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As part of this bi-weekly newsletter, we bring you the latest industry news, technology innovations and appointments from across the industry including:
60th anniversary for Grundfos, Acquisitions, and DO NOT DRINK!
To quick things off, GRUNDFOS is marking its 60th anniversary in the UK, having established a sales company in the country in 1964.
During the past 60 years, the UK has remained a significant part of Grundfos’ global business and is one of the Danish company’s largest markets globally.
Grundfos has experienced strong growth in the UK in recent years, doubling its revenue from 2005–2023 with a focus on commercial buildings as well as the food and beverage industry.
Glynn Williams, UK managing director at Grundfos since 2020, believes it’s this commitment, combined with a clear focus on customers’ individual needs that ensures Grundfos is still going strong in the UK after 60 years.
“Our longstanding success in the UK is a result of always working closely together with our customers to come up with tailormade solutions that make a real difference for them, diligently focusing on sustainability in everything we do.”
Poul Due Jensen, CEO of Grundfos, who is in the UK to mark the anniversary, said:
“Our 60th anniversary in the UK is a celebration of our unwavering dedication to people, sustainability, and innovation. Every day, driven by an optimistic, can-do spirit, we work tirelessly for water, protecting, respecting, and advancing its flow together with our loyal customers. Through a focused approach and a strong emphasis on climate and water, we adapt to changes with resilience and care, shaping a brighter, more sustainable future for all."
Congratulations and here is to the next 60!
Techouse AS has signed an agreement to acquire pump and genset supplier Eureka Pumps from Remold Invest and Aker Capital.
Established in 1889 and headquartered in Oslo, Eureka provides water pumps and genset solutions for offshore installations in the oil & gas and offshore wind markets. The business employs approximately 150 people across four locations and had a turnover of NOK547 million in 2023. Following the acquisition, the Eureka brand will remain, and the company will become part of Techouse Group as a separate subsidiary.
Techouse Group is home to Techouse AS, a specialist in energy recovery and water treatment solutions to the offshore oil and gas sector, and @Cubility AS, an innovator of solid control systems and water treatment. With Eureka, the Techouse Group will have three distinct divisions, offices in Norway, the UK, Bosnia, France, Chile and China, and more than 300 employees.
UK waterways face a persistent threat: nutrient pollution. As water companies gear up for AMP8, finding sustainable, cost-effective phosphorus removal solutions is crucial.
The health of UK watercourses has been deteriorating over the last few years. Environment Agency figures show that only 14% of rivers in England have good ecological status in 2023. Whilst recent headlines focus on uncontrolled discharges from storm overflows, nutrient pollution – particularly from excess phosphorus – remain a critical threat.
In the UK, strict environmental regulations govern phosphorus removal, including the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (UWWTD). These laws set limits on phosphorus concentrations in wastewater discharges to protect water quality and prevent eutrophication.
Monitoring phosphorus in wastewater is critical to ensure compliance and identifying pollution sources. This data allows stakeholders to track phosphorus levels over time, assess treatment effectiveness, and make necessary changes to reduce environmental harm. Finally, monitoring confirms the success of these interventions, ensuring phosphorus levels stay within acceptable ranges.
Informed decisions need accurate information. This is why SUEZ provides both wastewater sampling and chemical dosing optimisation studies to ensure efficient and effective phosphorus removal. In the last year alone, we have analysed over 100 sites, providing insights needed to design next-generation AMP8 solutions and successfully complete AMP7 upgrades.
Valmet to supply automation technology for Finnish data center excess heat recovery project.
The heat pump plants will recycle emission-free excess heat from Microsoft’s two planned large data center areas to Fortum’s existing district heating network. The data centers will eventually provide 40% of the consumed heat in the network area. Fortum’s district heat in Finland will be produced coal-free during 2024 and carbon-neutrally before 2030.
“We are excited to be involved in turning Fortum’s district heat production carbon neutral in Finland,”
says Tom Bäckman, Sales Manager, Automation Systems, Valmet.
