AUTUMN2017 ISSUE195
IN THIS ISSUE INNOVATION ENERGY CLIMATE CHANGE
INSTITUTE OF WATER MAGAZINE
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CONTENTS INTRODUCTION Welcome to the Autumn 2017 edition of the Institute of Water Magazine. For those of you that have never met me, my name is Simon Cyhanko and I am the Sewerage Operations Manager at Northumbrian Water. Since the Annual Conference I am also really proud to say that I am now the National Chair of the Institute. The Institute was introduced to me by a senior manager in the first six months of my sixteen year career. From very early on I was encouraged to join as a member and attend local and national events including the Annual Conferences. It is fair to say I quickly became ‘hooked’ by the family feel of the Institute. The different people I met and began to see more of always made me feel welcome, supported and I had an opportunity to learn in a relaxed and fun environment where there was and still is no feeling of hierarchy. Early on in my career and still today the Institute has felt and continues to feel like a home away from home. Whilst this may all sound ‘warm and fluffy’ I can also demonstrate how involvement with the Institute has benefitted me in a tangible way. From speaking at Annual Conferences, gaining Chartered Environmentalist accreditation, leading an area committee or securing sponsorship for professional coaching, I have improved my skills and experience in a variety of ways. As my career developed, I have become increasingly active in the Institute. Most recently this has been with the Northern Area where I have been a committee member for 14 years and the Chair for the last two years. From organising small events, big events, liaising with speakers, making sure the buffet turns up or completing the area business plan, I have a genuine understanding of the great work our area committees complete on a daily basis to make this a fantastic Institute. This ‘grass roots’ experience will be priceless as I represent the various area committees on the Institute’s board.
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Features 26 Innovation 60 Energy 82 Climate Change
This is an exciting time for the Institute as we work to improve our offering by delivering our strategic plan. By being involved on the Board I hope to ensure a more consistent offering for our members through sharing and applying best practice at an area level. Similarly, I will be doing my best to ensure our ‘army’ of area committee volunteers have the support they need to deliver the best possible experience for our members regardless of location.
Finally, I believe an important part of my role this year is to meet our members up and down the country to see what else we can do to improve our offering and membership experience. So if you have any suggestions I would be happy for you to contact me via the team at HQ T: 0191 422 0088. Otherwise I will see you at a local area event soon. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the latest edition of our magazine.
4 Members Update 7 Science News 8 Engineering News 10 Environment News 15 New Registrants 91 Area News
Simon Cyhanko Sewerage Operations Manager - Northumbrian Water & Chair of the Institute of Water
Regulars
Institute of Water HQ: 4 Carlton Court, Team Valley, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear NE11 0AZ Website: www.instituteofwater.org.uk President: Thomas Faulkner Chairperson: Simon Cyhanko Chief Executive: Lynn Cooper Marketing & Communications Manager: Lee Hansom Tel: 0191 422 0088 Fax: 0191 422 0087 Email: lee@instituteofwater.org.uk Advertising: Martin Jameson Tel: 07342 850 289 Email: martin@jimjammedia.com Designed and produced by: JimJam Media Ltd Email: sales@jimjammedia.com
The Institute of Water is the only professional body solely concerned with the UK water industry. We can support and develop your career whoever you are and whatever you do. We do this by providing a unique learning, developing and networking framework. For details on how to join visit www.instituteofwater.org.uk today.
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WELCOME NEW COMPANY MEMBERS Merit Skills
Valmet
Merit Skills Ltd is an organisation which provides cost effective, high quality training and development products for individuals and organisations, delivered by the best industry experienced staff.
Valmet is a global developer and supplier of process technologies, automation and services for the water industry. We aim to become the global champion in serving our customers.
We offer a diverse range of training courses, whilst also specialising in development of solutions designed precisely to meet any of our clients’ specific requirements. The team at Merit Skills have many years’ experience in providing training and development to a wide range of customers in the water industry and we aim to build on that experience to deliver an honest, cost effective, down to earth service to our customers. For more information call 01733 246 415, email info@meritskills.co.uk or visit www.merit-skills.co.uk
LOUISE HUNTER RECIEVES MBE Institute of Water member and Northumbrian Water’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Louise Hunter, received an MBE for her services to business and corporate social responsibility in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list. Heidi Mottram, Northumbrian Water’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “Louise is a fantastic ambassador for the water industry and we are extremely proud of her achievements. She champions corporate social responsibility emphasising the difference businesses can make to the communities and to the environment in which they operate.” On receiving her MBE Louise Hunter said: “I am immensely proud to receive such an honour and genuinely surprised. I am privileged to have such an interesting and varied career in a fantastic company, one that is prepared to innovate, and lead the way in taking its responsibilities to the community and environment extremely seriously.” Congratulations Louise!
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Valmet’s strong technology offering includes superior solids measurement solutions for wastewater based on many years of experience and know-how in environmental processes, such as drinking water and wastewater treatment that call for new efficient technologies to fulfill ever tighter water quality and requirements. Having over ten years of experience in the wastewater treatment industry, Valmet has over 1000 references of solids measurement systems in municipal and industrial plants globally, with great proven results.
Valmet’s solids sensors provide benefits for all sludge processing stages. Valmet’s net sales in 2016 were approximately EUR 2.9 billion. Our 12,000 professionals around the world work close to our customers and are committed to moving our customers’ performance forward - every day. Valmet’s head office is in Espoo, Finland and its shares are listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki. www.valmet.com
These applications are used in the sludge dewatering, as well as at the primary clarifier, thickening, and digester process stages. Valmet’s solids measurement systems are backed up with innovative technology, offering reliability to the end customer when optimizing their wastewater treatment plants.
CHANGES TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS There have been some recent changes to the Institute of Water Board of Directors. Three much-valued Board Members standing down: ■■
Heidi Mottram – President 2014/15
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Ian Limb – Chair 2015/16 and CPD Champion 2009-2015
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Tim Boldero – Chair 1998/99, VP Engineering 1999-2005 and VP Environment 2005-2015
All have made a lasting impression and will be missed but all will remain involved in some capacity. Filling the vacancies are: Douglas Millican, Chief Executive of Scottish Water; Sara Venning, Chief Executive of Northern Ireland Water; and Steve Youell, Inspector at DWI. Earlier in the year Martin Baggs left the Board when he retired from Thames Water. His vacancy is being filled by Bob Taylor, Operations Director – Drinking Water Services at South West Water.
The Institute of Water Board now comprises: ■■
Thomas Faulkner, President
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Douglas Millican, Vice President
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Sam Phillips, Vice President Engineering
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Ian Barker, Vice President Environment
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Robin Price, Vice President Science
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Simon Cyhanko, Chair
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Steve Youell, Vice Chair
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Lynn Cooper, Chief Executive
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Natalie Akroyd, Board Member
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Peter Simpson, Board Member
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Bob Taylor, Board Member
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Sara Venning, Board Member
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Tim Wagstaff, Board Member
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Marie Whaley, Board Member
MEMBERSUPDATE
WELCOME FELLOW MEMBERS Fellow is the highest grade of membership and is awarded to those who have served well in an eminent position in the Institute of Water or who have attained an exceptional level of proficiency in their field. We congratulate and welcome two new Fellow Members:
David Laurie
Measurement Manager - Veolia Water Nevis Ltd “I have worked within the water industry since graduating and became a member of the Institute of Water in the early 80’s. I am proud to become a Fellow and look forward to continuing to promote the Institute of Water, the benefits of membership and providing support for new members and existing members.”
Richard Anderson
General Manager - Veolia “I was delighted to hear that I had become a Fellow member of the Institute of Water. Having been involved with the Institute since 2010 having joined the Scottish Area Committee as Area Secretary, I subsequently became Vice President and then had the privilege to serve as Scottish Area President for the Institute of Water in 2013. I still continue to be a member of the Scottish Area Committee and a proud supporter of Institute of Water activities as well as strongly advocating the benefits of membership. With the support of Veolia, I have attended, hosted and presented at numerous Institute of Water events. The Institute of Water is a strong contributor to my ongoing CPD. Aside from the recognition of experience, knowledge and commitment to the Institute, for me, being a Fellow offers a real opportunity to lead by example, and to show to everyone that I continue to learn even at this stage of my career. Over recent years I have mentored numerous members through to CEng, CEnv and CSci professional registration with the Institute of Water and I am also an assessor for non-Veolia employees seeking registration. I believe it is important to do what you can to support the profession and the next generation. Being a Fellow increases my opportunity to ‘give back’ as a mentor or ambassador to help influence and support younger members.”
INSTITUTE OF WATER PAST PRESIDENT AND ANGLIAN WATER CHIEF NAMED AS UK #1 CEO
Anglian Water Chief Executive, Peter Simpson, has been named the Highest Rated CEO in world-renowned jobsite Glassdoor’s annual Employee Choice awards for 2017. Glassdoor allows employees past and present to anonymously review companies and their management. Peter gained an impressive 98 per cent approval rating from those who have left a review, and came out ahead of business leaders from a variety of industries spanning technology, retail, consulting, utilities and many more including the likes of Google, Rolls Royce, Nationwide and Microsoft. Based on employee reviews, there was no other utility group in the Top 10. You can see who else was in the running here. Anglian Water also scored highly, with an average rating of 4.7 out of 5. Furthermore, 97 per cent of reviewers also said they would recommend Anglian Water to a friend as an excellent place to work.
Peter is also a Board Member and Immediate Past President for the Institute of Water, as well as a Chartered Scientist, a Chartered Environmentalist and an Honorary Fellow of the Society for the Environment. Lynn Cooper, Chief Executive of the Institute of Water, said: “Having seen the work Peter puts in to inspiring, encouraging and enabling Anglian Water employees to be the best they can and having witnessed the fruits of his labour – motivated staff, committed to ongoing professional development and many attaining professional registration – this is not surprising. Peter is well known across the water sector but to receive an award from outside is a great advert for our sector. We are proud to have Peter’s continued support and congratulate him on this accolade.”
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REFLECTIONS One of the fantastic things about the Institute of Water is the amount of experience that many of our members have, and their willingness to share their knowledge for the benefit of others. Peter Barratt recently retired from his role as Senior Water Quality Specialist at Anglian Water, and has now joined our Membership & Standards Committee to represent scientific registrations. Peter was one of our first Chartered Scientists, sits on the Science Council Registration Authority, and is one of our most experienced assessors for our three scientific professional registrations. Here Peter shares his thoughts from a career spanning almost 44 years, and looks forward to the challenges ahead for scientists in the water industry: “I feel honoured to have been invited to join the Membership and Standards Committee of this dynamic Institution, but first let me introduce myself. I’m recently retired from Anglian Water after nearly 44 years in the industry. The majority of that time has been spent working, first, on potable water laboratories and then on water treatment optimisation and technology with only a brief foray into wastewater, something about which with hindsight I do have regrets. Nearly 44 years in the industry means that I pre-date the reorganisation that created the Water Authorities back in 1974. That’s probably before most of the readers were considering a career or even tasted their first drop of potable water! Those were the days of limited water quality regulation based on the World Health Organisation standards, rather than as now the UK implementation of EU legislation. Water Quality has certainly improved from those far off days with the implementation these current standards and the creation of the Drinking Water Inspectorate resulting in a continuing development of treatment processes. We must not forget however than processes such as slow sand filtration are Victorian technology and still perform perfectly adequately. I shudder to think what regulatory hoops we would now have to jump through when I consider the “innovative solutions“ that were tried and used in the 70’s and 80’s, some of which have developed into technology in use today. I can vividly remember working with the WRc of DAF trials in the late 1970’s but what has happened to biological nitrate removal dosing methanol as a carbon source?
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In those pre-privatisation days laboratory services were generally localised with many treatment works having their own laboratory. This was certainly true in Anglian Water and whilst I fully understand the need for analytical efficiency with large and complex analytical technologies, I feel that process scientist and engineers miss the opportunity that I had to develop process knowledge and skills with an onsite laboratory providing an immediacy of data. The other great change is of course that we are now living in a much more complex and connected world. The tolerance of society has greatly diminished over the last few decades and demands to have current information at all times. However with the onset of social media providing seemingly instant communication, systems for keeping customers rapidly informed when there are issues has and will become easier. We must not forget that not all are able to or even wish to embrace modern communication methods are these customers must not be forgotten. Perhaps I speak here from personal preference. The next great challenge to the process community going forward into the next decade is the coming of “smart” systems with artificial intelligence. As this technology moves forward with systems hopefully being able to selfdiagnose faults, summon the appropriate spares and organise the correct technician skills, all this without apparent human interaction, the next generation of process scientists and engineers will have to develop in-depth knowledge and understanding of these systems as well as the treatment processes.
These skills will be critical, given the importance of the industry to public health. Someone will have to be able to intervene, for however robustly designed systems are they will surely fail, and usually at the most critical time. Given the opportunity of writing this there are several aspects of water supply and treatment I would very much like to see developed. These are: ■■
Instrument suppliers to embrace the ever tightening environmental legislation, and develop reagent free monitoring; continue to develop instruments that self-diagnose and provide simple secure data systems which generate not just numbers but information as to the process being monitored.
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A plea to the industry in general to develop a proper treatment simulator akin to a flight simulator that will enable technicians, engineers and process scientists to learn and make mistakes without risking public health or prosecution. How marvellous it would be if we could run true “what if” scenarios which enable prediction of process efficiencies without risk.
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Above all a call to my colleagues to embrace professional registration in all its forms from Technician to Chartership. When this is done we can truly become a professional, trustworthy industry in the public’s eyes.
Personally for me retirement means I can spend more time assessing and mentoring others, and also on outside interests…‘cause as the saying should have gone “the only difference between men and boys is the cost of their toys”.
SCIENCENEWS
JOINT WORKSHOP ON PROFESSIONAL REGISTRATION
INDUSTRY VIEW
ARE YOUR ASSETS WORKING FOR YOU? Stuart Foster
UK Water Manager - Drives, ABB Limited You probably already know that pumping systems in water and wastewater treatment works are the biggest consumer of electricity. Powering every pump is an electric motor. And controlling the speed of practically every motor, should, if you are energy conscientious, be a variable speed drive (VSD). With dozens of electric motors and VSDs on a typical water treatment works you would think that a site would have a detailed inventory of every single asset. Yet, our experience is often the contrary. Even those sites that know where their VSDs and motors are located, do not have any other intelligence about the maintenance records or schedules of such assets. With the growing demand for resilient pumping systems, this lack of asset knowledge could be proving more costly than you think. Unless the motor and VSD are regularly maintained, the 60 percent energy savings that you bought into when the pump system was installed, could be far less. Like a car, regular maintenance is needed to ensure it works at its most efficient.
Over 50 people attended the joint workshop from Anglian Water and the Science Council to find out more about Professional Registration with the Science Council. Delegates included front line technicians, scientists and managers from across all sectors of Anglian Water and supported by the Institute of Water, the Institute of Science & Technology and The Royal Society of Chemistry, who were able to explain the opportunities available within their organisations. The workshop was opened by Nicola Johnston, Training & Development Scientist, at Anglian Water and Agne Sniukstaite, Relationship Manager for the Science Council. Agne outlined the options available including Registered Science Technician, Registered Scientist and Chartered Scientist. Agne made it clear that pursuing scientific registration was a clear example of developing and extending your knowledge and competence. Agne also provided some practical tips for candidates on how to complete their application forms, explaining that there were development options beyond registration, including mentoring and assessing. The other speakers from Anglian Water included Chris Pegg, Water Quality Scientist, Matthew Lea, Water Quality Scientist and Karen Gilbert, Catchment Quality Scientist. Chris gave the delegates some useful tips from the assessor’s point of view and Matthew shared his experiences of continual professional development (CPD) logging. At the workshop delegates were given an opportunity to look at their own CPD goals. Finally, Karen gave us an insight into her personal journey into achieving her Chartered Scientist status. The session was a great opportunity to discuss with others on the professional registration journey and an opportunity to meet potential mentors.
But with so many assets across a typical site, do you have in-house maintenance teams that can handle the volume, let alone have the technical skills to know what to maintain? You have two choices: train your engineers or outsource to a motor-driven pump specialist. Whichever route you choose, generating a detailed asset inventory is a must. For motors, all end-users should have a Motor Management Policy. This documents every single motor and offers a series of maintenance policies from rewind to replace. For VSDs, ABB offers a database called Installed Base. Any VSD that you buy is automatically registered in the database including date of purchase, location, application, loading, parameter setting and maintenance intervals. Whenever a maintenance routine is due, the tool alerts you and can schedule a visit from a qualified service engineer. A qualified service engineer will carry out routine maintenance – ensure connections are tight, air filters are dust free and replace any parts such as capacitors – thereby making sure that the energy saving figure you are expecting is actually achieved. They can also help fine-tune the application to ensure that you sweat the asset and get the optimum performance. This could be something as simple as turning on the energy optimisation routine, which enhances the VSD’s efficiency, squeezing out even more energy saving. The engineer will also keep you up-to-date with the latest technologies. For instance, for the first time, low voltage motors can be fitted with a smart sensor. The device remotely tracks the vibration, temperature and energy use of a motor. A traffic light system on a mobile device indicates the motor’s status to the engineer: green = good, amber = service interval due, red = imminent failure. Alternatively, you can train your own in-house maintenance teams. ABB runs several courses, either at your premises or one of ABB’s sites that will keep the maintenance teams fully on top of those vital installed pumping assets.
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ENGINEERINGNEWS
PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING INSTITUTIONS IN THE 21ST CENTURY Accommodating the needs of younger members into the future. In May, the Institute of Water (IoW) sent three young members to a unique event in London exploring how professional bodies could better serve the needs of younger members. The event, hosted by the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), sought to capture the views of young professionals from 35 Professional
Name: Kirsty Ayres Job Title: Engineer (Water Consulting) Employer: Mouchel (part of WSP) “I was delighted to attend the 21st Century Professionals event representing the Institute of Water. The biggest thing I took away from the day was the diversity between the 35 institutes encompassed by the tag “Professional Engineering Institutes” (PEI). There were so many different organisations involved, several of which I admit to having never heard of before such as the Institute of Acoustics and the Institute of Measurement & Control. While I have come across NonDestructive Testing of pipes in my asset planning role, never had I thought there would be an entire institute dedicated to the practice (British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing). It really showed me how wide ranging the discipline of engineering could be. This diversity was also mirrored in the participants of the event, with people attending from a range of backgrounds and from across the country. This all added to the exciting discussions as the perspectives of what is important to young professionals varied depending on the size of their institute and its structure, their base location and how far into their career they were. If PEI’s can work together on ideas shaped at the event, it will benefit young and not so young professionals alike.”
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Engineering Institutions (PEIs), furthering collaboration. In focus groups, young members discussed how they believed the PEIs could work better together for the benefit of their members, with ideas shared with the PEI Chief Executives to
Name: Lisa McKenzie Job Title: Strategy Manager Employer: Veolia Water “I’ve never before come across an event like this and it was an absolute pleasure to attend. The day was about switching around the usual senior-to-junior flow of information to seek our opinions on what we want and need from our institutions. I was particularly moved by the number of young women in attendance - in my experience, engineering events often have around 20-30% female attendees, but I’d estimate this one was around 50-60%! Many attendees were part of their respective young members committees and it was truly inspiring to see such fantastic engagement at this level from young women. On a broader note, one recurring theme from members of all institutions was the notion of ‘paying it forward’. Many of us felt this group of Chief Execs are paving the way for us to join forces and influence the future of PEIs. This inspired many discussions about how we can in turn pass on that favour for the generation after ours. I hope we can show boys and girls considering a career in engineering or technology that we are part of a forward thinking, collaborative and inclusive sector.”
inform “a forward plan for future collaboration”. The attendees enjoyed presentations on events in different institutions and art in engineering followed by a drinks reception. The three IoW members share their accounts of the day below.
Name: Thom Milburn Job Title: Technical Support Advisor (Wastewater Networks) Employer: Northumbrian Water “Attending the event on behalf of the IoW was a real opportunity for me but also for our institute. It provided a unique situation where the UK PEIs could come together in one room for a common cause - it was genuinely awe-inspiring. Whilst the day was not intended as a showcase by any means, the professional calibre of individuals representing their associated institutions was particularly striking. These were young people from a diverse range of backgrounds and industries, with careers ranging from apprentice through to director. We often hear that the UK is a powerhouse of science and technology; never was this more apparent than on this occasion. As young people being asked for our opinions on a range of subjects, it was a potential flash pan if ever there was one! I personally appreciated how open and considered all individuals were when pitching ideas back and forth, some more controversial than others – all of which were contemplated rather than simply being rejected for falling outside the norm. This ability to push the boundaries and think outside the box reinforced one key message to me; people are powerful and together we can achieve anything.”
ENGINEERING CONFERENCE 2017
ENGINEERING EFFECTIVE SOLUTIONS IN A TOTEX WORLD
SAVE THE DATE INSTITUTE OF WATER ENGINEERING CONFERENCE 2017 8 NOVEMBER 2017 BOOK NOW @ WWW.INSTITUTEOFWATER.ORG.UK instituteofwater.org.uk
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ENVIRONMENTNEWS
SOCENV ELECTS NEW CHAIR
IOW AT SOCENV Ian Barker, recently re-elected as Institute of Water’s Vice President Environment, and Tim Boldero continue to represent the Institute of Water on the SocEnv Council. John Manners, CEnv and one of our assessors, sits on the SocEnv Registration Authority.
At the recent Society for the Environment (SocEnv) AGM, the Council unanimously elected Professor Will Pope HonFSE CEnv as Chair of the Society for his second spell in the position. Will replaces Dr Peter Matthews CBE OBE HonFSE CEnv who completes his second term as Chair of the Society, which spanned between July 2015 and July 2017. Peter is continuing his involvement with the Society through his election as Chair of the Remuneration Committee. CEO of the Society for the Environment, Dr Emma Wilcox, commented; “I look forward to working with our new Chair and drawing from his knowledge and experience to achieve further progression for the Society and develop opportunities for our registrants.” Committee Chairs also elected or re-elected at the AGM included:
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Dougal Driver CEnv – Vice Chair
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Martin Baxter CEnv – Chair of Registration Authority
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Dr Peter Matthews CBE HonFSE CEnv – Chair of Remuneration Committee
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Vacant – Audit and Risk Assurance Committee
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Professor Carolyn Roberts CEnv – Chair of Honorary Fellow Panel
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Alan Harper CEnv – Honorary Secretary
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Ian Byrne CEnv – Honorary Treasurer
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SOCENV CEO JOINS THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF ENEP SocEnv CEO, Emma Wilcox, has joined the Executive Committee of the European Network of Environmental Professionals (ENEP). ENEP consists of 22 European environmental organisations that together represent over 45,000 individual professionals. It seeks to influence and implement the environmental agenda throughout Europe, connect European environmental experts and promote international recognition of environmental qualifications. The Society is an active member of ENEP, representing Chartered Environmentalists and Registered Environmental Technicians on the European stage. Emma is supported in her role by Ian Barker by taking an active part in the General Assembly meetings every six months. Both, Emma and Ian, view it as important that we maintain professional links with colleagues across Europe during the present ‘uncertainty’.
The Institute of Water is dedicated to supporting the careers of people working in the UK water utility sector and the Rising Stars programme is a key feature of our ongoing work to nurture rising talent in the water sector. This programme was originally developed in partnership with the industry magazine, Utility Week, to celebrate and reward eight Institute of Water members who have demonstrated both the potential and an appetite to progress in the water industry. The programme is managed and funded by the Institute of Water but the year still begins with a table at the Utility Week Awards Dinner in December. Through an application process each year, we choose eight young members who have shown both the potential and an appetite to progress within the water industry. For the successfully selected Rising Stars, the programme brings together a collection of unique opportunities, designed to develop the skills and professional excellence of new talent. Rising Stars particularly focuses on
RISINGSTARS
RISING STARS
providing professional development in the skills areas that are not traditionally tackled or made available to individuals. Speaking about the programme Lynn Cooper, Chief Executive of the Institute of Water said: “Year-on-year, the Rising Stars programme has offered ambitious young members the opportunity to get involved in initiatives to help them with their personal and professional development and to progress their water industry career.” We are now looking for the Rising Stars of 2018. To apply, you must be a member of the Institute of Water and at an early stage in your water sector career. Find more information about the programme at www.instituteofwater.org.uk/rising-stars or get in touch with your area representatives.
Naimh McElroy
Graduate Civil Engineer, Water and Waste Water at AECOM
It’s been a busy year for our current Rising Stars – there have been visits to water companies; Northumbrian Water, Anglian Water and Severn Trent Water. The Stars have also been working with the Institute of Water area teams, attending national conferences and squeezing in some time to visit Consumer Council for Water and WaterAid! Here’s what some of our Rising Stars have said about the 2017 programme:
“The Rising Star programme has given me an insight into the Water Industry as a whole. Meeting CEO’s and staff from different water companies has broadened my understanding of how each company works and provided valuable tips on how to progress within this industry.”
Rose Jolly
Innovation Exploitation & Governance Manager at Severn Trent “If you are new in your water career and focused on your personal development then I would highly recommend applying for the award.”
Kirstin Watt
Asset Planner at Scottish Water “My participation in the Rising Star programme over the past year has undoubtedly been one of my career highlights thus far and offered a plethora of opportunities for professional and personal development that I will now be able to reinvest throughout my career.”
Jonathan May
Graduate Mechanical Engineer, MWH Treatment “Career discussions with the leaders of these organisations have without doubt been my highlight of the experience so far; and I anticipate that these will inspire my water journey for many years to come.”
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UK Drilling & Tapping 2017
A DOUBLE WIN FOR ANGLIAN WATER UTILITY WEEK LIVE, NEC, 23-24 MAY 2017
The sounds of clashing spanners and wrenches, shouting and cheering, raised the roof at the Birmingham NEC as 16 teams went head-to-head to be the Institute of Water’s Drilling and Tapping 2017 champions. The Institute of Water’s annual Drilling and Tapping competition has become a regular fixture at Utility Week Live, the UK’s biggest gas, water and electricity event, on the 23 and 24 May. The Drilling and Tapping competition is an energetic contrast amongst the seminars and exhibitors and drives a lively crowd of cheering spectators. This year the competition also hosted the World Water Cup, which saw teams from Holland and Mexico compete against 2016 UK champions Anglian Water, along with the National competition to win the Talis men’s trophy and the Mueller’s Ladies trophy.
