Consulting & Design › Baseline diagnostics & planning

Baseline & characterisation, understanding your water and waste streams

Consulting & Design · Baseline → Requirements → Fit → Procurement → Delivery support

Baseline diagnostics and planning help establish a clear starting point for early project work. We support companies that need specialist support to organise site details, plant data, and site limitations so that RFI work, early comparison, and next-step planning can move forward on a clear basis.

This stage helps define what the site is producing, how the site actually behaves, which constraints matter, and what further data or checks may be needed before options are compared or scope is taken forward.

Uncertainty mapSampling & monitoring planConstraints + connection pointsDecision-ready assumptionsRisk notes

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Key outputs

Baseline snapshot, feed range, variability, and key unknowns
Sampling & monitoring plan, what, where, when, and why
Constraints map, space, connections, access, and outages
Assumptions register with decision deadlines and owners

Typical triggers

New project with limited baseline information
Inconsistent lab results
Missing drawings or O&M history
Different teams working from different starting points

OFFER

Turn unknowns into a shared baseline

We convert sampling, site constraints, and operating conditions into a baseline everyone can work from, so the next steps - targets, treatment lines, and specs - are clearer and easier to compare.

DEFINE constraints that dominate SET connections + ranges CHECKS approval + information depth AVOID “brochure fit” outcomes

Where projects slow down

Baseline work is treated too lightly, and variability, constraints, and information gaps stay hidden until bids and delivery.

What we define

Feed range (seasonality, shocks, and normal variation).
Constraints (space, headloss, connection points, access, and outages).
Information plan (sampling, logs, drawings, and operator input).

How this changes delivery

Scope becomes clearer early. Later comparisons are faster, and the chosen solution is less likely to run into site issues.

Scope boundary

We provide process design authority for the early process basis, including the operating picture, the critical constraints, the unknowns that still matter, approval logic, and the checks needed before options are compared or scope is taken forward. Detailed mechanical packages, fabrication drawings, and construction design remain with your EPC/OEM.

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Interactive view

Pick a stream, see what the baseline needs to show

Baseline work feels abstract until you tie it to the stream you are actually trying to control. This view shows the information focus we typically use for different streams, so the next stage is not built on assumptions.

Click a card to preview how the work changes.

Preview

Influent / raw wastewater baseline

Define the project information for variability, shocks, and hydraulics so downstream sizing and controls are not built on “typical” numbers.

Sampling planProcess rangeSite constraints

What we focus on

Define variability bounds (daily/weekly)
Identify shocks and toxic risks
Confirm hydraulics + bypass realities
Capture operator / access limitations

Checks and control focus

Sampling records + QA
Outlier handling (storms/production events)
Assumption register + risk flags
Baseline KPIs that link to design choices

Typical outputs

Baseline data pack, gaps register, and an information plan that prevents technology selection based on ‘typical’ numbers.

STAGE 1 OF 4

A shared baseline prevents scope drift later

Baseline work makes variability, constraints and gaps clear, so requirements and sizing are based on project information, not assumptions.

What we collect and review

We start with project information, pulling operating data, lab results, and site knowledge into one simple baseline that design, operations, and management can all recognise.

Operating and lab data

Flows, loads, diurnal and seasonal patterns, energy and chemical use, key pollutants and effluent results from STP, ETP, GWTP, vehicle wash, laundry and side streams.

Existing layouts and practices

Current tankage, unit processes, networks, bypasses, and how operators actually run the plant, not just what the original drawings say.

Pain points and constraints

Persistent alarms, non-compliance events, odour issues, sludge handling bottlenecks and space, access or power constraints that any design must respect.

Highlighting gaps and performance risks

Using the collected data, we build a clear picture of where things are working and where they are not, not to “audit” operations, but to make the design summary clear.

Performance

Compliance & process gaps

Parameters that regularly approach or exceed limits, unstable processes, underperforming units and sections of the system that are under- or over-utilised.

Operations

O&M and sludge / biosolids challenges

Manual workarounds, high operator burden, excessive chemical or energy use, and how sludge and biosolids are currently thickened, dewatered, stored and moved.

Baseline + Information Planning

A baseline is not a single set of numbers. It is the working picture the project is built on. The job is to define what “normal” looks like, what “peak” looks like, and which conditions need extra protection.

Fast risk closure

An information plan that stays practical

We focus on the shortest set of checks that change the decision, avoiding over-testing while keeping the design basis clear and well supported.

Design-ready

A working range vendors can design to

We translate ranges and scenarios into a working range: expected, peak, and upset cases, plus the checks needed at commissioning.

Common baseline issues we plan around

Baseline errors do not always look dramatic on paper. They often show up later as conservative overbuild, scope growth during commissioning, or systems that struggle when conditions shift.

Designing to averages

We plan around a working range so equipment and controls can handle practical variability.

Missing upstream drivers

We map variability drivers (production, cleaning/CIP, wet-weather, tanker inputs) and align sampling and log review to them.

Under-scoping sludge / biosolids

Residuals are part of the baseline from day one, not a later add-on.

Over-testing (research mode)

We test only what changes the decision, and we document triggers for extras.

Unclear reuse intent

Reuse targets drive parameters, barriers, and monitoring, and we define intent early.

Information that cannot be checked later

We write project information and verification in the same language so commissioning checks and sustained reporting stay aligned.

Streams we typically work with

Across all our specialist design work, we focus on operating plants and facilities handling:

STP - municipal / domestic sewage ETP - industrial / trade effluent GWTP - greywater VWRP - vehicle wash water LWRP - laundry wash water Biosolids & sludge planning

Key outputs

Baseline summary, what is generated, how it varies, and where it goes today

Information plan pack, sampling summary, parameter set, and decision triggers

Working range, expected / peak / upset cases vendors can design to

Constraints & connections, connection points, space/power, site conditions, and O&M notes

Turning this into a usable baseline

Everything is distilled into a baseline that can be shared across technical, commercial and management teams. It answers three questions: what is being generated, how does it vary, and what is happening to it today.

This project information is what we use next to align requirements, reuse possibilities and savings logic before discussing specific technologies.