“The heat pump plants are part of Fortum’s district heating system, including the Suomenoja power plant in Espoo that has been running with Valmet’s automation for years. In the future, the new plants can be controlled and monitored remotely from the Suomenoja power plant. We have earlier supplied similar Valmet DNA Automation Systems to Fortum’s Vermo 2 and Mankkaa heat pump plants.”
Valmet’s total scope of delivery will include Valmet DNA Automation Systems and Valmet DNA User Interface both to the Kolabacken heat plant in Kirkkonummi and the Hepokorpi heat plant in Espoo.
The National Trust and Yorkshire Water have joined forces with additional partners, who can help to overcome any hurdles that the various assessments and consultations may bring. Landscapes for Water is breaking new ground as a joined-up conservation programme, and support from the Environment Agency, Natural England and the Woodland Trust has been invaluable.
The programme isn’t the first time that Yorkshire Water have partnered with the National Trust on joint climate-impact mitigation. As Yorkshire’s two biggest landowners, they first made an agreement to work together – known as the ‘Common Cause’ – in 2019. The following year, with additional support from the Woodland Trust, they planted 112,000 trees, installed 435 natural flood management leaky dams, and undertook peatland restoration at Gorpley Reservoir, Todmorden.
“By linking up with our various partners, we’ve been able to call on expert support whenever we have needed it – ensuring we’re always taking the right steps and doing the right thing,”
said Nicola Shaw. Nicola goes on the add:
“The combined result of these schemes will go a long way towards ensuring residents are safe from flooding – as well as enabling us to continue to deliver safe, quality clean drinking water to local homes and businesses.”
Shaw is confident that partnerships like these can do more than the organisations can alone to mitigate the impact of climate change, and – by harnessing the power of nature – can prepare the land for an uncertain future.
Wastewater treatment is one of the most energy-intensive processes for the water sector, and with electricity prices having increased by an average of 27% per year from 2021-2023, making sites run more efficiently is a major focus for utilities.
Water companies have dedicated teams working continually on wastewater treatment plant (WwTP) optimisation, and Xylem is supporting many in identifying where and how energy and emissions can be cut.
The water sector is powered by pumps, and in terms of energy bills, the pumping of wastewater amounts to one of the biggest spends for water companies. The good news is that intelligent pump and mixer systems are now available that sense the operating conditions and adapt performance to changing flow rates in real-time.
Scottish Water partnered with Xylem to upgrade hundreds of pumping stations with sustainable technology, as part of its 2040 net zero commitment. In an initial trial, the Flygt Concertor pumping system reduced unplanned maintenance by 99.8% and cut energy use by up to 60 per cent.
Nathan Wield from Scottish Water said:
“After the successful trial of Concertor, and understanding the energy-saving that came with it, this led to more trials and then eventually wider adoption. Today we have about 300 Concertor pumps installed across Scotland, with many more to come.”
Now would also be a good time for utilities to undertake an audit of wastewater treatment processes, including visual and analytical inspections of equipment and instrumentation, to understand how much energy and chemical sites are consuming and which improvements should be prioritised to deliver most impact.
With the water sector under ever-tightening budgetary constraints with higher expectations on operations and delivery, energy cost recovery is a win-win for water companies and their customers.
Thames Water has introduced a precautionary ‘do not drink’ notice to 616 households in Bramley, Surrey, after test results received on Thursday 30th May indicated elevated levels of hydrocarbons
Tess Fayers, Operations Director for the Thames Valley and Home Counties said:
"The health and safety of our customers is our number one priority, and we would like to reassure residents that this is a precautionary measure. We are in the process of delivering letters and bottled water to the affected properties. We are also identifying locations to set-up bottled water stations and we will share this information with our customers as soon as possible"
Europe:
North America:
For more information on any of these opportunities, please get in touch with Lyle King or Will Brockbank.
That's it for Volume 13! Stay tuned for more and don't forget to follow Influx Search for the latest industry news and job advertisements.
