI
• Fire pump: AC Fire pump, rated at 1,500 GPM at 75 PSI
• Pressure tank: 211-gollon bladder tank
• Primary controller: Allen-Bradley Compact Logix PLC
• Pressure Instrumentation:
• Two Endress+Hauser PMP51 discharge pressure transmitters
• One Endress+Hauser PMP51 suction pressure transmitter
• Flow measurement: Endress+Hauser W400, 4-inch discharge flowmeter

The system was designed to deliver a daily duty point of 264 GPM at 74 PSI, with a fire flow duty point of 1,500 GPM at 75 PSI, ensuring compliance with fire protection standards while maintaining stable domestic pressure.

One of the primary challenges of this project was designing an industrial booster station that could serve both industrial development, residential neighborhood, and emergency fire flow simultaneously. Each has different water demand needs, which required careful planning to ensure consistent pressure across the entire system.

Another challenge was designing a system that met strict state requirement while remaining flexible for future ownership. Because the final operator had not yet been confirmed, the design needed to meet a wide range of standards.

Romtec Utilities provided a complete solution by designing and industrial booster station that can meet both industrial and residential water demands. The four-pump system allows for backup operation, ensuring continued service even if one pump is offline.

The control system automatically adjusts pump operation based on water demand. This improves efficiency, reduces wear on equipment, and helps maintain steady pressure across both service areas.

By using a similar design approach for both the industrial and residential developments, Romtec Utilities helped streamline approvals and simplify long-term operation. This also ensures that the system can adapt easily to future changes in ownership or demand.

Romtec Utilities worked closely with WGM Group throughout the design and review process to make sure the booster station met state requirements while remaining adaptable to future ownership and operational scenarios.

Grass Valley Holdings, LLC, served as the project owner, while WGP Group out of Bozeman, Montana, serving as the civil engineer. Construction at the industrial development began in March, and the booster station and building construction were completed by August.

Once complete, the system was available to provide full domestic service and fire flow capacity to the developments.

The Grass Valley industrial booster station in Missoula, Montana, is a strong example of how modern infrastructure can support both industrial and residential growth. By designing a system that serves multiple developments, Romtec utilities helped create reliable and efficient water solution for the area.

This industrial booster station provides steady water pressure for daily use and the high capacity needed for fire protection. Its flexible design ensures it can continue to meet the needs of the community as it grows.