7 minute read
Industry Notes
Following is an update on the four outcomes of the AWT strategic plan.
Outcome 1—Training and Education: AWT volunteers are hard at work on many projects. The following are just a few examples.
The Source Water Working Group, a subgroup of the
Cooling Subcommittee, would like to invite AWT members to test for Legionella and related parameters in water at the point of entry into buildings where they are providing water treatment. They may then submit the data to be aggregated so that
AWT members and other stakeholders have more insights into the quality of water as it enters premise plumbing systems. You can learn more about the project here (link to: https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=ZH1aLAbOOc8&feature=youtu.be). To participate, please contact Angela Pike at apike@awt. org or (240) 404-6477.
The AWT Business Owners Meeting (https://www. awt.org/events/business-owners-meeting/) is typically held in February; however, in 2021, the meeting will be pushed back to be held in conjunction with the Annual
Convention and Exposition in Providence, Rhode
Island. More details will follow in the coming months.
AWT is reviewing the schedule for the 2021 Technical
Training Seminars (https://www.awt.org/events/ technical-training-seminars/). More information will be sent shortly regarding these meetings.
ASSE has created standard 12080, Professional
Qualifications Standard for Legionella Water Safety and
Management Personnel. AWT has developed a task force to create training for this certification program. The goal is to offer the training in May 2021.
Thanks to the work of some dedicated AWT members, work is progressing on the development of a water treatment exhibit at the Museum of Industrial History. (link to: http://www.nmih.org/)
Work continues on the updates to the Raw Materials
Manual as well as the Technical Reference and Training
Manual (TR&TM). We anticipate new versions of the manuals to be out soon.
The Cooling Subcommittee has developed a paper and template called “Improving Cooling Water
Treatment Performance and Vendor Liability
Concerns through the Implementation of a
Shared Responsibility Management Agreement,” which can be found on the members only portion of the website. https://www.awt.org/pub/
BFD5C0A9-1866-DAAC-99FB-067BBADDC2E9
Outcome 2—Member and Industry Advocate: The AWT STEM kit on water hardness and scaling can be purchased in the AWT bookstore at https://www.awt. org/awt-bookstore/.
Outcome 3—An Engaged Membership: The Governance Task Force continues to look at our membership structures and opportunities. As their work progresses, we will share their progress. A focus of their work in 2021 will be on international membership.
Finally, be on the lookout for your 2021 dues invoice. Please note that dues will remain the same for 2021.
Outcome 4—Charity: Thanks to your great efforts, AWT members raised $13,060 through the silent auction for Pure Water for the World. Members raised an additional $6,877 for the new AWT-sponsored community in El Rodeo, Honduras. You can support the community here: https://impact.purewaterfortheworld.org/campaign/ awt-2020-community-el-rodeo/c300106
H2O
Brenntag Opens New Distribution Facility in Toledo Located in the Great Lakes region, Brenntag North America's new facility comprises approximately 230,000 square-feet and will be used for storage and distribution of commodity products, solvents, surfactants, specialties, and food ingredients. In addition to having a 7-acre tank farm on an adjacent property, the location will have both interior and exterior rail service to serve all Brenntag industries.
Safety is the number one priority at Brenntag. To further support this core value, the facility is equipped with the most modern technology to ensure a safe, controlled environment. The redevelopment has been established in collaboration with the Ohio rail development commission, as well as other agencies, and is projected to bring in over 40 new driver, warehouse, and production job opportunities to Lucas County by 2022.
Brenntag is a global market leader in chemical and ingredients distribution. Headquartered in Essen (Germany) and with regional headquarters in Philadelphia, Houston, and Singapore, Brenntag operates a unique global network with more than 640 locations in 77 countries.
Grundfos Aids the Philippines’ Flood and Wastewater Management Efforts With the growth of the economy and rapid urbanization in the Philippines, the country is facing significant challenges in terms of water and sanitation. Around 7 million rely on unsafe and unsustainable water sources and 24 million lack access to improved sanitation. As the government of the Philippines has geared up to address the issues of universal water and sanitation services coverage by 2028, reliable and intelligent technology will play a critical role in enabling this transformation.
