Tag Archives: sewage treatment plant maintenance

Water magazine portal information on the KEE Group

KEE Group Limited | Water Magazine

Made up of KEE Process & KEE Services Limited

Specialists in Domestic & Industrial Wastewater Treatment

Specialists in Domestic & Industrial Sewage Treatment Plants and Pump Stations

Specialists in servicing sewage treatment plants and pump stations

Guide for users of Packaged Wastewater Treatment Plants codes of practice has been updated

British Water are in the process of updating their
off-mains sewerage infrastructure codes of practice

 

 

https://www.britishwater.co.uk/Publications/codes-of-practice.aspx

 

CLICK HERE: Guide for users of Packaged Wastewater Treatment Plants.
(Updated June 2020)

 

 

 

 

For full information on our KEE services and process technology, visit our WEBSITE

At KEE we are ‘open for business’

The KEE Group provide solutions to the Wastewater Treatment Industry for all domestic, commercial and industrial applications.   CLICK HERE

  • KEE are committed to providing total customized solutions for the treatment of wastewater and have the most innovative systems to treat every situation.
  • KEE leads the country in the supply, maintenance and operation of wastewater treatment systems and can provide you with the best solution.
  • KEE systems are also available for hire.

  CLICK HERE

KEE Services comprises a complete range of options, from simple servicing and repairs through to full service, maintenance and plant operation, including:

  • On-Site Plant Operation
  • Facilities Management
  • Emergency Service
  • Planned Maintenance
  • Breakdowns
  • Equipment Refurbishment
  • Spares
  • BioGuard™ Grease Digester
  • Ancillary Products

Specialists in Domestic & Industrial Wastewater Treatment  CLICK HERE

KEE wastewater technology provide total solutions for the treatment of wastewater:

  • Process Engineering
  • Project Management and Turnkey Projects
  • Pumping Equipment
  • Dispersed Air Floatation (DAF)
  • Anaerobic treatment for industrial wastewater
  • Sequencing Batch Reactor
  • NuDisc™ and Packaged RBC Systems
  • Submerged Aerated Filters (SAF)
  • Oxidation Ditch
  • Installation and Commissioning
  • Nutrient Removal

For full information on our KEE services and process technology, visit our WEBSITE.

KEE Looking after our customer needs

KEE domestic sewage equipment servicing and tankering

COVID-19:
This is an important announcement and requires your immediate attention.

As COVID-19 has an increasing impact on our lives, we wanted to inform and assure you that KEE Group is committed to providing clients with a good service across all areas of its business.

In doing so however we must also ensure the wellbeing of our staff and reflect the guidance issued by HM Government. Inevitably this will require some changes to day-to-day operations and such changes are set out below.

In the coming weeks, there may be a reduced postal service meaning that correspondence is not delivered to us in a timely way or that it is delivered but cannot be processed at our head office because staff are working remotely in line with HM Government guidelines.

  • Our Customer Services team are available as ever to respond to any questions or concerns you may have. If you have any questions, CONTACT US or call 01296 634500.
  • If you wish to book a service, go to our online ‘BOOK A SERVICE’ page.

We would like to reassure our customers that we operate in a Key Sector. This means we are still operating and looking after our customers needs in this very difficult time.

For full information on our KEE services and technology, visit our WEBSITE.

Spare a thought for your Sewage Treatment Plant this Christmas

KEE-Van-fleet

Spare a thought for your
Sewage Treatment Plant this Christmas

With the festive season upon us, guests arriving and the celebrations in full swing, please do keep in mind what you and any visitors are pouring or flushing down your drainage system into your Sewage Treatment Plant.

Do’s

  • Follow manufacturers’ recommended doses for your water type when using household cleaning products. Soft water requires far less detergent concentration than hard water.
  • Try to use cleaning products little and often so your treatment plant is not overloaded.
  • Use liquids (not powders) in washing machines and dishwashers. Powders re-coagulate into clumps and can cause blockages.
  • Try to spread your clothes washing throughout the week.
  • Stick to the same washing, dishwasher and other cleaning products as the bacteria will work more efficiently with products it is used to treating.
  • Think before you put anything down the sink, toilet or drains.
  • Desludge your plant when required. Click HERE to view our one page KEE EXPERT guide on proficient desludging and how regularly your unit should be desludged.
  • Ensure only toilet paper is flushed down the toilet and used in normal quantities.
  • Leave your plant switched on while you are away or on holiday. Switching off your plant can cause damage to the motor and moving parts as well as kill the biomass.
  • Compost all your organic food waste or use your local council bio-degradable waste recycling service (where applicable) to dispose of organic waste. Do not flush organic waste down the sink or drain.

