Transporting Exceptional Loads

Perhaps the highlight is the road transport of a Boeing 747 on three different trailers to a German museum. Although the fuselage of the aircraft was 70 metres long and 18 metres high, it is not the largest item on the video. That was the new bollard-shaped head office of the Dutch company Mammoet seen transported whole over land and water to its permanent site. Other items included are the transport of bridge sections, boats and a pair of valuable equestrian bronze sculptures. Throughout the programme, the skills of the transport companies and their personnel are explained and a feature is included on how modular trailers are built.

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Alaska Highway [VHS]

There are three strands to this video filmed in 1998 in the Canadian North-west. Firstly, the highway itself, built through beautiful wilderness in 1942 as a military supply line when the American continent was threatened by the Japanese from the Alaskan coast. This all-year route offers extreme conditions from temperatures 50 Celsius below and freezing rain to mud and soft going. Keeping the highway open and safe are major operations. Then there is the main industry - forestry. The video gives insights into the exploitation and stewardship of the world's second largest forestry area, and examines a variety of machines in operation including a 300hp Chieftain D LGP crawler. But the stars are the truckers and their vehicles, working under pressure for timber haulage, wood products or the oil industry. The respect they show the highway and their trucks is clear - an example of highly professional transport work.

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Goodheart-Willcox Automotive Encyclopedia: Fundamental Principles, Operation, Construction, Service, and Repair (Goodheart-Wilcox Automotive Encyclopedia)

A complete automotive library all in one book. In addition to exploring the many sciences involved in vehicle operation, this text also details the design, construction, operation, troubleshooting, service, and repair of today's cars and light trucks. Previous edition: c1995.

Price: $50.64

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Heavy Lifting and Hauling [VHS]

Transport enthusiasts should be intrigued by the items included in this video by Dutch trucking specialists, Videoprofessionals. One of the problems with large cranes is the difficulty of transporting them from site to site. Complete containerization is now seen as a solution, and in this video we see the world's first containerized crane - with a lift capacity of 2000 tonnes - transported from Rotterdam to New Brunswick, Canada. At a petrochemical site it is reassembled and begins its lifting duties. A second feature shows an industrial vessel transported on SPMTs through night-time Bratislava, Slovakia. It is then lifted by a hydraulically operated 3000-tonne-lift crane whose counterweight is made of transport containers that are filled with locally available materials. High in the Austrian Alps, a dredger, barge and associated equipment are transported by road to a dam reservoir 2200 metres up at the foot of the Gross Glockner mountain. This is demanding terrain for the truck combinations and their drivers. Finally, a brick-built factory recreation room is moved in one piece for preservation in Grogingen, Holland. New steel H-beams are placed under the building which is then hoisted on to SPMTs for transport.

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Historic Print (L): Electric locomotive for mine haulage under construction in erecting shop, Baldwin Locomo

This is a museum quality, reproduction print on premium paper with archival/UV resistant inks.

Date: Meadville, Pa. : Keystone View Co., manufacturers, publishers, c1905.

Subject: Baldwin Locomotive Works--Facilities--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia--1900-1910. Railroad locomotive industry--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia--1900-1910.

Notes: H70660 U.S. Copyright Office. No. 7089.

Format: Stereographs 1900-1910.Photographic prints 1900-1910.

SOURCE: Library of Congress

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Heavy Transport

Perhaps the most striking item is the 1,000-ton U-boat salvaged off the coast of Denmark and loaded for shipping to Liverpool's Merseyside maritime museum. On the road, the 87-metre-long transport is managed by computerised platform trucks, and the same technology is seen in use in Florida to move the central core of a coal gasification unit across Interstate 75. At the destination, the world's largest crane, a Demag CC-12000, hoists the equipment to complete the plant. The other loads shown are moved by truck combinations along highways and past the obstacles presented by small towns and villages. Most of the loads are industrial units ranging between 100 and 460 tons, though some lighter freight is included. The commentary draws out the skills of the drivers and operators, working patiently to minimum tolerances and with various degrees of forward planning and assistance.

