Making the move into the major league
In the UK, HUBER Technology is enhancing its reputation as a supplier of sludge treatment,
preliminary treatment and anaerobic digestion technology, as the company demonstrates that it’s
chosen mantra ‘where quality and service spring to mind’ is no idle boast.
HUBER Technology first established a presence in the UK via a distribution agent back in 1986.
Some 23 years ago, this presence was formalised when the German parent company established a
UK subsidiary, HUBER Technology UK. A long time ago, maybe, but a clear sign that HUBER
Technology wished to be seen to be taking the UK water market seriously as long ago as the early
1990s. The company’s track record since - growing significantly in size, revenue and stature – means
that HUBER Technology is now seen as one of the major players in key parts of the UK water
industry supply chain, offering an unrivalled breadth of products and a level of service that is a key
distinguishing factor.
The company’s recent contract to upgrade the inlet works at Duncrue Street, Belfast, is a great
example of just how far HUBER Technology has come in recent years – both in terms of the size and
scope of the products it now offers, and the structure that allows it to offer such impressive service to
its clients at all stages of a project.
The £1.2 million project consisted of supply of equipment, mechanical installation and commissioning
at the inlet works. HUBER Technology collaborated extremely closely with the main contractor
GRAHAM Construction and Northern Ireland Water to ensure the project was delivered successfully.
Project Profile
The successful delivery of any wastewater project, large or small, doesn’t just happen, and typically
involves people from many different disciplines and who are highly experienced, and very importantly
have good local site knowledge. The upgrade of Duncrue Street, Belfast, was an example of the
considerable collaborative effort needed from the outset to ensure a successful outcome which
exceeded all parties’ specifications and site requirements.
From the initial enquiry, around three years ago, regular dialogue took place between Northern Ireland
water, the design consultant, contractor and HUBER Technology.
A thorough understanding of the hydraulic conditions of the site were of the utmost importance. The
elevated works, which occupy a compact footprint, fed by 5-off large screw pumps presented its
challenges, and any failure in the fundamental design could have caused extensive damage to the
surrounding area.
The existing 6-off coarse and 6-off fine screens on site, along with their associated dedicated (very
long) screw conveyors and handling equipment, were continually causing issues with carryover of
screenings, leading to reliability problems and requiring high maintenance. This compounded with the
high peaks of loadings in respect of flow and rags meant that the operation of the works involved large
amount of manpower and monitoring to take place.
HUBER Technology was tasked to take into account the very specific site hydraulics and control
philosophy requirements for this site along with the right selection of equipment and its associated
sizing. The coarse screens chosen were used to protect and reduce the solids loading onto the 6mm
escalator screens, which have one of the highest screenings capture ratios on the market today of 84%.
This would ensure that pump blockages and rags were not carried over into the works. Additionally
HUBER Technology suggested that a launder system be utilized to eliminate the need for the very
complicated and maintenance intensive screw conveyors and duty/standby change over systems.
As with all projects of this scale, good communication was essential, and regular projects meetings at
all stages of the contract, ensured that all parties were informed and agreements about the most
important decision were made collectively. The well-known 5-P’s acronym (proper, planning, prevents,
poor, performance) was particularly relevant in this case.
Scope of supply
HUBER Technology supplied:
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6 x EscaMax Screen 5000 x 2252 with 6mm perforated plate
6 x RakeMax Screen 4300 x 2250 with 50mm bar spacing
4 x WAP-SL BG12
All launder channels
DN350 knifegate valves
Equipment:
EscaMax Screen throughput 2100 l/s peak flow per screen (5-off duty screens and 1 standby).
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EscaMax attributes:
 Very compact system with minimum space requirements
 Easy to retro fit into existing channels
 Excellent separation efficiency due to its perforations
 Reliable cleaning of the perforated plates with a rotating brush
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RakeMax Screen throughput 2100 l/s peak flow per screen (5-off duty screens and 1 standby).