Don’ts

  • Don’t put sanitary towels, tampons, cotton wool or cotton wool buds, incontinence pads or any baby, cleaning or facial wipes down the toilet.
  • Don’t flush rubber products or other non-biodegradable products down the toilet.
  • Don’t pour fat, grease or cooking oil down the sink or drains. Fats suffocate the bacteria and inhibit the biological process. Everyday products such as milk, wine or beer increase the organic load and should also not be disposed of through the wastewater system.
  • Don’t use neat disinfectant or bleach. KEE recommends that these products are only used at the minimum concentration possible, as they can restrict the biomass growth within the plant.
  • Don’t tip medicine, mouth wash or any chemicals such as photographic fluid or garden products (e.g. Insecticides, weed killers and fungicides) down the drains as they will damage the biological treatment process.
  • Don’t pour DIY products (e.g. paint, thinners, turpentine and white spirit etc.) or car fluids such as engine oil, anti-freeze, brake fluid etc. down the drains.
  • Don’t allow rainwater, groundwater or large volumes of water (such as those from a swimming pool or Jacuzzi) into the plant. Chlorine kills the bacteria and the excessive water will increase the flow rate through the plant, not allowing sufficient treatment time.
  • Don’t fit a waste disposal unit under your kitchen sink. Disposing of organic matter through the treatment system increases the organic load, creating bacterial overgrowth which will inhibit the treatment process. Only use a waste disposal unit if your plant is specifically designed to accept higher organic loads.

 

Click the image to download the leaflet.

For more information visit our website or call
KEE Services on:
01296 634500

Don’t want to pay for a new treatment plant – why not refurbish your old one?

KEE Process and KEE Services Limited have been commissioned to refurbish and update countless old and tired treatment plants. The example shown below is of a unit located in a small Welsh Village. The ageing plant was proving unreliable and not performing efficiently so KEE designed and built a KEE NuDisc® to replace and update the old treatment plant. 

Refurbishment of old BioDisc

KEE’s upgrade solution was – KEE NuDisc® Technology.

Often the structural housing of a wastewater plant can be re-used, meaning the internal components are replaced with brand new factory built KEE systems, incorporating the latest concepts in mechanical, structural and process engineering.

Refurbishments of this kind extend the life of the plant by another 20 years, drastically reducing the overall lifetime cost when compared to installing a brand new plant.

KEE’s Service technicians complete a full refurbishment suitability survey to assess the compatibility of each plant for an upgrade. This is applicable to all manufacturer makes of wastewater treatment plants and not just those designed, and produced by KEE. Water Authority sites have proved popular with refurbishments, reducing Water Authority spending and providing brand new refurbished treatment plants which are fully compliant to the relevant Authority specification.

Refurbishments remove the costly civil work elements associated with complete plant replacement.

Utilising current process equipment can often increase the treatment capabilities of the existing system, therefore making the refurbished plant fit-for-purpose for increased flows and loads, a problem which often occurs with old systems as more influent is added to it over their working life.

Following refurbishment KEE can continue to service, maintain and monitor the condition of the plant to keep it in good working order and performing efficiently.

Why Refurbish?

  • Minimises waste by only replacing the parts of the plant that need replacing.
  • Greatly reduces the volume and complexity of site works.
  • Less noise and general disturbance on site.
  • Minimises plant ‘downtime’. A refurbishment is generally quicker to complete than a new installation.
  • Incorporates the latest process design features and efficiencies such as KEE’s ‘managed flow’ system to protect the environment and meet wastewater consents and legislation.
  • Reduce or eliminate the need to find an alternative location for a new plant.
  • Extends plant lifespan by 20 years, at a fraction of the total cost of a new plant.

For more information on plant upgrades, refurbishments or new wastewater treatment systems, please visit our website or contact us on: 01296 634500

 

Benefits of a Planned Preventative Maintenance (PPM) approach to managing your Wastewater Treatment Equipment.

