The 2016 national ASPE conference in Phoenix Arizona has proven a major success for Grease Guardian.

Brand representatives from across North America met at the American Society of Plumbing Engineer’s convention to showcase the latest range of Grease Guardians.

Since it’s recent introduction to the US, the Grease Guardian has taken the country by storm with hundreds of units already installed in some of America’s most famous restaurants, hotels, universities and sporting arenas.

For more on Grease Guardian in the US click www.greaseguardianusa.com, or for the rest of world representation, click www.greaseguardian.com

The Sentinus Young Innovators Awards 2016 took place on the 13^th June at The University of Ulster, Jordanstown with schools across Ireland participating. The awards recognise innovation in the field of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The coveted Environmental Award – sponsored by FM Environmental – this year went to Grosvenor Grammar School in Belfast for their project Life Block, an innovative product to help redefine the built environment in the developing world.

The award was presented to the winning students by Kevin Fitzpatrick, Managing Director of FM Environmental.

“Sentinus provides students the opportunity to flex their mental muscles in the field of science and technology” said Mr. Fitzpatrick.  

“As an engineering business FM Environmental is proud to support the event and hopefully tap into some of this talent pool in years to come.”

Topaz, Ireland’s largest fuel and convenience brand, has recently opened the "City Avenue" service station in Citywest Business Campus on the outskirts of Dublin – complete with petrol pumps, a convenience store and a carwash. 
During the build, the contractor was tasked with finding an efficient, long-term SuDS (Sustainable urban Drainage System) that would not only successfully protect against flooding, but would also withstand the weight of heavy vehicles on the forecourt overhead. Specifying a solution that would work with the site’s space and depth restrictions was also key. 

When the system originally proposed could not meet the project’s unique requirements, the contractors approached water engineering specialist FM Environmental for an effective alternative. 

Topaz Energy recently became part of the Alimentation Couche Tard Corporation, which possesses over 15,000 filling stations in North America and Europe. 

FM Environmental worked with Graf UK to specify, design and install a 240-cubic litre EcoBloc Inspect Flex stormwater attenuation tank, with a lorry-bearing capacity of 60 tonnes. As the tank is designed to be installed at depths as shallow as 1.32 metres (with an 600mm earth covering), this made it the ideal fit for the limited space available. Surrounded by an impermeable membrane, the tank releases water back into the main storm system at a controlled flow rate, using a supplied vortex flow controller. The team also specified a 10,000L Carat XXL underground rainwater harvesting tank from Graf UK, which feeds the rainwater it collects directly into the service station’s on-site carwash.

The treatment of the garage facilties was finished off with the supply of a grease trap to handle the cooked food production at their Re.Store restaurant concept.

Results

The EcoBloc Inspect Flex system is delivering effective, ongoing flood prevention that meets the Topaz site’s significant vehicle loading needs. What’s more, the tank’s inbuilt inspection channels allow for straightforward maintenance, ensuring optimum performance for the lifetime of the system. It is also engineered to handle the kind of extreme storms that only occur roughly once every 100 years – making it a truly long-term solution. Meanwhile, the Carat XXL rainwater tank is providing the carwash with

Announcing the project at Grand Central Station at the end of a week-long visit to the US, Minister Bell said: “This is an impressive development for a very ambitious Northern Ireland company. FM Environmental identified the US as a target market for its Grease Guardian products and took the strategic decision to open a US office to enable it to capitalise on the business opportunities. 

“This commitment has certainly paid off.  In the first 12 months the company has successfully installed its products in over 300 different locations across the US, and can now include the magnificent Grand Central Station in its long list of customers.

“This is an excellent example of how a growing Northern Ireland company can prosper in a global market with the right focus and investment.  I hope this deal will act as a springboard for FM Environmental to generate even more business here.”

FM Environment established its New York headquarters in 2014, and this latest contract adds to their existing business with leading US fast-food restaurants and coffee houses.

Over the last number of years the company has invested in innovative products and services that differentiate it from its competitors. It has also identified key export markets including Russia, Malaysia, Australia and Mexico.

Invest NI has offered the company £50,000 of support to assist it with its export growth plans, including market development activities, IT support and the creation of two new jobs.

Designed to be fully automated, the OXY-FLO is a self contained smart-control dosing system that anticipates septic conditions thereby preventing noxious odours and material corrosion.

Why dose? Septicity occurs when dissolved oxygen is consumed thereby creating anaerobic conditions resulting in the bacteria forming hydrogen sulphide. Hydrogen sulphide not only contributes to noxious odours at manholes and chambers but also contributes to corrosion in concrete and metal sewer pipes and pumping stations through the formation of sulphuric acid, leading to costly repairs and even emergency reconstruction as a result of collapsing mains.

Hot weather conditions, further contributes to the septicity problem with noxious odours at sewage works and pumping stations causing a public nuisance to holiday-makers and seaside day-trippers across the country.

The OXY-FLO system has been designed as a one-stop solution for solving septicity problems either on new or existing installations. The OXY-FLO system is set up at the factory providing a plug-and-play solution when it arrives on site. The intuitive touch-screen interface allows fine-tuning once installed on site with historical data logging of events and alarm notifications contributing to the refinement process.

The OXY-FLO system uses triple compensation to ensure dosing is carried out effectively and efficiently. By measuring temperature, H2S levels and pumped flow, OXY-FLO adapts its output to dose the perfect amount of chemical required for the specific and changing site conditions.

The OXY-FLO system comes as a compact package including intelligent duty-standby dosing pumps, a powerful PLC controller, Hi-Resolution HMI touch screen interface, external alarm indication, safety shower/eye-wash facility and temperature and H2S sensing probes. The entire system is neatly packaged in an innovative GRP kiosk with its own retractable weather-resistant roof and doors, making the OXY-FLO an indispensable piece of innovation for Water Utilities