Three 100m3 water storage tanks for Westfort sustainable expansion programme
The family-run business of Westfort specialises in pork meat-processing. In order to modernise its pork-handing facilities, the company put out a call for three tanks designed to store water heated without the use of gas.
Westfort is currently in the process of expanding its meat-packing activities at IJsselstein, with new cutting and deboning facilities for the processing of meat and an accompanying refrigeration unit. Whereas this was previously done at several different sites, the development of new facilities means that the whole process can now be carried out from a single location. On the back of these expansion plans, the company aims to acquire sustainable BREEAM-NL Outstanding certification. To do this, it was necessary to produce cleaning water which no longer required gas-sourced heating. This meant the requirement of three stainless steel water tanks whose contents could heated from the residual heat generated by refrigeration.
The assignment
Gpi had previously supplied stainless steel tanks to the company during construction of the plant in 2015. Thanks to the flexible way in which this project had been carried out at the time, the choice once again fell on Gpi. Westfort called in B&V Techniek as its partner for completion of the construction programme. ‘The guidance we received at the planning stage was promising; a team from Gpi came to the site to finalise all the arrangements with the client and the contractor. So we didn’t have to think twice about going in with Gpi,’ explains Martijn Verwoerd, managing director of B&V Techniek.
Products
Gpi designed and manufactured three vertical 100m3 water tanks for the storage of no less than 300,000 litres of water. Each tank has a diameter 3.25 metres and a height of over 13 metres. Made from 304(L) stainless steel, the tanks also include insulation. The residual heat from the refrigeration is stored and used to heat the tanks to a temperature of 60°C.
Collaboration
Martijn Verwoerd describes the collaboration thus:
‘The project went exceedingly smoothly. The complete process, from the quotation and conformation of the order right up to the moment of delivery. Gpi works flexibly, listens to our needs and makes good on its promises. I can’t be anything but positive about them.’
The result
The tanks were produced in the production plant in Lopik and transported by road to Westfort in IJsselstein. The new meat-processing plant is currently still under construction. As soon as it is completed, the tanks for the storage of 300,000 litres of sustainably heated water will give Westfort sufficient capacity to meet the strict hygiene requirements in a sustainable fashion.
About Westfort
Wesfort has long experience in pork-processing. The company was established in 2013 as a result of a merger of two family-run businesses in order to consolidate its position on the market and to focus more on innovative conceptual design and sustainable development of the Dutch meat-processing sector. Westfort Vleesproducten buys pigs directly from farms in the Netherlands and sells its products worldwide. The company currently operates from four different sites in the Netherlands and employs a workforce of around 1,250.
About B&V Techniek
B&V Techniek is a partner for complete technical systems for food, utilities, public sector, luxury housing and retail. The business singles itself out on account of its commitment to energy efficiency and sustainability.
