Water Direct delivers millions of litres of water to construction projects every year, providing bulk water for site processes such as concrete batching, soakaway testing, dust suppression, drilling & piling, landscaping and habitat creation among many other applications. The company, which works with many of the largest construction companies in the UK, remains the preferred supplier to the construction sector nationwide. Water Direct has released the latest in a series of short, animated ‘explainer’ videos, designed to illustrate the breadth of usage across the construction sector.
Here are the ways that Water Direct supports construction projects:
Bulk Water Deliveries by Tanker
Our tankers can assist either via one bulk delivery into site tanks or by remaining on site for a number of hours at a time to provide water as and when it’s required. Our tankers can also work in rotation if a constant supply is needed.
Construction sites may either be without a mains water supply entirely or require a much higher volume of water than would be possible to take from the mains.
Recent applications our tankers have been used for on construction sites include:
- Horizontal Drilling
- Soakaway Testing
- Grouting
- Dust Suppression
- Hydro-demolition
- Concrete Batching
- Site Remediation
Our 10,000 and 19,000 litre rigid tankers are compact and manoeuvrable, large enough to make bulk deliveries in a single visit and small enough to access residential areas or sites where access is limited. Rigid tankers are ideally suited for filling multiple static water tanks or delivering to busy sites. For sites with access or weight restrictions, they can deliver multiple loads to meet larger demand.
The company’s latest investment in on/off-road ‘Tridem’ axle 19,000 litre rigid chassis tankers with rear-lift, rear-steer design, allow access to nearly any site, no matter how tight.
For higher volume deliveries where access isn’t an issue, our 30,000 litre articulated tankers are ideal, ensuring we have a solution to deliver any volume of water required.
Bulk water requirements are our speciality and we can provide large volumes by sending multiple tankers to site at one time if there are time restraints for the deliveries to be made.
Our latest innovation is the development of a revolutionary pumping system fitted to our tankers, which have been specifically designed to meet the demands of the markets we serve. The state-of-the-art pump sets can pump out at pressures up to 10 bar and automatically maintain pressure and flow 24 hours a day via the on-board digital control panel. The pumps can also be operated remotely up to 180m away, meaning we have greater control and enhanced safety features to protect our technicians, other road users and the general public.
Tanks
Offering comprehensive water supply services to suit every project, Water Direct’s temporary water storage tanks come in volumes of 1,100, 1,800 and 10,000 litres and can either stand alone, be connected to an onsite service of welfare facility, or be connected to a mains supply and act as a buffer.
For larger projects we can also source higher volume storage of 70,000 and 100,000 litre tanks which can be useful for more complex applications and demanding site infrastructure. Being able to hold such a large volume can also ensure the provision of a continuous supply which can work in unison with our bulk drinking water tankers. Our tankers can provide additional fills in rotation keeping the tanks full while the project is in progress.
Ideal to provide onsite drinking water, our smaller 1,100 litre and 1,800 litre tanks come with push or twist taps to provide a gravity-fed supply. All of our tanks large or small can also come with an on-demand electric pump to be connected to pressurised tap stands for drinking water, or to supply welfare units such as showers, toilets, hand washing and kitchen facilities.
Our WRAS approved potable static water storage tanks can be deployed nationwide as short, medium and long-term temporary storage solutions.
Tank Features can Include:
- Site gauges to monitor fill level – allowing you to pre-empt when you need to book your next water delivery
- Equilibrium ball valve if required
- Various connections/adaptors available
- Connected in series/parallel/modular/to pumps
- Used exclusively for the storage of quality assured wholesome water; suitable for drinking
- Secure filling points enabling quick and efficiently fill.
- Heavy duty hinged access lids, flanges, covers, outlets, drains
- Locked and tagged enabling tanks to be left unattended securely
- Complies fully with UK water regulations
Common Tank Applications:
- Site Drinking Water
- Site Welfare
- Pipework Chlorination and Certification
- Soakaway Testing
- Site Remediation
- Piling and Drilling Purposes
- Water for Concrete Batching
- Dust Suppression Applications
- Emergency deployment during unplanned interruptions to supply
Innovative Aqube
The unique 1,000 litre Aqube™ is a convenient, economical and recyclable drinking water supply ideally suited to construction sites that require a one-off delivery of quality assured drinking water. The wooden pallet base, cardboard packaging and plastic liner are all fully recyclable; after the water inside has been used, simply break down the container and recycle locally.
