Business News Round Up - Sept. 21
Editor's Note: Each week, Water & Wastes Digest will post an aggregate of business news briefs and networking news items to keep you informed on facility openings, business mergers and purchases, changes in personnel and award notifications, among others in the water and wastewater treatment industries. If you have business news briefs you would like included in this weekly round up, please email the press release, photo and a link to the post on your website to [email protected] with the subject line "Business News Round Up." One news item per company per week will be posted.
Veolia commences major upgrade to the Vartry Water Treatment Plant
Veolia is now working in partnership with Irish Water to develop and operate a new 75 million litres per day water treatment plant at Vartry, Co Wicklow. Designed to meet the growing and future needs of the population of Dublin the new plant will secure the existing supply and forms part of Irish Water’s €200 million investment plan in the Vartry Water Supply Scheme.
The Vartry Water Supply Scheme project will supply safe and sustainable drinking water to around 200,000 people in the Greater Dublin region. Under the contract, Veolia will be responsible for the design, construction, commissioning and testing and interim operation of new water treatment buildings. This includes treatment units, sludge management facilities, wash-water settlement tanks, a standby generator and reservoir upgrades. The work will take around 24 months to complete and will be followed by an interim operation and maintenance contract delivered by the local Veolia teams.
Voltea Moves to Larger U.S. Headquarters
Voltea, global leader in Membrane Capacitive Deionization (CapDI©) water purification technology, have moved into a larger U.S. headquarters location. Voltea’s global orders have increased by a remarkable 300 percent over the last 12 months.
The new office, manufacturing plant and training center reflect the rapid growth of the company, including the release of two groundbreaking new products in the last year.
GS&P Launches New Brand Strategy, Company Name and Brandmark
Gresham, Smith and Partners is now Gresham Smith. The new, simplified name is being announced as part of the launch of a new brand strategy – which comes with a new visual and verbal identity and website. The brand strategy is encapsulated by Gresham Smith’s brand promise and tagline: Genuine Ingenuity. No matter who the firm works with, clients, employees, partners and community organizations can all expect to collaborate with people who produce functional and creative solutions.
Centrisys/CNP Enhances Lab Services with Advanced Equipment and Talent
In an industrial park in Kenosha, Wisconsin, a group of individuals are working together to continue the advancement of their solids handling technologies. These engineers work for one company, but have different divisions: equipment manufacturing and biosolids treatment. Combining their efforts, the Centrisys/CNP process and R&D teams are ready to tackle difficult sludge handling and optimization challenges.
Since 1987, Centrisys has been a manufacturer of decanter centrifuge technology for dewatering and thickening in municipal and industrial applications. The company recently added to its equipment portfolio with the award winning THK Sludge Thickener and the SP Series Screwpress. The CNP division, acquired in 2014, offers Airprex® and CalPrex™, nutrient recovery process technologies, and PONDUS™, a Thermo-Chemical Hydrolysis Process (TCHP) for sludge optimization. Working together, Centrisys/CNP can offer customers sludge testing and analysis necessary to problem solve above and beyond the normal capabilities of a typical manufacturer.
Gannett Fleming Expands Water Services with KEH Acquisition
Global infrastructure firm Gannett Fleming has acquired the assets of KEH & Associates Inc. KEH is a highly respected water and wastewater engineering firm based in Southern California. This acquisition creates a national water team with a depth of knowledge few other firms can match.
“When considering an acquisition, Gannett Fleming leadership first looks at a company’s culture. Are employees valued and encouraged to continually learn? Do they contribute to improving their community? Are they committed to amazing their clients with innovative solutions? KEH checked all of those boxes and more,” said Bob Scaer, PE, Gannett Fleming chairman and CEO. “We will now be able to provide California water clients access to specialized, local expertise backed by the resources of a global infrastructure firm.”
IBO 2018 Industrial Design Awards Announced
Instrument Business Outlook (IBO) have announced the winners of the annual IBO Industrial Design Awards for excellence in the industrial design of analytical instruments. The winners of the 2018 Awards exemplify the importance of industrial design to an instrument’s functionality, end-user experience and approachability. The winners are:
- Gold Award: Agilent Technologies’ Ultivo Triple Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer
- Silver Award: Shimadzu’s MALDI-8020 Mass Spectrometer
- Bronze Award: Dolomite Bio’s Nadia Instrument
Update to Columbus Water Master Plan Aims to Address Future Growth, Water Demand and Efficiency
Arcadis and the City of Columbus are teaming up to update the city’s Comprehensive Water Master Plan. The plan will provide a roadmap for addressing new infrastructure, redundancy measures and needed enhancements to the city’s water distribution system, while accounting for projected population growth and economic development.
In the next 30-plus years, Central Ohio is expected to see as many as one million new residents. Also, Smart Columbus, the smart city initiative for the City of Columbus and the Columbus Region, has emerged as a primary driver for growth and change. With this growth comes the need to address the region’s water supply.
Ignition Community Conference Showcases New Software Version
Inductive Automation hosted its annual Ignition Community Conference in Folsom, Calif., Sept. 17 to 19. During the keynote speech, the company announced the next version of its cornerstone software, Ignition 8, which has improvements to the interface and user experience. The new software also adds functionality for responsiveness so screens can appropriately scale to fit the device viewing the screen, whether it is a phone, tablet or desktop. Additionally, the company awarded its five Firebrand awards, one of which is for a Hot Springs, Ark. water treatment plant.
Siemens to Help Calif. City Save Millions Through Solar Energy
Wasco, Calif. is projected to achieve more than $8.6M in energy savings, 41.7M kWh in reduced energy usage by end of 15-year performance contract.
An energy savings performance contract (ESPC) with Siemens will allow the city to use energy savings to fund a solar project situated on a former burn dump. The renewable energy produced will help offset approximately 60 percent of the city’s current energy usage and costs associated with its municipal buildings as well as the treatment and distribution of water and wastewater.
Networking News
- JWC Environmental have announced the appointment of Greg Guard as the president of JWC Environmental business.
- WSP USA appoints Douglas Oliver mine water services leader.
- Lockwood, Andrews & Newman, Inc. has promoted Jeremy N. Nakashima, P.E., to lead the firm’s wastewater practice.
- Kemco Systems recently announced the addition of Katie Giroud to their Marketing Team.
- Dewberry has hired Todd Shafer, PE, as the water service line leader in the firm’s Fairfax, Virginia, office.
- Buckman announced Larry Shutzberg will be joining its Board of Directors.
- WSSC Commissioners have announced the selection of Arthur A. Elkins, Jr., as inspector general.