SPONSORED BY
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The Talis Men’s competition saw a close battle between two returning champion teams; Anglian Water and Bournemouth Water (now part of South West Water). Anglian Water continued their winning streak and took first place in the final run after delivering a ‘quality tap’ within a record breaking time of 2 minutes 02 seconds. The Anglian Water team will go on to represent the UK once again in next year’s World Water Cup competition in Las Vegas in June 2018. Winners of the Mueller ladies competition trophy were new champions Wessex Water with a time of 4 minutes 31 seconds. The Wessex Water team now have the opportunity to compete in the
Aquatech competition in Amsterdam later in the year. We wish both teams the best of luck! The Institute of Water would like to thank all the competing teams, sponsors and judges involved and we really look forward to seeing you all again next year!
Further details of the winning teams and run times of the runners up are available at: www.drillingandtapping.co.uk
DRILLINGANDTAPPING
A JUDGES PERSPECTIVE MALC HOLMES, ANGLIAN WATER
DAY ONE - AM
Tuesday morning saw the opening of the National competition and the beginning of the preliminary rounds for the Talis National Men’s and Mueller Ladies trophies. All teams completed their first of the two taps that would determine whether they qualified for the next round. With the aim of reaching the final at the forefront of everyone minds the whole dynamics of the competition changed as the focus was not on speed alone but producing quality taps (QT), resulting in slower times all round. However, the end result was that most teams incurred penalties and therefore the pressure was on to produce their best times on day two.
DAY ONE - PM
The world water cup took place on the Tuesday afternoon with teams from Holland, the UK and Mexico. The UK team represented by Anglian Water Services (IMR and @OneAlliance) was made up of current champions Jay Barratt and Lee Maddock along with Steve Mason and their coach, Alan Wells. The team were hoping to regain their crown won in the 2016 competition in Chicago. First up were the Mexican team from Monterrey completing the USA method, they achieved a hot time of 1:14.31 (QT). However, as the competition winner is declared from a cumulative time of all three principles Mexico were unable to maintain their lead.
The UK team achieved clean runs in both the USA and UK methods resulting in great scores on both and Jay, Lee, Steve and Alan were able to maintain their crown.
DAY TWO - AM
With slow times and very few quality taps on day one, the focus amongst the teams was on securing a place in the final. The morning session saw Anglian Water and Waternet Amsterdam producing ‘Quality Taps’ in times of 2.38.09 and 2.54.78. These two teams along with Bournemouth Water (now part of South West Water), Northumbrian Water, Wessex Water and Scottish Water gave us our 6 finalists. The morning session also saw an exciting competition amongst the ladies teams in order to win the title of Muller ladies 2017 champions. The trophy was awarded to Wessex Water ladies with a time of 4:31.63. Second place went to 2016 champions; Lesley and Kayleigh Barratt from Clancy Docwra with a time of 4.54.83.
DAY TWO - PM
Each of the teams in the final were to compete two runs this afternoon. Anglian Water produced a championship record time of 2:12.76 on their first tap creating a great deal of excitement around the competition and presenting a challenging afternoon to the teams yet to compete.
With the prize of a trip to Las Vegas looking already in the bag for Anglian Water, Northumbrian Water produced a quality tap in a time of 2:25.42, very close! Next up were Bournemouth Water previous champions on 6 occasions! The team achieved another quality tap and secured a second record of this Championship with a scorching time of 2:11.22 to take over the number one spot by 1.54 seconds. This very impressive time would have won most competitions and this was evident in their celebrations when their time as announced. The final team to compete were Anglian Water with their second run, cheered on in the true spirit of camaraderie by their fellow competitors the team produced a blistering all-time record of 2:02.90 thus taking their seventh trophy and their second title of the 2017 competition making them World Water Cup and National Champions. The team will now have the opportunity of a third world title when they complete in next year’s competition in Las Vegas, courtesy of Drilling and Tapping’s main sponsor PAM Saint Gobain.
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CREATING A CULTURE OF OPTIMISATION “Advanced LTO has challenged me to think far beyond my role and given me the freedom to make a difference” Elton Whiting - Process technician. David Mann
Regional Support Manager Anglian Water When any of us is looking to improve service and reduce cost and risk in our operation it can be tempting to immediately look to our own specialists across the business or to external consultants. While this type of collaboration is key to success in many cases and reaps great rewards, you have to ask yourself two questions: Who knows this plant better than anyone else? How do we give those people everything they need to be able to get the most from our assets? Anglian Water’s answer was to take its current LTO (License To Operate) certification, which demonstrates competent operator status for all front line staff, look at the improvements in operator development that Peter Simpson saw in America and take it all to the next level by launching its natural extension within Water Supply – Advanced LTO. Advanced LTO is Water Supply’s optimisation development programme that aims to develop the full range of optimisation, business and scientific skills needed to allow process optimisation projects to be completed by technicians on site as well as the strong environmental, business and engineering knowledge required to ensure that projects are correctly identified, managed and delivered. The course is project based with candidates presenting an optimisation project that delivers a genuine business benefit to a panel of chartered professionals. During the course candidates are mentored by experienced managers and scientists from within the business. Advanced LTO enables the candidate to be ready for professional accreditation as either EngTech, RSciTech or REnvTEch with the Institute of Water and the course has been developed with this in mind from the start. “I feel that this is one of the most important training packages that we have ever developed for technicians. There is no doubt in my mind that Advanced LTO has become our flagship training course for optimising and improving our processes and operations.” Paul Valleley - Director of Water Services and Course Sponsor
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The first cohort of nine handpicked technicians began the course in 2016 and completed masterclasses in disinfection, ultra-violet treatment, process calculations, clarification, filtration, testing methodologies and scientific skills, Lean techniques, root cause analysis, hydraulics and pumping optimisation, operational risk assessments, project management and report writing. They had to keep a CPD log while they went and show through their project where they had applied these new skills and knowledge and they learnt more than they ever thought they would. “Although I was doing an engineering registration, I developed my knowledge of treatment process, the environment and business process so much at the same time.” Scott Hayward - Supply Support Manager Working with mentors and other experts from around the business was of particular benefit to technicians who usually work in one geographic area all the time, exposing them to different teams and sites where they could get new ideas and widen their networks. “By working outside of my area and with people from all around the business I learnt skills that would normally be very hard to come by.” Gary Smith - Asset Technician The course is deliberately challenging and has stretched the candidates to develop technical, business and perhaps more importantly personal skills and has made many of them look at their jobs in a new light.
“As well as technical skills, the course helped me learn a lot about myself and how to work more effectively with people.” Chris Wagstaff - Asset Technician The course was developed and delivered in house and has reaped huge benefits with the projects potentially saving more than £250,000. It has also expanded the existing Supply and Water Quality optimisation team of managers and scientists by giving it an army of people on the ground to work with. It has also given more tangible benefits for the candidates; four of them have already achieved registered technician status and two have since been promoted. A new cohort of candidates has now started and two cohorts are planned for next year. It is also being developed for Water Networks which means that there will soon be an army of optimisers on the front line working from source to tap. “I am so pleased with this course and the candidates who have completed it. I believe that this is leading technician development within the company and our industry. It has already begun to inspire other ALTOs within the business. Everyone involved should be very proud indeed.” Peter Simpson – Chief Executive
[The graduates L-R (Jon Battersby, Dave Cheeseman, Richard Derry, Scott Hayward, Lucy Keil, Gary Smith, Alan Spidy, Chris Wagstaff, Elton Whiting) with Paul Valleley.] Picture courtesy of Tim George Photography.
NEWREGISTRANTS ENGINEERING Since starting at Northumbrian Water, I was always encouraged by my peers and management to join the IoW, as becoming a member will greatly enhance my opportunities and broaden my understanding in the water industry. I’m extremely pleased with achieving EngTech status as this professionally recognised qualification demonstrates the level of competency, knowledge and skills I am able to contribute to the business. I will continue with my development via CPD, seminars/workshops and any other opportunities that arise with in the water sector and begin the next process of working towards IEng status. I highly recommend anyone seeking to develop their career and become professionally registered to make the first steps and join the IoW.
Adam Rogers
Technical Support Advisor; Northumbrian Water Engineering Technician I’m an asset technician for Anglian Water. I have 5 years’ experience in the water industry. I already obtained a Level 3 Diploma in Electrical & Electronics Engineering and a Level 3 NVQ Extended Diploma in Engineering Maintenance. I applied for recognition as an Engineering Technician to enhance my career within the company, as this will benefit my future skills, knowledge and development. This qualification will give me a better understanding with more expertise that will help develop, optimize and improve water treatment works. This will help me to progress to higher levels within the industry with an enhanced professional status. Now that I have achieved EngTech it will allow me a clearer understanding on the next steps in my career by using personal development to record my progress. This includes recognition as an Incorporated Engineer to improve my career prospects and potential higher earnings.
Keeley McNiffe
Asset Technician; Anglian Water Engineering Technician
I found the application and process to Institute of Water very simple and straightforward, any questions I had, I was given a quick response. I’m so glad I made the decision to apply.
My reasons for joining the Institute of Water, primarily it recognises my area of work in network modelling, qualifications and provided a pathway to attaining CEng. This allows people who do not know anything about my experience to have confidence in my ability and ethical viewpoints. Secondly, as a staff manager I need to inspire and motivate a team who stem from varied academic backgrounds. The Institute of Water offers opportunities for each member of the team to attain a professional qualification and to promote their careers within the water industry. To that end the Institute were very helpful in providing guidance as to the most appropriate direction each member of the team could pursue.
Andy King
The Water Industry is far more than a single discipline area and the Institute recognise that we need to embrace new skill sets to meet the rapidly changing way in which water is managed and those skills should be recognised.
Principal Network Modeller; AMEC Environment & Infrastructure UK Limited Chartered Engineer
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SCIENCE I applied for Registered Scientist status as it’s a great way to showcase the skills and knowledge I am learning and to gain professional recognition for my work. I currently work at Affinity Water as a Scientific Officer in the Water Quality team. I have benefitted greatly from the Registered Scientist application process. It has provided a more structured and goal based approach to my personal development along with a platform to log my CPD. This has ensured I continually make the most out of every opportunity I am given. I am really happy that I have received Registered Scientist status and it feels like a massive achievement, which has already led me to thinking about chartership. I am looking forward to sharing my experience with others and promoting them to apply of professional registration. I would recommend anyone who is thinking of applying to give it a go and it is not as scary as you might think.
Sarah Murray
Scientific Officer, Water Quality; Affinity Water Registered Scientist I joined the Anglian Water laboratory 16 years ago after completing my A-levels. I studied for my BSc part time whilst working for Anglian Water, as part of my commitment to continued professional development. The opportunity to become a member of the Institute of Water, and subsequently applying for professional registration, was the next step for me. Writing my report to demonstrate the required competencies gave me such a sense of achievement, to reflect on the skills and experience I had developed over the years. The interview was a pleasure as it gave me the chance to discuss my achievements and help build my professional network. I would really encourage others to apply for professional recognition. The application process took a little work, but overall it was straight forward and the rewards are well worth the effort. It’s inspired me to continue my professional development and work towards Chartered Scientist, which the feedback from the professional review has also helped too.
Michelle Munden
Assistant Scientist; Anglian Water Registered Scientist
I have always been keen to keep learning and developing myself so when I heard about the Scientist qualifications with the Institute of Water I was immediately interested to find out more. After a presentation on professional registration at our team meeting and discussions with others, I was convinced that the Chartered Scientist Qualification was the one I should aim for. I found the CPD tricky to get down on paper initially but now find it a really useful tool to target my continual improvement and highlight areas that I wish to develop further. It is also a good record of my achievements that I can look back on.
Jenny Martin
Catchment Quality Scientist – North Essex; Anglian Water Chartered Scientist
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I am very proud to have attained Chartered Scientist status and to have my skills, knowledge and enthusiasm recognized. I also feel this achievement will assure internal and external customers of my scientific competence and professionalism. I hope to encourage other work colleagues to gain their own professional recognition.
NEWREGISTRANTS I started my experience with Institute of Water and registration status when I gained Registered Science Technician in 2015. It was while I was working on my RSciTech report that I found that I had much more knowledge and experiences to present. Also to achieve RSci I have had to involve myself to additional tasks above technician level which extend my scientific knowledge and motivates me for personal development. RSci became a goal which gave me a clear direction for further development. I think that Registered Scientist is a good evidence of knowledge and experience. All the experience I have gained on the way have helped me to become successful on my application for a secondment as Assistant Scientist and also in supporting other technicians with their RSciTech applications. Now I would like build my experience and knowledge to start working toward Chartered Scientist.
Magdalena Jedrzejak Laboratory Technician; Anglian Water Registered Scientist
ENVIRONMENT I’ve had a keen interest in the natural environment for many years and believe that our interactions with it should always be sustainable. This is something I have actively tried to encourage, not only with my interests outside of work but professionally too. The environment is at the heart of everything we do in the water industry. It was really heartening to be supported by Anglian Water’s commitment not only to the environment but also to developing the skills of their Works Technicians. I’m grateful for their Advanced Licence to Operate scheme and Biodiversity Team who helped me achieve the REnvTech registration. The whole process really makes you think about how we can all strive to work more sympathetically with the natural world. I hope that many more people will put themselves forward for the REnvTech accreditation.
Alan Spidy
Works Technician; Anglian Water Registered Environmental Technician The water industry offers fantastic opportunities if, like me, you crave variety in your career. After a year in industry placement with Severn Trent, and an MRes at Cranfield University I started at Anglian Water as a laboratory technician six years ago. It has been a whirlwind of rewarding roles and fantastic, talented people as I’ve moved from the lab, to drinking water regulations, to pollution, to environmental permitting, to asset planning. Applying for Environmental Chartership seemed like the next natural progression in my career, as a way of broadening my network and demonstrating my expertise.
Claire Piper
Assistant Process Manager; Anglian Water Chartered Environmentalist
The IOW linked me with a mentor and that really helped me focus on a timescale for my application, and understand how I could link my experience with the required competencies. CPD has allowed me reflect on what I have achieved so far and how I want to continue to build and shape my career. I would absolutely recommend applying.
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MEET OUR MENTOR/MENTEE PARTNERSHIPS We launched our new mentoring platform early last year and since then have seen a number of successful partnerships come out of this. Here are just two of these partnerships which we are keen to showcase and hopefully encourage more mentors and mentees to sign up.
PARTNERSHIP 1 MENTOR Status: In a mentoring partnership Why did you sign up to the Mentoring Platform and what did you hope to achieve from the experience?
Name: Ian Barker Age: Why? Job Title: Managing Director Company: Water Policy International Ltd Years in the industry: Over 35
How long have you been in the mentoring partnership? Six months.
How have you found the process so far?
As someone who has worked in the water industry for many years, in different roles and in different parts of the UK, I wanted the opportunity to use my experience to support other IWater colleagues in reaching their potential. I’ve been lucky enough to have received some great mentoring at various stages in my career, and also have had the pleasure of acting as mentor to many colleagues over the years. These dialogues have always been stimulating and I’ve found have helped me to learn and look at challenges in different ways - and also, I hope, have been beneficial to my mentees! It’s been very rewarding to see the folk that I’ve mentored progress in their careers with confidence and focus.woman in an operational environment. I also hoped that some of the mentees may teach me a thing or two along the way!
Defining the challenge is the generally accepted first step in a mentoring relationship, and often the hardest thing to do. Sometimes the challenge turns out not to be what the mentee imagines, or there is more than one issue to address. The first conversations between mentor and mentee can be – and have been – very rewarding. There’s still some way to go but it’s shaping up well. The IWater mentoring platform is excellent, and is a great resource to ensure that mentoring stays as mentoring, and doesn’t stray into coaching, counselling, or just a nice chat. scheme will be a success for those who sign up to it (I would encourage anyone who hasn’t done so yet to take the plunge!), however I would stress that this is a scheme that you only get out what you put in. Take the time to partner up with appropriate people and spend plenty of time discussing what you want out of the scheme.
Status: In a mentoring partnership
How have you found the process so far?
MENTEE Why did you sign up to the Mentoring Platform and what did you hope to achieve from the experience? In the same way that Professional Registration validates experience gained and applied, Mentoring provides both participants opportunity to explore ambition and help to make the journey feasible.
Name: Rob Bradley Age: Not quite 50 (48) Job Title: Team Leader Company: RPS Europe Years in the industry: 10
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How long have you been in the mentoring partnership? Six months as mentee; 18 months as mentor.
I have provided direct support to a number of professional registrants outwith the online tool and feel that the platform offers far more structure and guidance. Because each candidate is different, varied approaches, time constraints and amounts of support often need to be managed around mutual agreement. I am a firm believer in creating time for right reasons which is why the Platform has been the best method I have tried which enables just that. Equally, from perspective of mentee, the enabling considerations to begin the journey, such as need to articulate direction through the proposal mechanism has been invaluable to really focus and prioritise which steps to tackle first.
MENTORING PARTNERSHIP 2 MENTOR Status: In a mentoring partnership Why did you sign up to the Mentoring Platform and what did you hope to achieve from the experience? I signed up to try and share the experiences I have had in the water industry over nearly two decades, particularly from the perspective of a woman in an operational environment. I also hoped that some of the mentees may teach me a thing or two along the way!
Name: Anna Boyles Age: 37 Job Title: Area Performance Manager Company: Thames Water Years in the industry: 19
How long have you been in the mentoring partnership?
How have you found the process so far? It is early days, but I have found the process very simple to follow and it is easy to sign up as a mentor or a mentee. I am confident that the scheme will be a success for those who sign up to it (I would encourage anyone who hasn’t done so yet to take the plunge!), however I would stress that this is a scheme that you only get out what you put in. Take the time to partner up with appropriate people and spend plenty of time discussing what you want out of the scheme.
Just over six months.
MENTEE Status: In a mentoring partnership Why did you sign up to the Mentoring Platform and what did you hope to achieve from the experience? I signed up to learn from another professional in the industry who’s followed a similar career path I am interested in. I recently left the graduate scheme, and am still exploring where I want to go in my career, and how to get there.
Name: Rachel Powell Age: 26 Job Title: Business Analyst (Investment Planning) Company: United Utilities Years in the industry: 3
How have you found the process so far? The process so far has been extremely rewarding for me. I have recently been on a two-day visit to my mentor. I’ve not only gained more knowledge for my personal development, worked on some interview techniques and discussed my career options, I’ve also had an invaluable opportunity to improve my visibility within my own organisation.
How long have you been in the mentoring partnership? Six months.
SIGN UP TO BE A MENTEE AND MEET THESE POTENTIAL MENTORS...
Jacky Atkinson - Deputy Chief Inspector, Defra (DWI) Jo Parker – Director, Watershed Associates Luke Stanbridge - Marketing Director, Z-Tech Control Systems Matt Bower - Operations Team Leader, Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland Thomaz Andrade - Catchment Customer Acceptability Scientist, Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water
FIND OUT MORE - EMAIL: MENTORING@INSTITUTEOFWATER.ORG.UK OR VISIT WWW.INSTITUTEOFWATER.ORG.UK/MENTORING
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ANNUAL CPD MONITORING EXERCISE Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is part of everything we do as an Institute - it’s our reason for being. The professional bodies who licence us to award professional registration to our scientists, engineers and environmentalists require us to sample a selection of our members CPD on an annual basis, as active participation in CPD is a prerequisite of registration. We would undertake the exercise anyway, and we also want our corporate members who aren’t on a professional register, to be undertaking CPD – for this reason we include them in our monitoring exercise.
The deadline for submission is 15 December, so there is plenty of time to get those CPD records dusted off and up-to-date. Each submission is assessed by a team of Institute of Water volunteer assessors and feedback is provided to participants. The best submissions will go forward as an entry into the annual CPD award. Provided a member is able to show they are involved in some form of development activity through the year, they will meet the requirements of the monitoring exercise.
The annual CPD monitoring cycle for this year is about to commence. The number of members from each professional register who are required to submit depend on the requirements of that professional body. Members who have been asked to submit their CPD record this year will soon be notified.
Matt Bower, the Institute’s CPD Champion has a few top tips if you are called upon to submit your CPD record:
“Firstly, don’t panic. We all lead busy lives, but you have plenty of time to get your CPD record up-to-date. We simply need to see that you have been developing yourself in the past year. The format you use to record your CPD is down to you; using the Institute’s CPD online tool makes the process even easier as the tool guides you through the process and we can simply access your record, with your permission, so you don’t need to do anything. Think widely - development takes many forms. You may think that you haven’t done any CPD this year, but development activities can take many forms – it’s not just about attending formal training.
Matt Bower CPD Champion
In last year’s exercise, we achieved a 100% return rate, and are keen to do the same this year. If you are called upon to submit your CPD, you need to respond in order to maintain your corporate membership on the Institute and, if appropriate, professional registration.
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Perhaps you had to step up to cover a more senior role at work, or prepare a presentation that stretched your existing skills. In fact any scenario where you moved outside your comfort zone or went the extra mile will have resulted in professional development.
We do follow up with any members we don’t hear from, so if you don’t submit you will be chased (very nicely!). Finally, we always need more assessors for our CPD monitoring. This is a rewarding role, which helps the Institute enormously and is, in itself great CPD.
Don’t forget that development takes place outside of work too – for example, as a Cub Scout leader I get as many opportunities to develop as I do in my day job, especially on the interpersonal side of things. Even without participating in a voluntary role on a formal basis you are likely to find many examples of development in your home life. Plan your development and reflect on what you have achieved. You’ll get far more from the process if you spend a little bit of time identifying your development needs and how you might fill these. Also, if you reflect upon what you got out of a development activity and whether it met your needs, you’ll be able to better target future activities. The process should be a cycle, not simply a one-off listing of activities. The Institute’s online CPD tool is helpful here as it guides you through the process.”
If you’d like to be an assessor or have any queries about the monitoring exercise please contact: Sarah Dunn at the Institute of Water HQ tel: 0191 422 0088 email: sarah@instituteofwater.org.uk
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ANOTHER FANTASTIC YEAR IN PARTNERSHIP
Friday 21 July marked 36 years since WaterAid was first founded by a group of visionary leaders from the UK water industry. That’s 36 years we’ve been working in partnership to get clean water and toilets to everyone, everywhere. WaterAid believes clean water, toilets and good hygiene are essential for breaking the cycle of poverty and helping people and communities change their lives for good. Thanks to your support, we are closer than ever to ensuring everyone has access to these essential services. Last year, employees, customers and partners from across the water industry volunteered thousands of hours of time and raised hundreds of thousands of pounds to support clean water and sanitation projects around the world. You helped to turn the world #Blue4Water on World Water Day in March raising awareness of the 1 in 10 people still living without clean water. You braved the elements at Glastonbury Festival, taking the WaterAid message to thousands of festival go-ers. And you signed a petition calling for world leaders to keep the promises they made in the 2016 Global Goals - to reach everyone, everywhere with clean water and toilets. WaterAid is determined to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone, everywhere within a generation. With your continued support we can make it happen. Thanks for another fantastic year in partnership!
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OUR 2016-17 PARTNERSHIP IN NUMBERS 78,509 people signed the Toilets Save Lives petition. Many of these were water industry employees and customers. 127 industry volunteers joined WaterAid at Glastonbury Festival helping to keep toilets clean, water flowing and petition signatures rising. 36 years working in partnership to get clean water and toilets to everyone, everywhere.
20 teams from across the industry battled it out in the Water Innovators Challenge. 10 industry volunteers visited Mozambique to see the difference their support is making to families and communities. 1 marathon-running camel joined hundreds of supporters to take on sponsored runs, walks, climbs and cycle races around the country, going all out to #finishthirst.
31 days supporters from across the water industry drank Just Water raising money for clean water projects around the world.
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY Global Handwashing Day 15 October
World Toilet Day 19 November
Tough Sh!t 10km toilet-themed obstacle race 1 and 28 October
#UnTapped winter campaign launching in November
See www.wateraid.org/uk for details of ways to get involved. Photos: 1. Humphrey runs the London Marathon 2. Volunteers visit Mozambique 3. The winning Water Innovators team
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WINNERS TO ATTEND IWA YOUNG WATER PROFESSIONALS INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE Three Institute of Water members have won the fantastic opportunity to develop their skills on the international stage. Following our offer to fund attendance at the International Young Water Professionals Conference (IYWPC) in Cape Town, South Africa we received 28 applications from across the water sector. Marie Whaley, Board Member and Chair of the IWA UK Committee, said: “All applications were of great quality and demonstrated the creativity and enthusiasm of the Institute’s young professionals. “We shortlisted eight candidates for interviews using criteria combining their potential to benefit and contribute, their mind-set towards associative work and their ideas for sharing their experience with other members during their stay and upon return.” Interviewing the candidates were Institute of Water Board Member, Ian Barker, Luke Dennis, IWA UK YWP representative and Institute of Water Member, and Marie Whaley. There were three candidates who scored unanimously higher than others and it was recommended that the Institute of Water supports their participation to the conference. They are: ■■
Kirstin Watt, Asset Planner at Scottish Water
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Vyvyan Evans, Waste Water Graduate at Dwr Cymru Welsh Water
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Joshua Graver, Water Regulation Inspector at Anglian Water
Lynn Cooper, Chief Executive of the Institute of Water, said: “This is great opportunity for three of our members to gain exposure to the global water sector and to share their experience with colleagues and other members. Having met the three winners I look forward to following them on their adventure.” Through the offering of technical paper sessions, topical workshops, soft skill learning sessions, networking opportunities, a career fair and site visits, the IYWPC is valuable event for young water professionals, especially those looking to develop their career and progress further into the water sector.
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Kirstin Watt
Joshua Graver
“In an increasingly globalised world, I strongly believe that forums of this nature, where difficult yet necessary conversations are facilitated, are critical in order to safeguard the service that we provide for posterity. I am very much looking forward to representing the UK water industry this December and reinvesting my learning upon my return.”
“There’s two main reasons why I’m very excited to be attending this event later on in the year. My first is, I believe this opportunity will massively inspire and help shape my future career within the water industry, which hopefully will result in bringing a benefit to the industry. My second reason is, I’ll be able to meet lots of great people from various backgrounds, from across the world who all have a common interest which is to provide safe drinking water and sanitation while also meeting the future challenges ahead of us.”
Vyvyan Evans “I am looking forward to attending the IWA’s international conference for the opportunity to network with YWP from around the world, to debating and challenging various assumptions on the uses and control of water. These connections together with the cross disciplinary lectures and workshops, will enable me to advance my understanding of the world of water, which I can develop and incorporate throughout my career in the sector.”
Kirstin, Joshua and Vyvyan are looking forward to sharing their learning with members when they return. We wish them a safe and insightful journey.
