Emergency DAF System deployment
Key Information
Client
Food & Beverage
Location
United Kingdom
Sector
Wastewater
Project Overview
Case study: Emergency DAF System deployment at a food manufacturing site, UK
A leading manufacturer in the ready-meal sector, supplying some of the UK’s biggest supermarket chains. Maintaining high standards of hygiene and operational efficiency is essential for their business.
The Challenge
In mid-2025, this customer faced a significant operational challenge when their existing wastewater treatment plant stopped working due to a number of factors. One of these was the failure of the Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF) unit, which is critical for wastewater treatment. With no spare parts available on-site and a 12-week lead time for a replacement pump, the plant faced uncertainty as to its ability to process wastewater.
The outage led to the increased operational costs associated with the volume of daily wastewater with tankers being employed to remove the wastewater produced whilst the factory was kept in operation. The hire of storage tanks to manage flow rates within sewer discharge limits was also employed. These factors highlighted a critical need for rapid intervention to remove the threat to factory operations and to ensure the wastewater plant to be operational to enable the factory to maintain output.
A site visit was undertaken with 24 hours of initial contact, to establish the optimum way to integrate a hire DAF into the existing wastewater treatment plant in the shortest timescale, ensuring all parties knew the strategic and logical approach to the solution.
The Solution
Rapid Deployment of Emergency DAF Unit
The understanding for rapid deployment of a DAF100 unit and sludge pump, which was on site within two working days of issuing our proposal, commissioned and fully operational shortly after.
Our Approach
Glanua prioritises the seamless operation of existing facilities during the project, emphasising careful sequencing to switch from current to new equipment. The commissioning plan is strategically crafted early on, ensuring alignment with the operations team for a smooth transition.
Results & Impact
Treatment of Wastewater: The success of this emergency deployment allowing our customer to continue their operations with minimal disruption and highlighted the benefit of having a responsive contingency solution.
Efficiency Gains: Commissioning revealed that the temporary DAF performed better even without chemicals compared to the existing, aged system with chemicals.
- Business Continuity: Enabled the site to restart wastewater processing, preventing ongoing tanker costs.
- Ongoing Support: This event highlighted the benefit of having a service and maintenance plan in place with Glanua.