“ A maintenance strategy is necessary to ensure the smooth running of business operations. As well as giving a business better control over its asset and maintenance costs, a clear maintenance strategy helps to ensure statutory compliance and adherence to company policies. ”
Ian Short. KEE Services Business Development Manager.

An unplanned, reactive maintenance approach may lead to lower maintenance costs up front and less time spent on planning and performing maintenance in the short term, but that’s about where the benefits end. The cost of replacing failed components, equipment and emergency call out work at short notice and/or outside of normal operating hours costs much more when the situation arises. Therefore not proactively planning your maintenance tends to be more costly in the longer term and causes much more disruption to your business fixing the problem once it has occurred.

Why maintain your equipment?

There are a number of key reasons a business should take the time to consider the maintenance needs of their Wastewater Treatment equipment:

  • Regulatory compliance
  • Environmental surroundings
  • Ensuring a pleasant
  • Health and Safety obligations
  • Budget management
  • Reliability of equipment
  • Optimising asset use
  • Energy management
  • Business need

Proactive maintenance keeps you one step ahead of your equipment needs. In the same way that you would take your car for regular servicing rather than waiting for it to break down and incurring a large repair bill, it’s strongly advisable to maintain your equipment on a systematic basis.

PPM Strategy

PPM involves setting a maintenance schedule based on either calendar time or asset hours. This should also take into account factors specific to your business usage such as the environment in which it is operated and any legal waste consent requirements applicable.

A maintenance strategy takes the business’s maintenance aims and translates them into actions to support the company’s obligations, requirements and intentions. The strategy should include the following elements:

  • Setting of an appropriate budget
  • Carrying out risk assessments of equipment and processes
  • Establishing detailed regulatory, health and safety needs
  • Designing a resource and efficiency management strategy
  • Ensuring adherence to waste permit limits set by Environmental Agency.
  • Assessing the age of the equipment and whether any plants require refurbishment to extend plant longevity and minimise reactive maintenance.
  • Ensuring all maintenance work is completed by certified, registered companies appropriately insured and trained to complete the work.

PPM Programme

PPM is usually carried out with the support of a certified partner specialising in asset maintenance such as ourselves. Using our experience, we can provide a better insight into the condition of your assets. As a result, you can adopt a proactive maintenance programme designed specifically for your business and equipment thereby reducing the need for reactive maintenance.

Reactive maintenance may sometimes still be required, but a PPM plan will reduce the likelihood of this happening and will assist you in managing the maintenance budget with fewer surprises. Additionally, if a reactive engineer call out is required, KEE can check when the next planned Service Visit is due at your site and, where appropriate, arrange for the engineer to complete the ‘PPM Service’ on the plant at the same time, therefore minimising call out charges and site visits costs.

PPM also gives much greater control over the impact maintenance has on business operations because you can schedule when you wish maintenance to be completed based on when it will cause minimum disruption. For example, you can arrange a maintenance visit for a specific day when employees are available to provide access etc. Seasonal requirements can also be taken into account to ensure your Wastewater Treatment equipment is serviced and in full working order when needed most.

Following a maintenance program and documenting all work carried out also supports your legal compliance and provides evidence thereof (should it be required) in the event of system failure leading to harm or environmental damage.

KEE Services maintain all types and makes of Wastewater Treatment equipment. Please contact us on +44 (0) 1296 634 500 or visit our KEE Services website for more information on designing a PPM programme to suit your requirements.

KEE News – It’s all change in 2020! What do the latest septic tank regulations mean for you?

“Septic tank regulations” – I agree it’s not an opening phrase that would make many people read on, but if you have a septic tank on your property, then you might just need to read on.

Given what goes into a septic tank, it’s understandable why the Environment Agency is keen to make sure that it stays in the tank, instead of in the local stream. So, there are a lot of rules and regulations surrounding septic tanks, from where you can put them to where and how the water can be discharged.

The latest regulations came out in 2015, and are called `General binding rules: small sewage discharge to surface water’.  It doesn’t exactly trip off the tongue, but it’s a very important document for many property owners and worth a read.

