In this issue of Building & Construction Review, we are delighted to select Smart Storm for demonstrating unparalleled Commitment to Excellence for thirty years in the wastewater sector.
Award-winning Smart Storm is a leading UK Manufacturer of Wastewater Monitoring and Treatment Instrumentation, additionally supplying bespoke solutions for the complex demands of industrial trade effluent. Built on a history of systematic research and development capability, the company has long been at the forefront of innovative products for water and wastewater industries. This has resulted in multiple prestigious awards for developments in technology in the UK and across Europe.
The head office is located in Caernarfon, Wales, with cutting-edge R&D and production departments; the Yorkshire office in Halifax operates the wastewater solutions sector for trade effluent.
The company business is effectively organised into three separate areas which offer a unique hybrid benefit to all customers:
- INSTRUMENTATION – The expert product range includes level, flow, sampling, and water quality measurement.
- SOLUTIONS – for three decades, Smart Storm’s solutions have supplied industrial wastewater monitoring, treatment solutions, and services –The bespoke solutions for trade effluent, empower clients from all industries to be environmentally compliant whilst reducing effluent bills.
- FATS OILS AND GREASE REMEDIATION – Design and manufacture of unique and innovative solutions for the removal of fats, oils, and grease from wastewater.
Smart Storm was founded in Halifax, Yorkshire in 1993, by Dr John Duffy, a pioneering academic in piezoelectric and dielectric material science, specialising in medical and industrial non-invasive sensing. After nine years as a distinguished lecturer at Bradford University, Dr Duffy saw an opportunity for a business challenge, having invented a new type of ultrasonic sensor.
Prior to Smart Storm, flow and level instrumentation for the wastewater sector was acutely dominated by German and French companies. Dr Duffy’s foray into the sector therefore propelled the start of an unprecedented chapter in UK invention and manufacturing of wastewater instrumentation. Under the expert guidance of Dr Duffy, Smart Storm has become a Powerhouse in its own right, built on the sturdy foundations of expert research and development capability.
We spoke to Jan Richmond: Smart Storm’s Sales and Marketing Executive to find out more about this innovative manufacturer,
“The latest Universal Smart Instrument is a result of three long years of meticulous research and development and is the only instrument of its kind in the market and truly without competition. No other product competes with its advanced technology and user experience.
Smart Storm has a strong belief in protecting our planet from pollution. Our water treatment specialists are dedicated to developing instrumentation and systems that meet the demands of pollution prevention and control. Our products, manufactured in-house, offer a simpler and more cost-effective means of measuring and controlling waste and enable wastewater to be managed and treated at source more easily, reducing carbon footprints and providing a positive social impact through an enhanced and cleaner environment.”
Recently, Smart Storm has greatly expanded its product range and successfully moved into all areas of water and wastewater instrumentation, growing the business both at home and overseas, particularly Asia, Middle East and Africa, plus recent successes in South America.”
The NeutraliZerTM – Innovation in Concrete Washout pH Treatment
Using cutting-edge R&D practices, Smart Storm developed a mobile in-line treatment plant that uses CO2 to counteract high alkaline concrete washout water and is a truly unique product on the market today. The NeutraliZerTM is aimed at a diverse range of industries from: concrete and brick manufacturers, construction companies, water, pharmaceutical & chemical companies, railway & road infrastructure, mining, and quarrying sectors and is a prime example of sustainable best practice.
As construction insiders will know, the pH of concrete wash water is particularly caustic (pH 12-14) and dangerous to local biodiversity if discharged to the watercourse. UK law stipulates that wash water cannot legally be discharged unless within the pH 6-9 level range and this extends to concrete wagon washouts to sewer and surface drains.
With compliant health & safety to consider, the use of acid for pH neutralisation is problematic on building and construction sites around the country due to its hazardous nature. Nor is it energy efficient to use clean water to dilute concrete washout, as this would require on average, 10,000 litres of water to reduce just one litre of concrete wash water from pH 13 to acceptable levels. Smart Storm’s NeutraliZer was precision-engineered as a more efficient system to traditional batch system methods, in which CO2 is added to a tank to achieve the desired pH balance. This system is inherently flawed as there was no processing control and carried an excessively large carbon footprint.
Smart Storm studied the effects of CO2 for pH balancing from researching other industrial applications. CO2 has been routinely used as a food and beverage additive, in fire extinguishers, welding, in the production of chemicals, as a refrigerant, in plastic production, agriculture, and cultivation, but has never before been used to neutralise highly caustic concrete runoff on an ongoing flow basis.
Looking ahead to the future, Smart Storm is committed to placing clients at the forefront of products, services, and projects. We asked Jan what ‘Commitment to Excellence’ means to the company:
“Commitment to excellence is achieved by analysing what we can do to not only meet but exceed customer expectations using collaborative working practices and problem solving. Combined with a culture of creative thinking, innovation, and continuous improvement, we strive to deliver high quality products and services that continuously surpass expectations.”
To read more about the Water Award 2023 Finalist shortlisting and the NeutraliZer™, see the link below: www.smartstormgroup.com/pollution_mitigation_finalist_2023
Click on the QR code to find out more.