RakeMax attributes:
Multi Rake bar Screen
 Very high screenings discharge capacity
 Low headloss
 Low installation height above ground level even in deep channels
 Control independent safety system
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WAP SL max throughput of 15m 3/hour per unit (Duty / Standby – Coarse Screens and Duty /
Standby Fine Screens). WAP SL characteristics:
Superior launder Wash Press
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Volume, weight and disposal cost reduction of up to 85%
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Compaction up to 50% DR
High washed screenings quality of < 20mg BOD 5/g DR
Feeding through a launder channel or directly from a screen or conveyor
Launder Channels for a flow rate of 25 l/s
Objective
To keep the existing works active, a phased installation of new equipment was essential, and the
equipment had to also fit within the existing very tight sites hydraulic constraints.
Solution
The equipment was delivered directly to site, where HUBER Technology’s regional office, based in
Portadown, took over the mechanical installation and commissioning. The use of local resource proved
invaluable and ensured that the project moved forward and any issues were quickly resolved. In October
2013, the equipment was successfully commissioned after a 28 day testing.
“Having a strong local presence with a dedicated team and skilled technicians able to deliver this to a
consistent high standard of workmanship ensures the project is delivered on time with the highest
quality to the client. HUBER Technology is a global company with a local presence, the client has a
local contact and this means project delivery of any size or complexity can be delivered with minimal
fuss. Duncrue Street, Belfast will be supported throughout its lifetime by the local regional team with
prompt response and support to the end user” comments Kieran Hagan, Regional Field Manager for
HUBER Technology, Ireland.
Fred Neumann, Regional Sales Manager for HUBER Technology also explains: “The complexities of
this major project were successfully minimized and overcome, due to early engagement with NIW
operations project manager, consultants, main contractor and their subcontractor. Installation phasing
and commissioning problems had minimum impact on the project delivery. This was down to the
integrity and commitment of the local HUBER Technology installation team.”
And the client is extremely satisfied with the project, as Peter Neeson, Operations Manager from
Northern Ireland Water, details: “The reliability of the HUBER equipment has been excellent giving just
minor teething problems which have been addressed and sorted effectively by both HUBER
Technology and the main contractor GRAHAM Construction.
“The screening capture rate, by both the coarse and fine sets of screens is excellent, evident now by
how quickly the skips fill, and the significant reduction in sewage related debris downstream of the
screens. This has meant less pumping and treatment process problems for myself and break downs
for Northern Ireland Water M&E. Prior to the new HUBER screening system being installed the old one
used to pass forward into the works large amounts of sewage debris which often settled out with the
sludges .This issue drew complaints of pump blockages etc. from the sludge incinerator team
(previously NIW now Veolia Water) and NIW M&E. Pump blockages are rarely an issue now on site.
“Screening handling has been vastly improved by the installation of the HUBER WAPs and launder
trough system. It replaced a screw conveyor and compaction units which were housed in a purpose
built building, this made the maintenance of the old units a dirty and sometimes dangerous job because
of space and lighting issues. The WAP’s seem to be well capable of dealing with plug flows of
screenings that occur from time to time. Belfast WWTW catchment is fairly flat, so in wet weather
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screenings can arrive at the works on mass after a dry spell. The new WAP’s seem to be very good at
dealing with this.”
Duncrue Street, Belfast STW
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The strands of success
HUBER Technology UK’s MD, Steve Morris thinks that there are several factors that have contributed
significantly to the company’s spectacular growth over the past few years. While the quality of the
German engineering of the product portfolio has been a constant factor, Steve believes that the UK
workshop’s expertise and ability to customise and package these standard products to meet the specific
requirements of any UK water company, and often to supply the control panel technology as well, is a
major part of the company’s success.
Alongside this core competency, or foundation skill, is the structure of the company. Five years ago,
the decision was taken to open strategic regional offices – in Rotherham, Perth, Portadown and at the
HQ in Chippenham. As Engineering and Operations Director Dave Thompson explains: “The move from
departmental to regional teams means that the same people deal with the same customers over the
lifetime of any project. With this approach, there are none of the issues that can be encountered with
project handover, we have complete project continuity.”
It’s fair to say that contract wins such as the Portadown one detailed above are a direct consequence
of the company’s restructuring. Furthermore, HUBER Technology’s regional presence is a major benefit
to the after sales service and maintenance part of the business – a very reassuring presence for the
increasing amount of water companies who are becoming regular customers. As Dave puts it: “With
our installation, commissioning and servicing teams based closer to the end users, we can offer
improved response times, more cost-effectively and, in general, form a much better relationship with
clients.”
