Product Innovations |
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This category rewards the development and commercialisation of a product that minimises potable water consumption. Products could include (but are not limited to) domestic appliances, consumer products, commercial equipment, washing systems, water storage and irrigation.
For the first time in 2006/07, this category recognises product innovations from around Australia. |
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Muller Industries Australia has developed an entirely new and environmentally sustainable alternative to traditional cooling towers: the Muller 3C Cooler not only saves significant amounts of water, it minimises the risks of Legionnaires Disease and does not require continual chemical dosing with biocides and inhibitors (which end up in our sewage systems).
Royal Melbourne Hospital has reduced air conditioning water consumption by approximately 80 per cent, where it has replaced traditional cooling towers with the 3C system. With a recently completed plant upgrade servicing the both the Royal Melbourne Hospital and the Royal Women’s Hospital, annual water savings in air conditioning consumption is estimated to reach 60 million litres per year.
Cooling towers use water every time they operate, while the Muller 3C Cooler is a hybrid system that only uses water under extreme conditions, using air to cool in ambient temperatures. With Melbourne’s climate, the 3C can operate 85 per cent of the year without consuming water – thus providing substantial water savings over traditional cooling towers.
Additionally, 3C is a closed water system whereas cooling towers are open systems - providing ideal conditions for the propagation of the deadly Legionella bacteria. The 3C also compares well to air cooled air-conditioning systems, consuming 30 per cent less energy.
The 3C is a patented and distributed in Australia and New Zealand and the United Kingdom. |
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Designed and manufactured by Azuratec®, SlabTank® is a new, modular and hidden water storage system that is installed within the concrete of a typical home waffle pod or raft slab.
SlabTank® was designed by a builder for builders and offers a seamless and easy fit within existing construction methods. Azuratec® includes installation with each SlabTank® system which requires no additional excavation, soil removal or increase in reinforcement.
Home owners and architects benefit because SlabTank® systems do not take valuable living space which is critical on higher density developments.
Azuratec® estimates that a SlabTank® system could save an average Australian household over 135,000 litres of water annually (toilet and garden use/rainfall dependent). SlabTank® systems can also store water for lifestyle uses like watering lawns and washing cars.
SlabTank® was released onto the Australian market in October 2006.
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Linpac Rotational Mouldings |
Plastics manufacturer, Linpac Rotational Mouldings, was not content to simply manufacture barrel-shaped, underground rainwater tanks that it believed did not suit the needs of today’s consumer. So it designed and made its own, based on solving the difficulties commonly encountered when installing underground, barrel-shaped polyethylene tanks.
The result is the Toroid, an underground tank described in shape as a ‘donut’ (for 3,000L) or ‘bagel’ (5,000L).
Its 1.3 metre low-design equates to a shallower excavation depth with reduced risk of encountering water tables or rock. The design also eliminates additional WorkCover and Mines Act compliances for excavation over 1.5 metres: installation of a Toroid is as simple as digging a hole, levelling a gravel base, placing the tank in position and refilling with gravel.
It is also so structurally sound that it exceeds all current Australian guidelines. This is due to a patented ribbed design, which forms a ‘box’ pattern to create a structural integrity, and compression ballast that sits above the tank to become a dead weight that won’t place uneven loading on the tank.
Introduced to the Australian market in September 2005, the Toroids are patented in New Zealand and America and Linpac is under negotiation to manufacture theme under license in Brazil.
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