PORTLAND, ME, Feb. 18, 2008 -- A major project to upgrade Florida's city of Clearwater pollution control facilities has delivered a world-record breaking $1.8 million contract for Hydro International -- the largest ever for Hydro's Grit King® technology.
The contract marks a significant development in Hydro's growing national and international wastewater treatment business, with expanding operations in the US and Ireland boosting the UK's well-established UK operation.
Recently appointed as Chief Operating Officer for Hydro International, Chris Williams highlighted the contract's significance as an international endorsement of Hydro's wastewater treatment technology.
"Hydro's wastewater business is firmly established as an international leader in providing cost-effective pollution control solutions offering unique, low-maintenance based technologies with a well-established and growing installed based worldwide.
Hydro will supply the Gulf Coast city with five Grit King® advanced hydrodynamic separator units to upgrade the grit-removal processes at two of Clearwater's three wastewater treatment plants. The 4m diameter Grit King® units will replace the existing high-energy vortex grit removal systems at the plants.
The city of Clearwater purchase came as part of a larger initiative to upgrade the inlet works at the City's Marshall Street and East Advanced Pollution Control Facilities.
"The city was looking for improved performance and increased reliability, and after conducting pilot testing with the Grit King® units and development of a system design that could be retrofitted into the city's existing inlet works, we determined that this solution more than meets the plants' needs," said Thomas Friedrich, P.E., at Jones Edmunds & Associates, of Tampa, Fla., the engineering consultants representing the city.
During the design phase of the plant improvement project, Hydro provided a Grit King® mobile pilot unit to Clearwater and participated in a head-to-head trial with one of the existing high-energy vortex systems at the Marshall Street plant. The data showed the Grit King® removing up to 23 times as much grit as the existing system.
The Grit King® is an advanced hydrodynamic separator that augments gravitational forces to separate grit from water. It removes more grit than conventional systems, making it an economical choice for new or existing municipal or industrial wastewater applications. Because it has no moving parts and no external power source, the Grit King® requires significantly less maintenance and consequently offers a better carbon footprint than conventional technologies.
"We are extremely proud the city of Clearwater has seen the value Hydro International's Grit King® provides in terms of grit-removal efficiency," said Neil Raymond, Hydro's general manager of wastewater operations in the US. "Grit that is not captured in the process degrades the machinery in a wastewater treatment plant at an alarming rate. Clearwater's investment in new equipment and new processes shows a level of foresight that will serve constituents well."
Hydro International provides cost‑effective solutions for controlling the quantity and improving the quality of water with minimal maintenance.
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