The International Young Water Professional Conference takes place 10-13 December 2017 in Cape Town, South Africa. For more information about the conference, go to iwaywpconference.org
Erotica
01633 273 081 instituteofwater.org.uk
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EGREMONT
INNOVATION IN THE WATER INDUSTRY - HOW TO GET IT RIGHT
Innovation - it means so many different things to different people. From flash of inspiration “Eureka!” moments, to slow burn “evolution not revolution” developments.
by Alexandra Bolland & Alex Graham Egremont Group
When the Great Fire of London destroyed most of the city in 1666, the renowned Sir Christopher Wren was left with a difficult challenge, to design 51 churches at once, in small sites and often between the remains of damaged buildings on awkward plots of land. In modern times the equally visionary Frank Gehry was set the task of creating a building-sized sculpture to house the Bilbao Guggenheim. In both cases they used their constraints as inspiration. At its best in our water industry today, innovation is about similarly reconfiguring boundaries into opportunities. More than the process of creating something new, innovation is really the impact of that newness. We describe it as ‘creativity
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that creates value’. In the context of water, this means not just innovating the product - the assets and customer services, but the factory - the people, processes and technology behind them too.
Water companies must do more with less. Less money, less energy, less chemicals, but also more regulation, more reporting, more extreme weather events and more demanding customers.
In July OFWAT CEO Cathryn Ross telegraphed her intentions – in no uncertain terms – that water companies will have ‘a very tough review’ unless they deliver ‘more of what matters to customers’ via ‘ambitious and innovative’ business plans. Perhaps we should add a third type of innovation – innovate as if your life (if not your career!) depends on it. So we have a situation where water companies are being mandated to deliver innovation but to do this in any sort of controlled fashion they should not only understand how to foster innovation in the first place, but implement a set of processes that enable it to be predictably
FEATURE: INNOVATION planned, assembled and delivered in the years ahead. That’s no mean feat however brilliant you are. The shorthand is to divide the innovation effort up into short term (1-3 years), medium term (3-5 years) and long term (5-10 years) plans with a portfolio of ideas coming to maturity at different times forming your innovation pipeline. This triple pronged approach allows focus on the long-term, whilst driving the majority of time and effort of teams on near term incremental opportunities that ensure consistent delivery of value.
Good short term innovation should be 60% of your focus. Use frontline teams to identify incremental innovations in the current capabilities and assets - “do what we do now, only better”. This approach worked to great effect with the British Cycling Team. Everyone was asked to identify one small element that could be improved, even if it would only make a 1% difference. Cumulatively they made Britain the best in the world, yet individually none of these changes defined perfection. For water companies short term innovation comes from operational excellence, giving frontline teams not only the right data but empowering them to experiment, to fail fast, to succeed and finally to have management support the roll out of their improvements. It starts with listening to your people. Not just staff, but suppliers and contractors also. They’re the ones who’ll come up with the practical, simple innovations that will drive better core operational processes boosting productivity and cutting costs to deliver incremental benefits day in, day out.
Medium term innovation should be 30% of your focus. Its secret is alignment and collaboration between teams to identify the right problems to solve and put the effort in innovation behind solutions which will make the biggest difference in adding new capabilities to the business. This holistic ‘end to end and top to bottom’ approach is the Amazon model. Amazon is notable for getting the customer experience and delivery process not only right first time, but leagues better than its competitors. Only once the foundations were rock solid was attention spent on out-of-the-box thinking like Alexa to place your orders without needing a phone or computer and drones to deliver your order within minutes. For water companies it’s all about how you create focus on innovation by supporting a step-change in performance in the right place in the organisation, aligned against the overall strategic objectives. This could lead to thinking about innovation in places not normally considered a focus, like a new activity based costing model as an innovation in finance. Identify the exec-level objectives across people, process, customer and finance and work out how
to measure each one at every level, to create a ‘line of sight’ cascade of KPIs. This allows you to regularly and consistently review your performance enabling you to problem solve and identify trade-off decisions at each level of your organisation. There are lots of potentially innovative ideas, this approach helps focus on the right ideas for your strategy.
Long term innovation is the last 10%, this small but critical horizon still needs dedicated resources and management commitment. The reaching into the great unknown. Think future-back. Invest in research and trials. Explore the art of the possible to develop new capabilities and assets and collaborate and challenge your peers and the regulator to consider a future that is contrary to the prevailing wisdom. With pressing day to day concerns it isn’t easy to invest the time and energy to consider what the world of water in 2030 will look like, but it needs to be done. What will our world look like? How will demographics, environment and politics shape how we live? What are the implications for our industry and our company? Unlike the short and medium term the problem to solve (let alone the solution to it) isn’t immediately obvious. That’s where future-back thinking comes in to help identify what the constraints and limitations might be first of all. Think like Uber and turn a weakness (most cars are unused for most of the day) into the strength (they can be unleashed as a lower cost taxi service). There’s no getting away from the fact that future-back innovation involves risk, uncertainty and failure. The questions we need to ask ourselves are not only are we willing to fail? But how can we challenge and collaborate internally and cross-industry to test boundaries and learn what can work?
The thousand-mile innovation journey starts with a single step. So rather boringly unglamorous as it is sounds we should start by getting the foundations in place. Getting access to the right data and problem solving with the front line to eke out incremental gains from existing capabilities and assets will generate the results and goodwill to tackle the bigger problems further ahead into the future. Get the measurements right across your organisation so you can identify the biggest opportunities and best course of action, and be prepared to fail a few times along the way. Sounds easy doesn’t it? You’d be surprised. Most water companies don’t have the Operating Model or the leadership commitment to support this three-horizon focus on Innovation. Make yours the exception.
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WESSEX WATER WIN THE INSTITUTE OF WATER NATIONAL INNOVATION AWARDS 2017 Wessex Water won this year’s Institute of Water National Innovation Award 2017, sponsored by MWH, for their work on ‘Innovative Catchment Management Approaches’. The award was presented at the Institute of Water’s Annual President’s Dinner and Awards, held at the spectacular setting of Manchester Cathedral.
The team are pioneering innovative ways to improve the water environment. Focusing initially on nutrient levels, our catchment-based work has two new elements: ■■
The Institute of Water National Innovation Awards, sponsored by MWH, celebrates some of the most innovative individuals and companies from within the UK water and sewerage sector. This year the awards saw six regional finalists from across the UK coming together to demonstrate the industry’s creative excellence. The evening recognised talent from across the water industry in a number of different areas and successfully demonstrated the variety of innovation that these companies and individuals have to offer. Wessex Water’s team lead, Dan Green, said: “Wessex Water are delighted to have won this year’s Institute of Water national innovation award for our increasingly diverse catchment management work. It is great that through its awards the IoW champions and recognises innovation – as a theme it will become more and more important for the development of individuals in the water sector and the organisations in which they work.” Wessex Water’s innovation looks at improving catchments through smarter permitting and payment for measures to tackle diffuse pollution.
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Catchment permitting: a new method for regulating end-of-pipe treatment; specifically, addressing phosphorus discharges from sewage treatment works in the Bristol Avon catchment. Developed in partnership with the Environment Agency, it includes a tonnage reduction target spread across 24 sites, and various improvement measures. EnTrade: reducing diffuse pollution via a ‘one buyer, many sellers’ online auction platform, devised initially for Poole Harbour. Participants bid for payment to enact measures to reduce diffuse pollution, e.g. planting winter cover crops.
Sir Brian Bender, Chief Executive, Water UK and head of the judging panel, said: “The judges thought that the innovation showed a big partnership approach and was a great example of innovation driving innovation. It is where they thought the sector should go and is just the starting point for this mechanism. There were some strong entries, but the panel unanimously came to the view that the entry by Wessex Water showed the most innovation, and was the deserved winner”.
The Institute of Water would like to congratulate all companies & individuals who entered the 2017 National Innovation Awards and thank sponsors MWH for their support.
Winner
Wessex Water - Improving catchments through smarter permitting and payment for measures to tackle diffuse pollution.
2nd Place
Catchment Team, Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water - Deep Rooted Solutions: Growing Landscape Resilience
Other finalists include: APEM Limited - Misconnections from the air Concrete Canvas - Concrete Canvas, Concrete Impregnated Fabric Utility Focus Group, Scottish water - Trailer mounted vacuum excavator (T-VAC for short) Southern Water Enabling Team - Enabling Team are batty about innovation – using new technology to search for bats.
WATER PROCESS SOLUTIONS
ENCORE® 700 - PRECISION DOSING, BUILT TO LAST A need for robust, reliable and consistently high performing chemical dosing systems has never been greater within our treatment industry. With reliable, high performing long life assets, operators can turn attention to forward planning and innovation for continual gains and wider treatment advances. The Encore®700 diaphragm and plunger metering pumps are a solid, no risk step in this advancement. Proven to operate decades in service, consistently delivering high metering performance across a vast array of chemicals it stands proud among its peers in today’s choices of chemical metering pumps. Supplied and supported from Water Process Solutions in Kent, the pumps are configured specifically to suit each application - this ranges from simple water metering through classic treatment chemicals such as poly, lime, alum, hypo, caustic, ammonia and acids to perhaps less obvious fluids such as hydrazine, oil and vinegar. The Encore®700 is a non loss motion pump, it is driven by a rotating crankshaft, where the eccentricity can be smoothly adjusted during operation. There are no return springs, and the diaphragm or plunger moves with a simple harmonic motion. The fluid velocity profile is sinusoidal at all stroke lengths; adjusting stroke length simply alters the amplitude of the sine wave. This
design allows pump valves to operate with far greater efficiency and minimal system vibration. This design and build quality enables metering precision, reliability and longevity. The Encore®700 can be configured to dose a wide range of chemicals with capacities of 2500 l/h and Plunger discharge pressures capable of 200 bar. Please contact us here at Water Process Solutions to discuss how the Encore®700 can benefit your metering application. Contact us: aran.bray@waterprocesssolutions.com +44 (0) 7557363728
Performance Under Pressure OCTO
Welcome to Europe’s foremost authority on the leadership and management of crisis and emergency situations
Stimulating training for senior executives and their crisis, incident & business continuity teams Design and delivery of realistic cost effective exercises including working with multi-agency partners Coaching of executives to perform under pressure Crisis communication training in reputation management, media and social media Prepare crisis and emergency management organisations, arrangements and facilities Resilience and business continuity support Review, validate and benchmark crisis and incident management plans Contact: Mark Hart tel 01244 405270
email octochester@octo.uk.com
www.octo.uk.com
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A DATA DRIVEN APPROACH TO WATER LEAKAGE DETECTION
The issue of water leakage remains a significant and ongoing challenge for water companies. Having set clearly defined leakage reduction targets for each water company for the 20152020 AMP6 period, OFWAT’s aim is to save 370m litres of water a day and its expectation is that water companies will spend over £44bn on major challenges including tackling leakage and boosting efficiency. The incentives are clear, exposing water companies to penalties in excess of £510m when aggregated; and rewards of up to £228m.
“Each water company’s network is divided into DMAs, each of which has large water meters at the entry and exit points. Although these meters enable water companies to monitor and assess overall water flow into each specific DMA, there are few DMAs in which each and every customer will have a water meter. The challenge, therefore, is to understand how much water is being consumed by customers, and how much is being lost to leakage.
Over the past 18 months, a team from Morrison Utility Services has been working with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to develop an innovative and advanced, data-driven approach to the critical area of water leakage detection. The initiative leverages ONS socio-economic national data sets, historically used for census purposes, for an entirely new field of use - to identify leakage levels in District Metered Areas (DMAs) across the UK.
“Future technology will use rich geodemographic and geosocial data, together with water consumption insights, to identify and profile DMAs that exhibit significantly different water consumption behaviours.
Having received a national Intelligent Data Insights Innovation award, the ground breaking proposal has been funded by the UK’s innovation agency, Innovate UK, sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. Will Davies, Head of Innovation at Morrison Utility Services, explains the thinking behind the approach: “Shifts towards open data policy are freeing up geodemographic and geosocial data sources for innovative new uses. The solution, which includes all aspects of data extraction, transfer, loading, algorithms and visualisation of results, enables the processing of large volumes of data to provide valuable insights for leakage detection.
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“This project has been designed to provide an additional, innovative, data-enabled approach to identifying those DMAs most likely to have leaks. The approach uses new data and provides a different approach to traditional methods, offering the potential to significantly enhance the overall effectiveness of leakage detection,” Davies comments. Establishing a common measure of consumption is essential for accurate comparisons to be made. The use of ONS data, combined with subject matter expertise in water consumption, has proved instrumental in providing accommodation profiles and highlighting relationships with the water consumed. For example: ■■
The level of water consumed is not directly linked to the number of people living within a DMA
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The amount of water consumed per person is dependent on whether they live alone or with others. For example, two people living in one
household won’t consume double the water of one person living alone. Subsequently, three people in one property will consume even less per person The use of the ONS data, set alongside customer data provided by water companies, is paving the way for the development of a common measure used to normalise the water consumption for each DMA – the ‘Total Residential Population Equivalent’. “Essentially, the Total Residential Population Equivalent offers a way of using the ONS data to form a ‘virtual person’ by taking every type of domestic, commercial and industrial property, and its occupants, within a DMA and using factors such as lifestyle, economic and social activity,” Davies comments. “By factoring everything within a DMA into a common, simple and comparable measure, a consistent comparison can be made across all DMA’s. Calculating the number of ’virtual people’ within each DMA enables a direct comparison of the water consumption of all DMAs. Those DMAs in which the virtual people show the highest relative consumption, in comparison to the virtual people in other DMAs, are the most likely to have the highest relative leakage.” The graph opposite illustrates a typical distribution of the ‘normalised flow’ for a large group of DMAs. The pattern of the distribution, approximating a Poisson Distribution, demonstrates a consistent method of comparing DMAs. Analysis of leakage repairs illustrates that the further to the right of the graph a DMA appears,
FEATURE: INNOVATION Yorkshire Water is among the water companies now assessing the approach. Julian Longbottom, Leakage, Planning and Compliance Manager, comments: “Yorkshire Water has been happy to provide base data on DMA information and performance to support the project. We are always looking for alternative and improved ways to target leakage find and fix activity.
the greater the probability of leakage. After using this method over an appropriate period, we should expect to see the Mean move to the left, signifying an overall reduction in leakage without an increase in leakage detection resource. This unique and innovative approach is generating significant interest among several water companies keen to address the issue of leakage detection.
Davies comments: “We offer a number of innovative solutions across the full spectrum of leakage activities including advanced use of multiple sensor data from unmanned aerial vehicles and this is an exciting additional solution that enables us to prioritise and investigate DMAs using more water than their profile suggests.”
Early, limited use of the model has shown that there is some alignment with our current leakage targeting methods and we would like to explore these further to see if we can further refine targeting using both methods. This will be useful going forward as climate change and peculiar seasonal variations are changing the pattern of both legitimate demand and yearly leakage trends and we intend to roll out the information in the report to leakage analysts to test out the method and assumptions in more detail.”
DISCOVER THE ADVANTAGES
Double-See™ Vinyl Double Containment Piping Systems GF Piping Systems introduces Double-See, a pressure-rated double containment system for transporting hazardous liquids. Double see advert.indd 1
www.gfps.com/uk 24/08/2017 09:44
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IDEXX
SOUTH WEST WATER ADOPTS COLILERT®-18 IN DRIVE FOR GREATER ACCURACY & CERTAINTY “The quality of our water and safety of our customers is of paramount importance at South West Water. Switching to the Colilert-18 test enables us to get water quality results in half the time compared to the agar tests that we ran previously. It is quick and simple to use and our studies showed it to be more accurate.” Claire Coppin, South West Water’s Laboratory Manager South West Water (SWW) supplies drinking water and waste water services throughout Cornwall and Devon, and in some adjacent parts of Dorset and Somerset. Formed during water industry privatisation in 1989, it inherited a system in need of improvement. Since then, significant investments have been made to bring the region’s drinking water, sewerage systems and bathing waters into line with both UK and EU standards. In order to ensure that these standards are being met, water samples are routinely monitored to check for contamination, including E. coli and coliforms. Historical test methods for these, notably those that use Membrane Lactose Glucuronide Agar (m-LGA), have been found to generate false positive results, which is a problem – time and money are wasted in additional treatment and consumers may be inconvenienced by boil water notices, neither of which may have actually been required.
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Although SWW’s permanent customer base is about 1.5 million people, this swells to 7 million in the peak tourism months of the summer, greatly increasing the amount of water supplied and wastewater treated. It was found that after isolating presumptive positives on m-LGA, they must be confirmed and this typically takes two extra days, but with mixed colonies can be as many as four. The regulations state that immediate action must be taken, based on the assumption that the presumptive result is positive. Colilert®-18 is a newer test method that became the ISO 9308-2 standard for the detection of E.coli and total coliforms in water in 2012, and provides quantified results in as little as 18 hours with no further confirmation of results required. The incidence of false positive results was found to be much lower than the traditional
m-LGA test. A member of SWW’s water quality team had prior experience of using Colilert-18, and had been impressed with the accuracy of the test. This was in contrast to his experience with agar based methods, where higher false positive and negative results were observed, and interpretation and confirmation of results was more laborious. On 1 July 2016, SWW initiated a live trial using Colilert-18 on half of its compliance samples, while continuing to use m-LGA on the remainder. Prior to the live trial, SWW had already gained experience in using Colilert-18 when analysing private customer samples, where the likelihood of positive results for E.coli and coliforms was greater than in its own water. The aim of the trial was to establish if Colilert-18 would better meet the company’s needs than the existing methods.
FEATURE: INNOVATION Samples were randomly split 50:50 between Colilert-18 and m-LGA. A couple of significant failure events were observed with m-LGA during the trial, although none of these were with compliance samples. In each of these cases, repeat tests were carried out with Colilert-18 because of the need for speed. These were done by picking off a colony from the plate, and confirming it with Colilert-18. A particular concern with m-LGA is the growth of non-target background organisms which can mask the presence of coliforms on the agar. The water quality department is particularly concerned about unconfirmed failures here, as these colonies lead to uncertainty while confirmation steps are undertaken. Although the primary concern for the water quality department is the specific identification of coliforms as indicators, heterotrophic plate counts (HPCs) are also routinely carried out to monitor overall microbiological trends within the water network.
Colilert-18, meanwhile has a 15-month shelf life at ambient temperature, allowing companies to order batches less frequently and store it more easily. Another benefit of Colilert-18 is in health and safety – using m-LGA to test meant raw cultures needed to be picked off the plates with sharp forceps, and one of the confirmation reagents used is toxic. Colilert-18 is non-hazardous, and total hands-on processing time for an operator is typically one minute per sample. The reduction in confirmation testing is particularly important after an incident, when the filter equipment has to be boiled or more agar must be made for m-LGA tests. In contrast, for Colilert-18, all that is required is to open the box and take out another sachet of reagent. [Adding Colilert-18 reagent to sample]
A number of business drivers existed for SWW when evaluating the change from m-LGA to Colilert-18. m-LGA is a multiple stage process, and requires multiple confirmation steps. In contrast, Colilert-18 is a simple process that involves adding a powder to the water sample, shaking, sealing and incubating. The membrane filtration that is required for m-LGA has the potential to introduce crosscontamination from equipment such as funnels, filters and forceps, which can lead to inaccurate results, and potentially false positive outcomes. With Colilert-18, the vessel, tray and powder are all irradiated, greatly reducing the risk of contamination. Colilert-18 provides a fast, confirmed result that is more accurate, with increased productivity in the lab because of the increased speed of the process. By removing several process steps, the result is reduced sample and process cross-contamination risk. The consequences of failure are not trivial – resampling, draining and cleaning reservoirs adds significantly to the costs to the utilities and potential disruption to consumer supply.
For any change in operating methods, there will be a period of adjustment, but for SWW, running the six-month trial had the additional benefit of making the laboratory staff keen to make the change. Confirmatory samples have become a thing of the past, and there is a real increase in confidence in the results of testing. Although ultimately with m-LGA the correct results were achieved, it was very time consuming. [Pouring the sample into a Quanti-Tray]
The original intention was for SWW to run the trial for two months, but as there had been no failures, it was extended to six months, with 10,000 samples being run during that time. Data analysis at the end of the six months showed there was no increase in compliance failures.
“Having confirmed results in a more timely manner helps us make confident decisions to ensure our consumers can have trust in their tap water; which is our (and their) number one priority.”
The main question being asked at the confirmatory stage was whether or not what they were seeing were coliforms or not. The easiest way to get the answer was often to pick off the colony in question. These presumptive colonies need to be investigated, but with m-LGA this can take 48 hours. For SWW, the production of m-LGA is an issue, the agar has a short expiry time and refrigeration space was limited, meaning two or three batches needed to be made and AQCd each week.
Furthermore, ISO 17025 accreditation is required for all audit and compliance samples, which specifies the quality management and technical requirements that laboratories must meet in order to demonstrate technical competency and adherence to strict quality measures for testing, data reporting and process control in the laboratory. The IDEXX Quality Control Laboratory meets the accreditation requirements of ISO 17025 and additionally, the QC certificate of Colilert-18 is ISO 11133 compliant.
Chris Rockey, South West Water’s Head of Water Quality
[Counting positive E. coli wells in a Quanti-Tray]
The trial gave the water quality experts within SWW the confidence to move over to Colilert-18 for their routine testing, and avoid the three-day wait for confirmed results. SWW has now joined Thames Water, South East Water and Essex & Suffolk Water in relying on Colilert-18 to test for E. coli and coliform contamination.
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NWG INNOVATION FESTIVAL DELIVERS NEW IDEAS TO TACKLE SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES A unique week-long Innovation Festival has brought together people from around the globe to tackle a range of social and environmental problems that face us all. Northumbrian Water Group’s NWG Innovation Festival was attended by around 400 people each day as it tackled issues including flooding, water leakage, infrastructure, life and work in 2030, green cities, and mobile workforces. Set in Newcastle Racecourse’s marquee village, to give a true festival atmosphere, the event saw headline sponsors IBM, Microsoft, Ordnance Survey, CGI Group, BT and Reece Innovation leading the search for ideas. They were joined by members of the Northumbrian Water Group team, other experts from within the water industry, businesses outside of the sector and NWG customers. Hundreds of ideas were streamlined to produce 18 key projects that can be taken forward and developed. These were presented to an audience of attendees, industry partners and regulators. Carl Pheasey, Director of Strategy and Policy at water industry regulator Ofwat, said: “I think the idea is fantastic and it’s very timely, because the launch of PR19 – where Ofwat has outlined the areas we believe the water industry should put its focus on – puts a lot of emphasis on innovation and this is the sort of event that I think we probably want to see more of in the future. “It’s really impressive and it looks like Northumbrian Water has worked really hard to put on an event that is aiming to get really good outcomes and substantive thinking out of the sprints and that’s fantastic. “Collaboration is really important to do innovation well. We have talked quite a bit recently about the importance of collaboration both within and beyond the industry.
“My experience of these sorts of processes in other sectors is that the really good innovative ideas emerge when you get people from very different backgrounds and perspectives coming together and trying to take a fresh look at how to solve long-standing problems. Getting people from lots of different sectors together to think about things afresh is really great.” Heidi Mottram, Chief Executive of Northumbrian Water, said: “The amount of time we spend tackling problems over the course of the year adds up to a lot of working hours. The NWG Innovation Festival has enabled us to achieve that in five days. “We’ve heard about some very impressive developments that have come out of the work that has been taking place at the NWG Innovation Festival and it will continue when we all return to work on Monday. “There is a lot of hard work still to be done in delivering these ideas but we are convinced that the spirit of collaboration and innovation will continue long after the festival has closed, because these are important issues that deserve the continued focus of all involved.”
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[Workshop]
The NWG Innovation Festival was delivered in association with Newcastle University, Durham University, Genesys, Interserve in partnership with Amec Foster Wheeler, Costain Resources, PC1, Tech Mahindra, Mott MacDonald Bentley (MMB), Wipro, Virgin Media Business, Schneider, Wheatley Solutions, Sopra Steria, Accenture, 1Spatial, Infosys, Unify, ITPS, Esh-MWH, and Pen Test Partners.
More information about the NWG Innovation Festival is available at innovationfestival.org
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[CCwater’s Steve Grebby being interviewed]
[Heidi Mottram, Chief Executive of Northumbrian Water]
FEATURE: INNOVATION
Ideas presented at the end of the NWG Innovation Festival included: ‘Rain, Hail or Shine’: How can we reduce flooding? Led by headline sponsor IBM ■■
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Members of the public who would work closely with relevant agencies and help to keep communities informed, to help reduce flood risk and enable people to be better supported when they are affected. The creation of an agency that links directly with customers to give and receive bespoke information on flooding, helping to reduce flood risk.
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A collaborative approach to reducing the surface water that runs from the landscape into water courses.
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A system that utilises artificial intelligence technology to deliver bespoke flood information to users, so they are better informed about how to respond when problems occur.
‘How Green is Your City?’: What can businesses do to improve the environment in the North East?
Led by headline sponsor Ordnance Survey ■■
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Installing special ‘moss trees’, which absorb pollution, into towns and cities. The trees would also help to reduce surface water that might enter sewers and contribute towards flooding. This idea will be entered into Ordnance Survey’s Geovation Challenge in October, alongside hundreds of other ideas from around the world, where it will compete for funding that will help to realise its potential. A text message and app system that will alert people to opportunities to car share, work from home or an alternative location, and advise on time, money and carbon savings.
‘Keep It Flowing’: What do we know about leakage from water pipes and how can we fix it?
Led by NWG, alongside a Microsoft-led Hackathon of data relating to leakage. ■■
A tool that allows water companies to focus their efforts on areas where the biggest impact on leakage reduction can be made.
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A system that will allow water companies to more closely monitor its network of pipes, highlighting deterioration and areas of risk before leaks happen.
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The use of mobile apps that allow members of the public to report leaks with greater accuracy, using geospatial technology.
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Hackathon: More collaboration with experts outside of the sector, using the power of data to deliver a better customer service.
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Focussing upon key areas, particularly in Essex, to maximise the impact of efforts to reduce leakage. By concentrating on 20 district metered areas (DMAs), the increase in leakage can be stopped. Expanding that to 50 would help the company to hit reduction levels that have been set.
‘Tomorrow’s World’: What will living and working look like in 2030?
‘Preparing for the Future’: How do we upgrade our infrastructure for the 21st Century effectively and affordably?
Led by headline sponsor Reece Innovation ■■
Greater sharing of information between businesses, to ensure that services can be delivered in a way that better suits customers, with a particular focus upon those members of the public who are vulnerable and need additional support.
