Case Study

Water Infrastructure for a 500-Bed Commercial Laundry, Taguig City

A complete water infrastructure buildout for a high-throughput commercial laundry: 108 m³ FRP modular tank, duplex 11 kW booster pump system with VFD controls, and hydropneumatic bladder tank. Commissioned in 10 weeks.

The Challenge

A commercial laundry operator in Taguig City set an aggressive production target: 30,000 kg of wash throughput per day. Their existing water infrastructure, a residential-grade 20,000 L polyethylene tank and a single fixed-speed booster pump, could not keep up. Pressure fluctuations during peak wash cycles were causing machine errors, extending cycle times, and creating downstream quality issues such as poor rinse and chemical residue. The facility manager needed a purpose-built water infrastructure sized to sustain peak demand, tolerate pressure spikes, and comply with commercial building code.

The Water Demand Math

Philippine Department of Health guidelines set a minimum of 37 to 50 liters of water per kilogram for public laundries. In practice, well-run Manila commercial laundries operate at 19 to 26 L/kg (Manila resource-consumption study, 2022). Sizing to the DOH minimum for 30,000 kg/day yields 30,000 kg x 37 L/kg = 1,110,000 L/day of feed water. Assuming a 10-hour operating shift with peak-hour demand at 1.6x average: 1,110,000 L / 10 hr x 1.6 = 177,600 L/hr peak demand, or roughly 178 m³/hr flow rate.

The facility's supply-side connection delivered a maximum sustained 40 m³/hr. This meant the site needed on-premise storage sized to buffer the difference: at least 100 m³ of reserve capacity to guarantee no starvation of the wash line during shift peaks.

The Solution

108 m³ FRP modular bolted water tank, 14 x 2.5 x 3 m (105 m³ nominal, 108 m³ nameplate). SMC / FRP panels with WRAS-certified resin for potable water contact. 34% glass fiber content. Graded panel thickness 12 mm / 10 mm / 8 mm / 7 mm from base to top. Two manholes, two water level indicators, breathing valve, overflow pipe, base channel, internal and external ladders.
Duplex booster pump system: 2x CDL 20-5 vertical multistage centrifugal pumps (15 HP / 11 kW each, SS304, 25 to 40 m³/hr per pump, 80 to 120 m head range). Duplex VFD control panel with 2x Inovance VFD, IP54 CRS enclosure, pressure feedback and auto-alternation. 1,000 L hydropneumatic bladder tank (PN16, food-grade EPDM). Complete mechanical install from water tank to building tie-in points.
Delivered documentation: material test certificates for pumps and panel (SS304 composition, WRAS-approved resin), factory inspection reports for tank panels, operation manuals for pumps and VFD, electrical schematics, pump performance curves, WRAS + ISO 9001 + TUV + CE certificates, and warranty certificates.

Timeline

Phase	Duration
Site visit and spec confirmation	1 week
Base slab civil works (contracted separately, in parallel with tank fabrication)	3 weeks
FRP tank fabrication and shipping	6 weeks
Pump system supply lead (arrived in parallel with tank)	5 weeks
On-site tank assembly	4 days
Pump room mechanical install and commissioning	5 days
Total from PO to commissioned system	10 weeks

Commercial Structure

The project was structured cash-neutral for the client: 40% down on contract execution (funded fabrication and shipping deposits), 30% on equipment arrival at site, 20% on installation completion, and 10% on final commissioning and 30-day performance verification.

Result

The facility hit its 30,000 kg/day throughput target within 30 days of commissioning. Pressure stability at the wash line remained within plus or minus 2 psi across all wash-cycle peaks, measured at the machine inlet. No pump cycling issues, no wash-cycle timeouts. The 108 m³ reserve provides roughly 14 hours of peak-load buffer.

What This Project Demonstrates

For any high-throughput commercial laundry operation in the Philippines, the water infrastructure math starts with the DOH minimum (37 L/kg) and scales up for peak-hour demand. On-premise storage must buffer the delta between supply-mains capacity and peak instantaneous draw. Booster pump sizing follows building height and fixture demand: for a single-storey industrial facility this means low head (60 to 80 m) and high flow (30 to 50 m³/hr), best served by 2x 11 kW multistage pumps in duplex with VFD.

If you are planning a commercial laundry buildout or an infrastructure upgrade for an existing operation, request a spec review: we can turn around a sizing recommendation and configuration proposal within 3 to 5 business days.

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