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Transporting Exceptional Loads [VHS]

Each of the exceptional loads shown in this programme was a project requiring individual attention and equipment. The skills of the transport companies and their personnel are explained and a feature is included on how modular trailers are built.

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Hauliers agree to stay away from Cambridgeshire residents

Construction and waste hauliers in Cambridgeshire have reached an agreement with the local council to re-route hundreds of truck journeys away from residential areas.

Mick George Ltd, based in St Ives, Cambs, has agreed with Cambridgeshire County Council to direct about 200 truck journeys away from the villages of Sutton, Bluntisham and Earith each week by ordering drivers to use the road to Block Fen via the A141 Chatteris bypass.

Cambridge waste management specialist Donarbon will divert about 220 lorries away from Haddenham and Wilburton, although its smaller skip vehicles will continue to access the villages to service local businesses and households.

In addition, Cambridge aggregates company M Dickerson will re-route the 80 journeys per week that have previously used the A1123/A1421 through Wilburton and Haddenham.

The move follows years of complaints from residents about noise coming from trucks driving past their homes.

Jon Stump, finance director at Mick George, says: "We always have a number of planning applications with the council and we look to maintain good relations with them.

"This is about working in co-operation with the council to minimise disruption for local residents."

Gary Bell, MD at M Dickerson, adds: "We have listened to the concerns of local communities and in response we took action earlier this year to re-route our through mineral traffic."

Cllr Philip Read, chairman of Cambridgeshire County Council's development control committee, says: "What is very pleasing is that these local haulage companies have been eager to bring in their own routes or enter agreements."

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Council Consultation A Waste Of Time

 State Member for Kawana Jarrod Bleijie addresses last night's meeting.

OVER 1600 submissions, mostly from residents in the Sippy Downs community and the word that was continually uttered at the local association’s meeting last night was, ‘disappointing’.

That was the response to Council’s Structure Plan for the new Palmview development which will now see up to 17,712 residents neighbour the existing Sippy Downs community.

Member for Kawana Jarrod Bleijie was visibly angry at the lack of support from Council to the local community’s concerns over the adjacent Greenfield development site.

“Despite all of the rhetoric about our place, our future, the countless community submissions, parliamentary petitions, deputations to Ministers and Councillors, it all seems to have been just a waste of time,” Mr Bleijie said.

“Council’s planning portfolio spokesman Russell Green, while patting himself on the back over the approval of the Palmview development, says it showed the Government that Council could also handle the massive Caloundra South site.

“It shows we are able to do this, we have the skill sets, we have the political will.........we believe we can do it with the Caloundra South site too.....let the Council and the community chart its own destiny,”  he said.

“The point is that the reverse is true - the Council is not allowing the community to chart its own destiny,” Mr Bleijie said.

“The north-south Greenlink route which cuts the master planned community of Sippy Downs in half, access to the Bruce Highway through a service road, the sequencing of the development and the amount of access points has been the major concerns of Sippy Downs residents.

“The main fight has been to ensure that this new development will not adversely impact on Sippy Downs.

When Mr Bleijie questioned Council last night at the public meeting about the route of the east west Greenlink, Council could not give a definitive answer as to where it would be located, what environmental impact have been considered, let alone the cost and who was going to pay for it.

“This highlights the sense that people should be concerned when Council are submitting Structure Plans to Ministers for rubber stamping, when so many issues remain unanswered and not costed,” Mr Bleijie said.

“Claymore Road, the major initial access point is not even being duplicated to a four lane road.

“The east-west Greenlink is just pie in the sky planning, it will cost a lot more than Council’s anticipated $100 million and nobody wants to pay for it.

“There are also huge environmental concerns to consider in the actual location of this so called ‘Green’-link.

“The proposed southern access to Caloundra Road crosses the Mooloolah River and straight through a 50 year sand mining project – with the road acting as one of the major haulage routes to cart sand from the mine.

“The other access point is the south-west road directs the traffic straight to Meridan - which has its own traffic problems at the moment.

“In a perfect world, it would be nice to think that the majority of the residents in Palmview are going to throw away there car keys and use buses, but the reality is that in the short term this isn’t going to happen.

