Construction, operation and digitalisation of an industrial wastewater treatment plant in the food industry

EnviroChemie developed and implemented a new wastewater treatment concept for a factory specialising
in the production of confectionery in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

During the construction phase, EnviroChemie provided the customer with an EnviRent
rental plant with operational support. The new wastewater treatment plant was then commissioned and
digitalised. EnviroChemie’s specialists have been operating the plant on the customer’s behalf since
August 2023.

• Task

  Task

  The manufacturing of confectionery produces up to 100 m3 of production wastewater every day, which must
  not contain any oils, greases or other pollutants when it is discharged into the public sewer system.

  In addition to lipophilic substances levels, the levels of settleable solids and sum parameters such as chemical oxygen demand (COD) and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5) also need to be lowered. Likewise, the pH value at the outlet must be regulated to a value between 6.5 and 10.

  The objective was to treat the production wastewater in such a way that it can be discharged indirectly. The
  customer also wanted to be able to hand off the topic of wastewater to the greatest extent possible, in
  order to conserve personnel resources and concentrate solely on its own production processes.

• Solution

  Solution

  The confectionery manufacturer entrusted EnviroChemie with the planning and construction
  of the plant. As an interim solution while the new plant was being planned and built, an EnviRent
  rental plant was provided along with operational support for 42 weeks. This allowed treated
  wastewater to be discharged even before the construction project had been completed. An operation and service team from EnviroChemie took over operation of the plant during the commissioning phase.

  Due to the fluctuating quantities of wastewater, the production wastewater is buffered and screened in a storage tank. It is then conditioned using a physicochemical process before it is treated by the flotation system.

  EnviroChemie’s digital platform WaterExpert™ is used to ensure that the plant is operated in an
  effective and resource-efficient manner. This turns the principles of Water 4.0 into reality. A digital mirror of the wastewater treatment plant facilitates plant operation through:

  • Recording of online and offline parameters (e.g. lab results, pH value, turbidity)
  • Display of plant and process-specific KPIsStatistically verified alarms (smart alarms)
  • Customer-specific reports (management reports, reports for the authorities)
  • Defined plant tours and to-do lists
  • Documentation of activities / digital operations diary
  • Access to the library (knowledge database)
• Benefits

  Benefits

  Thanks to the EnviRent rental plant and the assistance of EnviroChemie, the customer was already able to treat its wastewater during the construction phase without having to slow down or halt its production.
  The wastewater treatment solution, its operation and the requisite industrial treatment products all come from a single manufacturer / service provider. As such, this allows the customer to channel its personnel resources into production.

  At the same time, the solution ensures that the plant is operated safely, efficiently and in a legally compliant way by employees of a specialist company.

  The digitalisation of the plant means that its operation is also transparent for the customer (management, water protection officer and other contact partners). WaterExpert™ grants uncomplicated access to relevant information such as management reports, reports for the authorities and the plant’s key KPIs.