Grundfos Philippines, a global leader in advanced pump solutions and water technologies, has launched its Prefabricated Pumping Stations (PPS) to help meet the country’s growing flood and wastewater management needs. The PPS is a sustainable turnkey solution that substantially reduces installation time, commissioning H2SO4 costs, and the space requirement.
The PPS is designed to be energy efficient and operate reliably in the long run. Traditional pumping stations are made of concrete casted on site, which means that it is susceptible to corrosion and leakage over time. With PPS being made of hard-wearing plastic, its greater durability paired with an advanced control system means optimized operations, and in turn greater energy savings.
Jonathan Breton, general manager at Grundfos Philippines, said “The PPS also only requires a short construction timeframe. Compared to traditional pumping stations, PPS is produced in the Grundfos factory and sent to the site as a complete package, making installation easier and usually completed within 24 hours. This reduces installation time by as much as 80%, ensuring minimal disruption to people and infrastructure. With the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the PPS solution will significantly help complete the installation faster and avoid potential additional costs and delays.”
In addition to flood control, another key application for PPS is in wastewater management. Playing a key role in the wastewater management process, pumping stations are designed to collect and transport wastewater, and PPS’ high durability ensures minimal disruption to any water system. This solution can play a key role in urban as well as remote areas and create a reliable decentralized wastewater management system.
The PPS is an ideal solution for wastewater management at tourist destinations and hotels. Grundfos has recently installed its first PPS solution at Lio, a tourism estate whose water and wastewater facilities are owned
and operated by Manila Water’s Business Unit, Estate Water (EW), which is located in El Nido, Palawan. Commenting on why EW opted for Grundfos’ solution, Benson Cruz, technical services head, said “Lio constantly raises the bar for sustainable tourism. Therefore our obvious choice was Grundfos’ Prefabricated Pumping Stations as it helps helped us decrease not only our overall environmental footprint but the project cost as well. It also has a smaller footprint—the original lift station design was sized at 60 square meters (m2)and Grundfos’ PPS and controller has taken only 36 m2.”
Commenting on the efficiency of PPS, Jon Remulla, WU segment manager, Grundfos Philippines said, “As the PPS features the Variable Frequency Drive and dedicated controls, it also helps reduce the power consumption and energy costs by 30% and 35%, respectively.”
With over 40 years’ experience globally, Grundfos’ PPS solution has demonstrated its highest quality and effectiveness in several projects for various applications in Southeast Asia. Outside of Southeast Asia, China has over a thousand installations of PPS to address the high demand resulting from the country’s fast-growing urbanization for various applications, including sewage pumping, drainage, and flood control.
ResinTech Opens New Cation Resin Plant and Global HQ
Aerial view of ResinTech Global Headquarters and Cation Resin production plant.
ResinTech Inc. announced that is has officially moved into its new global headquarters in Camden, New Jersey. The $138.8 million development project includes 353,000 square feet of new construction on a 27-acre campus just 2 miles from Center City Philadelphia. The company is among several other global brands that have made the move to Camden, including American Water and Subaru of America.
The new high-tech facility is the largest of its kind on the East Coast and the first new U.S. plant built to produce ion exchange resins in over 30 years. Sized to produce up to 1 million cubic feet of strong-acid cation resin a year, the plant can be expanded to meet the demands of the growing market.
ResinTech complex features a total of 39 loading docks supporting 363,000 square feet.
The building features a larger world-class laboratory with even more sensitive equipment for water and resin testing. "We've nearly doubled the size of our lab operations and purchased equipment capable of measuring PFAS and other contaminants at parts per trillion levels," said ResinTech president Larry Gottlieb. "The new capabilities will provide customers with a greater understanding of their water's composition than ever before."
ResinTech has also moved its Aries Filterworks division, makers of POU filters and lab water systems, to the same complex. By manufacturing these products in the same building where the key media ingredients are made, ResinTech believes it will increase operational efficiencies and time-to-market. The company plans to bring its resin regeneration division, ACM Technologies, to New Jersey before the end of the year as well.
ResinTech's CEO, Jeff Gottlieb, discussed the company's excitement about moving to their new community and bringing manufacturing back to the United States: “This project brings so much excitement and reason for optimism on many levels. Locally, we're bringing jobs to New Jersey and to Camden specifically, a community