In the past, you could discharge the separated waste water from your septic tank in one of two ways:

  1. To a drainage field or soakaway system – here, the waste water percolates through holes or slots from the pipework, into a soak away (pit filled with rubble or course stones) and then discharged into the surrounding sub-soils.
  2. To a watercourse – the waste water would flow through a sealed pipe straight to a local watercourse such as a stream or a river.

So, what’s changed?

From the 1st of January 2020, you will not be able to discharge your wastewater into a watercourse.  The reason for this is because the `quality’ of the waste water is no longer considered clean enough for our wildlife or rivers.

This isn’t an entirely a new rule as for some years now, property owners installing a new septic tanks have not been able to discharge into a watercourse.  However, if your property had an existing septic tank discharging into a watercourse, you were able to carry on unless the Environmental Agency identified that it was causing contamination.

So, if you are looking to sell your property between now and 2020 you will be required to ensure your Septic Tank meets the new regulations before you sell.

So what are the options?

There are three main ways in which you can comply with the new regulations:

  1. Connect to mains drainage system
  2.  Install a sewage treatment plant – Sewage treatment plants clean and filter the wastewater to remove harmful toxins and impurities, making the wastewater clean enough to discharge straight into a watercourse.
  3. Install a drainage field or soakaway – This will take the waste water from your septic tank, and disperse it safely into the ground without causing pollution. However, space is required as a soakaway must be located at least 5 meters away from any property and at least 6 meters away from a Public Highway.

To conclude, if you do not have the space to install a soakaway on your land and are not close enough to a mains sewage system to get connected then a Sewage Treatment Plant is your best option.

For more guidance or a quote, please contact KEE on 01296 634 500 or email sales@keeservices.com.

KEE uses ‘Fixed Film’ technology to meet Northern Ireland Waters’ discharge standards at Derrylin.

“I have experience in other process technologies which can easily facilitate these standards but at an ever increasing cost. I essentially needed something which had been tried, tested and trusted and I was more than satisfied to engage KEE Process to meet these demands”  
Michael McAlary, Northern Ireland Water.

Background

In 2006, Northern Ireland Water (NIW) commenced a project to invest in a new Wastewater Treatment Plant at Derrylin.

Their NIW Project Managers and Process Engineers were tasked with finding a suitable process to achieve the discharge standard set down by the NIEA. Having previously worked with KEE Process as their ‘Framework’ partner for Western & Southern Division RBC Framework, the Project Team selected KEE to assist.

The Challenge

KEE Process was commissioned to design a wastewater treatment system to meet the following criteria:

  • To consistently achieve the consented final effluent standard with a consent of less than 5mg/l BOD and Suspended Solids on a 95 percentile basis.
  • To incorporate the process capability to treat future forecasted waste flows and loads predicted for 2010.
  • To ensure that the treatment capacity could be expanded further (by almost 50%) to manage the forecasted 2035 increase in flows and loads, whilst still maintaining performance objectives.

The Solution

Fixed Film technology offered the best solution in the form of five Rotating Biological Contactors (RBCs) to meet their design criteria. The RBCs not only delivered the consistent performance they were looking for but also offered the lowest lifetime costs and carbon footprint when compared to all other wastewater treatment options available.

Together with the NIW Project Manager, Technical Advisers and Consultants, KEE Process designed a plant which featured ‘modular phased construction’ to minimise on-site workload and concrete tank construction. The new plant was built and commissioned during 2009 and has since then consistently achieved consent standards and delivered considerable savings in capital costs, operational labour costs and energy.

Final Effluent Consent vs New System Performance


Final effluent                                    Target                                                     Actual


BOD                                                     <5.00mg/l                                               2.00mg/l
SS                                                         <10.00mg/l                                             5.00mg/l
NH4-N                                                  <3.00mg/l                                                0.01mg/l


95% ile compliance basis.


Plant Equipment

  • Two 6m diameter, prefabricated hopper-bottomed GRP Primary Settlement Tanks were installed, with fully automated sludge and scum draw-off facility.
  • Five prefabricated RBCs, housed in GRP tanks with hinged sectional insulated covers.
  • Three 6m diameter prefabricated, hopper-bottomed GRP final settlement tanks, with fully automated sludge and scum draw off facility.
  • Final discharge was fed into slow gravity sand filters for polishing up the effluent to reduce suspended solids.