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Sensor mapping technology that improves knowledge of the various service infrastructure, such as gas, electricity and water, that lies beneath the ground.
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The introduction of a system where communities can tell companies, such as those that deliver services, what is important to them. This would enable businesses to better understand and provide for the needs of those communities.
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The introduction of shared infrastructure corridors, allowing different businesses to use the same pipes for their services, improving information sharing and reducing the impact upon the public of maintenance.
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The use of technology such as fibre optics to improve the data available on utilities networks, particularly focusing on pipes and cables beneath the ground, to allow companies to identify problems more quickly and understand what is going on underground.
Led by headline sponsor CGI ■■
A ‘life assistant’ that filters through the increasing volumes of information, from such areas as e-mail and social media, to prioritise what is delivered to users and when.
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Infrastructure that allows people to work in the environment of their choosing, or a personalised workspace, without becoming detached from their team.
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A personalised artificial intelligence device to learn about the environments and schedules that best suit the wearer, helping them to adapt their working practices accordingly.
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An artificially intelligent system that links with digital personal assistants, such as Alexa, Cortana and Siri, to liaise with service providers, such as plumbers or handymen, save home owners’ from having to do so directly.
‘21st Century Reach’: How can we optimise a mobile workforce for a complex network business? Led by headline sponsor BT ■■
Creating a single, integrated system, that brings together all of the information necessary for a particular job, from details of the work, the tools needed, recordings of the initial call from the customer, previous jobs at that location, and even training videos.
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DEEP ROOTED SOLUTIONS TO GROW LANDSCAPE RESILIENCE IN THE BRECON BEACONS
[Willow whip planting, February 2017]
Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water Catchment Team Landslips in the Brecon Beacons National Park can significantly affect raw water quality, sometimes turning reservoirs “red”. As part of the Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water WaterSource approach to Catchment Management, the Catchment Team and stakeholder partners have taken an innovative approach combining collaborative working, new science and a nature-based solution to investigate, understand and address this issue.
An emerging risk The Brecon Beacons National Park is an area which provides almost half of the drinking water Welsh Water supplies every day to its customers, this includes the majority of Cardiff and Swansea. Heavy rainfall events in the Brecon Beacons can often generate landslips and the mobilisation of fine sediments, turning reservoirs downstream
“red” in what have become termed “red events” (the distinctive red soils of the area are a feature of the underlying Old Red Sandstone). These sudden increases in suspended sediment load can pose a considerable treatment challenge for the receiving water treatment works. The “red events” can also have a wider significant impact on biodiversity, local communities and tourism.
The success of this new way of working has been recognised by the Institute of Water Annual Innovation Awards; with the approach winning the Welsh Area Innovation of the Year 2016/17 and Runner-Up Innovation of the Year 2016/17 at the National Finals. [Landslip within Catchment]
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[Impact of a “red event” on the Cantref Reservoir]
FEATURE: INNOVATION Finding the root cause To initiate a collaborative approach to understand and address this issue, Welsh Water’s Catchment Team organised and hosted the first stakeholder meeting to focus on this in 2010. The event brought together more than 40 stakeholders and experts. It was clear that the root cause of why landslips were occurring in this location were not well understood and there was little agreement on how the land could be managed to reduce the potential of future landslips so the stakeholders agreed to form a partnership; working together to take an evidence based approach to understanding the problem and to inform future management decisions.
To support the agreed evidence based approach, Welsh Water funded a PhD with Aberystwyth University, which commenced in 2011. Following an extensive sub-catchment study, the outcomes of the PhD confirmed that a combination of long periods of dry weather immediately followed by heavy rainfall events as well as a lack of deep rooted stabilising vegetation were the main triggers of the landslips that cause the “red events”.
Piloting nature-based solutions As part of the PhD research a hazard risk map identifying locations at high risk of future slope failure was produced. It was also identified that a change to deep rooted vegetation could help stabilise soil and slopes, reducing the risk of future slope failure. The partnership were keen to trial a nature-based solution to increase the ecological resilience to landslips by re-introducing local, native species of willow and alder trees to areas at high risk of slope failure; the deep roots would help bind the soil and increase its stability, thereby reducing slope failure potential and increasing environmental value. Biodiversity, improved soil protection and enrichment; reduced runoff rates and carbon capture would also be greatly enhanced by the tree planting.
[2010 Stakeholder Meeting & Site Visit]
Planting in this catchment is challenging for a number of reasons including that the trial area is on common land and so there are constraints on fencing (no fencing is allowed!) and tree protection on the common, the whips had to be planted without any form of protection! Despite these challenges, a total of 10,000 trees are being planted, the Willow whips are harvested locally at a site just under three miles away from the trial area. Early results have been extremely promising – even following a very dry period
and no protection from livestock, 42% of trees are establishing well with a further 38% still in the ground but slower to establish and just 20% have been damaged by livestock. Monitoring will continue and learning from the trial sites will inform the approach taken to the next quota of whips due to be planted in Autumn 2017 and Spring 2018.
Conclusions Collaboration has been at the heart of our work; partnership working and successful communication with an evidence-based approach has been key to the project’s success and securing agreement amongst stakeholders. This project has increased morale and created a new culture where open and honest conversations can be held and will leave a legacy of a Partnership open to new ways of working. Identifying spatially where there is a high probability of future landslips within drinking water catchments has provided an opportunity to mitigate the risk to water quality through the use of a nature based solution. Looking further ahead, this approach will improve the landscape resilience to future challenges such as climate change and the evidence and learning will be used to inform the development of the Brecon Beacons Mega Catchment landscape scale approach.
Acknowledgements The project would not have been possible without the participation and support of a number of individuals and organisations. Our thanks go to Dr Joanna Clint (née Matthews) & Professor Paul Brewer, Aberystwyth University; Bayden Rees, local Farmer; Brecon Beacons Grazing Association; National Trust; Brecon Beacons National Park Authority; Coed Cymru; Natural Resources Wales and Welsh Government.
PROJECT LEGACY: Brecon Beacons mega catchment approach In May 2017 Welsh Water launched the Welsh Water 2050 consultation, in which Catchment Management is recognised as the “first line of defence”. If catchment management can deliver raw water quality that is expected, manageable and consistent, it can help build resilience into the water supply system, reducing chemical and energy usage as well as the need for future capital investment, as well as delivering a whole host of multiple benefits for the environment and local communities. Traditionally, topography has been used to define the boundaries for catchment management. In the Brecon Beacons drinking water catchments are geographically located next to each other and form a “Mega Catchment” at the landscape scale. So many of the things that can influence water quality don’t recognise topographical catchment boundaries (e.g. sheep grazing common land, wildfires); recognition of this has caused Welsh Water to rethink the future approach to catchment management.
The Brecon Beacons is not only a “Mega Catchment” for water, it is also a “Mega Catchment” for biodiversity, agriculture, forestry, people and tourism amongst other things. In order for any management approach to work it needs to work for all stakeholders. Going forward Welsh Water continue to work closely with partners, communities, land managers and users to co-create a vision for the Brecon Beacons that delivers social and environmental enhancements in this iconic landscape so that it remains prosperous and resilient for years to come. Working successfully at the pilot scale has produced evidence which will enable Welsh Water to upscale this approach to landslip management in the Brecon Beacons and more widely as part of our WaterSource approach to Catchment Management.
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KIJLSTRA
SPECIALIST DRAINAGE SYSTEMS MANUFACTURER HELPS PRESERVE A VICTORIAN AQUEDUCT The Elan Valley Aqueduct (EVA) has been bringing water to the city of Birmingham for more than a century. The 119km-long aqueduct is one of the last great civil engineering achievements of the Victorian era and carries 320 million litres of fresh water to Birmingham from mid-Wales every day. After more than 100 years of service, time has come to provide extra support for the EVA to ensure it can continue to provide service for another 100 years. This led to the Birmingham Resilience Project (BRP), a scheme to safeguard the EVA and protect Birmingham’s water supply. At around £300 million, the BRP is the biggest infrastructure project in Severn Trent’s history. One of the first phases in the BRP is to replace three sections, totalling 4.6km, of the EVA. The three new sections, at Bleddfa, Knighton and Nantmel, are being tunnelled alongside the existing aqueduct and the flow of water diverted into the new sections to allow the old tunnel to be sealed off. The contract for this phase was awarded to BNM Alliance, a joint venture between Barhale and North Midland Construction which has just completed the 1.8km-long Bleddfa diversion, the first of the three sections to be replaced. “There was no risk of imminent failure in the aqueduct. These replacements are proactive maintenance,” says Richard Holloway, the BNM Alliance site manager at Bleddfa. The transition, first from the existing conduit into the new tunnel and then back to the original conduit again, has been carefully designed to avoid slowing the flow of water down the aqueduct. The entire EVA, from midWales to Birmingham, is gravity-fed – there are no pumping stations – and so interruptions and obstacles must be avoided at all costs. Precast concrete manufacturer Kijlstra has been instrumental in the design and production of the critical tunnel sections that divert the flows into and out of the new tunnel. “The contract was split between upstream and downstream projects,” explains Kijlstra’s production manager Rupert Treadaway. “Each
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contained large U-channel elements in which we placed bespoke benching elements with continually changing profiles for a gradual transition from a square section to a rounded one to minimise any effect on the flow.” After each flat-bottomed culvert section was installed the appropriate benching element was cemented in place and then cover slabs placed on top to close the conduit. Custom-designed diversion blocks were installed to divert the water from the existing stream into the new layout without having to shut down the water flow. “Although the diversion is only about 20m long, its design required painstaking calculation. We worked very closely with the client’s hydraulic engineer to refine profiles and dimensions to optimise flow through the diversion– it is highly bespoke design.” says Rupert. During the early planning stage, options discussed, included an insitu concrete diversion. However, this was ruled out as impractical. “Reinforced insitu concrete was considered during the early stages of design but it quickly became clear that the handling and installation of the formwork would have been far too complicated for installation on site,” says Richard Holloway. In the confined space of the 15m-deep excavation, it was easier to crane in precast components and install them one at a time than to construct a complex formwork and erect reinforcement, he explains. The bespoke precast units, weighing up to 27 tonnes each, were all manufactured at Kijlstra’s factory in Henlade “All the products were bespoke, although the U-channels were cast from our flat tables with special formwork produced by our in-house carpenter,” says Rupert. “First we cast the walls and then stood them up and cast the base in between them.” These were 3.9m high x 2.3m long x 4.3m wide with 400mm thick sections. “The benching blocks moulds needed to be highly elaborate to enable us to manufacture a transitional shape from square to rounded over a
length of 20m,” he adds. Another major advantage of using precast concrete was that the units could be manufactured to close tolerances and a high standard of quality off-site while on-site operations continued. Actual installation of the upstream and downstream diversions took little more than a month. Water continued to flow uninterrupted through the existing EVA while BNM Alliance built the new tunnel. During a routine maintenance and inspection the contractor was able to demolish the roof and wall of the existing EVA ready to divert the flow into the new tunnel. Stop-logs were used to seal the junction until the diversion had been completed. Then when the new Bleddfa tunnel, complete with diversions, was ready, BNM Alliance removed the downstream stop-logs, allowing water to flow in from the existing EVA. This allowed the new tunnel to fill steadily with water and the pressure between the old conduit and the new one to equalise. “When the pressure had equalised, we lifted the upstream stop-logs and sealed off the old tunnel so that water now flowed uninterrupted through the new tunnel,” says Richard. Severn Trent hopes to have the Birmingham Resilience Project completed by the middle of 2019.
Setting NEW
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Innovation in Concrete Whether it’s introducing a new generation of construction products, achieving huge cost savings and environmental benefits or exceeding industry standards, Kijlstra is at the very forefront of modern drainage and water management solutions. Privately-owned, the group has around 500 employees and an annual turnover in excess of 150million Euros, with offices and production facilities throughout North Western Europe and the UK.
www.kijlstra.co.uk instituteofwater.org.uk
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KINGSBRIDGE
BUSINESS PROTECTION WITH EFFICIENT RISK TRANSFER With PR19 fast approaching, now is the time to review your risk transfer programme to ensure the business has an efficient and cost-effective insurance programme in place. Bear in mind that reinstatement values for buildings need to be frequently reviewed for adequacy, taking into account building regulations and modern methods.
Insurance Premium Tax (IPT)
Jonathan Swainbank Senior Account Executive
Jonathan Swainbank, of water industry specialists Kingsbridge Insurance Brokers, elaborates:
Cost efficiencies Whilst the regulated water industry prepares their business plans for the next 5-year price period, they will be looking at their own internal efficiencies from within their businesses and those in their partner framework and contractor networks. As a business concentrates on the day to day work, one area that can be overlooked is the insurance programme. Two recent increases in Insurance Premium Tax (IPT), demand that insurance premiums paid by firms represent an optimum combination of price and cover.
Are your insurance values up to date? It is very easy to overlook updating the values of your buildings, contents, plant and machinery sums insured, with some assets being disposed of but left on your insurance schedule. It is advisable to carry out a review every six months to ensure deletions, and more importantly, that assets acquired are notified to your insurers.
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IPT is currently at 12%. By reducing your premium spend, you are therefore reducing your tax liability. By retaining more risk within your business, i.e. by increasing your policy excesses, insurers will reduce their premiums accordingly. It is advisable to review with colleagues the amount of risk the business can retain comfortably whilst not placing the business at risk. Risk optimisation studies help identify the level of risk a business can retain without adversely affecting the financial strength.
Managing motor vehicle risk With the cost of motor accidents continuing to increase in terms of both personal injury and property damage, driver training, vehicle tracking and on-board cameras are effective tools in managing and reducing the risks the business faces. Whilst staff may complain of ‘big brother’ watching them, these driver aids encourage a competitive spirit in not being a poor driver against their peers whilst contributing to using the vehicle in the most efficient manner, i.e. driving responsibly and avoiding hard acceleration, high cornering speeds and harsh braking. Insurers are very keen on such risk management initiatives, with premium reductions being available, as well as assistance with funding in certain circumstances.
For those with a high premium spend As the business grows in terms of turnover, so does the ability to self-insure certain risks faced. Seek opportunities to shift your risk transfer programme to have less reliance on external insurers in areas of low value but high frequency claims by paying premiums to your own captive/ cell insurance company.
The term “captive” or “cell” is used to describe the process by which the underwriting profit and investment income from premium and claims reserves are captured for the benefit of the parent. Most captives/cells are established in a domicile that has appropriate legislation and infrastructure to support a small insurer.
Ensure you have the right cover for your business The water industry, like others, has unique features that need to be recognised and understood, a ‘one size fits all approach’ is not always suitable. For example, those in the industry that are carrying out water quality and testing services need to ensure their Public Liability Policy includes cover for claims arising out of Legionella disease. Similarly, for process contractors’ certain policies will either exclude or restrict pollution coverage. If your business provides advice or charges a fee for professional services, such as the design of a new process, Professional Indemnity insurance is an absolute must to protect the financial integrity of the company in the event of any advice related claims.
Sufficient policy cover Finally, should your business trade be severely affected following major damage to the premises or processes, having the correct level of Business Interruption cover in place, with an indemnity period sufficient to allow the business to recover is vitally important. Between 60 and 70% of businesses that suffer a major fire do not reopen due to inadequacies in their insurance cover and values. A recent change to the levels of compensation payments injured parties can now receive, introduced by the UK Government, Businesses should review the levels of liability insurance insurance they purchase, as in some cases, potential pay-outs have increased by over 100%.
BESPOKE INSURANCE & RISK TRANSFER SOLUTIONS FOR THE WATER & WASTE WATER INDUSTRY With 20+ years’ experience of providing insurance solutions to the UK Water Industry, including staff that have actually worked in the Industry, Kingsbridge are uniquely place to work with you, your business and insurers to provide a tailored risk transfer solution to your individual business.
For more information contact Jonathan Swainbank t: 01386 725900 m: 07790 839480 e: jonathan@kingsbridge.co.uk
www.kibl.co.uk instituteofwater.org.uk
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UNIVERSITY OF BATH
UNIVERSITY OF BATH DEVELOPS NEW CHEAP, SUSTAINABLE WATER TREATMENT DEVICES FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
A multi-disciplinary research project at the University of Bath hopes to develop an efficient, portable and low cost continuous treatment system for contaminated drinking water for poor rural communities in developing countries. The research team want to produce safe, clean drinking water for poor rural communities who don’t have access to a centralised water supply. The researchers are using 3D printing to generate rapid prototypes and test them using a unique indoor solar light that can replicate pure sunlight in the lab. This testing will enable a better understanding of the optimal design of this household water treatment (HWT) system to most efficiently produce safe drinking water.
650 million people still without water Despite the success of the Millennium Goal 7C - to halve by 2015 the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic
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sanitation - there are still 650 million people across the world without safe water. This project is leading the way in tackling one of the UN Sustainable goals ‘to ensure access to water and sanitation for all’.
One limitation of the SODIS bottle is the lack of current knowledge of the time needed to decontaminate water which can depend on a number of factors. It is also a short term solution due to its limited durability.
Current water purification limitations
Portable, sustainable and efficient
Existing methods for purifying water include boiling, chemical disinfection and filtration, all of which have numerous disadvantages. Currently, one of the simplest ways to treat microbial contained water is by using what is known as a “SODIS Bottle” (SOlar DISinfection), a simple plastic bottle which deactivates microbes through a combination of heat and UV light from the sun.
This project will build upon the principles of the SODIS bottle to design a simple, portable household water treatment (HWT) system capable of producing clean drinkable water sufficient for a small group of individuals. The device will have no breakable parts, require no power source and will have greater durability than any other current HWT. The researchers predict that each device will be able to produce up to 35 litres of clean drinking water a day.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends each person needs 50 litres of water per day for basic sanitation (this includes personal hygiene, drinking water, sanitation and domestic use) but in most African rural communities, people only have access to up to 30 litres a day and as little as 5 litres in the most deprived areas. Each device is envisaged to be made out of biodegradable plant-based plastic (PLA), weigh approximately 3KG and cost just £5 per unit with over 10,000 units being produced per year, ideally by locally trained workers. These attributes will make it ideal for supplying water both in rural areas suffering from microbial contaminated water, as well as in crisis situations such as population movements due to war, and during times of natural disasters such as earthquakes and flooding.
Africa in focus This project will concentrate on Africa as a key beneficiary of the technology. Africa has the lowest uptake of adequate HWT systems and 37 per cent of the world’s population that use an unimproved drinking source live in Sub-Saharan Africa. In particular, Malawi will be used as a case study to test the prototype devices in the field and understand how this technology can be best understood and adopted by the local communities.
Project lead and Lecturer in the Department of Chemical Engineering, Dr Emma Emanuelsson, said: “The potential to develop a cheap, durable and portable device which can provide those most in need with safe, clean drinking water is an exciting prospect. “The key strength of this project is its simplicity and the multi-disciplinary approach taken. Our skills and expertise complement each other, combining maths with engineering with social sciences will ensure we develop an effective water treatment device that is both useful and accepted in rural African communities.”
This project is in receipt of funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF). The researchers recognise the importance of ensuring this technology is successfully adopted by the African communities and are currently seeking funding to take forwards this technology and work with local NGOs such as CCODE (Centre for Community Organisation and Development) to ensure that the water-treatment prototype becomes a community-led innovation.
Multi-disciplinary approach The team at Bath will benefit from the skills and expertise of a wide range of academic disciplines. Mathematicians in the Bath Institute for Mathematical Innovation (BIMI) will develop a mathematical model to calculate the time it takes water to travel through the device prototypes; digital design experts in Civil Engineering will develop cutting edge software for designing different treatment device prototypes which can then be easily exported to a 3D printer for fabrication; Chemical Engineers will evaluate the effects of different conditions such as temperature, light intensity and water turbidity; and experts in Social and Policy Sciences will help understand how these devices can best be adopted and used by local communities in rural areas.
We can help you reimagine your water R&D
Water Innovation & Research Centre
Through the Water Innovation and Research Centre at the University of Bath our experts work with industry, academia, and other stakeholders to tackle the fundamental issues surrounding sustainable water. Through WISE, our Centre for Doctoral Training in Water Informatics: Science and Engineering, we work with collaborative partners to train the next generation of skilled water scientists and engineers. To explore a partnership with water research experts and students at the University of Bath for your organisation, contact water-research@bath.ac.uk.
go.bath.ac.uk/water-research
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COLLABORATION ADDRESSES THE CHALLENGE OF POOR DRINKING WATER People living in Mexico could soon benefit from an international collaboration to secure clean drinking water in the country. An international network of water security provision experts, led by the University of Bath’s Water Innovation and Research Centre (WIRC @ Bath), is aiming to address the limited amount of safe drinking water available in Mexico. The network will bring together water security provision experts with local NGOs, government bodies and water companies to identify key issues and gain a detailed understanding of existing water resources and pollution hot spots. Led by Dr Mirella Di Lorenzo from WIRC @ Bath, the multidisciplinary team will include experts from the University of Bath, University of Bristol, and the Mexican NGO Fomento Mexicano para el Desarrollo Sustentable, and will aim to develop innovative and affordable solutions for water provision in the poorest areas of Mexico.
The 10-month MAPwater project, funded by the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAeng) will focus on the Mexican rural community of Llano Grande, close to Mexico City, where access to safe water is a major challenge. The research team will gather historical data on the distribution of water resource availability; identify pollution hotspots; engage with members of the Llano Grande community to gain insights into the challenges they face regarding sourcing safe drinking water, and develop a collaborative network of researchers with researchers from Mexican universities and local environmental agencies and water companies.
Mexican water systems suffer significantly from the impacts of direct discharges of pollutants from domestic, agricultural and industrial activities with the consequent pollution posing serious risks to human health, with particular impacts on poorer, vulnerable and rural communities.
In rural communities in Mexico, access to safe drinking water is still a luxury, with ground water the main source of drinking water. However, the extensive and unregulated extraction of ground water to meet the demands of a growing population is the main cause of widespread severe soil sinking and cracking.
Whilst this project is focussed specifically on water provision in Llano Grande, the outcomes of this research will be far reaching and can be applied anywhere in the developing world where the provision of sustainable and low-cost solutions for safe water is critical.
The findings from this research will also pave the way for further potential projects which will investigate developing low-cost, sustainable and effective engineering technologies to guarantee safe water and sanitation in the poorest areas of the country.
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SUPPLIERS OF LIQUID & SOLID SEPARATION TECHNOLOGIES TO THE WATER & INDUSTRIAL MARKETS
Flottweg centrifuge technology
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AQUAM
INDUSTRY FIRST AS SERLINE MEETS PIPES STANDARD In a first for the water industry, Aquam’s Serline lead pipe lining technology has met the requirements of a new water industry standard (WIS) for the in situ lining of lead service and communication pipes. The WIS 4-02-03 for Operational Requirements: In Situ Polymeric Lining of Service Pipes was published in November 2016. Aquam was independently assessed by health and safety organisation NSF International in March 2017 and complied with all the requirements. The areas under examination were: ■■
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Compliance with the ISO 9001 international standard that specifies requirements for quality management systems for products and services Operators’ understanding of the requirements of the WIS standard
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Compliance of Aquam’s Harrier vans with the requirements of the new standard
The patented Serline system has a key role to play in helping water companies reduce the levels of lead found in drinking water. Ensuring water quality targets are met reduces both risk of fines and substantial reputational risk. Serline uses 3M’s 166L Rapid Setting Polyurethane/Polyurea Hybrid Lining resin, which has been developed for use in smalldiameter pipes. The 3M 166L resin is DWI 31(4) (a) approved and can help utilities meet quality standards for allowable concentrations of lead. Aquam operations director Simon Langley said, “I am delighted that Aquam is the first company to meet the new water industry standard on in situ lining of service pipes. This sets us apart
from our competitors and will give our customers added confidence in Aquam’s Serline lead pipe lining system.”
DISCOLOURATION REMEDIED WITH AIR-VORTEX PIPE CLEANING ■■
Cleaning system inserted through existing hydrants
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No-dig technology means no road excavation
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Main cleaned and returned to service in a day
Water discoloration on a short section of unlined cast-iron pipe in Wolverhampton was thought to be caused by low flow. Severn Trent Water’s efforts to address the issue through the installation of in-line filters at a boundary box had failed to resolve it. The utility had intended to replace the pipe section with new polyethelene pipe, but the local council placed a Highways Act section 58 restriction on digging up Syndal Lane after recent resurfacing work. Instead, HTC, part of the Aquam group, was approached and asked to trial its LeanClean forced air vortex cleaning system on the affected pipe. With LeanClean, water droplets injected into the pipe on an air vortex are effective in removing manganese and biofilms from the internal walls of potable water mains.
The turbulent nature of the airflow throws the water-air mix against the pipe wall, dislodging any soft and loose material. The waste is then carried through the pipe within the airflow and exhausted from the main at the hydrant. The key advantage of LeanClean in this application was insertion of the cleaning equipment via existing throughbore hydrants, which meant that no new excavations were required.
it is desirable to reduce the volume of water consumed and disposed of. The LeanClean system is a much more effective and efficient cleaning process than air scouring or flushing, but uses less than 5% of the water, which means no tankers need to be moved on or off site.
Water sampling was carried out during the cleaning process. Onsite analysis using a turbidity meter demonstrated to the client that the discoloration issue had been resolved. The 401m section of main was cleaned within a day with minimal disruption to customers or traffic. Following cleaning, LeanClean was also used to chlorinate the pipe using a 1,000 ppm solution in preparation for return to service. Efficient and effective LeanClean is an alternative to air scouring for smaller diameter pipes up to 200mm. The system can accommodate changes in diameter and is ideal for applications where
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GENTRACK
LIFE AFTER DEREGULATION WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? It’s widely acknowledged that the opening of the water market for non-household customers has been the biggest change since privatisation over 25 years ago. Nic Clay-Michael, water industry and product specialist at utility billing software company, Gentrack, says with only 1.4 % of organisations changing supplier in the last three months, switching numbers clearly need to increase. But what will drive this and what is coming next for the industry? The switching data for 2017/18, released by market operator, MOSL, also revealed over half of the 36,000 switches since April 2017 are attributed to low-water users, using less than 1,000 litres a day. This would have been surprising to many who would have expected larger volume users and multi-site companies to be in the vanguard. Commentators have claimed that offers need to be more easily comparable for customers and according to Lord Rupert Redesdale, CEO of the Retail Water Company, there has been a lack of awareness for many companies on the Open Water Market. With the absence of effective awareness campaigns, the motivators for many early movers have been driven by cost and/or a keenness to break away from incumbent suppliers. The switching numbers also reflect some bulk moves, for example, the exit of Thames Water resulted in the transfer of business customers to Castle Water.
