By Neal Hershey
Pro Club in Bellevue, Wash., is a high-end wellness complex that attracts some of the region’s most influential professionals. The former home of the Seattle SuperSonics, the club provides full-spectrum health, wellness and recovery support.
Pro Club’s main 45,000-gallon capacity recreation pool has more than 30,000 monthly visits and is one of four pools at the facility.
However, in 2023, Pro Club’s legacy filtration system was under pressure. Sand filter performance was variable, and they required frequent backwashing, affecting water clarity. Chemical use was high, and legacy UV disinfection units strained to meet demand and to manage air quality. The challenge was complicated by limited space in the mechanical room, making it difficult to house new equipment.
Planning a Seamless Upgrade
Pro Club’s operators knew that a full upgrade was needed to deliver clear pool water, consistent temperature control and a clean, odor-free environment. However, to minimize disruption to the club’s members, the team only had seven days over the December holiday period to complete the upgrades.
The club engaged regional contractor Orca Pacific and Xylem’s Neptune Benson team, who proposed a solution based on two key technologies.
A Smarter, Sustainable System
The team replaced three traditional sand filters with a single regenerative media filter, reducing the system’s footprint by more than 50% and freeing up critical space.
Defender Regenerative Media Filters use perlite media to capture particles as small as one micron, offering significantly greater clarity than traditional sand filters.
Space limitations were also a consideration when it came to installing the Wafer UV Disinfection System. Its small footprint allows for easy installation in compact mechanical rooms.
The highly efficient UV system improves air quality by reducing chloramines before they have a chance to off-gas into the environment.
Real-time monitoring capabilities and an intuitive interface guide users through every process step while monitoring vital aspects of the operation.
Orca Pacific led the large-scale Defender install, with technical support from Xylem’s Benson team and additional crews from partner contractors. Working together, they removed the old filters and piping, installed and calibrated the new systems and brought them online.
Crystal Clear Results at Pace
The upgrade needed to optimize water clarity, energy efficiency, chemical savings and space usage.
Staff saw an immediate improvement in water clarity, with the new system exceeding performance expectations. It delivered a massive reduction in suspended particles, better sanitation and lower chemical demand. The UV systems slashed chloramine levels, improving air quality throughout the aquatics wing. The new system conserves 520,000 gallons of water annually, enough to fill the recreation pool more than 10 times.
The upgrade also delivered for the club’s bottom line. By eliminating frequent backwashing, the filter drastically reduces water usage. In an area with some of the highest commercial water rates in the U.S., lower consumption translated into $29,000 in water cost savings. Pro Club also saved $54,000 in discharge costs, $39,000 in energy bills, $2,000 in chemical costs, and $10,000 by eliminating the need for sand replacement.
With fewer filters doing more work, the club reclaimed vital space for maintenance access.
Partnering for Success
Trust between Pro Club, Orca Pacific, and Neptune Benson created a unified team that could respond quickly and solve problems together. This seamless partnership approach supported the delivery of a high-performing system with a smaller footprint that improved outcomes across water, air and operating costs.
The retrofit proved that with the right partners and technology, it’s possible to deliver transformational projects in a tight timeframe. RM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neal Hershey is business developer for Neptune-Benson, a Xylem brand, where he supports innovative solutions for aquatic facilities worldwide. Neal has more than two decades of experience in the commercial aquatics industry, and has deep expertise in water treatment, filtration and system optimization. For more information, visit www.xylem.com.