Delivered anywhere in mainland UK at a fixed competitive price and available with a range of couplings and attachments including a foot pump and hose, each unit comes complete with a versatile tap kit suitable for push-on or ‘hozelock’ fittings included as standard. The Aqube™ can be much more economical than a water bowser or static tank hire for short term requirements as the two-way road transport and installation costs associated with rental solutions are not incurred.
Features of the Aqube™ can include:
- 1,000 litres of quality-assured water
- Fixed price per unit
- Fully recyclable packaging
- Nationwide delivery
- Supplied complete with tap kit
- Foot pump and other attachments available
- Dimensions: 1200mm x 1150mm x 1300mm, Weight: 1060kg (including pallet base)
Benefits of Palletised Water
- Great alternative to bottled water to reduce the issue of litter
- One-way delivery so there are no collection costs
- Scalable solution; multiple units can be ordered together
- Convenient, versatile and discreet
- Fixed purchase price with no hire costs makes budgeting straightforward
Water for welfare
The Health & Safety Executive Drinking Water Guidelines state that ‘wholesome drinking water’ and adequate welfare facilities must be provided on site. However, the results of a recent survey of the construction industry by trade union, Unite found that construction sites in the UK may be regularly falling short of expected welfare standards.
Of concern was the finding that 17% of construction sites in Britain and Ireland had no access to drinking water. The survey also found that 18% of respondents’ workplaces did not have adequate toilet facilities and 51% did not have any showers.
These are significant statistics, and while individuals and organisations in the construction sector will be well aware of their obligations, the findings will likely prompt more careful consideration of site welfare needs in the future.
We offer a number of different services that provide supplies for drinking and welfare water to cater for these requirements including:
- Bottled Water
We currently store over 3,000,000 litres of bottled water across the UK meaning its ready for rapid delivery to any location at any time.
Offering a variety of sizes with guaranteed quality at the point of consumption in line with the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations.
- Aqube
For sites where there are environmental or cost concerns, our Aqube provides our most cost-effective drinking water solution.
The Aqube is 1,000 litres of quality assured water in a plastic-lined cardboard box which is 100% recyclable once the supply has depleted. This also removes the need for the Aqube to be collected after use, meaning we can keep it at a low, fixed rate.
- Static Tanks
For longer term requirements and to provide supplies to onsite units or services, our static tank set ups are an ideal solution.
A source of quality assured drinking water, our static tanks can be used to provide water for drinking, or for welfare facilities including showering, hand-washing and kitchen facilities.
Water System Chlorination
Pipework and system chlorination ensures that any pipes, tanks or outlets are correctly disinfected before coming in contact with drinking water.
It is essential to ensure suitability and safety for the provision of drinking water and is a requirement for new pipework installations, whether this is in a new build property or for a temporary set up onsite. In order to safeguard water quality and public health, it is required that private supply pipes are chlorinated and tested before a connection is allowed to the water main.
It is often also appropriate to chlorinate tanks or systems that have not been used for a long time as bacteria can grow over time if a supply or system has been left stagnant.
We provide a full chlorination service and regularly test for:
- E. coli
- Total Coliforms
- Total Viable Colony Counts
- Turbidity
- Chlorine residuals
- Clarity
Once the chlorination is complete, we take samples and send them off to a UKAS accredited laboratory for testing. Once we receive the results back and they have passed, we issue a chlorination certificate which is required by the utility companies in the UK who authorise a connection to the mains. This certificate also confirms for your own piece of mind that the pipework or vessels onsite, being used to hold clean, drinking water, are in fact suitable to be used to provide a supply to your staff.
With such a wide suite of services to offer the construction industry, we can work with our customers in a variety of ways to ensure we provide the solutions relevant to each site and the projects being under taken. We offer truly bespoke services and aim to accommodate for every enquiry we receive.