“This development was a test for the current Council and the majority of the Councillors failed the local interest test in a big way,” Mr Bleijie said.

Only two Councillors voted against the proposal – Cr Christian Dickson and Cr Ted Hungerford.

“I haven’t given up hope yet and nor should the community,” Mr Bleijie said.

“Last week I informally spoke with the Minister, Stirling Hinchliffe and there are still opportunities where the state can intervene in the second state interest check.

“I will continue to pursue these opportunities and work through the options with the local community association.

“It begs the question that if Council can’t get a 16,000 population development at Palmview right, then how will it cope with the planning for a 50,000 population development at Caloundra South.

“Why does Council bother with community consultation when clearly retaining the north south Greenlink is against the majority of submissions,” Mr Bleijie said.

View the original article here

Company profile for Unilever - The Guardian

Unilever is a multinational corporation selling consumer goods including foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products. Unilever is a dual-listed company consisting of Unilever NV in Rotterdam and Unilever PLC in London.

Unilever owns more than 400 brands including 11 "billion-dollar brands", which each achieve annual sales in excess of €1 billion.

Revenue (£m and currency as quoted)

39,823 (2009)

Number of employees

163,000

Origin of ownership

UK/Netherlands

Geographical presence

Operates in 100 countries

Key contact

Santiago Gowland

• Measured by voliume, around half of Unilever's raw materials are agricultural or forestry products. As a result, the company's principle environmental concerns are changing weather patterns, water-scarcity and unsustainable farming practices.
• Unilever measures its product categories against four green indicators covering water, waste, sustainable sourcing and greenhouse gas emissions.
• Most CO2 emissions associated with Unilever brands occur during consumer use as products require energy to heat water for cooking and washing.

Emissions & Energy

• The company's aim is to reduce the carbon intensity of manufacturing operations by 25% by 2012 (measured as tonnes CO2 per tonne of production against a 2004 baseline).
• In 2008, the company reduced CO2 emissions by 1.6% per tonne of production compared to 2007.
• Unilever has reduced the carbon intensity of its energy use by 39% between 1995 and 2008. This represents a 43% reduction in absolute terms.
• The company is investing in more efficient power and steam generation technology and the development of less energy intensive manufacturing processes. For example:
- In Europe, Unilever has at least three CHP plants which use waste steam and hot water to generate electricity.
- The Cu Chi factory in Vietnam uses solar panels to preheat water for steam generation.
- 2m point-of-sale ice cream freezer cabinets are being replaced with energy-efficient HC alternatives.
• The company plans to reduce indirect impacts by working with customers and suppliers to address wider impacts. For example, Ben & Jerry's has a Lick Global Warming campaign and an ice cream flavour called Fossil Fuel.
• Around 4m tonnes of CO2 are produced each year because of Unilever's transport and product distribution requirements.

Water

• Unilever relies on water for:
- Sourcing: the cultivation of agricultural raw materials
- Manufacturing operations: cleaning, cooling, as an ingredient
- Consumers: use of home care and personal products
• Unilever aims to:
- Reduce water in manufacturing
- Work with suppliers on issues such as crop irrigation
- Innovation on product design
• Since 1995, Unilever has reduced the amount of water used per tonne of production by 63% by minimising water use and maximising water recycling.
• During 2008, there was a 3% reduction in water intensity compared to 2007 – from 3.05 m3 to 2.96 m3 per tonne of production.
• The water intensity of food production has dropped from 5.27 m3 in 2003 to 4.23 m3 in 2007 per tonne of production.
• Products aimed at reduced consumer water consumption include the One Rinse Comfort fabric conditioner. In Vietnam, One Rinse Comfort reduces the water needed by two-thirds and sales rose by nearly 30% in 2008.

