Aquatec Maxcon is excited to be delivering the next Nereda® Plant in Australia for Sydney Water at Quakers Hill, NSW.

Sydney Water has selected Nereda® as the technology for the Quakers Hill Water Recycling Plant (WRP) upgrade, as part of the $450 million Lower South Creek Project. Once commissioned, Quakers Hill WRP will service 223,000 EP within the Western Sydney catchment.

The selection of Nereda® technology was based on trials that were carried out at Quakers Hill Plant in 2017 by Aquatec Maxcon; the results of which were successfully demonstrated to meet all of Sydney Water’s process requirements.

According to Mr Mark Simister, Head of Delivery Management at Sydney Water, “The results were impressive. Not only will this technology reduce Sydney Water’s carbon footprint, but the trial at Quakers Hill will lead to savings in capital which is a saving for all of Sydney Water’s customers.”  (Source: Utility Magazine).

Peter Ferrando, Aquatec Maxcon’s Managing Director said that “having delivered the award winning Kingaroy Nereda® Plant, we are looking forward to working with Sydney Water in the successful delivery of another Nereda® Project in Australia.”

Nereda® technology not only has capital benefits but also improves overall carbon footprint with significant reductions in operating costs. It is a sustainable alternative to activated sludge processes and is gaining worldwide prominence in the water industry. Aquatec Maxcon is the exclusive partner of Royal Haskoning DHV, the technology provider for delivering Nereda® within Australia and New Zealand. 

AQUATEC MAXCON NEREDA® PILOT PLANT, SUCCESSFULLY TRIALED AT QUAKERS HILL WRP

Charters Towers Regional Council, Queensland, has awarded Aquatec Maxcon a contract for the design and construction of a Water Treatment Plant with the output capacity of 300 L/sec, ~21 ML/day.  

Aquatec Maxcon offered a solution for the upgrade project using conventional water treatment technology. The solution involves minimal disruption to the operation of the plant and to the region’s residents during construction.

Future water demand projections and an already high water usage in the region, meant the existing treatment plant was not equipped for the regions requirements. The increased output capacity of the new plant will safeguard water availability and cater for the area’s development and growth.

Aquatec Maxcon Water Treatment Manager, Mohsen Mobarghei said “We look forward to delivering a successful project for Charters Towers Regional Council and improving the security of the water supply for the region”

Aquatec Maxcon has commenced preliminary design with practical completion scheduled for mid 2019.

The Board of Aquatec Maxcon Pty Ltd has announced that Mr Peter George Ferrando has been appointed to the position of Managing Director starting on 5th February 2018. Peter has over 25 years’ experience in the construction Industry, including 17 years with Aquatec Maxcon. 

Peter has held various roles within Aquatec Maxcon including Project Manager, Alliance Manager, Project Director and most recently, as the Queensland State Manager. Over the past nine years as the Queensland State Manager, Peter was responsible for overseeing the operations within the Head Office. His role encompassed all stages of major projects from expressions of interest and proposal submissions through to design, delivery and the administrative role across all Companies within the Aquatec Maxcon Group. 

During his tenure, Peter has been instrumental in growing the Group and has held significant delivery roles including the role of the Alliance Project Manager for the BCAA Alliance, which was valued at $125m.  Peter successfully led the Alliance team to the completion of the Emergency Drought Strategy Project, delivering 33ML of aquifer water into the water grid. Peter was also the Project Manager at Sandgate WWTP (100,000 EP plant) as part of the award winning Brisbane Water Enviro Alliance (BWEA).   

Prior to joining Aquatec Maxcon in 2001, Peter was working for Lendlease in various project roles and delivered some iconic projects including Brisbane Airport, Royal Brisbane Hospital and Cairns Conventional Centre. Peter is a qualified Civil Engineer graduating from the University of Queensland in 1993. 

Peter is taking over from Mr Greg Johnston, who after 33 years in the Managing Director’s position will be taking a different role as the Technical Director within the Company. Greg will continue in his role as a Director, with a focus on developing new technologies for the water and wastewater sector. Under Greg’s tenure, Aquatec Maxcon has transitioned from a fabrication workshop in the 1970’s to a leading technology provider of water and wastewater solutions today. 

Announcing Peter’s appointment, Mr Peter Gilchrist, the Chairman of the Board, said that “Peter is an exceptional leader who has proven his capability and understands the challenges throughout all facets of our business. Peter will continue differentiating our Company as an innovation hub within the Water and Waste Industry”. 

Aquatec Maxcon prides itself in providing innovative solutions to the Water and Waste Industries, including Nereda® Technology, Waste to Energy Plants and Anammox®, along with our in-house products and process solutions such as Aquablade Aeration Diffusers.

Congratulations to our latest ten employees who have attained a Certificate IV in Work Health and Safety (WHS).

The Aquatec Maxcon Group is commited to workplace health and safety and promoting a safety culture of continual improvement.

One of our most successful WHS initiatives has been the introduction of a training program to deliver Cert IV WHS accreditation to our company leaders throughout the organisation. In this way, our leaders improve their safety awareness and appreciate and understand their WHS responsibilities, helping them to more safely execute projects. Since its inception, this initiative has seen improved project safety performance and more positive attitudes towards health and safety leadership.

To date, 25 company leaders have completed this training, with one general manager and nine project managers/senior engineers completing the Cert IV course in February.

Some of the key health and safety areas covered by this course are:

• Australian Standards and relevant regulations and legislation
• Risk assessment and hazard control
• WHS management systems
• WHS consultation and participation processes (identifying participants, reviewing  procedures, ascertaining training needs, communicating data, developing improvement initiatives)
• WHS leadership skills
• Incident response procedures
• Assisting in incident investigations
• Managing claims and implementing rehabilitation / return-to-work programs
• Establishing, reviewing and evaluating WHS measures and initiatives.

The Aquatec Maxcon Group Quality, Safety and Environmental (QSE) Manager, Christine Howland, said “This initiative actively encourages positive project and safety leadership. Our project leaders can lead by example, “walk the talk” and promote a positive safety culture with the tools and knowledge gained through the completion of this course.”