Type of works: installation of an efficient and reliable grease management system to resolve existing blockage and leakage issues.

The latest grease separator technology from ACO Building Drainage, the specialist in corrosion-resistant building drainage systems, is helping Hammersmith Hospital to dispose of fats, oils and grease waste from its kitchen in a way that is hygienic, simple to operate, and friendly to the environment. ACO’s Hydrojet system was specified to eliminate ongoing problems of leakage and maintenance that the hospital encountered with its previous grease management solution.

Hammersmith Hospital in London is part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. With effective nutrition an essential part of the hospital’s treatment of patients, the building’s kitchen is an extremely busy place, preparing thousands of meals every day. With so much food being prepared, the kitchen needs to dispose of a considerable volume of waste. Preventing fats, oils and grease from entering the main drainage system is essential to minimise the risk of blockages, which can create health hazards, and also damage to sewers and the environment. Before implementing the ACO solution, the kitchen at Hammersmith Hospital was using a mild-steel biological grease trap suspended in the kitchen floor to treat the grease. This system posed a number of problems for staff, being prone to blockages, and quickly showing signs of corrosion and leakage, creating a strong, unpleasant smell.

Dissatisfied with this solution, the hospital decided to look for an alternative. Tony McNamara, Mechanical Team Leader at Hammersmith Hospital, explained, “We approached a number of drainage solution suppliers and settled on ACO Building Drainage, who we felt could offer us the best quality products and level of service. ACO’s specialists came to the kitchen and asked us a series of questions about the number of meals being prepared and the issues we had with our existing solution. They offered us a standard system that suited our specific needs, and delivered it in just five weeks, which really exceeded our expectations.”

The system that ACO installed in the basement of the hospital consisted of a Hydrojet grease separator with disposal pump for easy and convenient tanker waste collection at street level. The Hydrojet was dismantled into three components to enable efficient installation in the basement where access was restricted. Constructed from corrosion resistant HDPE rather than mild steel, the solution has eliminated problems of smells and leakages. Unlike the previous system, which required regular dosing of biological activator, the Hydrojet works on natural buoyancy processes to separate solids, fats, oils, and grease from wastewater. The separated water is then discharged into the sewer in a safe and environmentally friendly manner.

Tony McNamara is delighted with the new solution, “The service we continue to receive from ACO and the quality of the new solution is outstanding. When we have the system pumped out, we can see that the trap remains spotless, and blockages are now a thing of the past. We check the drains regularly and, unlike before, no grease is getting through. The kitchen is now running far more efficiently and is a much more pleasant place to work!”