It is likely that the trend of acquisitions will continue with Castle Water already forging the way with their acquisition of client books and other retailers such as Cobalt Water, along with the mergers of NWGB with AWBN to form Wave and United Utilities with Severn Trent. We’ve also seen partnerships combining compatible offers such as Veolia’s link with Scottish Business Stream. As mergers continue, the question of energy or other retailers entering the market through the acquisition of or partnering with water also emerges. Water may be seen as an opportunity for revenue growth away from their home market where price is the subject of intense political and media scrutiny. There are data protection challenges to this approach, as well as the obstacles of combining and scaling systems whilst remaining market compliant. The role of robust and efficient systems is increasingly crucial in helping retailers address these challenges.
New entrants have been active and gained around 15,000 supply points in the first three months, amounting to 40 % of total switches so far. But some are yet to make an impact on the market in terms of switching numbers as they offer niche add-on services in small corners of the market. Expect to see the first of these picking up a big multi-site or large volume contract in the coming months. Large or small, specialist or mass market, to succeed, retailers will need to keep a tight rein on cost to serve.
Household market deregulation
Complexity and consolidation opportunity or threat?
Ofwat has stated, informally, that the foundations are in place and delivery would not be a major challenge. The domestic market has the long tail of low overall cost customers seen in non-house hold markets but it doesn’t have those small numbers of really high value customers that are in non-household.
Fundamentally, there are ten WASCs and 25 WOSCs selling five basic services (raw water, potable water, sewage, drainage, and trade effluent) yet there are more than 40,000 lines in the tariff table. Market complexity is seen as a challenge by many who are concerned about the impact on cost to serve. But some new entrants are more optimistic, John Reynold from Castle believes that dealing with market complexity
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is part of the added value retailers can offer customers in addition to add-on services such as water audits and on-site effluent treatment to reduce customer costs. We are also seeing Third Party Intermediaries do this and additionally offer bundled utilities and cost management across the portfolio. We expect to see current retailers increasingly moving into this space.
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Perhaps the most prominent elephant in the room in any water market discussion is deregulation of the household market, surmised by some as ‘dead in the water’ due to the lack of legislative time brought about by Brexit and the issue of low level of cost reduction available to customers. It also begs the question: with so much negative and unresolved analysis of the energy market how much political appetite remains to open up yet another utility market?
Household water is however, a universal service and so is a touch point with every household in the country, making it attractive to multiutilities, albeit with small margins as upselling
opportunities do exist but are potentially more relevant for services that fall outside of the core product, for example, insurance, broadband and media. Whether water wholesalers (and their shareholders) would relish repeating, on a much larger scale, the task and cost of setting up computer systems and data standardisation needed to enable the market to open is another question altogether.
PR19 The 2019 Price Review presents some good and not-so-good news for retailers: on one hand, Ofwat’s introduction of a new mechanism to measure customer satisfaction deals with non-household customers separately from household, bringing about opportunities for retailers. There is, however, no mechanism for retailers to comment directly on the performance of wholesalers, leaving the former with just the market codes as a means of redress making the relationships between retailers and wholesalers and the ability to utilise the codes and messaging methods effectively key. The retail margin is an allowed percentage over the wholesale price and once some of this has been used to reward customers for switching but this is a once only opportunity. PR19 will set the new wholesale price but there are no indications that there will be an increase in the opportunity to retailsers from this or the retail margin.
To be continued…. With so many different factors influencing the whole of the water market, we are not yet at a stage to make solid predictions about the future. However, the switching data so far has provided a strong litmus test of how the deregulation is going and what needs to be done to encourage more participation from potential customers. The industry needs to be ready to embrace further change. Companies’ approaches to change will differ, but regardless of the opportunities they take advantage of, excellent customer service, close control of cost to serve and an assessment of the business risk will be core capabilities required for success. For more information contact Nic Clay-Michael T: +44 (0)208 173 4000 / E: nicc@gentrack.com www.gentrack.com
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SCALE EFFORTLESSLY BOOST REVENUES EMBRACE CHANGE BILLING AND CRM SOFTWARE FOR OPEN WATER
www.gentrack.com 52
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HWM’S AMR SYSTEM SAVES OKEHAMPTON COLLEGE £30,000 IN WATER
SMALLER JUST GOT STRONGER
PFC100 Controller: High performance packed into a smaller footprint
HWM data logger helps staff to quickly identify spikes in usage. An automatic meter-reading (AMR) system from utility telemetry specialist HWM has helped Okehampton College save £30,000 on its annual water bill. “A few years ago, our water bill was £50,000,” explained Keith Webber, technology coordinator at Okehampton College. “Last year, it was £20,000. The logger has made a huge difference to our awareness of how much water we’re using.” The college’s datalogger is HWM’s MultiLog LX GPRS, which uses an external battery pack for advanced call frequency. The unit sends flow data every 15 minutes to HWM’s cloud-based server and then forwards that data to Pennon Water Services’ graphing system, BAO (Business Accounts Online). The data is also displayed via HWM Online, a customer portal for graphing and site management purposes. Keith used the example of a single tap left running during a holiday period to illustrate the benefits of the AMR system. On that day, the college’s online interface showed a spike of £100 in water consumption, while electricity for an immersion heater also jumped by 3kW. As water and electricity use increased simultaneously, Keith could identify which one of 12 buildings the tap was located in. “The hot tap had been on for 14 hours, but the electricity for the immersion heater cost something like three pounds. You think the electricity’s the expensive bit, but actually, it’s the water. “At the moment, schools are facing particularly difficult financial times. So, what you don’t want to do is waste money where you can save it. And this is an example of where you could be wasting a lot of money.”
• Extremely compact and maintenance-free design saves control panel space • 600 MHz processing power allows seamless automation of complex industrial systems • Cost-effective configuration via e!COCKPIT engineering software • Scalable modular system ready for future challenges • Comprehensive on-board data security packages • Two ETHERNET interfaces for extensive compatibility • Linux® operating system • CODESYS 3 runtime system Telephone E-Mail Internet Search for
01788 568 008 ukmarketing@wago.com www.wago.com “WAGO PFC100”
Okehampton College has around 1,700 people on site at any one time. When external organisations, who also receive their water through the college’s meter, are factored in, the total is closer to 2,000.
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Tomahawk System™ for mains cleaning recently trialled with Thames Water
Access to difficult areas
Early feedback from a recent trial is creating a lot of excitement for the future of Tomahawk System™ in the UK. Tomahawk System™ established by Envirologics Engineering Inc. in 2008 are the developers of an innovative pipe-cleaning and lining preparation technology. Panton McLeod, the UK partners of Envirologics have recently collaborated with staff from Canada to demonstrate the Tomahawk pipe cleaning system in Central London during a Thames Water trial. The trial took place over a two-week period and saw 4” cast iron water mains, circa 1889 cleaned, prepared and inspected in 2 to 3 hours per section of pipe. High vacuum, low pressure airstream was used to remove internal corrosion and other deposits from the pipe walls. Tomahawk System™ uses a dust-free environmentally friendly, trenchless
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process using little to no water. Using a high vacuum to contain the waste taken from the pipe, Tomahawk is a fast and dry solution to pipe relining.
Ensuring a dry substrate
The Tomahawk™ System uses patented technology to draw abrasives through the pipework in a high vacuum low pressure airstream, it is the only system to able to employ this method, and by drawing the abrasives through and out of the pipework it also removes all dust, removed tubercules, debris and moisture from the main pipe section. It also uses targeted cleaning to generate a ‘vaculation’ effect to remove moisture from service connections and pipe joint inverts, other methods can leave these containing moisture, and during the delay between preparation and re-lining this moisture can re-enter the pipe body thus breaking the bond between pipe and liner leading to future failures.
Working in a trenchless environment means remote access to the point of need. Traditional methods cannot actively target areas of specific need during the preparation process, this results in high levels of preparation on the easy to reach areas such as the main pipe wall only. Difficult and obscured areas such as behind service intrusions can be missed. By using their patented Tomahawk™ Scout (a specialist camera system) as an integral part of the preparation process the abrasives are deflected into these areas that would be missed by traditional scraping methods, or by other abrasive means.
Consistent coverage
The inclusion of the Tomahawk™ Scout is also key in providing assurance around consistent coverage while protecting project cost duration. The preparation works are monitored live by the operators to ensure all areas are cleaned back to the required IGN 4-02-02 standard. Results from the trial will be confirmed in the upcoming weeks. To read more about Tomahawk System™ visit www.tomahawksystem.ca To find out more about any of Panton McLeod’s services contact us on 01896 663 330 or email us on info@pantonmcleod.co.uk.
663 330 • info@pantonmcleod.co.uk • www.pantonmcleod.co.uk
Panton McLeod Panton McLeod secures Anglian Water order for THM reduction system The team at Panton McLeod are delighted to be given the green light to install the first PAX THM reduction system (TRS) in England after working on the design with their client for around 12 months. The project which will see two TRS systems installed at Hall WTW will guarantee a minimum of 30% removal rates and ensure supplies into Lincoln and the surrounding areas fall within Anglian Water’s internal performance target. THMs, or trihalomethanes are a by-product of naturally occurring organics and chlorine disinfectants, the water produced from Hall already complies with all regulatory standards but as this water does have the potential to rise above Anglian Water’s more stringent internal
standards the project will provide a guaranteed extra level of protection. The TRS systems will use energy efficient mixers, surface spray aerators and air moving equipment in a chemical free treatment process. Jim Panton, Panton McLeod’s CEO is delighted that the business can now deliver another breakthrough project, “The range of PAX Water Technology solutions are established in many countries including USA, Australia, Spain and Ireland. There is also a successful and very similar TRS system in Scotland but this is the first to be delivered in England and Wales.” “Our team have worked for almost a year to support Anglian Water through design and governance. It is brilliant to now start planning the deliver stage. We aim to have one system operational before the end of 2017 and the second in place before May 2018.”
Panton McLeod gains momentum as UK representative of innovative water technologies Well known as experts in the inspection, cleaning and maintenance of treated water storage assets such as service reservoirs and contact tanks Panton McLeod are expanding their offering in the field of specialist pipeline services with two new services. Panton McLeod are now able to offer two products unique in the UK & Irish market, the first allows pipeline condition to be assessed while remaining “in service”, and the second provides surface cleaning and preparation ahead of re-lining works.
MTA Pipe Inspector, MTA Messtechnik GmbH MTA Pipe Inspector is an autonomous leak detection and inspection device that can be deployed into live mains whether they are potable water, waste, hydro or industrial. Once deployed the equipment follows the flow taking HD optical and acoustic readings from a cable-less platform. The equipment is suitable for pipe dimeters from 100mm up to 3000mm and can complete sections up to 50km with a single deployment. Once completed the data is uploaded and assessed by the team at MTA, Panton McLeod are then able to work with our clients to prioritise their investment preventing leakage, turbidity and reducing the frequency of bursts.
Partnerships are now in place with to provide the Tomahawk system from Canadian firm Envirologics Engineering Inc, and the MTA Pipe Inspector technology from Austrian firm MTA Messtechnik GmbH. Discussions are ongoing for identify pilot projects with water companies and their supply chain. Jim Panton, Panton McLeod’s CEO explains the strategy behind the new deals, “As an extension of our service reservoir focused operations we are increasingly supporting the commissioning and testing of new tanks and new pipelines for our clients and partners.” “This has developed now to the provision of cleaning, flushing and decontamination works to existing distribution systems. If you add to this our ability to provide in-tank treatment systems, including mixers and THM reduction solutions through our partnership with PAX Water Technologies in California, we can truly support our clients in their mission of providing the best quality water from treatment works to tap.”
@pantonmcleod • www.pantonmcleod.co.uk
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DRÄGER
CLEAN WATER IS NOT A GIVEN
It is the result of painstaking cleaning processes. Guided by people. The cleaning and treatment of fresh water and sewage is associated with hazards just as much as the maintenance of the sewage system itself: The presence of toxic or flammable gases and oxygen deficiencies are potentially risky. If you know the risks, you can control them and provide employees with reliable protection. The water industry is faced with a range of different confined spaces in which to work: treatment units, tanks, service reservoirs, chemical handling and storage areas, pumping stations, wells, sumps, overflows, boreholes, sewers and manholes. The most frequently occurring hazards are methane, hydrogen sulphide and a lack of oxygen.
The challenge The water industry bears great responsibility. It has to deal with limited resources and contributes to the health of billions of people. Despite all the technological progress, it is still people – employees of the water and sewage industry – who ensure that everything runs smoothly. This includes inspection patrols, cleaning and maintenance work, repairs and dismantling: despite careful risk analysis, there
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is always the potential of contact with hazardous substances, which can be dangerous or even fatal to health. Employees who work supporting the ongoing cycle of water recovery, cleaning, supply or discharge pipes, as well as reprocessing and disposal of sewage sludge, must be given special protection to enable them to perform their jobs safely. If the risks cannot be permanently diminished via a safe system of work, a protection concept tailored to the specific activity is required. The concept will focus on the key aspects of gas detection, respiratory protection, personal protection and training.
The risks There are specific risks to staff and facilities in each stage of the water recovery and treatment process, which in particular include toxic gases, flammable gases and low oxygen levels. Even today, working on water or sewage channels still requires manual visual inspection, fixing faults, maintenance and cleaning. A lack of ventilation combined with biological fermentation processes and chemical reactions encourage the accumulation of methane (CH4) or even hydrogen sulphide (H2S) at critical concentrations. CH4 is extremely flammable and can react explosively. Even at very low concentrations, H2S is extremely toxic to the human body. There is also a range of chemical and biological reactions which can reduce the level of oxygen in breathable air and increase the risk of asphyxiation if workers are inadequately protected. Furthermore, the chlorine used for water disinfection is derived from a highly noxious gas which, even in the smallest quantities, is harmful to the respiratory system.
The solution Recognising, analysing and assessing risks are important pre-conditions in order to develop solutions for work in confined spaces, handling hazardous substances, plant safety and emergencies. The plant-specific hazard assessment provides a detailed list of risk factors for certain activities and areas of the plant. To find the right solution for every one of these stages of water purification and waste water handling is challenging. Gas measuring devices with fast responding sensors, personal protective equipment such as respiratory protection with adequate filters and protection classes as well as appropriate escape devices are needed. The right devices at the right time, at the right location can protect employees against upcoming hazards. The goal is to achieve a healthy balance between sufficient protection and minimal physical strain on workers to avoid the consequent restrictions on efficiency. It must also feature a portfolio, which can be utilised economically and dependably throughout its life cycle. If you are faced with the challenge of procuring the best material for you and your employees, you can trust Dräger. Our portfolio has an answer to the most diverse requirements of your working practice.
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LANCASTER UNIVERSITY
BENEFITS ACROSS BOUNDARIES: BUILDING THE CAPACITY FOR INTEGRATED WATER, LAND AND FLOOD MANAGEMENT
An award-winning ten year research partnership is revealing the benefits of working more closely with nature to manage flood risk at a catchment scale. Natural Flood Management (NFM) opportunities can now be assessed within a risk-based analysis, to predict how effective they may be in reducing flood risk alongside flood defences, river channel management and flood forecasts and warnings in communities at risk of flooding. The Government’s National Flood Resilience Review 2016 highlighted the scope for further developments in flood modelling, with MPs’ recommendations showing that NFM measures need to be a key part of protecting against the risk of flooding. Lancaster University’s Lancaster Environment Centre (LEC) and environmental engineering consultancy JBA Consulting are applying a suite of innovations in modelling and data analysis to generate new evidence about the costs and benefits of working more closely with nature.
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Dr Barry Hankin, Head of Environmental Modelling at JBA commented, “By combining advances in computer modelling and data analysis with local engagement, our aim is to help develop realistic flood risk management proposals that can combine working with natural processes with other, more established ways of building resilience against flooding.” An interdisciplinary team of experts from LEC and JBA won the top prize in Defra’s floods
competition last year to find innovative ways to tackle flooding, focusing on the Eden catchment in Cumbria. Taking a whole catchment approach, their measures focus on working with natural processes through distributed “natural” flood risk management (NFRM) in the headwaters, but also include large scale flood storage in the lower catchment and new, innovative non-structural measures emerging from national projects. These include improved interpretations of flood warnings, interactive maps showing property-
FEATURE: FLOOD RISK level impacts based on detailed models, and real-time event footprints. The innovations demonstrated in the winning entry build on more than ten years of collaborative research, development and testing of JBA’s flood models, which simulate the flow of water through the landscape, and research with LEC to assess the statistical likelihood of extreme flood scenarios, and predict how flood water could be effectively held back within streams and rivers. This kind of integrated, cross-disciplinary modelling of rivers and river catchments is essential to improve sustainable management of water and land and mitigate flood risk. Defra’s recent announcement, that it will produce a 25-year plan for the natural environment, is an indication of the shift towards more holistic catchment scale solutions. The Government stated in their response to the Natural Capital Committee’s third State of Natural Capital report that it will “use the concept of natural capital to help enhance decisions on how public money is invested in land and water asset management to deliver greater value and multiple benefits.” However, this also highlights the need for better evidence about the effectiveness of NFM interventions to inform flood risk investment decisions, and ensure that the potential multiple
benefits of NFM are recognised and incorporated into the decision making process. As well as working together to develop the underlying scientific evidence and predictive tools, through co-delivery of postgraduate courses in Flood and Coastal Risk Management, and a joint NERC course on modelling NFM, LEC and JBA are training the next generation of water managers to have the broad skills base and knowledge of cutting edge methods that are needed to deliver this vision. www.lancaster.ac.uk/lec www.jbaconsulting.com
[Dr Nick Chappell, Director of Studies, MSc Sustainable Water Management and PgCert / PgDip / MSc Flood and Coastal Risk Management]
Accredited training for water and environmental industry practitioners in Flood and Coastal Risk Management Flexible postgraduate training that works around you Learn how to apply practical skills and best practice techniques for modelling, understanding and managing risk with this professional qualification.
• •
CIWEM accredited
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Gain technical skills and knowledge that can be directly applied to a wide range of roles and disciplines in the water, environment and flood risk management sector.
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Flexible delivery enables you to continue working whilst studying and you can start at any time
The next module is Catchment Hydrology and Assessment starting 8 November 2017.
Start your journey to a professional qualification now Contact: Director of Studies - Dr Nick Chappell e: n.chappell@lancaster.ac.uk www.lancaster.ac.uk/lec/floodrisk
Leads to a Postgraduate Certificate with options to progress to a Postgraduate Diploma or an MSc Choose from a wide range of modules with the option to take individual modules as CPD
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ENERGY RECOVERY IS THE KEY TO REDUCING WaSCS ‘COST TO SERVE’ AND CARBON FOOTPRINT In the medium to long term, increasing energy costs mean the world’s economies must transition from carbon based fuels to non-carbon substitutes to mitigate climate change. The cost savings on demand response measures alone are worth more than £84million per annum on a conservative estimate and the technically recoverable renewable power potential is more than treble current water industry renewable power output, which all can be accomplished while recycling phosphorus to agriculture.
Dr Stephen Palmer Technical Director at MWH, now part of Stantec
The world also needs to move towards a circular economy as human demand on global resources is in danger of outstripping supply and has reached super-exponential levels for some resources. In the U.K. the national grid is under significant pressure particularly, under peak winter demand. The water industry consumes approximately 1% of UK electricity output but its impact is greater because household water and electricity demand coincide. The water industry is also under pressure to reduce operating costs and TOTEX. It’s a challenging time for the industry but there is one solution that helps partially mitigate all these challenges. If energy recovery from sewage sludge is maximised, then wastewater treatment cost to serve and operational carbon footprint can be reduced simultaneously. This would also reduce dependence on grid power. Using biogas as an energy storage resource could double up as a hedge on sludge transport fuel costs for a technology platform which could maximise resource recovery for the water company.
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Demand has been driven by the huge global population growth since 1920 and the fast-per capita increases in GDP since 1970. Because the market is price based it has driven down costs for resources to the point where some are being exhausted. Most resources are substitutable, but new resources typically require more work and even with new technology require higher costs to extract. These factors have driven new legislation to minimise such cost burdens on the economy. For example, the 2015 EU Circular Economy legislative bundle is designed to achieve €600 billion net savings or 8% of annual turnover for businesses in the EU while simultaneously reducing the total annual EU greenhouse gas emissions by 2-4%. The purpose of the circular economy is not just sustainability of the environment – it is the platform for measures that can provide the sustainable long term economic growth we need given the pressure our global resources are under.
What are the options for reducing ‘cost to serve’? Because of the impact of the water industry on UK electricity consumption Water and Sewage Companies’(WaSC) are now looking to reduce the ‘cost to serve’ of wastewater treatment to optimise their renewable energy recovery and take demand off the grid. The significant physical work and energy input involved in the processing and treatment of sewage sludge represents a large proportion of the cost of sludge treatment. Sewage sludge also represents renewable fertiliser for agriculture and a renewable energy fuel.
Increasing the efficiency of sludge processing will reduce ‘cost to serve’ – but only marginally. However, increasing the efficiency of sludge treatment in terms of value recovery will significantly reduce ‘cost to serve’. For example, well-established techniques like anaerobic digestion reduces the mass of sludge by a third or more while producing a biogas fuel. More disruptive emerging technologies like Advanced Thermal Conversion of digested sludge, technologies with 90% solids capture in primary treatment allow the use of biogas fuel for energy storage and wider end-use. Treated sludge, even if incinerated, leaves a residual mass for ultimate disposal or preferably, beneficial recycling. Factors affecting sludge treatment costs include: ■■
Transport distance and sludge solids concentration (i.e. how much water is transported)
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Sludge storage and pumping costs
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Types of sludge processing technology deployed (Figure 1) and its operating costs (energy, chemical, labour, maintenance, materials and other on-costs)
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The value of any residual sludge remaining after treatment
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The value of any products (energy sources such as biogas, materials such as struvite)
Figure 1 opposite shows the technology deployed by a WaSC or any other sludge market entrant for sludge value recovery (currently predominantly in terms of energy recovery) affects the value recovered (top bar chart) and the extent to which it is deployed also affects the total value recovered (bottom bar chart). Optimising both significantly reduces ‘cost to serve’ of the sludge business (£/tDs sludge processed).
FEATURE: ENERGY
Figure 1.
Huge cost savings identified A conservative estimate shows cost savings on grid demand response measures alone are worth more than ÂŁ84million per annum across the sector. Plus, the technically recoverable renewable power potential is more than treble current water industry renewable power output, which can all be accomplished while recycling phosphorus to agriculture. There are currently three principal value propositions for recovering value from sewage sludge: 1. Processing to produce biosolids for beneficial recycling to agriculture; in future as phosphorus costs rise this will be very important for food production 2. Recovery of energy from sewage sludge via various forms of anaerobic digestion and biogas production or Advanced Conversion Technologies (gasification or pyrolysis) or incineration with steam turbine 3. Production of materials of value (e.g. struvite production or in future, a range of biomaterials) The value of end-products also depends on end use. WaSCs have the inherent advantage of a significant co-located internal market for electricity produced from sludge treatment. Displaced grid power use from in-situ power generation for a WaSC at a wastewater treatment works provides a significant value (ÂŁ/kWh generated) advantage of approximately twice that of sale to grid. Internal markets also avoid the risks of marketing and contracting on-costs. The application of biosolids to land is also a major environmental and circular economy benefit. The Haber process for N fertiliser production was a major technological contribution to agriculture, but it is highly
Figure 2. Where to place technologies to maximise value recovery. Economies of scale are significant in sludge processing so large works and economic, strategic consolidation of assets can create the best platform for new technologies.
energy intensive. The circular economy alternative widely used in the U.K., is biosolids use as an N and P fertiliser. This is far more sustainable in economic and environmental terms of sludge incineration in Germany. Indeed, as circular economic resource uses are meant to, it has helped keep down costs of sludge processing in the U.K.
Anaerobic Digestion (AD) is the key to optimising value recovery from sewage sludge? A technology platform based on AD provides the best foundation for optimised value recovery from renewable energy and the best prospects for recovery of materials of value from in situ or collocated processing in future. Advanced digestion already recovers significantly more renewable energy (mainly from biological sludge) than conventional mesophilic anaerobic digestion but more energy can be recovered from digested sludge and this approach is already being pioneered at full scale in the U.K. Value proposition 1 requires a WaSC to defend and maximise the use of its land bank for beneficial recycling. Defensive measures include reducing cost of sludge to end user and raising product quality and range e.g. more class A sludge; providing some struvite so end users can dose P without dosing N.
in future such super-centres would provide the first economic platform for recovery of further materials from sludge. For value proposition 3, the main technology now deployable is Phosphorus recovery as struvite above 250,000 PE where ferric dosing for P removal exists with AD. In future value proposition 3 would be most likely to be deployed at sludge super centres first.
