NEWS

November 2013 Membrane Technology3

I n B r i e f

Dan Scroggins is appointed president of BluMetric’s Water DivisionCanada’s BluMetric Environmental Inc, which develops sustainable technology for complex environmental issues, has appointed Dan Scroggins as the president of its Water Division. Scroggins, formerly the firm’s chief technology officer, has more than 30 years of experience in the water and wastewater treat-ment industry, including many years in senior client-facing and technology implementa-tion roles. He has been with BluMetric since 2006. Harry Marshall, founding president of the Water Division, and formerly Chief Executive Officer, Seprotech, plans to retire in mid-2014, but will remain as an advisor to BluMetric’s executive committee and mentor to Scroggins over the next year.

SSB signs long-term syndicated loanSartorius Stedim Biotech Sa (SSB), which supplies products to the pharmaceuticals and biotechnology sector, has taken out a long-term syndicated loan of E250 million for the next five years. The company signed the loan agreement with an international bank syndi-cate led by Commerzbank Ag and Nord/Lb. In addition, syndicate participants include BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, DZ Bank, HSBC, LBBW and Société Générale. The firm says this transaction will help it to put its financing on a broad-based, international footing over the long term.

Lanxess relocates its group headquartersLanxess Ag, a German speciality chemicals company and manufacturer of Lewabrane membrane separation elements for reverse osmosis, has relocated its group headquarters and approximately 1000 employees to the Lanxess Tower in Cologne. The firm’s global operations are now managed from the largest city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

More information: Lanxess Ag, Kennedyplatz 150569 Köln, Germany. Tel: +49 221 88850, http://lanxess.com

Nijhuis acquires UK companyNijhuis Water Technology Bv, a Dutch com-pany that specialises in the design, develop-ment and delivery of industrial wastewater treatment and recycling projects, has agreed to acquire H2OK Water and Energy (H2OK). Since 1995 H2OK Systems Ltd has developed into a leading turnkey systems provider in the UK water and energy market with offices cur-rently based in Cornwall and Bristol. Nijhuis says this merger will provide it with a skilled and experienced team to realise the opportu-nities in the fast growing UK market.

Desalitech expands EPT’s water treatment operations

In Israel, Environmental Protection Technologies (EPT) is using technol-

ogy from Desalitech Ltd, a supplier of water production and wastewater treatment systems, to increase the pro-duction rate of its reverse osmosis (RO) water treatment operations by 50%.

Located at the Dead Sea Works chemical plant, the Closed Circuit Desalination (CCD) RO plant, designed by Desalitech, is owned and operated by EPT and currently produces 379 litres (100 gallons) of purified water per minute to supply drinking water for an industrial compound and process water for pharmaceu-ticals manufacturing. Its reliable performance spurred an increased demand for purified water at the site, leading to the planned expansion.

Low humidity and temperatures that regular-ly exceed 40.5°C (105°F) during summer con-tribute to limited water supplies in the Dead Sea region, where local industry often relies on expensive deliveries by water trucks. The exist-ing Desalitech RO plant has enabled EPT to make efficient use of a brackish water source near the site, producing high-quality purified water despite high amounts of organic matter and minerals in the pond, and extreme varia-tions in water chemistry, temperature and dust.

‘Customers trust EPT to successfully handle problematic water sources and waste streams. Desalitech’s high-recovery water systems are bet-ter at dealing with challenging conditions than conventional RO processes,’ explained Yechiel Menuchin, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), EPT.

‘With Desalitech we can achieve the high recovery rates our customers desire, making the maximum use of scarce water resources whilst minimising water treatment costs. The system’s proven track record of performance and high reliability gives us the confidence to increase capacity to keep up with customer demand.’

Nadav Efraty, CEO, Desalitech, added: ‘Desalitech takes great pride in the fact that its technology is able to handle some of the most challenging water sources on the planet. There is nothing more satisfying than repeat business, and we love working with EPT to deliver reli-able, high performance that helps industry and contributes to economic growth.’

Contacts:

Desalitech Ltd, One Gateway Center, Suite 250,

Newton, MA 02458, USA. Tel: +1 617 564 1647

www.desalitech.com

Environmental Protection Technologies Ltd, Grand

Neter Towers, The North Tower, Kefar Netter,

Industrial zone, 40593 Israel. Tel: +972 9 885 8588,

http://ept.co.il

Henkel exhibits latest adhesives targeted at the filtration industry

Henkel Ag & Co KgaA used FILTECH 2013, which was held

in Wiesbaden, Germany, on 22–24 October, to exhibit adhesives that are targeted at the filtration industry.

Among the new products on show were Loctite UK 178 and Loctite EA 1623986 – both of which carry approval for use in potable water filters. Whilst Loctite UK 178 is used to bond filter membranes, Loctite EA 1623986 is applied during the manufacture of filter hous-ings made from glass-reinforced plastics.

Specific areas of application include, large sea-water desalination plants, where the brine resistance of the adhesives makes them ideal for the reverse osmosis process. They are also particularly durable – an important criterion when it comes to building large and expensive sea-water desalination facilities.

The two adhesives are similarly compatible with plant cleaning systems that use sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) or sodium hypochlo-rite. They can be employed at temperatures up to 40°C and satisfy both the German potable water standard and NSF 61 in the USA.

Loctite EA 3316, also showcased, can be used at temperatures up to 80°C degrees and, therefore, can be used to make filters used in the dairy industry where cleaning processes take place at higher temperatures.

High-performance adhesives are indispensa-ble to the manufacture of industrial filters, says Henkel. They play an important role in product assembly, such as the stabilisation and end-bonding of folded filter media, or the attach-ment of filter media to frame components. The adhesives used must meet high quality requirements, given that they are exposed to a wide range of in-service stresses – such as heat, pressure and chemical attack.

Contacts:

Henkel Ag & Co KgaA, Henkelstrasse 67, 40191

Düsseldorf, Germany. Tel: +49 211 7970,

Web: www.henkel.com

Henkel Ltd, Apollo Court, 2 Bishop Square Business

Park, Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL10 9EY, UK.

Tel: +44 1707 635000, www.loctite.co.uk