Sustainable solutions support yard services

Noss on Dart Marina, a Premier Marinas facility in Devon, UK reached a number of milestones in its £75 million redevelopment process in 2021. In January this year, one of its most significant green infrastructure components – a boat wash-down water recycling system – was installed as part of the new boatyard facilities.

The system, which is a substantial investment for the company, operates on a closed loop, meaning all debris and water run-off is collected, filtered through a three-stage filtration system and recycled when a boat is lifted out for a high-pressure wash. The water is then stored in a holding tank ready to be recycled and used again for the next wash down. This ensures that no chemicals end up in the River Dart. It was designed and manufactured in the UK by FiltaBund and is based on 12 years of research and development.
FiltaBund director, Nathan Hewitt, gave more details: “Our system is able to deal with copper, zinc, marine debris, silt and various proprietary additives contained in the paint. The process starts by removing large marine debris and paint flakes through bag filtration, followed by coagulation and settlement of free-floating particles. pH is then adjusted to precipitate soluble copper and zinc and the resulting cleansed water is passed through an activated carbon bed to remove trace elements. Water is also dosed with hydrogen peroxide and treated with UV light to kill residual bacteria.”
“The treated water contains copper and zinc with concentrations below 2mg/l and suspended solids of less than 100mg/l and can be reused for pressure washing. This is a considerable reduction from the incoming wash water, which can have copper and zinc levels above 2,000mg/l and solids contents of over 20,000mg/l. The system is designed to accommodate an average of ten boats a day with an annual pump-out of solids.”
Premier has also commissioned FiltaBund to retrofit the wash down system at Chichester Marina. This system is already in operation and Premier has a long-term plan to install the new equipment at any of its ten marina and boatyard sites where waste water is not routed into the main sewer system.
In keeping with Premier’s commitment to investing in environmentally friendly equipment and materials, it turned to Dura Composites for GRP components for the wash-down and new travel hoist platforms.
Dura worked with Premier’s engineering company to produce a composite floor structure around the hoist, supported by large 305mm (12in) GRP Dura Profile beams of 6-10m (20-33ft) in length. The team chose the GRP material over steel due to its strength to weight ratio and superior performance in corrosive salt water environments.
Dura Profiles exceed the higher performance E23 grade requirement of the BS EN 13706 standard and Dura carried out a full Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and CAD service to enable the fabrication and supply of materials to Teignmouth Maritime Services ready for installation. The lightweight nature of the GRP profiles versus steel meant that installation was much quicker and more efficient.
Also central to the efficient operation of the wash-down and hoist are d² Dura Grating and Dura Platform 40 flooring made from moulded and pultruded high-performance GRP panels which are unique in design to Dura. The open mesh section utilises 55mm d² Dura Grating Mini Mesh in dark grey, which facilitates drainage whilst maintaining strength and unrivalled anti-slip properties. The solid surface sections were created using patented d² Dura Platform 40, which are crankable to create an in-built fall to aid water run-off.
Premier Marinas operations manager, John Cervenka, comments: “We were pleased with the CAD support and FEA provided by Dura Composites to our engineering company on this project. It enabled us to develop an innovative design that meets our exacting needs and will deliver real value for our customers. The boat hoist is now in use and we are delighted with the effectiveness of the GRP flooring supplied by Dura, in terms of slip resistance, aiding drainage and promoting water run-off to the correct areas. The solid surfaces of the Dura Platform also ensure all silt deposits are captured ready for disposal, mitigating any risk to the water table.”