Super sludge processing centres Overall, economies of scale are significant in wastewater and sludge processing as Figure 2 demonstrates. Strategic consolidation forming two or three sludge processing super-centres where transport allows, reduces labour and energy costs per tDS through the economies of scale arising from equipment throughput and operating and maintenance time requirements. The key is to be fully aware of all your possible cost benefits from renewable value recovery from sewage sludge. As, if you are contracting these services out, you may surrender these advantages for no benefit to your WaSC. For more information contact: stephen.palmer@mwhglobal.com or visit www.mwhglobal.com
Value proposition 2 requires sludge treatment to include anaerobic digestion, deployed up to all sludge processed and that should then be upgraded to advanced digestion at large Sludge Treatment Centres (see Figure 2 for cost benefits). A small number of very large regional super centres (1 or 3 per WaSC) can then deploy advanced technologies for energy recovery from digested sludge. This development path then sets the foundation for value proposition 3 as
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VEOLIA WATER TECHNOLOGIES
ADVANCED WATER TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY DRIVES GREEN DAIRY PROCESSES With PR19 fast approaching, now is the time to review your risk transfer programme to ensure the business has an efficient and cost-effective insurance programme in place. Up to one billion litres of milk a year are processed and packaged by the dairy industry, using energy and water intensive procedures that produce hundreds of cubic metres of high strength wastewater every day. The UK’s largest dairy operation is committed to reducing its environmental impact and pioneering sustainable development, aiming to establish the world’s first zero carbon dairy facility. Its facility management company approached Veolia Water Technologies (Veolia) to help develop a wastewater treatment solution in line with this ambitious plan for its £150 million dairy, and implement innovative solutions to help reduce the net carbon dioxide contribution from power supplied to the plant. The production of one litre of milk uses the equivalent volume of water and generates vast amounts of low and high strength wastewater and solid waste, as well as making considerable power demands. A zero carbon operation is undoubtedly a challenging target. A solution was required that took all of these factors into consideration, and also ensured that the effluent discharge adhered to specifications set by the local water authority. The priority was to look at recycling and reusing water to reduce environmental and financial costs. Low strength and grey water were cleaned via a reverse osmosis plant and the recovered water returned to the dairy for clean-in-place (CIP) before reuse. Treatment of medium and high strength wastewater is a more complex process, which Veolia overcame by designing, supplying and commissioning a waste-to-energy facility in a three-phase process, using its technology to produce effluent suitable for sewer discharge, simultaneously generating biogas
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and fertiliser, and reducing waste disposal costs. Wastewater from milk production is treated using an anaerobic process, resulting in clean water, biogas and biomass by-products. The biogas is used either as on-site fuel at the plant’s Combined Heat and Power (CHP) system, or to supply heat energy back to the milk production process. The nutrient-rich biomass created in the reactor is allowed to thicken, and is harvested and used by local farmers as a substitute for land fertiliser. Phase one involved the installation of a Memthane® anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR), taking advantage of patented, cuttingedge technology developed by Biothane – part of the Veolia group – to provide cost-effective treatment of high strength wastewater within a small 75 square metre footprint. Sitting within a system of components – including an equalisation tank, ultrafiltration membrane banks and polishing units – the reactor significantly reduces operation costs compared to conventional technologies. It is designed to handle 500 cubic metres of wastewater every day, removing 5.5 tonnes of chemical oxygen demand (COD) – a measure of the oxygen required to decompose organic matter and oxidise the inorganic chemicals in water. The small pore size of the ultrafiltration membranes means that the effluent is effectively free from suspended solids and is suitable for sewer discharge, within stringent regulated consent limits. The treatment system was monitored during the first year of phase one operation, and the collated data studied to gain information about the wastewater characteristics and increased
volume demands. Veolia worked with the dairy company to meet requirements for the phase two design, including a second reactor to build in resilience and robustness, and ensure continuity of milk production even in the event of reactor failure. In addition, the plant was upgraded to handle 800 cubic metres of wastewater per day, containing 8.7 tonnes of COD, and aerobic stages – which depend on Veolia’s ANITA™ Mox and Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF) technology – were incorporated at the end of the process to reduce levels of ammonia and phosphate in the sewer discharge. The final phase focused on the solid waste digestion plant, which generates energy by treating out-of-date returns from the company’s extensive customer base. Veolia developed the interface between the digestion plant and the Memthane reactor, enabling biogas and water to be transported to the plant. Once there, the water aids in the digestion process and the biogas is returned to the grid as gas or electricity. The plant was completed in 2015, and has clearly demonstrated that a combination of good planning and advanced process technologies can go a long way towards achieving the company’s zero carbon goal. Veolia’s wastewater treatment solution has reduced COD in wastewater by more than 99 per cent, producing between 0.6 and 0.7 normal cubic metres of biogas per kilogram of COD removed. The dairy is successfully managing varying volumes and strengths of wastewater, and has reduced its reliance on external power, while continuing to develop new products at the site.
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PROMAR
INFLUENCING AD FROM THE FARM GATE
Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a method of energy generation increasing in popularity on farms, but there are potential issues that can impact on drinking water quality for water company initiatives. Here, Matt Brennan explains why influencing decisions through effective catchment management at ground-level, will help safeguard water quality downstream. Applying digestate correctly brings huge benefits on-farm, through more readily available nitrogen and therefore, a reduced requirement for artificial fertilisers, providing the farmer with a valuable saving. However, there is a continuing need to support farmers to understand the potential negative impact of poorly managed digestate – particularly in Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZ), where there are tight timing restrictions on applications.
Matt Brennan
Senior environmental consultant, Promar International AD is a process where organic matter, such as crops and animal and food waste, is broken down into biogas and biofertilizer, called digestate. The resulting digestate provides a valuable alternative to artificial fertilisers, but it is in every water company’s best interests to ensure its application is being managed correctly. If digestate is applied using ineffective application methods, for example a splash plate, and in the wrong place, at the wrong time then there is a high risk of valuable nutrients being lost to water. Therefore, encouraging better nitrate management on-farm does not only support the clean water objective, but is also a more efficient use of a valuable resource from the farmer’s perspective.
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Ensuring there is adequate storage on-farm is key, as an AD plant is a continual operation, and therefore produces digestate all year round. Managing large volumes of digestate with a limited land bank does pose real issues. It is essential to have the data to understand soil indices (N and P) on the intended recipient land for applying digestate otherwise pollution run-off will be exacerbated further. So, supporting the farmer in planning how best to manage and use this digestate - in some cases via export to other neighbouring farms - and ensuring they have the means to do this is important. Digestate can form a valuable addition to the land, and crop. Through implementation of robust planning, which considers timing of applications and application technique, farmers can maximise nutrient intake, and minimise losses in the form of ammonia or nitrogen to the atmosphere. Consideration should also be given to the feedstock grown for the AD plant, which can be vital soil health safeguarding. Traditional crops grown for AD, such as maize, can adversely
impact soil structure, and increase run-off if it isn’t used within a rotation or undersown with a cover crop. It is important to understand whether maize is a crop that a farm can viably produce, while also maintaining the structure of the soil.
Advising farmers Ultimately AD is a proven way to reduce a farm’s environmental footprint – as slurry and manure applied to the land is one of the most significant contributors to emissions from agriculture. There is a great opportunity for agri-food and water industries to work strategically together, looking at work in-catchment, and better utilising joint knowledge to ensure that the environment is impacted positively from technologies such as AD. Through engagement at farm level, Promar can create a communication pathway on a range of topics, to ensure key messages are being understood. Working together with water industry partners to ensure that the correct measures are put in place at each stage of the project, to benefit all stakeholders. Promar provides tailored advice and a range of services to public and private sector clients, to support catchment management activities and influence change at farm level. For more information about how Promar can support you, please contact Matt Brennan on 01270 616800.
Wilo-SiBoost Smart Helix EXCEL The trendsetter Innovative technology for energy-efficient pressure boosting systems. If the result is more than the sum of its parts, that‘s typically Wilo. Maximum energy efficiency is provided by the interplay between EC motors and High Efficiency Drive with highly efficient pump hydraulics. Go to www.wilo.co.uk/consultant for the full story Efficiency redefined. ƒ Maximum energy saving due to EC motor, High Efficiency Drive and highly efficient pump hydraulics ƒ Long service life and high operating reliability due to corrosionresistant stainless steel and integrated dry-running detection ƒ Simple operation and transparency about the operating status thanks to redbutton technology and Smart Control ƒ BUS interface for intelligent incorporation into building management systems
Everything about the product:
www.wilo.co.uk/ consultant
Pioneering for You
WIL108a SiBoost OLD STYLE 115x180clr_IWJ.indd 1
01/08/2017 11:58
Catchment Management Support Services and Activities Support Farmers
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Attitude and behaviour studies Characterisation reports Catchment walkovers Farmer surveys and assessments Discussion groups and stakeholder meetings Benchmarking And more...
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Engage with farmers to understand their motivations, behaviour and knowledge:
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Understand Farmers
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Help farmers to improve their knowledge and land management practices to develop mutually beneficial relationships: • • • • • • •
Nutrient management planning Pesticide handling, storage and application advice Soil husbandry advice Machinery calibration Water and energy audits Waste management planning And more...
ACHIEVE YOUR OBJECTIVES Create long-term relationships and meaningful engagement with farmers to support their business and help them to understand and reduce their environmental impact.
01270 616800
matthew.brennan@genusplc.com
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KSB LTD
PUMPS USED AS TURBINES
Rising energy prices and limited energy resources call for alternative solutions that help save money and are environmentally friendly. Utilising pumps as turbines (or PaTs for short) is a well-known concept in the pumping industry. It offers huge advantages such as low investment outlay as well as low service and maintenance costs, with the added benefit of pumps being more straightforward to operate and maintain than conventional turbines. The principle of a pump used as a turbine is simple - a flow of water is passed “the wrong way” through a pump, allowing the head (pressure) in the flow to act on the impeller blades, so running it in reverse and providing a torque on the output shaft which can be used to drive something. Most commonly, that “something” is an induction generator (a standard squirrel cage induction motor driven in reverse) converting the mechanical energy to electricity, which can be consumed on site and/ or fed into the local grid (sold to the local power supply company). But that “something” could equally be another piece of machinery, even a pump. A need for cleaner, renewable energy that is cost effective means that PaTs open up the opportunity for water utility companies to look at exploiting smaller flows within their asset base, previously considered uneconomical, as well as replacing existing conventional hydroturbines. Typical examples of this are compensation, release and spill flows from dams, but other flows such as final effluent outfalls
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from sewage treatment works can be considered. We have also used PaT’s in place of pressure control valves in the water distribution network, thus capturing & utilising potential energy that would otherwise be dissipated as noise and heat. The lower procurement costs of PaTs coupled with high (and increasing) energy prices means that the payback period of PaT systems are usually between 3 and 5 years. The power generated by these PaTs offsets the overall costs of the infrastructure and puts power back into the national grid. Some would argue that, unlike conventional turbines, PaTs do not have adjustable guide vanes/blades for adapting to fluctuating water supply and cite this as a disadvantage. However adjustment to fluctuating water flows is possible by splitting the total volume amongst several PaTs of different sizes, bringing them into and out of service according to changing demand. The running of multiple units requires minimal control, so it is not surprising that PaTs are starting to create significant interest in the current economic climate, where reducing energy costs are becoming a top priority. The fact that the turbine and the generator are both widely used pieces of equipment, so can be operated and maintained by existing staff without the need for any specialist training, adds to their attraction.
Many types of pumps - end suction, axially split case and multistage ring section, for example - can be used as turbines, both in horizontal and vertical configurations, so there is plenty of flexibility in adapting this technology to suit specific flows, heads, site conditions and space constraints. Couple this to that fact that a single PaT can be used to generate from as little as 1kW up to hundreds of kilowatts, even megawatts, only serves to underline the usefulness of the technology. There is also scope to use PaTs in pumped storage schemes, where low cost energy is used outside peak hours to use the units as pumps, lifting flows to a higher level, where it is stored to be used to generate electricity at times of high demand by returning the flow through the same units. This concept is also being considered as a way of dealing with energy generated from renewable sources such as wind power, where the power is not necessarily generated when demand exists.
The New Delta Basic from KSB
Delta Basic Pressure Boosting Unit The Delta Basic from KSB is WRAS approved and energy efficient. The boosting unit uses the Pumpdrive2 control system, which includes smart functions like surge protection, and KSB’s tried and tested Movitec pumps, all in a compact unit for space saving. For more information please visit: www.ksb.com
Our technology. Your success. Pumps • Valves
Incorporating
• Service
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QUANTUM CONTROLS
DOUBLE THE LIFE SPAN OF YOUR VARIABLE SPEED DRIVES Double the life span of your variable speed drives for less per day than the cost of a cup of coffee. The idea that living things shut down instead of wearing down has received substantial support in recent years. Researchers working on the now famous worm C.elegans (the little nematode worm behind research that led scientists to receive the Nobel Prize, not just once but twice, in a decade) were able to produce worms that live more than twice as long and age more slowly, simply by altering a single gene. Scientists have since come up with single gene alterations that increase the life spans of fruit flies, mice and yeast – and Quantum Controls have come up with a solution that will double the life span of your variable speed drives.
A little bit of history The majority of evidence goes against the idea that our life spans are programmed into us. For most of our 100,000 year existence - excluding the last couple of hundred years - the average human life span has been 30 years or less. Research shows that subjects of the Roman Empire had a life expectancy of 28 years. The natural course was to die before old age. Indeed, for most of history, death was a risk at every stage of life and had no obvious connection with ageing at all. As Montaigne wrote, in the late 16th century: “to die of old age is a death rare, extraordinary and singular, and therefore so much less natural than the others: it is the last and most extreme sort of dying”. So today, with our average life span in much of the world climbing past 80 years, we are already oddities living well beyond our appointed time. When we study ageing, what we are trying to understand is not so much a natural process as an unnatural one. Leonid Gavrilov, a researcher at the University of Chicago, USA, argues that human beings fail the way all complex systems fail: randomly and gradually.
Getting back to equipment As us engineers have long recognised, simple devices typically do not age. They function reliably until a critical component fails, and the whole thing dies in an instant. A variable speed drive for instance, works smoothly until the capacitors start discharging dielectric or IGBT devices fail, and then it does not work at all.
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But complex systems - such as your manufacturing process - have to survive and function despite having many key critical components such as motors and drives. That’s why engineers design machines and production processes with multiple layers of redundancy: with backup systems, and backup systems for the backup systems. These may not be as efficient as the first line components, but they can allow the machine and process to keep running even when damage accumulates. Unless process equipment is correctly maintained the defects in your process equipment increase, until the time comes when just one more defect is enough to stop your whole process. With the average cost of one hour of lost production in UK manufacturing being £12,000, this condition known as frailty must be avoided, and it sits with engineers like ourselves to prevent this occurring.
Coming full circle It happens to motors, variable speed drives, softstarts and it happens to us - eventually too many joints are damaged or one too many arteries calcify. There are no backups. We wear down until we can’t wear down anymore. But we can avoid and slow the inevitable by leading healthy lifestyles and with advancements in modern medicine. We can do the same to prolong the life of drives and motors with regular maintenance carried out by expert engineers according to the manufacturer’s recommendations, and by adopting all that ‘industry 4.0’ has to offer. The smart technology available today can go a long way in preventing and pre-empting equipment failure. While this somewhat
eradicates the element of surprise, there is still a need to have a plan in place for when equipment sensors and monitoring devices flag the risk of failure. So what if we told you that if you have a problem of any kind with any of your installed variable speed drives, Quantum’s expert engineers are just a phone call away and can GUARANTEE a first visit fix? Let us introduce you to The ONE CALL Contract from Quantum which guarantees: ■■
24/7 direct telephone access to our drive experts
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Immediate ‘engineer to site’ request
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Our unique ‘First Site Visit Fix’ guarantee
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All variable speed drives installed on your site covered under one contract regardless of make, type and power rating
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Access to UK’s largest stock of variable speed drives, spares and hire units
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Unlimited calls and site visits
And the best bit? You can have all of this for just £947 net per 12 month contract – and to save you doing the maths, that’s only £2.59 per day! For more information about how our ONE CALL Contract can help you eradicate premature failures on your plant: visit: www.quantum-onecall.co.uk email: onecall@quantum-controls.co.uk call our team on: 0330 057 5346 Join the other 200+ UK companies that have a 12 month support and maintenance call out contract with Quantum for less per day than the cost of a cup of coffee!
ÂŁ2.59
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Z-TECH
Z-TECH IS GROWING, AND IT’S ALL ABOUT THE RIGHT Z-TECHERS! Z-Tech’s growing rapidly and keeping our core values is key to success. We have done a lot of work over the last few years to push Z-Tech through the traditional ‘glass ceiling’: restructuring, investing in our systems, processes and infrastructure, developing strong foundations while focusing on what makes us great. We have done a lot of work over the last few years to push Z-Tech through the traditional ‘glass ceiling’: restructuring, investing in our systems, processes and infrastructure, developing strong foundations while focusing on what makes us great. What we do and how we do it is why customers tend to love our work – putting it simply, we fix things, we have over 250 likeminded Z-Tech employees (the Z-Techer), who can call on each other to solve any customer problem. We have developed specialist services to support instrumentation installations, such as minor civils works, in order to offer the complete package, doing things better, faster and guaranteed – all to delight our customers. We can collectively work on any PLC ever made and deploy over 100 Systems Engineers and Instrumentation Technicians to the Water, Power and Rail sectors to help support in-house teams in this specialist shortage areas, holiday or with their most difficult problems. The recent launch of our refined Purpose and Values offer a clear message of what we do, and what being a Z-Techer is all about. As well as the headline being deliberately memorable, all our Z-Tech employees live by these values, they are what makes us different.
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Michael Swinhoe, Z-Tech’s CEO said: “Z-Tech is now in its 17th year and the amount of opportunity to expand is colossal. It’s truly all about the right people and we have recently made further fantastic appointments. I’m very pleased to launch our revised Purpose and Values – I’m confident they are core to what we stand for and feedback from our many customers is they are exactly why they like working with us!”
Problem Solvers z-tech.co.uk Helpline: 01223 653500 engineers@z-tech.co.uk
24/7
EMERGENCY RESPONSE SERVICE
SAFE TRUSTED RESPONSIVE & PROFESSIONAL instituteofwater.org.uk
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CIRCULAR ECONOMY LEADERS’ SUMMIT 2017
As demand for water increases worldwide, the challenges faced by companies and governments range from maintaining centuries-old infrastructure to designing utilities resilient to rising populations and climate change. These challenges are often compounded by the fact that – in traditional sectors with legacy systems like water – new ideas and business models can take time to test and break through. For many, the biggest hurdle is finding the right partners to turn a good idea into a viable business proposition. So when Jim Panton, President of the Institute of Water, opened May’s Circular Economy Leaders’ Summit (CELS) to glorious Edinburgh sunshine, he was keen to emphasise the need to regularly combine youth and experience for greater impact. The summit came as part of efforts by the Scottish Government to enable Scottish innovation and technology to contribute to solving global problems, in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and follows on from pilot events run by FutureX in Scotland and India last year. With summit sponsors like the Institute of Water and Veolia interested in maintaining momentum, the FutureX team hopes that more summits and ‘Connect Days’ will follow.
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Two common threads of discussion throughout the summit were (1) how to meet the humanitarian need for water with sustainable business models and (2) how to generate meaningful cooperation between the many related sectors, from energy to agriculture.
The whole event took participants on a journey of two parts; a collaboration-generating partnership and the start of a personal growth voyage with one of the exercises involving looking inward to a variety of different length goals.
The summit programme was designed by FutureX partner Adam Purvis in a way participants could “get their hands dirty” and immediately apply learning and inspiration from the experts’ presentations to group exercises and discussions. Under the mantra “what if we could redesign everything?” participants were asked questions about the change they want to see in the world and were provided with toolkits, such as the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s ReSOLVE framework, to help bring their ambitions to fruition.
An equilibrium was achieved between inspirational talks and interactive exercises, both group and individual, creating an energetic partnership focused atmosphere. Knowledge and experience was shared from experienced water sector employees to new emerging hungry fresh faces new to the sector. This allowed participants to communicate their ideas and experiences to members of the water industry they wouldn’t normally have the chance to, promoting the theme of collaboration.
FEATURE: ENERGY
Sandy Rodgers from the Toilet Board Coalition kept the energy levels flowing high through a stimulating, informative presentation on An Age of Enlightened Leadership on behalf of the Toilet Board. This was followed by the first of four interactive exercises: ■■
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The first exercise required participants to look to the future, visualising their future goals before determining global factors which would pose major threats to large scale change of the world we know today. Ellen MacArthur foundation clarified the importance of a circular economy and demonstrated how a variety of innovative companies had overcome the traditional linear economy. Scottish water, SEPA and Zero Waste Scotland teamed up to follow the Ellen MacArthur foundations lead, presenting the participants with a realistic interactive problem, promoting the collaborations of a multitude of different expertise at each team.
Viki Taylor - Head of Water Resources Unit, SEPA
Fran Van Dijk - Partner at One Stone Advisors
“My main take away from today, I am overwhelmed by the level of innovation and passion that is here in the water industry to make major changes and how when you bring the right people together those changes really start to happen.”
“The key lessons I walked away with today were to drop all your assumptions, be as open minded as you can and think big. Listen to the people that you least expect to get the good ideas from and an understanding of how we can develop communities that make this possible.”
Nicola McFarlane - Head of Assurance at Veolia Water (North) (Programme Sponsors)
Learn more http://hydro-nations.com
“The day has been brilliant and the energy has been absolutely fantastic. For me it is now about what we do next to take this forward. We have all shared ideas, we have been inspired by what is possible, and the intent and the passion is there. What matters now is that we continue to connect with each other and take all this forward. “
REGISTER YOUR INTEREST Join an action-oriented network of Scotland’s emerging and existing leaders working together to build a world leading sustainable economy. Register your interest at https:// powerofyouth.typeform.com/to/QAJKDB
The day concluded with an exercise aimed at looking ahead to the future and determining the steps required to achieve the goals raised and discussed throughout the day.
Sandy Roger - The Toilet Board “I saw today the tremendous energy for new ideas and new collaborations. What I saw was people facing the circular economy in a practical way, looking at the incremental steps and projects that can be taken on. This is a lot about leadership and people having the courage to throw themselves into it and start to solve the problems. We don’t know all the answers and you don’t know exactly where you are going to end up. So you do need the guts to throw yourselves in and make a start and I saw people here today really doing that. This is the kind of spirit we are going to need whether it is in Scotland or the developing world. We need the people with the courage to get stuck in because it is a learning process and we don’t have the answers today and we need the people with the willingness to experiment.”
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AVK GROUP
SCOTTISH WATER - GLENHOVE AND GOWANBANK PUMPING STATIONS Glenfield Valves Limited have been awarded the refurbishment and re-installation scheme for valves they had originally manufactured and installed in 1969.
[Before]
[Removal]
Using the original drawings and plans archived in their extensive library of over 500,000 microfiche original drawings, Glenfield provided the benefit of experience and efficiencies to the scheme. In October 2016, Glenfield Valves Limited commenced work on two schemes for Scottish Water; the Glenhove and Gowanbank drinking water pumping stations. These pumping stations supply drinking water to the Cumbernauld and Falkirk areas respectively and completion of the works is scheduled for August 2017. The scope of works for both schemes included the removal, refurbishment and re-installation of various diameter submerged discharge valves situated in chambers used to store treated drinking water. Originally installed in 1969 the storage tank capacity is approximately 20,000,000 gallons.
Glenhove Pumping Station Works at the Glenhove Pumping Station involved 4 chambers and included: Chambers 1 and 2 Works for Chambers 1 and 2 included the removal, refurbishment and re-installation of: ■■
4 No x 36” diameter cemented submerged discharge valves (2 per chamber)
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2 No x 6” diameter float valve (1 per chamber)
Chambers 3 and 4 Works on Chambers 3 and 4 included the removal, refurbishment and re-installation of: ■■
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2 No x 6” double float valves (1 per chamber)
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[Refurbishment] Gowanbank Pumping Station Gowanbank Pumping Station has two chambers and works included the removal, refurbishment and re-installation of: ■■
2 No. x 30” diameter submerged discharge valves (1 per chamber)
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1 No x 6” float valve
Glenfield Valves Limited Projects Manager, Jim McAllister said, “We were delighted to have been awarded these schemes by Scottish Water. Both have presented challenges and we were able to draw on our records, extensive expertise and resource to ensure a confident, resilient and robust solution.” The first task for the Glenfield team was to identify the size and specification of the valves within the chambers; a task made easier having the original Glenhove and Gowanbank drawings in their vast archives. Once identified the team dealt with the major task of extracting the valves from the chambers where the valve size and weight, plus space restriction required experienced engineers, precise communication and collaboration with Scottish Water and the Glenfield supply chain. “Jim Continued, “The valves were isolated and the tanks drained, this enabled the team to remove the valves with the aid of a 500-tonne crane. This was a tricky process as the valves were removed through hatches within the chambers that only had millimetres of spare capacity for the valves to fit through.” Once removed the valves were dismantled and taken to the Glenfield plant in Kilmarnock.
[Re-installation] Here, they underwent extensive refurbishment that included: ■■
Complete visual and operational inspection and dismantling
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Shot blasting and repainting of all cast components
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Cleaning and restoration of the stainlesssteel sleeves
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Replacement of drive shafts within the valves where needed
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Remedial machining on some shafts
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All seals removed and replaced on the float valves
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All stainless-steel fasteners replaced on all valves
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Stainless-steel operating levers on float valves replaced.
After refurbishment, the valves were reassembled, fully tested and transported back to site for installation by the Glenfield team and commissioning by Scottish Water. Jim Concluded, “The Glenhove and Gowanbank schemes have been exciting and challenging ones. The cooperation between Scottish Water, Glenfield Valves Limited and our supply chain has been excellent which has contributed directly to the success of the schemes.” For further details on this scheme, please contact: Jim McAllister, Project Manager Glenfield Valves Limited E-Mail: jim.mcallister@glenfield.co.uk
EXPECT... QUALITY IN EVERY STEP EXPECT... A LONG-TERM PARTNERSHIP
GLENFIELD VALVES
DAMS, RESERVOIR AND HYDROPOWER SOLUTIONS
DESIGN - SUPPLY - INSTALL
WE CAN PROVIDE WHATEVER YOU MAY NEED
ENGINEERING AND SITE SOLUTIONS:
GLENFIELD is a leading supplier of large diameter valves for dams, reservoirs and hydropower installations around the world.
•
Glenfield’s product portfolio includes an extensive range of:
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• • • • • • • • • •
Free discharge valves Submerged discharge valves Needle control valves Parallel seated gate valves for dams and reservoir applications Butterfly valves High performance recoil check valves Large volume air valves Automatic pressure and level control valves Penstocks and sluice gates
• • • •
Valve supply, installation, refurbishment and replacement Valve, penstock and actuator: site surveys and health checks Design and manufacture of ancillary equipment All associated enabling, electrical and civil engineering services Equipment commissioning Scheduled maintenance and servicing Contracts Extended warranties Post contract training
Contact us to discuss your project requirements Glenfield Valves Limited Lifeways House 22 Shaw Road Prestwick Ayrshire KA9 2LP T: +44 (0) 1292 670404 E: drh@glenfield.co.uk
Before
After
Members of the
group
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TRAINING HELPS FIND UNTAPPED EFFICIENCIES IN PUMP SYSTEMS ABB introduces a Lunch ‘n’ Learn training session that shows how to improve the electrical efficiency of pump systems, while saving up to 20 percent in energy costs. The CPD-certified System Efficiency course is one of many services offered as part of ABB’s 20+20 vision for improving customer outcomes in the water industry. The session covers the electrical infrastructure for greenfield and brownfield pump systems.
as efficient in operation as they are on paper, as well as understanding how the interaction of various components within the pump’s electrical system can impact – both positively and negatively – on overall system efficiency.
In any water or wastewater facility, pumps are the biggest energy consumer. In many cases, greater efficiency can be achieved by optimising the electrical system driving those pumps. An electrical system typically comprises a transformer, variable speed drive (VSD), electric motor, switchgear and cabling.