Waste

• Waste intensity has reduced by 68% per tonnes of production between 1995 and 2008, despite a 4.3% increase in the last year (7.56 kg/tonnes in 2007 to 7.89 kg/tonne).
• The company says this increase was due to:
- Legislative changes
- Under-capacity in effluent treatment
- Planned disposal of accumulated and inherited hazardous waste
• Changing packaging design is one of the ways in which the company wants to use to reduce waste impacts.
• The PVC policy commits to replacing PVC in all packaging by the end of 2010, where there are viable alternatives.

Resources

• Agricultural and forestry crops make up around half by volume of raw materials used by Unilever.
• Unilever buys approximately 12% of the world's black tea, 6% of the world's tomatoes and 3% of its palm oil.
• Unilever established guidelines for good agricultural practice based on 11 indicators including water, energy, pesticide use and animal welfare. Growers and third-party suppliers are encouraged to comply.
• Most of the world's oil palm is grown in South-East Asia where the clearance and burning of forests contributes to global warming.
• Following a public challenge by Greenpeace, Unilever has agreed to draw all their palm oil from certified sustainable sources by 2015.
• Unilever have also agreed to support a moratorium on further deforestation in South-East Asia.
• At the end of 2009 around 80% of Lipton Yellow Label and PG tips tea sold in Western Europe came from Rainforest Alliance Certified farms.
• Unilever also uses paper and board, plastic, glass, aluminium, steel and mixed material laminates (for sachets and pouches) in its manufacturing processes.

• Founding member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), which it continues to chair.
• Worked with Greenpeace to build a global coalition of companies, banks and NGOs to break the link between deforestation and the cultivation of oil palm.
• Unilever worked alongside Tesco to persuade the Consumer Goods Forum, a global alliance of 300 leading manufacturers and retailers, to work together to end deforestation.
• Working with Greenpeace on climate-friendly refrigerants in an alliance called Refrigerants Naturally!
• Founding members of the Carbon Disclosure Project's Supply Chain Leadership Collaboration.
• CEO Paul Polman co-chairs a sustainability steering group of The Consumer Goods Forum with Sir Terry Leahy. They have set out the vision for the sustainability programme to drive and communicate sustainability improvements throughout the value chain of the consumer goods industry.
• Participated in a 2008 event hosted by Wal-Mart on water stewardship, sharing expertise on reducing water use at all steps of a product lifecycle.
• Participated in an initiative with Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA), the UK Department for International Development and Wageningen University to train smallholder farmers in sustainable tea cultivation.

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Recycling and work permits on States agenda - Channel Television

Jersey's States have adopted 31 to 11 a proposition by the Deputy of St John to identify a site on publicly owned land which would lend itself to the recycling of waste materials.

The States have agreed to undertake a review of suitable sites and to report back to the States within six months. The idea is that such a site would then be run by a licensed haulage contractor.

The Council of Ministers responded to the proposition suggesting it was not the responsibility of government to identify land requirements for private waste operators who would eventually be running the site.

There was also debate about whether the search should be limited to just one site and indeed whether the search shouldn't include private land as the aim surely was to identify the best suited site.

Also on the agenda Deputy Paul Le Claire asked members to set up a working group to consider the merits of introducing a work and residence permit system for the island. A controversial measure he thinks would protect jobs and housing for locals. That proposition was defeated but as a compromise Deputy Le Claire agreed to join the Migration Scrutiny Sub Panel - which is already reviewing the island's migration legislation.

The next States meeting is on October 12th.

Currently displaying the top 1 commentsPosted By: Cynic - St.Brelade on 01-Oct-2010
So we are building a new incinerator and NOTHING was put into plans for recycling. Seems a bit damn obvious to me....put it all in the same damn place.
Currently displaying the top 1 comments

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FIRMS would pay a quarry owner in Paignton hundreds of pounds to tip

FIRMS would pay a quarry owner in Paignton hundreds of pounds to tip construction waste at the site, a trial has been told.
Alexander Sim, 56, who ran Alex Sim Plant Hire, had lorries arriving several times a day to use the Yalberton Tor Quarry.
Many of them would bring waste from major construction projects in the Bay.


