USI-Arkansas, Inc. of Little Rock, and Burns & McDonnell of Kansas City, MO, announced that the city of Cabot, Arkansas has received competitive bids to construct a new wastewater treatment facility. The apparent successful bid of approximately $9.8 million was submitted by Max Foote Construction of Mandeville LA, on Tuesday, July 11, 2006. The bid was significantly less than the earlier construction cost projections for the new treatment facility.

The new plant was designed by the partnership of USI and Burns & McDonnell. The plant replaces the city’s existing facility, which had experienced difficulties in achieving the performance required by the city’s discharge permit requirements and in meeting future growth projections.

USI-Arkansas, with offices in Little Rock and Springdale, was awarded a contract as the prime consultant in 2005 to provide design services for the wastewater treatment plant and will act as lead contract manager during the construction phase. Burns & McDonnell provided engineering design services and technical consulting for the wastewater treatment process components and influent headworks of the new facility.

Portions of the new plant will be built on land reclaimed from an existing sludge storage lagoon. Use of the existing plant site eliminates the need to modify and relocate the existing sewer infrastructure as well as allowing for continued use of the administrative and support buildings at the existing wastewater treatment plant site. The new plant will also utilize ultraviolet disinfection technology, eliminating the need for chlorine-based treatment processes.

A notice to proceed is expected from the city of Cabot by early August and construction will begin immediately, with completion by year-end 2007. The plant initially is expected to have an average flow of approximately 3-million-gallons-per-day (MGD) with maximum treatment capacity of 6-MGD. With the new plant, Cabot, a community of approximately 21,000 located just north of Little Rock, will have enough treatment capacity to meet the community’s projected needs until approximately 2025.

USI-Arkansas, Inc., with offices in Springdale and Little Rock, Arkansas, is a 100% employee owned, consulting engineering firm serving federal, state and municipal government clients as well as industry and other private sector clients. For more information about USI-Arkansas, visit its website at www.usi-arkansas.com.

Founded in 1898, Burns & McDonnell, a 100-percent employee-owned company, provides engineering, construction, environmental and consulting services from offices located worldwide. For more information about Burns & McDonnell, visit its website at www.burnsmcd.com.