Armed with this information, utilities planning new sites can ensure pump systems are fully optimised from day one. This information can also be used to improve the efficiency of existing pump systems by between five and ten percent on average by identifying components that can be fine-tuned, replaced or adjusted to improve overall efficiency.
The first half of the session focusses on how to design efficient pump systems. This includes how to accurately compare manufacturers’ efficiency ratings for products to ensure pump systems are
The second half of the session explores additional ways to improve the efficiency of installed pump systems by optimising the individual components in the electrical system.
This includes an overview of the various methods that can be employed to reduce pump speed. A 2 Hz reduction in speed is a 12 percent energy saving typically on a pump system. Therefore reducing pump speed can cut energy use considerably and save many thousands of pounds a year. ABB’s System Efficiency Lunch ‘n’ Learn training is recommended for anyone responsible for the specification or maintenance of electrical systems. The 45-minute session is free to attend and can be delivered to individuals or groups at customer premises or an ABB facility. To book your training session, or to find out more, visit http://bit.ly/2vZNpS2
COULD YOUR BUS SOON BE POWERED BY A FATBERG? Plans to transform problematic fatbergs from a sewer blight to environmental delight have taken a step forward.
Previously, what we’ve done is either extract the fatberg out of the pipes and send to landfill, or break it down and put it back through the system. Now we’re looking to see if we can use fatbergs in a clever way, and we’re working alongside Argent to do that.”
Thames Water has joined forces with renewables firm Argent Energy to investigate the possibility of transforming the congealed fats, oils and greases, commonly known as fatbergs, into environmentally-friendly fuel.
Simon said the project will run alongside the company’s ‘Bin it – don’t block it’ campaign, which aims to prevent fatbergs building up in the sewers in the first place.
Under the plans, fatbergs would be dug out of the sewers and transferred to a specialist plant, where they would be processed with the fats, oils and greases, and transformed into bio-diesel. Other unflushable items such as baby wipes would be disposed of. Simon Brum, strategic recycling manager at Thames Water, said the scheme was a “no-brainer”. He said: “We have a problem with fatbergs, both in sewer networks and at sewage treatment centres.
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Simon added: “We’re not going to instantly change everyone’s behaviour of binning things rather than flushing them – we’ve got to deal with the problem. We’re talking to field treatment works to get a better idea of where these fatbergs are, and if it is possible to use them. It’s about taking it out of the supply. Let’s be clever, remove them, and then do something good for the environment.” If the plan works, it is hoped in the longer term that the bio-diesel produced could be used to power buses in the Thames Water area.
Heather Swinbank, UK sourcing manager at Argent, said: “We always encourage people to dispose of items correctly, but what we’re saying is if there is a fatberg there, let’s be clever about it. We want to make renewable fuel from waste, and are hoping to create a renewable and sustainable service.”
FEATURE: ENERGY
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SELWOOD
ENERGY-EFFICIENT ELECTRIC SELWOOD PUMPS PROVIDE INNOVATIVE SOLUTION A new energy-efficient and environmentally -friendly pump has been launched by Selwood to provide solutions for a range of water industry and construction applications. Selwood’s specialists have developed and launched a new Super Silent electric drive addition to their renowned S range of solids handling pumps. The S150 pump, available with an environmentally-friendly 30KW IE3 electric motor, has been introduced in response to a recognised need among customers for an energy-efficient, sound-attenuated, loweremission pump, including one that could meet the complex demands of ground stabilisation contracts. As well as being developed for large infrastructure schemes in the UK, the S150 electric is ideally suited for applications in the water and wastewater industry and major clients in the sector are now renting the pump. In developing the pump design, Selwood already had the benefit of its S150 Seltorque pump being the global leader for pumping bentonite. The company’s specialists were tasked with designing and manufacturing a model that had the same proven pumping capability, together with exceptional energy-efficiency and lowemission features.
310m3/h capacity
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27m total head
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Variable speed drive to ensure the perfect balance between efficiency and performance depending on the application.
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Suitable for multiple uses including water and wastewater, sewage and sewer bypass and over pumping.
A total of 50 of the high-specification pumps have been supplied to Selwood’s rental fleet, which covers a comprehensive network of branches across the UK. The company is also offering them through its sales operation. Chris Garrett, Selwood CEO, said: “We are constantly revising and improving our range in response to customer feedback, and our expanding S range is a prime example of the benefits of this approach. “The addition of new products and variations, including this electric version of the S150, builds on our commitment to ensuring that our specialists can find the perfect pump for any water industry application.
Air flow and canopy cooling were the main technical challenges to overcome and Selwood invested in new production and testing equipment, as well as employing more electricians, in developing the S150 electric.
“We have seen very positive feedback to the S150 electric, with major clients in the water and wastewater sector renting now they know the units are readily available.
Working in partnership with key suppliers, the S150 Seltorque 30kW Super Silent pump has been developed with the following features:
“We have also seen significant interest on the sales side, with units sold into Germany and France.
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Capable of the same superb performance as Selwood’s 1800rpm diesel-powered model, providing 100mm solids handling.
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“It all adds up to a very exciting period for Selwood as the company invests further in electric units this year, next year and beyond.”
Selwood, which has a manufacturing pedigree spanning more than 60 years, has already begun developing electric versions of other pumps, including the S200 which has a capacity of 560m3/h and will be available later this year housed in Selwood’s market-leading Super Silent canopies. Specialists are also developing an electric model of the company’s industry-leading Drainer “D” range, which are a natural choice for dewatering in the construction, industrial and emergency flood sectors. Offering high-volume, high-efficiency fluid transfer, the “D” pumps are perfect for use with water (clean with fine or larger solids) and screened sewage. Electric Super Silent units of D200, with a capacity of 600m3/h, total head of 37.5m and 55mm solids handling, will also be available later this year. For more information, visit www.selwoodpumps.com
FEATURE: ENERGY
INTRODUCING THE ELOPHOS® SYSTEM TO THE UK Phosphorus is one of the raw materials expected to be subject to severe shortages in the future. In 1979 the global stocks were estimated to be sufficient for 500 years at the forecast rate of consumption, in 2012 the amount of exploitable stocks was re-estimated to be sufficient for only around 100 years. The majority of extracted raw phosphate today is used for the production of fertilisers.
The Eliquo Water Group have successfully installed the EloPhos® system in several European locations and now the system is available in the UK through Eliquo Hydrok. How the EloPhos® system works with the EloVac® degassing module
Waste water has the potential to be a significant source of secondary phosphate. Historically, phosphorus recovery from waste water was achieved by land application of sewage sludge. However, with the increasing use of thermal sludge disintegration processes where phosphorus is released, technical solutions for phosphorus recovery from the sludge liquid is of growing importance. EloPhos is a proprietary technology of Eliquo Water Group (patent pending). It is a system for the recovery of phosphate from digested sewage sludge, emanating from waste water treatment plants, with biological phosphate (bio-P) removal in the form of magnesium-ammonium-phosphate (“map” or “struvite”) fertiliser. The EloPhos process is based on the precipitation of dissolved phosphate from digested sewage sludge using magnesium salts, usually magnesium chloride (mgcl2). Crystals which are grown in the EloPhos crystallisation reactor, up to approx. 1 - 2 mm diameter or above, can subsequently be separated.
To discuss EloPhos® contact Lewis O’Brien, Technical Director, 01726 861900, lewis.obrien@eliquohydrok.co.uk
INTRODUCING THE EloPhos® SYSTEM Phosphate recovery from digested sewage sludge Providing the controlled precipitation and removal of struvite and other crystalline compounds directly from digested sludge, leading to; Reduced sludge disposal costs Reduced sludge dewatering costs
Phosphorous recovery leading to MAP or struvite fertiliser
Reduced maintenance costs Reduced operational costs
ELIQUO HYDROK LTD I T 01726 861 900 I sales@eliquohydrok.co.uk
www.eliquohydrok.co.uk
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HUBER TECHNOLOGY
IMPROVEMENT OF THE MAER LANE STW INLET WORKS HUBER Technology recently completed and commissioned a large project for South West Water to improve the inlet works facility at the above site which treats the sewage from the town of Exmouth in Devon. Project Profile
Solution
HUBER Technology were approached by Tecker towards the end of 2015 to look at improving the existing inlet works on site. The site features a balance tank which was prone to a large build up of rag and screening which were overloading the existing inlet works. Cleaning of this rag build up proved difficult and dangerous so the project was split into two sections, supply of a coarse screen to protect the balance and storm tanks and supply of new fine inlet screens and screenings handling equipment.
HUBER Technology Supplied: ■■
1 x RakeMax 4160/990/40, throughput 1027 l/s peak flow per screen
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2x EscaMax 5000/1352/6, throughput 363 l/sec peak flow per screen
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2 x WAP/L BG4-V, throughput 4.5m3/hr
[Screenings build up in balance tank – before screens were fitted]
[New Rakemax screen installed on top of the existing balance tank]
[New Rakemax screen]
[New WAP-L BG4v screenings handling plant, EscaMax inlet screens and Rakemax screen in the background]
Objective The challenge on site was to maintain adequate screening on site whilst the new screens were installed. Previously the flow into the balance tank was via four pumped rising mains, flow to the inlet screens was controlled by penstocks in the balance tank. We worked with the contractors – Tecker to develop a solution to minimise downtime. This solution was to install the coarse screen into a off-site fabricated site channel which could be mounted on top of the existing balance tank structure. This was installed on site and the rising main connections made, the coarse screen was then installed into it with the screening discharging directly to a skip. Following agreement on the ionstallation sequences with Tecker we ensured the hydraulic constraints of the structure were taken into account to ensure the screen performed correctly and adequate bypass weirs were provided. The fine screens and handling plant were installed in a phased manner to allow the screening at the inlet works to be maintained.
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Richard Willis, Area Manager for HUBER Technology said “This difficult project was delivered in conjunction with Tecker and already significant improvements can be seen on site, particularly the coarse screen which is protecting the balance tank and fine screens from the large volume of screenings received into the works.”
For more information please contact Richard Willis 07980 316060, email rw@huber.co.uk or visit our website www.huber.co.uk
IT’S GOOD TO TEXT Rolling out the latest automation equipment to remote pumping stations can quickly become costprohibitive if the communications and power infrastructure is weak. GSM (2G)-enabled telecontrol can enable remote control and monitoring via SMS, freeing communications from the limitations of outdated data lines and radio links. Many remote pumping stations, particularly in rural areas, were typically built without the internet – let alone the Internet of Things – in mind. This can present a challenge when installing or upgrading digital control systems. While the price of sensors and PLCs are falling, rolling out the necessary communications and power infrastructure to transmit data back to the control centre can be expensive. A remotely located pumping station could, for instance, require the laying of several kilometres of cabling to connect systems to the operator’s communications network or power grid.
T. +44 1249 765000 E. rotamat@huber.co.uk www.huber.co.uk
As well as being expensive, this takes time. Meanwhile, the industry is trying to avoid sending service personnel to site, preferring to control and monitor processes from centralised control rooms. A solution is required to allow wireless remote process monitoring at locations where significant infrastructure improvements are impractical. With the use of an ordinary mobile SIM card, wireless technology such as WAGO’s TO-PASS® Compact telecontroller allows remote control and fault reporting for processes via SMS, circumventing the need for communications network cabling. It can be used to monitor digital and/or analogue values from, for example, silos, containers, machines or systems, detecting changes in flow, level, pressure etc. The device can be configured to send a text to an appropriate recipient every time a measured value changes, or after a certain number of changes within a finite period. Where action is required, processes can be controlled via SMS commands sent by service personnel back to the telecontroller.
Wireless transmission significantly reduces cabling requirements, while the power supply can be augmented via solar panel and battery if required, to further reduce costs. The system provides a means of remotely controlling and monitoring simple processes at a fraction of the cost of rolling out entirely new power and network communication infrastructure. WAGO Limited Visit: http://global.wago.com/uk Telephone: 01788 568008 Email: ukmarketing@wago.com
Dublin Bay, Belfast
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PLANNING FOR AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE
Water and sewerage companies, regulators, local government and communities together face significant challenges relating to the water environment. These include managing extreme weather and flood risk, reducing pollution, increasing urbanisation, managing ageing assets and adapting to climate change. There are also opportunities to enhance the environment and its biodiversity, create resilient communities and infrastructure and support economic growth. We want (to support) water and sewerage companies to plan for the long term, starting with a clear and systematic understanding of service and system risks. This will help them protect and enhance the water environment and improve the nation’s resilience to drought and flooding. We expect there to be less water available in the future, particularly in the summer months1. At the same time, water demand for public and agricultural use may increase as temperatures get warmer1. There are few statutory drivers for climate change adaptation. However, the changing climate could put pressure on water and sewerage companies abilities to meet a range of statutory and non-statutory environmental obligations and expectations, in other words it’s an excellent idea to plan now for an uncertain future and this can be planned for in a number of ways.
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It is important that climate change is integrated at a strategic level into water business plans and Adaptation Reporting Power (ARP) reports, both in terms of commitments and assumptions. The industry is already doing a lot of good work in preparing for the impacts of climate change on their assets, services and activities, but we would also like to see increased understanding and action on the risks from climate change to the natural assets upon which they rely. This includes efforts to protect and enhance the water and land environments in the face of climate change impacts in combination with the impacts of water and sewerage companies’ activities and to make sure that planned measures and schemes are resilient. Climate change will affect the availability of water in the future for water and sewerage companies to put into their supply system. Using the latest information, the Environment Agency together with water and sewerage companies have developed an approach to allow water companies to estimate the possible impact
of climate change. Water companies use the information to understand what they need to do to ensure a secure and resilient water supply. We have produced the ‘water resources planning guidelines’ that water companies follow to produce a long term water resources management plan, looking at least 25 years ahead to ensure they are making the right decisions at the right time. In the last round of plans in 2014, water companies predicted climate change could cause a loss of available water supply of around 600 Ml/d by 2040. This varies regionally with some companies reporting impacts of a loss in water availability of over 10%. In response water companies are looking to adapt to less water availability by trying to reduce demand and where they need additional water they are bringing on new strategic sources such as new reservoir, transfers and other supply measures. Climate change has been shown by OFWAT2 and UKWIR3 to risk an increase in sewer flooding and occurrence of spills from storm overflows. Climate change is not the only pressure on
FEATURE: CLIMATE CHANGE sewerage with population growth and urban creep also increasing the sewer flows the network has to cope with. Rising customer expectations and an ageing infrastructure are also challenges for the industry. Water UK is developing a long term strategy to address these risks through its 21st Century Drainage Programme. A successful strategy will need to outline the trajectory and pace of activities beyond the usual 5 year AMP planning cycles to at least the 25 year horizon and demonstrate progress through PR19. The Environment Agency is supporting the 21st Century Drainage Programme, particularly in developing metrics to identify sewerage capacity risk in flooding and CSO performance. These metrics and their supporting framework will trigger need for action as capacity is used up, enabling proactive mitigation against unacceptable deterioration in sewer flooding and storm overflow performance. Understanding and communicating the performance of storm overflows will be key for setting a performance baseline. A programme to be complete by 2020 of installing monitors on the storm overflows will provide visibility of the current performance and allow future performance to be tracked, highlighting a deterioration/improvement. For high risk coastal discharge storm overflows, permitting to protect performance (informed by monitors) to design levels is being introduced by the Environment Agency by 2020.
Future risks such as climate change carry with them uncertainty and contrary to reactive remedies where step changes in performance are required, it is essential that measures to accommodate future pressures are timely and mirror the increasing pressure (avoiding redundancy) and there are no regrets. This increases opportunities to deploy sustainable solutions4 where new flow routes and even existing flow paths are diverted away from combined sewerage. The ownership and maintenance aspects of these are challenges that some Water and Sewerage Companies are beginning to overcome. Working in partnership is a strong theme of how the Environment Agency works. Solutions to reduce sewer flooding and local flood risk are frequently the same, meaning costs and resources can be shared. We are supporting water and sewerage companies take a strategic approach to contributing to flood alleviation schemes. The UK Water Industry Research 2016 report on “Unlocking collaborative opportunities between water companies and partners”5 showcases good practice. We want water and sewerage companies to take every opportunity to increase the number of partnership flood schemes achieving multiple benefits. For example, the work scheme Thames Water, Southwark Council and the Environment Agency completed in Herne Hill and Dulwich in
to reduce surface water and sewer flooding, as well providing new habitat and improve water quality. Authors Stuart Sampson, Water Resources – Security of Supply, Environment Agency Philip Hulme, Water Quality - Regulatory Development, Environment Agency Jonathan Hunter, Flood and Coastal Risk Management – Strategy Delivery, Environment Agency Jack Bradley, Climate Change – Adaptation, Environment Agency References 1. A climate change report card for water. LWEC report card. Watts G and Anderson M (eds.) (2013) ISBN 978-0-9928679-2-8 2. Future Impacts on Sewer Systems in England and Wales. Mott Macdonald - A report prepared for Ofwat June 2011 3. Rainfall Intensity for Sewer Design Technical Guide. CH2M. A report prepared for UKWIR.July2015. 4. Rainscape. Dwr Cymru-Welsh Water webpages. July 2017. 5. How best to align the funding processes with the various bodies involved in resolving flooding: http://evidence.environmentagency.gov.uk/FCERM/Libraries/FCERM_ Project_Documents/SC150010_report.sflb. ashx
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WEIGHTMANS LLP
THE CHALLENGES OF CLIMATE CHANGE
Climate modelling studies show that flash flooding in summer is happening with increasing regularity across the UK as a result of climate change. The results are potentially devastating in vulnerable areas which are likely to experience far more incidents than they did in the past. Few will have forgotten the devastating flash flood that swept through the picturesque village of Boscastle, Cornwall in 2004, one of the worst examples of sudden localised flooding in recent years. An estimated 440 million gallons of water swept through the town after heavy rainfall led to the bursting of banks and the convergence of three rivers. Many people mounted their rooftops to escape the rising water and had to be plucked to safety by emergency teams; millions of pounds worth of damage was caused as properties were either flooded or destroyed.
Manbir Thandi
Associate in the Utilities team at Weightmans LLP, a Top 45 law firm
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Storm Desmond in 2015 saw gales and heavy rain sweep across large parts of the UK causing devastating flooding in Cumbria, Lancashire as well as parts of southern Scotland. A record month’s worth of rain was deposited on Cumbria in just one day. Many rivers across northern England, Scotland and Northern Ireland saw record peak flows during a three-month period.
From a water industry perspective, increased rainfall in the summer is generally welcomed to fill reservoirs and it supports supply at a time of peak demand both domestically and in agriculture. However, one impact of exceptional rainfall events is that reservoirs can fill rapidly and overspill. Weightmans LLP are defending a case for a water undertaker which raises significant issues for the entire industry if an overspill from excess rainfall causes flooding downstream. The case involves a river which flooded causing damage to an estate comprised of a number of properties situated on the banks of the river. It is alleged that due to heavy rainfall over two days, excess water from the reservoir spilled over the dam’s crest as it was designed to do and caused an extremely rapid rise in river level of approximately 10 feet causing damage to the properties.
FEATURE: CLIMATE CHANGE Previously, household insurers would tend to take such losses on the chin but increasingly they look to recover their outlay from water undertakers. This is not the only such claim of this type that the Defendant in the case faces and is probably replicated by a number of such claims across the water sector. The number of incidents is likely to grow given the increased frequency of exceptional rainfall events perhaps triggered by climate change. The case will test whether the legal principle in Rylands v Fletcher, a case dating back to 1868 that has withstood many challenges over the last 149 years, still stands in the case of highly regulated modern reservoirs. In Ryland, Mr Fletcher employed contractors to build a reservoir for him and played no active role in its construction. His contractors discovered a series of old coal shafts improperly filled with debris which they did not properly block resulting in Mr Fletcher’s reservoir bursting shortly after being filled for the first time and flooding a neighbouring mine run by Mr Rylands. The House of Lords held in favour of Mr Rylands and said “If a person brings, or accumulates, on his land anything which, if it should escape, may cause damage to his neighbour, he does so at his peril. If it does escape, and cause damage, he is responsible, however careful he may have been, and whatever precautions he may have taken to prevent the damage” The case is important in the law of nuisance because under the rule in Rylands, a person who unnaturally contains a dangerous element (such as water) on their land which, if it escapes and damages a neighbour’s property is strictly liable to compensate his neighbour. It is therefore not necessary for the neighbour to prove negligence on the part of the landowner from whose land the danger has escaped. For water companies storing large quantities of water retained by a dam, failure of the dam would plainly give rise to a high risk of danger to property and a threat to life, which one would expect to be a clear case of liability under the rule. However, does the same apply to smaller releases of water caused by overtopping or by the operation of a spillway? That seems less clear. The modern law has seen a move away from a strict duty to a position of convergence between nuisance and negligence. As shown in the recent case of Cordin v Newport City Council, there has to be knowledge of risk and an opportunity to avert the risk before liability is established against a reservoir owner. The facts of Cordin have broad similarities to the present Weightmans’ case in that a reservoir overflowed into a brook which exceeded its
[The Boscastle flood of 2004 on Monday, 16 August 2004 in the villages of Boscastle and Crackington Havenin Cornwall.]
capacity and flooded properties within the immediate vicinity. The local authority who owned the reservoir argued that it had not been negligent in failing to act on early warnings as to forecasts in the level of rainfall. Their defence failed with the court accepting that fault was on the part of the local authority as it had not properly understood the dynamics of flood prevention and was negligent in failing to operate a sluice gate which could have controlled the flow of water from the reservoir. Whilst the decision in Cordin is of some concern to water companies, the consolation from the case is that a judge left the door open for the law to change when applied to a different set of circumstances. It relies fairly heavily on the judges finding that the local authority acted or failed to act with regard to controlling the level of water within the reservoir and its release. If a water company can prove they do not have the control exercised by the local authority in Cordin, they could argue that the Rylands rule should not be followed.
catchment waterways. It is only in exceptional circumstances such as an imminent threat to the dam when the water undertaker can discharge water without approval of the EA. The author believes this is the scenario envisaged by the judge in Cordin which would see a move away from the strict liability law applied to water undertakers when judging whether the Rylands principle applies to escapes from certain reservoirs. The time appears right for a clarification of the law as it applies to water companies with reservoirs particularly in the context of climate change making flash flood events more likely than they have ever been. The court must ultimately consider the demands on company resources and the public purposes for which they are held. It may not be fair, just or reasonable to require a water undertaker to expend those resources on infrastructure works when the protection extends to only a few individuals against a modest risk of property damage. www.weightmans.com
As in the case of all large reservoirs, they are effectively under the control of the Environment Agency (EA) and not the water undertaker. The EA and only the EA can implement a controlled discharge of water given it has responsibility for both abstraction and maintaining river levels in the catchment for environmental reasons. The EA normally operates the reservoir against an operating model based on historical data and instructs the undertaker when and in what volume to release water. The EA also monitors water levels within the reservoir. Therefore it follows that the EA and not the water company is in control of the level within the reservoir and
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Malpas Service Reservoir Adding years to the useful life of a century old asset Service reservoirs play a key, if sometimes unsung, role in the supply of clean water within the UK. While most are far less visible and well known than the open reservoirs and other sources they serve, they balance supply and peak demand and ensure that customers’ taps never run dry. The refurbishment of one such service reservoir dating back over a century has given it an additional 30-year lease of life at a fraction of the cost of building a new one. But undertaking the contract was not without its technical challenges. This article sets out the work undertaken earlier this year by Stonbury on behalf of United Utilities at Malpas Service Reservoir, Cheshire. Scope of works - Internal & External • Removal of flume from centre of tank • Grit blasting to walls and surfaces • Cleaning of Staffordshire blue engineering bricks • Preparation work to floors, before complete overbanding towards floor centre (spider-web effect) • Mesh fixture to all wall surfaces • Concrete spray over the mesh creating a new wall surface • Installation of scaffolding and safety netting to roof internal (for safe external works) • Refurbishment of roof vents
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Project background - In common with a large number of service reservoirs, Malpas Service Reservoir, owned and operated by United Utilities, dates back many years. The 20.5ML balancing reservoir was built in 1913 close to the village which gave it its name and lies close to the southern border of Cheshire, a few miles from the border with Wales. Then, as now, it formed an important ‘staging post’ for water flowing from Lake Vyrnwy in North Wales into the North West. Lake Vyrnwy was constructed in the 1880s with a capacity of 59.7GL, originally to supply water to Liverpool via a 68-mile aqueduct constructed by Liverpool Corporation. Other pipelines were subsequently added, and the water from Lake Vyrnwy now forms part of a network of sources supplying a much wider area. Today, the Malpas Reservoir helps service a population across a wide area of Cheshire. And while originally it was built as an open tank for clean water storage, after regulations changed, the circular tank was enclosed with a steel-clad roof. Malpas Service Reservoir adding years to the useful life of a century old asset. Having served its purpose well for over a hundred years, time has now taken its toll on Malpas. Recent investigations discovered water ingress to the tank and the existing brickwork walls were found to be in a poor state. Stonbury, specialist contractors to the water industry, were commissioned to undertake a comprehensive internal refurbishment together with some external repairs. The project came with a number of challenges – not least carrying out work on the roof internal, where roof vents were allowing in
rainwater. This required erecting scaffolding and an extensive area of safety netting. External access to the roof also posed safety risks as the roof had a low load bearing capacity.
two days days behind behind schedule schedule at at one one point, point, requiring requiring weekend weekend working working to regain regain time. time. Work Work on on the the grating grating was was completed completed in in week week 77 to to cover the the outlet outlet channel. channel.
In addition, the contract came with a tight deadline of just 12 weeks because of the need to get the reservoir back into use to meet the higher customer demand of water in late spring. The client specified a very high quality surface internal finish, ensuring that the reservoir will enjoy the maximum service length after completion. This raised the contract value to in excess of ÂŁ500,000, but the higher specification has given the service reservoir an expected 30 years of additional life; against an estimated new build cost of ÂŁ5m.
During week week 99 of of the the contract, contract, aa separate separate team team erected erected scaffolding scaffolding and fixed fixed safety safety netting netting to to the the internal internal roof, roof, providing providing safe safe internal internal access to to the the vents. vents. During During this this week, week, steel steel fabrication fabrication contractors contractors also came came on on site site to to install install aa series series of of channel channel covers covers inside inside the the reservoir. reservoir. Because Because the the metal metal roof roof would would not not safely safely withstand withstand the the weight of of people people working working on on it, it, scaffolding scaffolding was was erected erected in in several several places over over the the top, top, together together with with aa series series of of safety safety lines lines to to provide provide safe external external access access to to the the vents. vents. With With the the roof roof vents vents fixed fixed in in place, place, a Davit Arm Arm and and an an SS SS ladder ladder were were introduced; introduced; and and these, these, together together with the scaffolding, scaffolding, provided provided safe safe access access for for the the internal internal steel steel surfaces in in the the roof roof to to be be coated. coated.