Sim denies 10 counts of illegally using the quarry as a waste tip.
He claims the deliveries were used to build an access ramp for the quarry. Illegal waste was not accepted, he said.
The third day of the trial heard more prosecution evidence, some of it about the nature of construction waste and whether it could be legally dumped.
The trial has already heard metal, wood, tyres and other illegal materials were found by Environment Agency investigators.
The jury was told haulage firms would bring lorry-loads of waste to the quarry, have it weighed and tipped over the edge.
The Environment Agency claims some of this waste was not suitable to be dumped at the site.
Invoices produced in court showed Sim charged about £5 a tonne for the tipping.
One witness, Kenneth Wade, of Bay Skips, said his firm dumped clean soil at the site for at least five years from 2000.
He said inappropriate waste, such as plastic and metal, was not taken to the quarry. Bay Skips, he said, would take up to 60 loads a month, each weighing six tonnes.
Cross examined by Adam Vaitilungham QC, he said the dump was 'professionally run' and had strict rules about what type of waste was tipped.
"Mr Sim made it known to staff that contaminated waste was totally unacceptable," he said.
Sim denies 10 counts of operating an illegal installation except under a permit and failing to complete signed waste transfer notes.
The trial continues.
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Waste paper lorry overturns outside Herne Bay - Kent Online

Comments  | 

A trailer of waste paper spilled onto the Old Thanet Way on Friday morning after overturning on a roundabout.

The lorry, from Waste-a-Way Bulk Haulage Contractors, lost its load just after 9am.

It was trying to go round the Herne Bay golf course roundabout with the A299 Thanet Way.

The trailer completely blocked the Whitstable-bound carriageway of the B2205 Canterbury Road out of Herne Bay after turning on its side and spilling paper across the road.

The road between the golf course and Eddington roundabouts was closed to traffic.

The lorry’s cab had detached itself from the trailer and stopped close by. The driver was uninjured.

Police helped seal off the road and divert traffic around the lorry. The vehicle was expected to be recovered and removed on Friday afternoon.

Friday, September 24 2010

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Market overview: waste and water sectors - Building.co.uk

With regulation driving investment and resource efficiency in the waste and water sectors, Matthew Hicks and Andrew Wheeler of Davis Langdon examine how the UK’s obligations are going to be met, and what the opportunities are for consultants and contractors

BKF0RD The Daveyhulme waste water treatment plant in Manchester uses bio gas from human waste to power the plant.

Water and waste are going to become vital to the construction industry over the next decade. The water sector is going to attract investment worth £22bn between now and 2015 and the amount to be spent on waste over 10 years is estimated to be somewhere between £10bn (UK Trade & Investment’s estimate) and £30bn (the Institution of Civil Engineers’ estimate). But as there will also be a squeeze on costs, new regulation, contentious planning issues and a struggle to manage risk, the challenge is to deliver efficient and profitable services in return for this money.

Funding and investment in waste
Waste treatment has been designed around collection, haulage and landfill. In recent years, central and local government have tried to improve recycling rates, and treatment facilities have expanded. EU rules and the impact of the landfill tax escalator mean that landfill is no longer an option for long-term waste disposal.

Although the exact sum is not clear, the public sector will have to invest somewhere between £9bn and £11bn in infrastructure if it is to meet the EU target of a 75% reduction in waste to landfill by 2020. However, given that a large proportion of waste schemes are not entirely publicly funded, output figures are not published and figures for the total investment in commercial and industrial waste infrastructure are often contradictory. In August 2010 it was reported that the top 10 waste management contracts yet to be awarded had a combined value of £9.5bn. The practicalities of implementation may prove a stumbling block as for most schemes, planning will continue to be contentious and high risk.

The key players
The main players within the waste management market have changed little in recent years.

These firms are investing time and capital in the procurement stages of PFI/PPP projects. However, several new entrants to the market are also looking to take advantage of waste infrastructure investment opportunity, such as Covanta, Urbaser, United Utilities, MVV Umwelt and AmeyCespa.

Merchant plant capacity is also a growth area for more speculative developers that can secure sufficient waste streams prior to committing to build. The landfill tax is an important driver as is the considerable capital required to build an energy from waste (EfW) plant, as waste companies cannot raise this capital against their balance sheet.

