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Boreholes: driving down the cost of water

19 May 2021

Martin Smith discusses how food and beverage manufacturers can benefit from the use of water boreholes, as they seek to drive down costs and become more sustainable. 

Operational costs are an ever-present focus for food and beverage manufacturers, as they look to reduce waste, drive efficiency and ultimately, become more sustainable. 

The Covid-19 pandemic has only shone further light on these goals, impacting demand, production, delivery and of course, costs. 

Perhaps the biggest driver has been the increased emphasis placed on food manufacturing, which has been highlighted as being a vital service in the past 12 months. Here, the role of water use makes its play. Once deemed a natural and ever-flowing resource, it is estimated by the UN that over 700m people worldwide could be displaced by intense water scarcity by 2030. Couple this with the fact that manufacturing accounts for almost 25% of global freshwater withdrawals, and the objective becomes clear – smart action coupled with smart solutions are needed for manufacturing to contribute to a more sustainable world.

But it not just about meeting environmental goals. Utility costs too, are only increasing, so alternative methods to fresh water supply must be presented as viable operations for 21st century manufacturing.

The cost of water
As a society, we have become accustomed to being able to simply turn on a tap and to access a supply of safe, chemically treated water – a basic human necessity that is needed at a core level to survive. For manufacturers too, there is some element of this notion at play. Water is needed in vast quantities, particularly within the food sector – both as an ingredient and to ensure smooth running of processing operations, such as heating and refrigeration and also to ensure equipment is kept clean.

The market for water treatment, however, is set to grow by more than 5% by 2024 and utility costs – gas, water and electricity can represent as much as 30% of a manufacturer’s budget.

Economically, mains water supply in the UK can cost on average around £1.30/m3, but there is huge capital investment on top of this – storage, distribution, chemicals and power needed for water treatment, not to mention the costs of disposing the water that has been used. Closer then, we are looking at about £4.30/m3.

Regulatory standards too only add to the pressure, as well as increasing imperatives to drive water efficiency. UN Sustainable Development Goals, on increasing the recycling and safe reuse of water globally, has seen some of the world’s top brands held more accountable to their day-to-day operational wastage.

Driving efficiency
Better management of water use has become a key necessity to operational survival and environmental commitments today. But, while many manufacturers believe they must rely on mains water supplies, innovative alternative sources are available with water boreholes being just one of the fresh approaches that the manufacturing industry is waking up to the benefits of.

The water borehole process involves drilling down into the ground to access water, typically deep beneath soil and other natural elements of the earth. Once the hole has been drilled, it is cased with steel and a borehole pumping system is added to collect the natural water and pump it to the surface.

The advantages are almost immediately clear – it provides a private, and crucially, free to use supply. Delivering up to 20,000 litres of a water day, there is no additional charge for the water, outside of the initial installation work. Manufacturers just need to consider an abstraction licence from the Environment Agency if their use leans more to the heavier side of the scale.

Boreholes in practice
adi has seen the benefits of water boreholes first-hand. Working with Harper Adams University in Newport, it was tasked with providing a water treatment package to remove iron and manganese from the water supply to comply with drinking water regulations.

The facilities already used borehole water for all requirements across the campus, however a new borehole was required with a new water treatment plant room.

Older systems relied on very large surface area sand filters to enable effective treatment, particularly for the required flow of 40,000l/hr. Using innovative filter media, adi was able to significantly reduce the size and cost of the new plant, with less water consumption for backwashing, less wastewater costs, and energy savings for our customer.

Big brands too have also jumped on board with the borehole revolution. Thatchers Cider is just one beverage producer who has implemented the process into its manufacturing cycle.

Water is taken from a borehole at its 500-acre Somerset home, which includes an failsafe backup plan –  if the capacity of water taken from the borehole is exceeded, technology plays its hand, with automation helping to not only alert but also kick in the mains water supply.

And in times of increased demand, such methods are not just a ‘nice’ backup to have, but can be deemed essential.

With an ever-growing population and increased pressure on food producers, now is a good time for food and beverage manufacturers to take a closer look at innovations in water supply. While the resource will always be an important element of the production process there are opportunities available to reduce its use to enable positive change for our environment, supply chain and operational costs.

Martin Smith is MD of adi Environmental.


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