Complementing the service capability, HUBER Technology’s hire business also benefits from the
regional approach. So, whether maintenance work is planned or of an emergency nature, the company
can provide the temporary inlet screens, sludge screens, tertiary filtration and other technologies that
can help water companies to avoid major discharge consent breaches.
Dave Thompson summarises: “As a direct result of setting up the regional offices, to offer a more local
presence, we’ve seen encouraging growth in the service business, in preventative maintenance, and
we have an increasing amount of service and maintenance frameworks with the same water
companies.”
A crucial part of this offering is the ability to understand asset condition, and HUBER Technology
already uses information technology to help it track and monitor the necessary parameters. Looking
ahead, Steve acknowledges the importance of such developments as Big Data and the Internet of
Things and believes that intelligent condition monitoring will be a ‘big factor’.
A change in perception
It might be harsh to suggest that it’s taken the water industry all of HUBER’s 23+ years in the UK
market to fully trust the company, but there’s no doubt that HUBER has had to overcome the
perception that it was a small company and, as such, only able to deal with the smaller projects to
reach the stage where it’s carrying out major projects and has plenty of framework agreements in
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place. As Steve Morris explains: “Typically, the type of project with which we’d be involved was what
I’d call the ‘small stuff’ – the Ro9 Micro Strainer seemed to be the staple product, and this continues
to be an important core product!”
Steve continues: “But now, thanks to the hard work that has been put in over the past few years in
particular, we’re increasingly being seen as a suitable supplier for the large installations and projects,
such as Belfast and Blackburn Meadows, and this is a real game changer.”
HUBER Technology’s impressive product portfolio is increasingly being sought after by UK water
companies, as well as the industrial sector. And when one considers the sheer volume of products
that cover screening, sludge treatment (recently, Huber Technology sold its first sludge dryer to the
Isle of Man) and anaerobic digestion, it should not come as a surprise that the company is obtaining a
high level of municipal framework agreements,
These include Northern Ireland Water, Scottish Water, United Utilities, DCWW (Welsh Water), Anglian
Water, Thames Water and Wessex Water. The products supplied under these frameworks include
some or all of the following: sludge thickening and dewatering, coarse inlet screens, combined inlet
screens (screen with integral screenings washing compaction and dewatering), fine screens,
screenings handling units (compactors, washers and dewaterers), screw conveyors, grit removal and
separation equipment, grit classifiers and washers, storm overflow screens, packaged inlet works
(single tank mounted units for various sizes including screen and screenings handling equipment and
grit separation and classifying equipment with option of grease removal) and disc filters for tertiary
treatment. And with new frameworks currently being tendered elsewhere the list is likely to grow still
further.
Steve comments: “I’ve no doubt that, with the quality and integrity of our German parent company
behind us, more and more organisations are realising that we’re not only a ‘safe bet’ in that we deliver
on time, install and stand behind our work, but also that we can deliver truly innovative solutions and
add value to our customers..”
Steve continues: “We’re one of HUBER’s biggest subsidiaries, and our parent company is very
supportive both in terms of being receptive to new products and ideas which reflect what the UK
industry needs and in sharing with us best practice from elsewhere within the organisation. This
knowledge sharing and transfer, or information exchange, is extremely valuable and we’re lucky to be
part of HUBER as it transitions into a truly global organisation, as opposed to ‘just’ a German
company with a few subsidiaries.”
And it’s worth re-emphasising the breadth and depth of HUBER Technology’s product portfolio and
the engineering innovation with which it is underpinned. Steve explains: “The Ro9 Micro Strainer
remains a core product, but we’re seeing growth around the use of our washpresses and EscaMax for
fine screening, as well as an increasing demand for our RakeMax for coarse screening. Increasingly,
we’re also being recognised for our sludge treatment capabilities – for thickening and dewatering.
Indeed, I’d go so far as to say that we’re now seen as a major player in the sludge market, thanks in
part to our product innovation as exampled by the Disc Thickener, which is simple in design but really
effective, reducing both handling and transportation costs.”
