Environmental improvement and significant cost savings – arguably more important today than ever before – are being achieved by one of the UK's leading manufacturers of hydraulic tubes and assemblies as a result of two Aqua-Save waste water treatment installations. Both units, from Aqua-Save Technologies – the specialist division of component cleaning company, MecWash Systems – are fully operational at Iracroft Ltd. at Blandford Forum in Dorset.

Pete Lewis, Technical & Engineering Manager at the company, explains the role played by the two installations and highlights the benefits that they have brought to the organisation –

"We utilise a series of caustic wash tanks around the premises which, unavoidably, produce waste water in volume," he says. "Until we installed the Aqua-Save units, this required a tanker to visit the site approximately every three weeks to remove the waste solution with significant disposal costs therefore arising. Now we anticipate such visits to take place no more than three times per year which, in turn, points to rapid pay back on the installation and ongoing cost savings thereafter."

Iracroft manufactures a wide range of hydraulic tubes and assembly units – primarily for the construction equipment industry – some of which are up to 200kgs in weight and up to 4.5 metres long. The company points out that at any given moment, some 2,500 part numbers are 'live', resulting in a constant throughput of material and a continuous need to ensure production and environmental processes are of the highest quality. Wash procedures and consequent waste water disposal are a fundamental part of this equation.

An Aqua-Save 30 waste water recycling system has been positioned alongside the main dump washer at the site which contains some 4,600 litres of caustic cleaning solution. At the same time, the mobile design of its stable-mate the Aqua-Save Junior, allows it to be moved between production areas and attached to a series of smaller tanks – typically holding some 200 litres.

"We have approximately 130 machining stations in the factory, which we believe makes us the largest manufacturer in this field in the UK," continues Pete Lewis, "and it is very important that the inhibitor that is used during the production process is removed. The wash tanks are therefore vital and in all cases their operation has been significantly enhanced by the Aqua-Save designs."

Each Aqua-Save unit allows some 95 % of the wash solution to be re-used with only the remaining material – mostly in liquid form from the caustic cleaning processes – then needing to be removed periodically from site. The environmental benefits of this are clearly evident whilst the reduction in water usage and cost that arises from each Aqua-Save installation is also a significant benefit, supplementing the dramatic reduction in waster water removal from site.

"Importantly, Iracroft has also benefited from support from the Enhanced Capital Allowance (ECA) scheme which provides significant financial incentives to organisations investing in equipment and services that offset the potential environmental impact of their water based processes," explains Paul Jarratt, Divisional Sales Manager of Aqua-Save Technologies.

"In terms of performance, environmental and cost benefits arising from the technology behind the Aqua-Save design, we believe the installations at Iracroft are an excellent example of the gains that can be realised and we are delighted to be involved with one of the leading manufacturers in its field," he concludes.

Image caption: The Aqua-Save 30 waste water recycling system from Aqua-Save Technologies which is helping Iracroft Ltd. enhance its environmental performance and save costs.