Despite the coalition government’s spending cuts in virtually every other area, significant cuts in waste infrastructure spending are unlikely because EU legislation is non-negotiable. However, it is not clear whether councils can continue to afford PFI/PPP projects, or whether merchant plant capacity could pick up shorter term contracts with more flexibility as a result.

Future opportunities
There is likely to be a big push towards anaerobic digestion in the next five years as the coalition is commited to promoting energy from waste plants. The Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA) has said this could mean that as many as two plants are built each week over the next 10 years. These are likely to be small schemes, with an output of less than 5MW. The feed-in tariff scales will discourage the construction of larger facilities, as will technology risk, the capital required and the need to gain access to long-term waste streams.

Waste schemes are often procured using an engineer, procure and construct (EPC) contract; in other words, a contract to assess the scope of work required and deliver it. The EPC wrapper improves the bankability of the deal and so attracts senior debt - provided the EPC has a sufficiently large balance sheet to secure the lending against.

Therefore contractors need to target the most appropriate point of entry. For instance, a large contractor with a strong balance sheet could take the role of EPC contractor. It would enter into a contract with the technology provider and take on the performance risk. Other contractors may consider more downstream activities, such as the civil engineering and structural works required to deliver a facility. However, the size of the opportunity is heavily based on the technology deployed, as the EPC “wrap” is dependant on the design underwritten by the EPC contractor. This translates to a transfer of risk to subcontractors, which will need to price for the risk of non-compliant works.

Smaller scale plants, such as anaerobic digestion unit, would also need to be wrapped with an EPC. Owing to the smaller scale of plant, we may see more contractors entering the EPC marketplace. However they are likely to face stiff competition from anaerobic digestion technology providers from the US and Europe, so UK firms may have to move further down the supply chain.Consultants have a range of opportunities. They could work for waste management firms or energy developers, or support design-and-build contractors under the EPC contractor. Consultancies with a process engineering background may work with technology providers to improve the plant’s efficiency. Funders need to conduct due diligence on the investments they are considering, and local authorities will require technical and procurement advice.

merging technologies, such as plasma gasification, waste to biofuel and waste to fuel cells, are likely to form part of the portfolio of waste infrastructure. These technologies are alternatives to incineration, although there are few bankable suppliers with a reference project (that is, one that has clocked up 20,000 operational hours) and a balance sheet large enough to give comfort to a lender. And, as it is notoriously difficult to maximise the efficiency and effectiveness of new technologies, there is a significant operation and maintenance risk. In terms of planning, the key difference is the move from waste management to waste treatment that includes energy generation. This can slow down the planning application. There is unlikely to be a large scale deployment of these technologies for a number of years as there is no appetitive among investors for technology risk of any kind at the moment.

Sustainability and carbon reduction in the waste and water sectors

The UK water and waste markets will have to meet challenging carbon reduction targets. Carbon emissions must fall 34% by 2020 and 80% by 2050 (from 1990 levels). Schemes such as the carbon reduction commitment are creating an environment where the carbon performance of service providers will become an integral determinant of future competitiveness.

Achieving these cuts will require effort in two areas. As populations increase, so does demand for water and waste services. We need to counter this growth in demand through early intervention at the level of the consumer. There are already a number of organisations busy in this space. For example, Wrap’s combined strategy of encouraging less waste and promoting recycling tackles two issues in the waste sector. Similarly, organisations such as Waterwise are beginning to show results as solutions such as low flow taps become more common. But in neither case has the idea of resource efficiency become the status quo, leaving the sector a long way from where it needs to be. In short, this means that the energy and water sectors need to make the carrot more appetising or work harder with the stick to compensate for the inefficiencies of their customers.

The other key challenge is technological. Finding new ways to treat and distribute water and waste that achieves required levels of quality but reduced carbon impacts. In waste, this involves a sensible focus on the waste hierarchy - moving from reuse, to recycling and then energy recovery. Decarbonising water supply is a complex picture, with a number of possible intervention points. Greater use of sustainable urban drainage systems is certainly one way of limiting the pressure on the network. Exploring flexible treatment rates to coincide with the seasons and water levels in rivers is another, as is the possible decentralisation of treatment facilities to take advantage of local low-energy solutions.

