A bolted elevated clarifier installed by CTS at a mining operation in Northern Ontario.
As mining and industrial operations continue to invest in new and expanded wastewater treatment infrastructure, project teams are looking beyond traditional construction methods to improve project schedules, reduce installation costs, and simplify long-term maintenance. One solution gaining momentum is the fully bolted elevated clarifier (BEC).
For many years, field-welded clarifiers have been the industry standard. Today, advances in bolted steel engineering and construction technology allow owners to achieve the same operational performance while providing significant advantages during fabrication, installation, and throughout the life of the asset. Unlike knock-down or seal-welded clarifier designs, fully bolted elevated clarifiers require no field seal welding of the tank shell or floor, further reducing field labour while maintaining the integrity and performance expected from a modern wastewater treatment system.
A fully bolted elevated clarifier is manufactured using precision-fabricated steel panels produced in a controlled factory environment. Each component is engineered and manufactured to tight tolerances before receiving its protective coating prior to shipment. Factory fabrication provides consistent quality while reducing many of the variables associated with large field-built structures.
Because fabrication is completed before the equipment arrives on site, erection is significantly faster than a comparable field-welded structure. Depending on the project, installation labour requirements can be reduced by as much as 40 percent. With zero field welding activities, labour requirements are reduced, weather-related delays are minimized, and construction crews can work more efficiently. For owners, this translates into lower installation costs, shorter construction schedules, and greater confidence in meeting critical project milestones.
Another significant advantage is the coating system. With traditional welded construction, coating application is often one of the most labour-intensive portions of the project. Surface preparation, environmental conditions, and field access all influence coating quality and schedule. Fully bolted elevated clarifiers largely eliminate these challenges by arriving on site with factory-applied protective coatings completed under controlled manufacturing conditions. This not only improves coating consistency but also eliminates the need for extensive field surface preparation and painting, reducing both installation time and overall project costs while delivering a high-quality finished product.
The elevated design offers additional operational benefits. Supporting the clarifier on structural steel or reinforced concrete columns allows gravity to assist the treatment process while making efficient use of the available site footprint. When the structure is skirted to grade using bolted steel panels, the enclosed area beneath the tank provides a protected service space that can house piping, valves, instrumentation, electrical equipment, and control panels. It also creates a sheltered work area, allowing maintenance activities to continue safely and efficiently regardless of weather conditions.
Long-term maintenance is another advantage. If localized coating damage or panel damage occurs during the service life of the structure, repairs can often be completed without the extensive field work associated with welded construction. Combined with the factory-applied coating system, this contributes to improved asset protection and reduced maintenance requirements over the life of the clarifier.
At CTS, we've seen these advantages demonstrated firsthand. On a recent mining project in Northern Ontario, the original design specified a field-welded clarifier. After reviewing the project requirements with the owner and engineering team, CTS proposed a fully bolted elevated clarifier as an alternative. The evaluation considered construction costs, installation schedule, coating quality, and long-term maintenance. Following that review, the owner selected the fully bolted design, recognizing the benefits of reduced field labour, factory-controlled quality, and a more efficient installation process while achieving the same treatment performance.
As a Canadian company specializing in the supply and installation of bolted steel tanks and process vessels, CTS works alongside manufacturers, consulting engineers, EPC contractors, and owners on projects across the mining, industrial, and municipal sectors. Our installation teams follow manufacturer-approved procedures and understand that precision during installation is essential to ensuring long-term performance and reliability.
As owners continue to seek solutions that reduce construction risk while maximizing long-term value, fully bolted elevated clarifiers are proving to be an increasingly attractive alternative to traditional welded construction. By delivering equivalent process performance with lower installation costs, shorter construction schedules, superior factory-applied coating systems, and simplified maintenance, fully bolted elevated clarifiers represent a modern approach to wastewater infrastructure—one that is helping projects move from design to operation more efficiently than ever before.
