Member Article

Biochemica shortlisted for New Energy & Cleantech Award

Teesside water treatment specialist Biochemica UK Ltd has been recognised for its commitment to innovation after being shortlisted for a prestigious New Energy & Cleantech Award.

Hot on the heels of celebrating its staff achievements at the NEPIC Annual Awards Dinner, the Billingham-based firm has now been shortlisted as Innovator of the Year at the New Energy & Cleantech Awards. The national award acknowledges the developer of the most groundbreaking technology, product or service that benefits the environment.

An influential event in the green energy and cleantech industries, the Awards are in their sixth year and recognise the achievements of management teams, projects and investors that have significantly contributed to the environment over the last year.

Biochemica has been shortlisted on the strength of its Bio Pack Clean product - an in situ cleaning technology especially developed for the pack-fill used within cooling towers.

The cleanliness of the material is an issue for those using cooling towers as part of their processes as Legionella bacteria can proliferate on debris that is deposited on it over its lifespan. This increases the risk of Legionnaires’ disease – a potentially fatal form of pneumonia.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has an Approved Code of Practice in place - ‘Legionnaires’ disease – The control of Legionella bacteria in water systems’, which provides advice on how companies can comply with meeting health and safety regulations. Known as L8, the guidance covers the removal and cleaning of pack-fill to avoid outbreaks of Legionnaires’ disease.

Cleaning the pack within cooling towers typically takes around a fortnight to complete by a team of people, which is costly. During this time, the tower is shut down, incurring additional costs. Should the pack be in a position whereby it cannot be cleaned, it must be removed and replaced, demanding even greater financial and sustainability implications.

The brain-child of Biochemica Managing Director, Dave Ruddy, Bio Pack Clean addresses the cost, time, manpower, health and safety and sustainability issues that cleaning cooling tower pack presents.

Commenting, Dave said: “Bio Pack Clean allows an easier, safer, quicker and significantly more cost effective means to clean pack-fill.

“The use of this product has provided our clients with a 99% saving of the typical downtime required for the cleaning process as well as the associated costs of shutting a tower down. The first company that used the product commercially saved a huge 90% on their outright costs by cleaning its existing pack-fill with Bio Pack Clean (£25,000), instead of replacing it (£250,000). The product also has a number of sustainability advantages, a subject at the core of the way of our business operates.”

The result of using Bio Pack Clean enables cooling towers to benefit from a more efficient energy process, an area Biochemica is keen to address within its water and wastewater treatment services.

Dave added: “We are thrilled to have been shortlisted for the Innovator of the Year category and have high hopes for the development of our Bio Pack Clean product. Although it is currently used to clean cooling tower pack-fill, it has the potential to be adopted in the wider water industry – including those within the wastewater field - and other sectors.”

The winners of this year’s New Energy & Cleantech Awards will be revealed at an impressive ceremony at the London Marriot Grosvenor Square on Thursday 21st March 2013.

For further information about Biochemica or its innovative Bio Pack Clean technology, please visit www.biochemica.co.uk call 08455 045440 or email info@biochemica.co.uk. To view the full Awards shortlist, click here.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Biochemica UK Ltd .