Both within and outside of the water industry, there’s also increasing interest in anaerobic digestion,
and HUBER Technology is seeing a growing market for its products as a means to screening
digestate and removing grit, for example, and is developing partnerships in a range of sectors, most
notably the food and beverage market. In simple terms, all industry sectors are looking at their
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wastewater treatment costs and if there are ways to recover resources from the wastewater, whether
for energy generation or some other purpose, and reduce disposal costs, then it’s highly likely that
HUBER can help.
The human factor
If there’s one person at HUBER Technology who is best placed to reflect on the company’s
successful progress to date then it has to be Sales Director, Nick Hunt. The UK agent for Huber
started out in 1986 selling the Rotamat products and Nick (along with Dave Thompson) joined this
company in 1990, and oversaw the subsequent transition from agency to subsidiary in 1993. The
company’s turnover has progressed from an initial £400,000 to a peak of £15 million per annum and
Nick estimates that the installed product base is not far short of the 5000 mark.
“HUBER has always been regarded as a screen manufacturer,” Nick says, “but we do everything,
from a single screen right up to the recent sludge dryer Isle of Man project worth over £1million. While
people might think of us as a small or medium sized company, we have a huge product portfolio, so
we can offer a one-stop-shop to our customers. We might have lots of competitors across different
parts of this portfolio, but I believe that we have a reputation for quality and service that is second to
none. After all, it’s not just about the product, but the people, the service, the backup and the
response customers get if they have a problem. The way we deal with this – that’s how we stand out.”
Perhaps most crucial to HUBER Technology’s success, especially at a time when the industry is
facing a shortage of skilled and experienced engineers, is the extraordinary service record of key
company employees. Nick names six key individuals who between them have almost 150 years’
worth of experience working for Huber and/or within the water sector. As Nick puts it: “To have such a
stable team is very unusual!”
And here we enter the delicate area of the AMP cycles, the water companies’ approach to investment
and, crucially, the value of employee continuity and experience.
Nick comments: With the shortage of skills in the industry, there is an increasing role for experienced
suppliers to work more closely with customer and identify the best solution and provide best value for
money. The inference here would seem to be that, all well and good to rely on a supplier that has the
required knowledge and integrity to help the client obtain best value for money; but the attraction of an
apparently cheap purchase price for, say, screens, might fade quickly when the equipment
documentation fails to materialise for several months or when things go wrong and the call for
maintenance is not met in a timely fashion.
And then, of course, there’s the whole TOTEX debate. Nick is not alone in wondering if the technical
and commercial assessments of the whole lifecycle costs of any planned investment are carried out
as ‘effectively’ as they might be.
Similarly, Nick echoes the feelings of many when he outlines the need for all parties involved in a
particular project to work together as early, and openly, as possible. The involvement of the wider
supply chain at the same time i.e. a parallel, rather than linear, process would seem to make a lot of
sense for any number of reasons revolving around project efficiencies and optimisation and, crucially,
best value for money.
At his stage in his career, Nick might feel freer than most to make such observations, but he’s only
joining the many voices, from politicians, industry associations and suppliers to various other water
industry stakeholders who all express frustration that, even though we’ve arrived at AMP6, many of
the practices surrounding contract specification and award are not significantly different than they
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were in AMP1. In other words, there is still a huge opportunity for the water industry, led by the
regulator, to change its procurement to the benefit of everyone.
Fit for the future
Underlying Nick’s observations, which are outlined more with a sense of humorous resignation than
any real frustration, one senses a deep love of the water industry and a deep pride in what HUBER
Technology has achieved in the UK. Indeed, whether speaking to Nick, Steve Morris, Dave
Thompson or anyone else at the company, there’s little doubt that, however good the screens, the
sludge treatment technology and the AD solutions, the control panel business which has grown
significantly as more and more contracts specify a complete solution delivered on site, or the
increasingly important packaged plant sales, it’s the HUBER Technology staff who make the
difference as far as their customers are concerned. People deal with people – and whether it’s
through the company’s collective expertise, experience, customer service or sense of caring, HUBER
Technology has built a reputation that will continue to win it new customers and keep existing
customers more than content.
This article appeared in the June issue of Water Active
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