Design Features

  • A ‘flow splitting’ mechanism was installed to give Process Engineers the ability to channel the wastewater flow through the treatment process in different ways to achieve (a) optimal plant performance and (b) provide the flexibility to construct or expand the plant in phases as and when required.
  • Each RBC consisted of four treatment stages, designed to remove all soluble BOD and Ammoniacal Nitrogen to provide the final effluent BOD on a 95 percentile basis.
  • An internal ‘recycle system’ was incorporated to optimise the biological stage, the settling character of the fine solids and control of nitrogen from the plant.

Simple Maintenance and Low Lifetime Cost

  • A 30 year RBC design warranty and 20 year warranty on all structural components minimised the lifetime costs of the new plant.
  • The self-regulating biological stage of the RBCs required very little operational input and maintenance.
  • Simple RBC mechanical maintenance schedule consisting of a 6 monthly lubrication change for bearings and biennial lubrication.
  • Energy consumption of the RBCs was reduced and installed with a rating of only 1.5kW per RBC, resulting in a demand power consumption of 0.8kW on a continuous basis.
  • The RBC Drives were manufactured for a 50 year average lifespan, reducing lifetime costs even further.

Lifetime Cost Savings

NIW reviewed other wastewater treatment works and completed a case study and cost analysis based on a 7.000PE plant. Compared to other process technologies designed for a 30 year life-time, the RBC system provided:

  • £317,185  cost saving in power.
  • £272,420 cost saving in maintenance, operational labour, sludge disposal, and replacement parts.
  • Total OPEX life-time saving of £589,605 over 20 years.

“In today’s economic climate Northern Ireland Water are looking at ways of reducing life-time plant costs whilst meeting ever tighter environment consent standards as agreed and published by the local Environment Agency (NIEA). I needed a simple, easy to maintain process in order to meet these requirements.

The RBC offers a very robust process, achieving good consistent discharge standards, requiring minimum operational and maintenance input and very importantly, low power consumption. This has given me the confidence to accept the RBC process for Derrylin where consistent and tight effluent quality was stipulated by the NIEA”.
Michael McAlary, Wastewater Services Manager, Northern Ireland Water.

For more information about the Wastewater Treatment Process Technology and the Sewage Plant Maintenance Services the KEE Group offer, please call our team on
01296 634500 or visit our
KEE Group website.

KEE Parts and Service, Maintenance and Operation

KEE Services Limited Online Shop for WwT Plant spares

KEE Services Ltd – offers maintenance, breakdown services and plant operation for all types of treatment plant and pumping equipment, from all manufacturers. KEE technicians are trained in long-term servicing and look after 8,000 installations in the UK. KEE also operate ‘out-of-hours’ 24 hour call centre.

KEE Wastewater Treatment Systems can be configured for BOD removal and/or nitrification and/or de-nitrification and can include a built-in or modular physical-biological tertiary filter. UV disinfection can also be included into the packaged plant to enable non-portable water re-use.

KEE Process Logo  KEE Services Logo

KEE PROCESS LIMITED and KEE SERVICES LIMITED

KEE is a globally recognised brand operating within in the industrial, commercial and domestic wastewater treatment industries. KEE’s specialist knowledge and expertise is derived from over 60 years’ experience in the design, development, manufacture, install, commissioning, operation, refurbishment, repair and maintenance of wastewater treatment systems and equipment, including:

  • Fixed Film Reactors: Rotating Biological Contactors (RBCs), Packaged RBC Systems, Moving Bed Biological Reactors (MBBR) and Submerged Aerated Filters (SAF).
  • Suspended Growth Reactors: Extended Aeration, Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR), Oxidation Ditch, IFAS process technologies and Anaerobic Biological Reactor (ABR) for high strength industrial waste.
  • ‘Turn Key’ Solutions: Technical Design, Project Appraisal & Management, Process Engineering, Plant Installation & Operation, Equipment Refurbishment & Upgrades and Plant Rental. KEE also provide approved spares and ancillary products such as Final Clarifiers and Settlement Tanks.

KEE Services Ltd specialise in maintenance & repair services for all makes and types of wastewater treatment systems & pumping stations. Our nationwide team of directly employed, regional engineers and technicians are KEE trained, DBS checked and British Water Certified.