Aqua-Save installation helps Bulwell precision save £8000 per year recycling waste water

Environmental improvements have followed on directly from the installation of an Aqua-Save Technologies waste water treatment unit by one of the country's leading precision engineering companies. The development, at Bulwell Precision Engineers, is centred on a self-contained Aqua-Save 30 that has virtually eradicated the need to dispose of waste water off site whilst providing the opportunity to recycle back into the manufacturing process. The investment, which is anticipated to pay back in under two years, is now playing a key role in the design and manufacture of precision engineered parts.

A leading supplier to high tech industries - such as the military, aerospace and formula one motor racing - Bulwell Precision Engineers has built its reputation on manufacturing quality of the highest level. The organisation, part of the Nasmyth Group, focuses on the production of small/medium engineering components to within a 500 mm cube format. A full range of materials including aluminium, exotic alloys, titanium and ceramics are utilised, the vast majority of which are subjected to advanced engineering that is often based on five-axis machining stations. The A380 Airbus is just one example of a resultant application of the company's technology.

"The Aqua-Save installation has now become a key collection point for machining coolant, which contains 4% oil, as well as janitorial and other waste process water," explains Colin Buxton, Project Manager at the site. "This is now collected from a number of locations and discharged into a 5000 litre holding tank alongside the Aqua-Save unit from where initial oil residues are skimmed. A series of further tanks bring the water holding capacity up to 9000 litres before it is transferred in to the adjacent Aqua-Save.

"The result is clean water that we can either discharge to drain or, transfer into IBC's for re-use in various manufacturing processes such as vibratory barrelling," he adds. "We anticipate that in due course 95% of our water usage requirement will be met by the Aqua-Save with only the remaining 5% from the metered mains supply."

The Aqua-Save is designed to treat, recover and reuse the waste water by separating out oily emulsions. This concentrated oily waste, which typically represents less than 5% of the original volume, is then the only material that needs to be transported off site for safe disposal.

"The Bulwell Precision Engineers plant operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week so there is an ongoing through-put of waste water," comments Paul Jarratt, who heads up the Aqua-Save Technologies Division of MecWash Systems Ltd. "The Aqua-Save 30 now installed can handle the entire site output in just 10 working days each month leaving significant capacity for further application. Furthermore," he continues, "the unit itself is currently processing some 30 litres of waste water per hour but has the ability to increase this to 40 litres."

'Waste reduction and recycling' is at the heart of Bulwell Precision Engineers' ISO 14001 accreditation and requires all stages of the manufacturing process to be environmentally friendly.

"Waste water is an inevitable bi-product of our machining processes and day-to-day factory operation," concludes Colin Buxton. "With the Aqua-Save in place, we have a state of the art answer which is not only meeting immediate requirements but is well placed to reflect our continuing growth in the future."

Image 1 caption: The Aqua-Save 30 - now installed by Aqua-Save Technologies at Bulwell Precision Engineers - has virtually eradicated the need to dispose of waste water offsite and provides the opportunity to recycle back into the manufacturing process.

Image 2 caption: The Aqua-Save Technologies' Aqua-Save 30 waste water treatment unit at Bulwell Precision Engineers is conveniently located adjacent to a holding tank installation.