Water-efficient technology has vast potential and the associated tax relief can help manufacturers boost their bottom line. Water specialist Claire Sweeney, at UK sustainable business programme Envirowise, reports

As changing weather patterns and population growth increase the potential for severe water shortages, the need for effective water management is becoming greater than ever.

It is predicted that UK groundwater levels will begin to decrease by 2025, for example, the overall amount of water available in English and Welsh rivers is expected to reduce by 15% by 2050, according to the UK’s Environment Agency. Even businesses based in regions with higher water availability could feel the effect in their supply chains, while many companies could face changes to licences granted to allow water abstraction as a result of the Water Act 2003.

A business’s water footprint includes both indirect and direct water impacts. Direct water impacts are associated with water that is used from the tap and taken from a company’s water resources. Indirect water impacts are associated with the use of water throughout the entire ‘cradle to grave’ process to produce a product or service (for example, water used to grow crops, feed animals and use products at the consumer end of the supply chain). Indirect water impacts are much more complex to measure than direct water impacts.

Improving direct water efficiency will put companies on the road to future-proof against the potential effects of climate change and deliver significant financial benefits from reduced water supply costs and lower waste water disposal charges. Businesses that take a systematic approach could cut their water consumption by up to 50%.

Balancing the books

Key to accessing these savings is constructing a water balance to highlight where water enters and leaves a business, where it is lost and – crucially – where the greatest opportunities for reduction lie. If necessary, sub-meters can analyse usage within different parts of the business.
There are two important ways to help cut water costs – installing water saving devices and considering options for recovery and reuse. Using sprays and jets for cleaning, for example, can allow water to be better directed and therefore used more efficiently. Aerating water flow – both within plants and domestic areas such as staff kitchens and toilets – allows sprays, jets and taps to be used at a much lower pressure, further cutting water consumption.

Any sites that use pipework can reduce usage with product recovery systems that employ plugs or balls, known as ‘pigs’. These are pushed along the inside of a pipe by the product itself or a propellant, such as compressed air or nitrogen, so that less cleaning is required and raw material use decreases by enabling reuse of the recovered product. Effluent treatment costs will also fall because the waste water will have a lower effluent load.

In situ solutions

Cleaning-in-place (CIP) can deliver further advantages by cleaning machinery with little or no disassembly. This reduces chemical and water use, while recovering fluids that can be reused and increasing efficiency through greater automation. To harness the full benefits, however, CIP systems must be carefully monitored to ensure flow rates, cycle times and temperatures are optimised.

Manufacturers should also consider installing control and monitoring devices. These include leakage detectors, as well as technology such as turbidity probes that sense the speed and concentration of liquid through a pipe and control valves to direct the flow. Shut-off systems can be used where a constant stream of fluid is not needed, avoiding water loss.

Sites that use water for cleaning, cooling, heating and quenching could benefit from water recovery and reuse systems, such as membrane filtration, which separates mixtures of materials depending on the particle size. When used for waste water treatment, it offers a high level of purification and requires little energy to operate. The quantity of water reused depends on the level of treatment, which is directly related to the characteristics of the site effluent and the application for the treated water.

Tax break

Financial returns are not just available through mains supply and effluent savings, as many water efficient technologies are also eligible for tax relief through the Water Technology List (WTL). The WTL is managed by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affiars, and Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs, in partnership with UK sustainable business programme Envirowise. The list provides over 1,800 water efficient products and forms part of the Enhanced Capital Allowance scheme, enabling UK companies that pay income or corporation tax to claim 100% of first-year capital allowances when purchasing eligible products for their business. This provides a cash flow boost and results in a shortened payback period.

Water is set to become one of the most dramatically affected resources as climate change takes hold, but there are many steps which manufacturers can take to manage the risk, aiding the environment and the bottom line.

To find out more about purchasing products from the WTL, or to apply for certification for a membrane filtration or recovery and reuse system, visit www.eca-water.gov.uk.