Greensboro’s T.Z. Osborne Water Reclamation Facility doubles sludge dewatering capacity with Alfa Laval Aldec G3 - at half the power
Located in Greensboro, North Carolina, the T.Z. Osborne Water Reclamation Facility has long been a cornerstone of the city’s wastewater treatment infrastructure. After more than two decades running sludge dewatering centrifuges, the plant sought a modern solution to increase throughput, cut operating costs and meet tightening discharge regulations - without extensive renovations or downtime. The replacement of its aging sludge equipment with Alfa Laval G3 decanter centrifuges doubled the flow with half the power required and less polymer usage.
DATE 2025-08-28
Since opening in 1984 with a capacity of 20 MGD, the facility has undergone a series of strategic upgrades to meet growing demand and evolving environmental regulations. By 2021, T.Z. Osborne had expanded to a capacity of 56 MGD - a nearly threefold increase. Although the facility initially intended to replace its 25-year-old sludge dewatering decanters through an open bid process, the project was reframed after engaging with Alfa Laval’s water separation experts, Mark Schlitzkus and Sipke Verbeek.
Turnkey delivery to compress cost and time
The consultative approach of Alfa Laval’s experts addressed mechanical and process questions, supported by reference visits to similar installations. After thoroughly assessing the needs of Greensboro’s water reclamation facility, Alfa Laval proposed partnering with an experienced integrator and managing equipment and installation as a single package - reducing engineering overheads, implementation risk and total cost of ownership. Crucially, this approach enabled two decanter installations within a budget originally scoped for one, while also shortening the project timeline.
Alfa Laval developed a proven solution for our centrifuge needs. Seeing the solutions at several west coast installations helped my team better understand the unique opportunity for our sludge dewatering. We are now able to feed our incinerators with one centrifuge where in the past it took two. Heyward’s and Alfa Laval’s management of the project made this one of the best solutions we have experienced at TZO,” comments a representative from T.Z. Osborne Water Reclamation Facility.
The plant selected Aldec G3 sludge dewatering decanters compact, high-performance machines engineered for low energy consumption and minimal operator intervention. Key feature innovations include SuperPond that enables a deeper pond for higher throughput and lower power, and PowerTubes that recover kinetic energy and further reduce energy use.
Results
- Flow capacity doubled per unit without expanding the municipal footprint, enabling operational flexibility across sludge management steps.
- Power consumption halved compared with the plant’s older units, supporting the city’s energy‑reduction goals.
- Polymer usage reduced, further lowering operating costs and environmental impact.
This was one of the best projects I have worked on in my 40 years in the business. It certainly had the right team in place on Alfa Laval’s side. I would advocate for that team on any retrofit,” says Tim Bishop, Regional Manager, Heyward Inc. - a representative for T.Z. Osborne.