Funding and investment in water
In April this year water companies began their fifth five-year asset management programme (AMP). In the previous four, more than £80bn was invested in England and Wales’ water and sewage system; this represents a quarter the entire infrastructure market and 2% of the overall construction market.

The 12 water and sewage and 10 water-only companies are embarking on an ambitious (albeit mandatory) investment programme. This will involve their biggest spend to date. It is, however, £5bn less than the water companies claimed they needed over the period. Set against a backdrop of a slow recovery in the UK market, Ofwat, the sector regulator, also determined that average household bills needed to remain at 2009 levels. The funding gap is, therefore, significant.

Every AMP cycle is different; AMP5 will deliver fewer major projects than AMP4, and the focus will be on maintaining existing assets.The private development market remains
subdued and the opportunity for water companies to develop outside the regulated framework is severely limited. “Can’t pay, won’t pay” customers remain a challenge for maintaining the balance between funding and investment as the strict governance of what sanctions can be used makes recouping unpaid bills an expensive and often fruitless exercise. In 2009, the Walker Review recommended that England and Wales should move to 80% metering by 2020. Although progress to date has been questionable, metering is likely
to continue to have a high profile over the next five years.

Future opportunities
A proven track record in the sector, or transferable experience, is vital. Contractors and consultants are procured under the EU Official Journal’s rules, so the process is not quick; the AMP5 procurement process began last year and a significant number of contracts have been awarded. The AMP6 procurement programme is likely to start in 2014.

The funding squeeze and lack of viable alternative sources of income means the delivery of AMP5 will require a new set of skills and a fresh approach if it is to be successful. As the water companies move to managing smaller overlapping projects, the programme management office (PMO) approach is coming to the fore. For example Northern Ireland Water is procuring consultant partners to join its PMO for the first regulated programme of investments. As efficiencies are driven into the process, there will be a greater reliance on those further down the supply chain.

There are likely to be smaller contracts running concurrently, with the PMO directly managing, controlling and reporting on their outputs. This will allow efficiency targets to run through the procurement process and provide opportunities to reduce costs. Volume purchases at lower tiers of the supply chain will mean there will be more direct contact between clients and the smaller subcontractors or suppliers. Efficiency will be the mantra throughout AMP5, as will strategic planning and the control of delivery. The emphasis will be on doing more with less and making the most of existing assets.

Spending is projected to grow by 3.5% a year from 2010 taking the total spend in 2014 to over

Opportunities exist for those that can deliver value through sustainability. The sector has been investing in renewable energy for some time, from hydroelectric generators to, more recently, Wessex Water’s use of methane as a fuel for its vehicles. AMP5 allows £57m for renewable energy projects, and these are forecast to deliver £8.8m of savings in operational expenditure when they are implemented.

Carbon reduction can also reduce operational spending through technologies such as sludge management, gasification of waste treatment discharges and pelletising; this has the additional benefit that it could reduce the burden of environmental taxes, levies or surcharges, such as the Carbon Reduction Commitment Scheme.

The adaptation of existing technology for new uses may be more advantageous for technology advancement. Progress has been made on the injection of biogas into the gas grid. The use of proven technology should offer greater cost efficiency and a faster speed to market.

As already mentioned, the investment community (both equity and debt) is wary of technology risk. The waste companies cannot leverage senior debt against their balance sheet and developers do not want to take the risk of sinking significant capital in a plant that is not fit for purpose. Funders can often be enticed into investing in emerging technologies only by
high internal rates of return or the willingness of an EPC contractor to take on performance risk.

To gain both of these can often be a challenge, and large-scale PFI/PPP procurement doesn’t often have a place for emerging technologies. In the most EfW schemes, planning will continue to be contentious and high risk. High operating costs mean government incentives (including landfill tax), renewable obligation certificates and feed-in tariffs will play a critical role if investors are to be attracted.

View the original article here