Stonbury assigned a team of 15 full time personnel to the project, including specialist contractors for the steel fabrication and construction of new stainless steel stairs within the reservoir. Work commenced in November 2016 and was completed in early April 2017. Project progress - The project commenced with overbanding to the floor joints, applying the longer lengths first while keeping the joints clean ready for the welding. Ultimately, some 3804 metres of overbanding were required to cover the 3849m2 of flooring creating a spider web effect in the circular-shaped reservoir. Priority was given to completing the joints near the flume first, so it could be fixed back into position. At the same time, another team commenced grit blasting the walls to prepare them for resurfacing, as well as cleaning the other surfaces; including the steelwork within the reservoir. Work started first on the walls at the lower section, allowing regular checks on the profile to ascertain if the amount being removed was adequate and even. A team of specialist engineers then undertook a detailed survey of the roof vents (which had been allowing in rain water) and the grating to the floor channel to determine the scope of work required, while the blasting grit was removed from the reservoir floor by another team. By week 6 of the project, the overbanding to the floor of the reservoir had been successfully completed, and the internal surface of the reservoir walls, comprising Staffordshire blue engineering bricks, had been sufficiently prepared for mesh to be fixed to the walls across 24 bays and a total area of 1200m22. Fixing the mesh, which ultimately took a total of 15 days, created a suitable surface for the concrete spray to be applied. In total, 55,000 litres of concrete spray were applied to the perimeter walls. Timber screed rails were then fixed into place and spraying of the reservoir walls began in week 5, once the mesh had been applied in the first few bays. To stay in line with the contract schedule, a target of completing the spraying of one bay a day was set, while mesh fixing continued on the remaining bays. Progress was slowed somewhat with numerous spray pump breakdowns, putting the concrete spraying
With the the concrete concrete spraying spraying nearing nearing completion, completion, work work then then commenced commenced on on the the perimeter perimeter walls walls overbanding, overbanding, applying applying some some 120m of overbanding overbanding to to seal seal the the joints joints between between the the 24 24 bays. bays. In the final final week, week, all all plant plant and and equipment equipment were were removed, removed, final final tests tests conducted conducted to to ensure ensure the the water water tightness tightness of of the the overbanding overbanding and and the the site cleared cleared and and cleaned cleaned ready ready for for inspection. inspection. AA new new handrail handrail was was installed on on the the top top landing landing area area and and bracing bracing applied applied to to the the newly newly installed access access ladder. ladder. The The final final inspection inspection was was conducted conducted by by the the client and and the the project project was was deemed deemed completed completed and and handed handed over. over. Conclusion Conclusion -- Stonbury, Stonbury, one one of of the the largest largest contractors contractors in in this this sector sector of the water industry, typically undertakes around 450 refurbishment water industry, typically undertakes around 450 refurbishment projects of of this this nature nature every every year, year, making making the the process process fairly fairly standard standard for Stonbury and their supply partners. The ageing Stonbury and their supply partners. The ageing nature nature of of our our water supply infrastructure, and the cost of replacing it, means supply infrastructure, and the cost of replacing it, means that that retaining the the structures structures that that can can be be refurbished refurbished should should represent represent a very worthwhile worthwhile investment investment where where itit is is technically technically feasible feasible and and financially financially viable. viable. Moreover, Moreover, there there is is aa wealth wealth of of knowledge knowledge within within the the sector on on the the best best techniques techniques and and materials materials to to use, use, and and considerable considerable experience experience gained gained over over the the years years on on tackling tackling projects projects of of this this nature nature to anticipate anticipate likely likely problems problems after after work work commences commences and and factor factor these these into contract contract tenders. tenders. The Malpas Malpas Service Service Reservoir Reservoir offered offered some some interesting interesting challenges, challenges, not least least the the issue issue of of safely safely accessing accessing the the metal metal roof roof (internally (internally and externally) externally) in in order order to to repair repair the the vents vents and and coat coat the the internal internal surface. Because Because of of the the high high specification, specification, particularly particularly on on the the finish finish of perimeter perimeter walls, walls, itit could could undoubtedly undoubtedly have have been been delivered delivered at at aa lower cost cost with with aa lower lower specification, specification, but but this this would would have have impacted impacted upon the future future duration duration of of the the reservoir. reservoir. Stonbury Stonbury have have aa legacy legacy of of structures structures within within the the UK UK water water industry industry designed designed and and built built by by our our predecessors predecessors to to last last aa very very long long time time indeed. With With foresight, foresight, ingenuity ingenuity and and the the application application of of modern modern refurbishment refurbishment techniques, techniques, many many of of these these structures structures can can be be retained and and used used for for some some time time to to come. come.
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STEVE VICK INTERNATIONAL DESIGN ENGINEER WINS IGEM YPPC 2017 Matthew Maclennan, Mechanical Design Engineer with Steve Vick International (SVI), was announced IGEM’s 2017 Young Persons Paper Competition winner at a prestigious event held at the IET Birmingham, Austin Court, on Thursday 15th June. The grand final of this year’s competition saw nine heat winners showcase the best engineering and management talent from around the industry and compete to be crowned the winner. The finalists were drawn from across IGEM’s District Sections in the UK as well as from New Zealand and Hong Kong. Matt won the title for his Paper on the development of the SMARTester, a product developed by SVI as an NIA project for Wales & West Utilities, in which Matt played a key role amongst other members of the design team. He wins an iPad Mini and an all-expenses paid trip to the World Gas Conference 2018 in Washington DC.
In summarising the new gas pressure tester, Matt said, “This is a product that gives the engineer a highly accurate pressure sensor connected to a Smart Phone App, developed specifically to test gas installations and mains for tightness and strength. It allows evidence traceability and offers a simple, accurate way to report live pressure tests back to an office database.”.
To compete in the final, they had to prepare a 1,500 word report, make a 15 minute presentation and answer questions from the panel of industry experts.
The sensor provides pressure readings up to four times a second using Bluetooth connectivity. It has an on-board calibration certificate that is downloaded and checked every time the sensor is connected to a smartphone or tablet. The App uses the latest IGEM standards and when a test is complete, the data is transmitted to the back office where test certificates can be generated and a live map of test activity viewed. All finalists had already submitted an abstract on their chosen subject and made a presentation before judges to win their individual Section heats during March and April.
[IGEM President, Sheila Lauchlan awards Matt with the YPPC trophy]
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ENGINEERING CONFERENCE 2017
ENGINEERING EFFECTIVE SOLUTIONS IN A TOTEX WORLD SAVE THE DATE INSTITUTE OF WATER ENGINEERING CONFERENCE 2017 8 NOVEMBER 2017 BOOK NOW @ WWW.INSTITUTEOFWATER.ORG.UK
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EASTERNAREANEWS
WELL DONE EASTERN AREA!
SIZEWELL B NUCLEAR POWER STATION TOUR
- 6 OCTOBER
The Eastern Area are looking forward to their visit to Sizewell B nuclear power station on the Suffolk coast. It is the UK’s only Pressurised Water Reactor and produces 1198MW of power to the national grid.
The Institute of Water Eastern Area won the President’s Cup, an award that recognises areas who have achieved the largest percentage increase in members in the year.
During this fully booked and exclusive station tour, attendees will be seeing for themselves how they generate electricity in a nuclear power station. Look out for feedback on this visit in the next issue.
The Area were presented their award at the President’s Dinner held at Manchester Cathedral in June.
EASTERN AREA PRESIDENTS DAY This years’ President’s Day was held at the famous Newmarket Racecourse on Friday 23 June. We hired a pavilion for 80 members and guests to enjoy an evening of racing, a gourmet buffet and a Little Mix concert to finish off the evening. On what was in effect was midsummer evening, all who attended had a great time, although a few more winners might have added to the fun. Once again thanks to event sponsors Anglian Water, Claret Civil Engineering, Z Tech and Groundbreaker for their support, without which this event could not have taken place.
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MIDLANDSAREANEWS VISIT TO SEVERN TRENT’S GAS TO GRID PLANT AND FOOD DIGESTER
MENTAL HEALTH: BREAKING THE TABOO On 15 May, Geoff Mcdonald, Executive Director at Open Minds Health, came to the Midlands area to ask how we can break the taboo of mental health in the workplace. Work-related stress, depression and anxiety are now the leading causes of workplace absences in the UK. A survey of 20,000 individuals in work revealed that 77% of employees had experienced poor mental health, with 62% reporting work as a contributing factor.
On 27 April, the Midlands committee organised a tour of the new Gas to Grid plant at Minworth Sewage Treatment works and their Food Digester plant in Coleshill, Birmingham. The event was attended by a variety of members, including representatives from Anglian Water and Welsh Water. A presentation was given by Jonathan Kendall, Food Waste AD Plant Manager at Severn Trent, which showed the different routes Severn Trent is taking to generate 50% of its energy by 2020. This was followed by a tour of the Gas to Grid plant at Minworth and a short hop in the car to Coleshill food digester. Paul Knuckle, Severn Trent, commented “My visit to the Coleshill Food Digester was both interesting and informative. Theory is one thing, but seeing this technology in action, presented by knowledgeable staff, made it all the more accessible’.”
ANNUAL PRESIDENT’S DINNER In July the Midlands Area held their annual President’s Dinner at the beautiful Botanical Gardens in Birmingham.
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Geoff McDonald, Executive Director at Open Minds Health, came to the Midlands area to share his own personal experience of how mental health can impact on both employees and employers. He then gave practical suggestions for how we can all help to shake the stigma. It was a highly engaging and emotive talk with many of the audience opening up to share their own challenges and experiences.
The event had a high turnout and much of the feedback related to how more events like this can be set up.
OUR FIRST DISTINGUISHED MEMBER AWARDS! Many members will know Gill and Dave Wood – they are long standing members of the Institute, and have served on the Midlands Area Committee for more years then we suspect they care to remember! Not only have they been committed and active members, but they have both held a variety of key roles on the committee, including Chair, Secretary and Treasurer. In 2016, Gill and Dave took the decision that it was time for them to step down from the committee for a well-earned rest, and the Midlands Area wanted to recognise their invaluable input and support.
Surrounded by Mediterranean plants, orchids and cacti, the event was attended by a wide audience from organisations including South Staffs Water, Severn Trent, Severn Trent Services, Amey and Morrison Utility Services. A rockabilly style band entertained guests until late evening.
And so Gill and Dave became the very first Midlands Area recipients of the Distinguished Member Award! Natalie Akroyd presented them with their gifts at the Midlands Area Annual Golf Day – an event that Dave and Gill have organised for over 20 years and are kindly continuing to do so despite their retirement from the committee. So well done to Gill and Dave and thanks for all of your hard work!
The new President, Peter Aspley from South Staffs Water gave his welcoming introduction and described plans for the year ahead.
NORTHERNAREANEWS
THE NATIONAL CONFERENCE; A FIRST-TIME PERSPECTIVE Thom Milburn, Technical Support Advisor at Northumbrian Water tells us of his experience of being an Institute of Water member and the his first National Conference.
In June 2017, I was successful in securing funding in order to attend the Institute of Water National Conference in Manchester. The conference titled ‘Together We Achieve More’; intending to further collaboration and increase innovation across the water industry, wholeheartedly reflected the Mancunian ‘worker bee’ spirit. The conference provided unique insights from industry leaders, supply partners and regulators as well as leaders from outside of the water industry. Having attended the Autumn Seminar in Harrogate in 2016 and thoroughly enjoying myself, I relished the opportunity to attend the National Conference. The content of the previous event was inspiring and encouraged me to begin working towards professional registration. I saw the National Conference as an excellent opportunity to expand on the learning of previous events, contribute towards my own Continuous Professional Development (CPD) whilst networking with likeminded people at all levels from across the industry. Personally, I took a lot away from the conference; collaboration being the key to succeeding in everything we do. Whether we are working with a crew on site or being asked
for input on network design and operation effective communication and collaboration simply makes the whole process a lot more efficient. The conference highlighted that as a member of the Institute we are part of a community who will gladly share knowledge to assist one another. The industry faces a number of key challenges such as pollution, where I believe that collaborating more closely with other organisations and key stakeholders will enable us to learn and share best practice for the benefit of all. The National Conference very much reinforced my impression that “One Team” applies across our industry. It should not be avoided; the social events too were exceptionally good fun and an excellent opportunity to build new relationships, whilst reinforcing old. The President’s Dinner held in Manchester Cathedral was quite surreal, whilst the Saint Gobain evening at the National Football Museum provided an opportunity to let your hair down after a busy few days. The Institute of Water sets out to offer a community without hierarchy – “a feeling of family” is sometimes a little cliché, however I believe this term really does encompass the spirit of the conference and associated events.
Throughout, meeting new people and becoming involved was no more difficult than walking up to a group and saying ‘hello’ with conversations both casual and corporate flowing through proceedings. My advice for anyone wishing to attend similar events in the future would be this; go in with an open mind, relax, enjoy and get involved - step outside your comfort zone. Ask questions - as many as you can! Listen not only to the specific responses but also to all the other conversations around you. When I was asked to write a piece off the back of the Institute of Water’s National Conference in Manchester, it was impossible not to mention the obvious - just days before Manchester had been attacked, yet the unique character of the British people had very much enabled the city to live by that old adage “keep calm and carry on”. We experienced a city with a real sense of community, one where you felt safe exploring by night and where the locals would gladly tell you where you could get a good breakfast the following morning. Manchester is an inspirational city with an inspiring community, reinforced by events intended to do exactly the opposite.
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NORTHERN IRELANDAREANEWS
LUNCH AND LEARN EVENT - LEAD PIPES
On the 7 June, Paul Davison and Derek Crabbe, Asset Delivery for Northern Ireland Water delivered their presentations on the Lead Pipe replacement programme to improve the water mains networks. Paul Davison Head of Water Capital delivery and Derek Crabbe project manager, share the developments in water main rehabilitation and lead pipe replacement programmes.
Paul shared his aims for the Water delivery team, where he sees the biggest improvements for the customer and innovation in the Water Industry to improve customer service.
Derek shared the typical outputs from the programme, how they interacted with the public and recent innovations in how this work is carried out beneath our feet.
There were 20 attendees at this event including Consumer Council for NI, Mouchel, Aecom and Atkins.
WELL DONE CARMEL!
DISTINGUISHED MEMBER AWARDS
NORTHERN IRELAND AREA AGM
This year’s NI Area Annual General Meeting stepped outside of its usual setting within the Annual Conference and was held in the Culloden Hotel, Holywood. The AGM was well attended and was followed by a presentation and site visit to see the progress on the Castle Park capital project in Bangor. Members heard in detail of the wastewater project which aims to provide additional storage, replacement pumping main, provision of new gravity sewers to convey flows to the new wastewater pumping station structure and provision of new overflow. The additional storage and proposed pipework will enable the closure of six existing CSO’s.
Congratulations to Carmel Bradley for reaching the final of the CPD Award.
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Congratulations to Lilian Parkes, Gillian Williamson and Janet Hetherington for achieving Distinguished Member Awards for all their support in the Northern Ireland Area.
SCOTTISHAREANEWS
CHARITY GOLF DAY The Scottish Area held its annual Charity Golf Competition on the 14 June at Ratho Park Golf Course, near Edinburgh. Unlike the previous year, the weather was kind to us and the day was sunny and warm as the course welcomed eight Fourballs to compete in a Fantastic Texas Scramble. After a tough-fought competition on a very well presented course, everyone sat down to a lovely two course meal before the prizes were given out. The winning team was JWC International with a Fantastic score of 54.6, Steve McGeouch, Craig Roberts, Bob Pepper and Chris Spencer. Congratulations to the winners and thanks to all who took part; JWC, IDS, WGM, Enisca, Ross-shire Engineering, Mackenzie Construction and Rainton Construction, your support is very much appreciated and also, many thanks to those who donated to the raffle. Thanks to Claire Chapman for getting the golfers organised and teed off whilst supporting the sale of raffle tickets for WaterAid. After the day ended and the counting complete, we were pleased to find that the total raised for Wateraid was £205.
MEET THE LEADERS This year’s annual ‘Meet the Leaders’ event in Edinburgh was a huge success. It was a great evening chaired by the Scottish Area President, Jim Panton. An evening stuffed full of positivity! Our leaders were really open with us which was great. Lady Susan Rice, Scottish Water Chair, gave the keynote speech – she told us about how she got here and her experience in different sectors. I felt proud to be part of Scottish Water when Lady Rice said, ‘I’ve learned that this is an organisation which doesn’t just say it puts customers first – it actually, and always, starts with the customer as it makes its decisions and plans.’
They’ve changed the language in their job adverts and are targeting different web sites. Paul Sexton, General Manager Alliance Management, explained that he was able to set up Alliance Management from scratch. He was aiming for people with a variety of experience and that half of his team leaders are female.
There were lots of highlights during the event. Ken Hutchison, Managing Director of Scottish Water International, said that in his role as the Director of SW International he has been able to ‘step out’ of Scottish Water and see how good we are and how we are transforming the water industry.
Other highlights included Peter Farrer, Chief Operation Officer, explaining that a very important area for him was to make sure we all go home safe at night. Mark McEwen, General Manager Customer Service, confirmed that our operational teams are male dominated and that we need to work on getting women into more operational roles.
The leaders chatted about equality in the workplace and Robert Stewart, General Manager Waste Water Service Strategy, explained how his team are changing the way they recruit to maintain gender equality.
Chris Toop, General Manager Technology Delivery Programme, explained to us how his team worked on cyber security so at the time of the NHS cyber-attack, Scottish Water was not affected. It really hit home how important
it is that we protect our IT systems. And, last but not least, Brian Lironi, Director of External Communications, explained to us the different ways his Corporate Affairs Team is helping to marshal Scottish Water’s reputation. The evening closed with an informal networking session where everyone enjoyed pizza while continuing the discussions raised during the panel session. Thank you once again to our speakers and those who attended for making this an enjoyable and beneficial evening for all.
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SOUTH EASTAREANEWS
DR ALLEN BOLTON GOLF TOURNAMENT It was the South East Area’s turn to host this year’s Dr Allen Bolton Golf Tournament and Dibden Golf Club was the setting for the usual high standard of golf this event is renowned for. 16 players, from water companies, consultants and regulators braved the sunshine to attempt to win the famous Claret Jug, currently held by last year’s winner Ed Attree. The traditional morning 9-hole Texas Scramble saw two teams at the top of the leaderboard. Apparently not even a count back could separate them so it was agreed, in true Institute style, that the prizes would be shared. Like in previous years, the afternoon individual round was again closely fought and four players ended up on 37 stableford points; following a count back it was Jonty Stead who claimed the trophy.
Congratulations to Jonty who will now defend his title next year at Marlborough Golf Club. Other winners on the day included: ■■
Longest Drive: David Trowbridge (South East Water)
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Nearest the Pin: Ed Attree (Veolia)
We would like to thank Portsmouth Water, Cognica and Primayer for the prizes and Veriflow for sponsoring the day.
CAMERONBRIDGE DISTILLERY VISIT Thanks to Richard Anderson of Veolia for organising this most interesting ‘Circular Economy’ site visit that deals with the waste from Scotland’s largest distillery, Cameronbridge, which was founded back in 1824. The Diageo site produces gems such as Jonnie Walker and Gordon’s Gin, but alas, all we only saw the bio-energy plant, and the closest we got to the whiskey was the smell. The bio-energy plant was built by Veolia in 2012, and has a footprint almost as big as the distillery itself. It produces 75% of the electricity for the site, via a 3MW turbine, and supplies 32 tonnes steam/hour back to the distillery. Whilst the site is controlled by SEPA under Pollution Prevention and Control, the waste streams have exemption as a waste product, as they are so high in phosphate that they act as an excellent fertiliser and soil enhancer. All very efficient and everything re-used – very Circular!
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We had an excellent presentation and site tour, and I was most impressed with the Volute press which removes water from the sludge from around 23% dry solids to 30%. It was very clean, efficient and looks like there would be good opportunities for using the technology in the water industry.
SOUTHWESTAREANEWS
WASTEWATER NETWORKS - WE NEED TO BE SMARTER! Phill Mills chaired an excellent set of papers at WRc on 22 May covering many aspects of wastewater. The afternoon kicked off with Wessex Water’s Matt Wheeldon, Director of Assets and Compliance, who set the scene for “21st Century Drainage” and he was quick to emphasise that water companies are talking about drainage, not just sewerage, when they consider wastewater. The biggest issue is the legacy position; “if we had a choice the current position would not be the preferred start point”. Solving drainage issues will require a new approach that looks beyond local issues and brings together a broad range of skills and industry knowledge. Matt suggested that a council that looked only at local drainage might be missing the cause and solution to their problems, which may originate in catchments outside their boundaries. The 21st Century programme considers nine work streams from engagement to resilience and Matt gave a detailed presentation on the concept of network capacity, pointing out that the capacity is rarely used, and asked if the cost of increasing capacity was worth paying when balanced against the impact of dealing with a spill? The audience debated the very different issues presented by wastewater management in comparison with clean water network management. The general agreement was that it is a more complex puzzle. The combination of shock effects of natural events on the system with the more dispersed impact of drainage, and significantly less monitoring of the system, present huge challenges. WRc’s Nick Orman took up the issue of Sustainable Drainage systems and introduced a similar theme to Matt, suggesting that the current, ad hoc approach wasn’t helping to improve things. Nick discussed the main benefits of SuDS in capacity and water quality but also considered the amenity improvements achieved by the installation of well-designed schemes. A recent “Big SuDS Survey” indicated overwhelmingly that, across a range of sectors, the view is that government policies don’t do enough to promote SuDS – this was also the view from central Government itself! With the general agreement being that early engagement is key to a successful SuDS scheme,
the lack of promotion is put forward as the main reason for the low take up. Other acknowledged barriers to SuDS were listed as site problems limiting retrofit opportunities, capital cost, ownership and H&S associated with installations. Nick put forward data that suggested SuDS deliver twice the value of the outlay cost and concluded that a more rigorous policy, better reporting and learning from experiences in Scotland and Wales might be the way to advance the cause. (www.ciwem.org/suds). Ciaran Whittall of RSKW then spoke about the difficulties involved with improving services in a dynamic environment. He made a strong case for improved data collection to help assess a situation and respond appropriately. A misaligned data chain was as problematic as poor data collection, which itself was made worse by inappropriate data tools, lack of ownership and inadequate focus on training. Ciaran concluded with a plea for us to understand the data audience and said that the right path is ultimately the easiest path. Matt Wheeldon came back for an entertaining second session that looked at what we flush down our toilets. He opened with a question as to what “flushable” means and established that the audience response related to how they interpreted the question. Was it a technical or a cultural response? “Technically” flushable wipes have appeared from nowhere in a very short space of time and already they have had a serious impact. The latest estimate from Wessex Water is that 50% of blockages in the drainage system are as a result of wipes! It is blockages not rainfall that result in damaging floods. Matt brought in examples of wet wipes in jars of water. One, which looked completely intact, had been immersed for more than 16 months! Flushable, technically, they may be but flushable, culturally, is far more debateable. The clue is in the name; why would a wet wipe disintegrate when it gets flushed? Matt confirmed the water companies are pushing for more education, legislation and regulation but there is no indication that anybody wants to
[Matt Wheeldon, Wessex Water] ban the manufacture or use of wet wipes, and the water industry is getting no support from Trading Standards, the ASA or any other body. However, over 300 organisations in more than 25 countries are pushing hard for something and that has to be encouraging. Matt also outlined the impact that public opinion had on the removal of plastic based cotton buds from supply, and suggested that a similar approach might yield results in controlling wet wipes. The toilet is not a waste bin – it’s time we started to appreciate this. The seminar concluded with a presentation on a new wastewater metering tool. Jeremy Parker of Dynamic Flow Technologies, explained how the microwave technology provided an option, that hasn’t previously existed, for the monitoring of wastewater flows. Jeremy brought an example of the meter, already the winner of an IWater SW Area Innovation Award, to show the audience. He outlined how easy it was to fit and, with no moving parts to clog, how easy it was to maintain. The meter provides the industry with a tool to support work on SuDS, blockages and fairer charging. A basis for Smart Wastewater in the new Retail Market? The presentation neatly rounded off an excellent and coherent set of papers that promoted lively debate afterwards. Thank you to all the presenters and their organisations for giving up their time to explain a fascinating and increasingly important area of the water business.
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WELSHAREANEWS
SUMMER SOCIAL RAINSCAPE PROJECTS
The IW Welsh Area hosted their annual summer social event in Cardiff on Friday the 14 July. With the unpredictable Welsh weather playing ball, three teams got outside to take part in a treasure hunt around the city centre, enjoying the sunshine, learning a few interesting facts about the city and doing their best to stay out of the pubs along the way.
In the end “Crowning Glory” managed to sneak into first place with their willingness to engage in silliness in public spaces, and all three teams celebrated the occasion over some drinks and nachos. A big thank you to all for taking part in a fun and successful event.
Peter Holt, Senior Engineer in storm water management from Arup, presented an informative and interesting overview of the work carried out for Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water for their Rainscape projects across Wales. Over 20 members and non-members from as far afield as Durham attended to support the first Institute of Water talk to be held at Welsh Water’s Kinmel Park Depot. The projects’ approach to customer liaison and perception of the schemes was discussed as well as the long term impacts on sewage resilience giving us all a great insight into the hard work all involved put in to make this a success. We hope this will be one of many events to be hosted in North Wales and thank everyone who attended.
AUTUMN FORUM The 2017 Welsh Area Autumn Forum will be taking place at the Welsh Centre for International Affairs in Cardiff on 12 October. It will be an exciting event focusing on the link between the water industry and the circular economy. This topical discussion will highlight the increasing importance of a circular economy within the world we live in today. The day will cover environmental, economic and scientific aspects which all feed into the water industry’s role within the circular economy.
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The importance of data and its influence in creating and developing a circular economy will also be discussed throughout the day, with a mixture of presentations and workshops, and many great speakers to soon be announced. There will be a charity raffle during the conference, as part of the Million Makers Challenge, in support of the Prince’s Trust charity who help to change lives of young people throughout the UK.
After the day’s event, an optional evening social event will follow, with the venue to be confirmed in due course. If you would like to attend please book your place on the IW website. It is free to members and £20 to non-members.
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