Knowledge

Wheel washing on data center and semiconductor construction

Data center and semiconductor projects are among the most scrutinized construction sites there are. A wheel wash is a small line in the budget standing in front of much larger risks: program, public roads, community relations and planning conditions.

Summary

• Hyperscale data center and semiconductor sites run hundreds of truck movements a day, often around the clock.
• Trackout onto public roads brings complaints, sweeping costs and conditions breaches on high-visibility projects.
• Two SiteWash 10 systems ran 24 hours a day for two years on a semiconductor fabrication plant, at 400 trucks a day, with no unplanned downtime.
• A bolted superstructure over a steel tank installs in a day, with no concrete pit, slab or hot work.
• SiteWash Record, in beta, turns every wash into operational evidence for the client's environmental team.

What is at stake

On a tier one build, the people round the table judge the wheel wash by different measures. The project director needs traffic to keep moving. The environmental lead needs the planning or permit condition met and shown to be met. Health and safety needs a controlled exit. Procurement needs a documented, supportable product. Each wants the same thing: that the wheel wash never becomes their problem.

What good looks like

• Throughput sized to the peak hour, with water volume to match. On heavy ground that means a larger tank or lagoon.
• Minimal groundworks. An excavation and a stone base, with no concrete pit or slab to program.
• No moving parts in the wash bay, so there is nothing to wear out under continuous traffic.
• Relocatable. Bolted, so it moves as the site phases change.
• Recorded operation. Timestamped wash records and a weekly report.

Proof

On a semiconductor fabrication plant in Europe, built for a global chipmaker, two SiteWash 10 systems, each with a 33,000 gal (125,000 L) steel tank, ran 24 hours a day for two years at the site exits. They handled 400 trucks a day with no unplanned downtime. Read the project.

SiteWash has also been in continuous supply to John Sisk & Son since 2015 on data center campuses in Ireland, and supplied a Sisk data center in Sweden.

Making it provable

SiteWash Record, in beta, logs every wash with a timestamp, together with water level and turbidity readings, faults, inspections and photographs, and produces a two-page weekly report for sign-off. SiteWash Record supports environmental record-keeping and audit readiness. It does not certify legal compliance or water discharge quality.

Specifying it

Guide specifications (CSI Division 11 26 00 and 01 57 13 for the US, NBS for Ireland and the UK), general arrangement drawings and CAD files are available on request. Request documents.

Frequently asked questions

Can a wheel wash run 24 hours a day on a fab or data center build?

Yes. Two SiteWash 10 systems ran 24 hours a day for two years on a semiconductor fabrication plant, handling 400 trucks a day with no unplanned downtime.

Does the wheel wash make the site compliant?

No wheel wash does that on its own. It controls trackout at the exit and recycles its wash water. The operator's permit obligations remain the operator's.

How quickly can a wheel wash be installed?

Two fitters install a SiteWash 4 in one day, once groundworks are complete, with no concrete pit, slab or hot work.