ACO Systems, a global leader in surface drainage systems, will be at Project Qatar to showcase a combination of drainage elements to create sustainable solutions for private homes and office buildings, as well as for industrial kitchens, hotels and commercial property.

The company’s building services division will showcase its products that collect water from flat roofs, paved areas and bathrooms and clean it as required, depending on the level of water contamination. Its systems also provide backflow protection and ensure the controlled release of water from buildings.

Commenting on the need for these effective solutions, a spokesman for the company says: “Floor gullies and channels are used wherever grey water needs to run off into the drainage systems without risk to people, installations or constructions.”

He says under DIN 1986-100, there must be a drainage point below every water supply point inside a building. In rooms where water can collect unintentionally, adequate drainage of the floor surfaces must also be provided.

“In single dwelling units, this applies mainly to bathrooms, cellars and laundry rooms. In public or commercial areas, more stringent requirements apply to floor drainage,” he says.

Sanitary rooms in buildings, which are intended for use by a number of unknown people or which are open to the public – such as hotels, schools, sports facilities, and restaurants – generally have to be fitted with a floor gully with a foul air trap, under DIN 1986-100. Commercial restaurants, the foodstuff industry or hospitals often create large volumes of wastewater which must be disposed of using functional channel systems or gullies.

The spokesman says ACO follows the ‘HygieneFirst’ philosophy in medical areas and anywhere that food is being processed. “The drainage systems must meet the requirements of the hygiene regulations,” he stresses.

ACO’s building drainage solutions have been installed in numerous projects in the UAE. Some of these references include Conrad Hotel, Four Seasons Hotel Jumeirah Beach, Pepsi Cola Factory, Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates in Dubai; and Abu Dhabi Financial Centre, Capital Plaza, Presidential Palace and Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi.

Elsewhere in the Gulf, its projects include Sidra Hospital, Msheireb Heart of Doha, Qatar Foundation headquarters and Qatar Tennis Academy Stadium in Doha; Jumeirah Messilah Beach Hotel in Kuwait; Westin and Le Meridien Hotel at Bahrain City Centre, Dettol Factory and Kraft Food Factory in Bahrain; the Grand Mosque, Rass Al Hadd Airport and Muscat Airport in Oman; and the expansion of the Holy Mosque in Makkah, King Abdullah Financial Centre and King Abdullah Sport City in Saudi Arabia.

ACO is a member of the European Hygienic Engineering and Design Group (EHEDG), where it helps to define future guidelines for hygienic drainage. It is also a member of Foodservice Consultants Society International (FCSI), where it helps to educate food service consultants through continuing professional development (CPD) programmes.

The company last year opened its Middle East headquarters and a new factory in the Jebeli Ali Free Zone of Dubai. The Dh25-million ($6.80 million) facility is a fully functional manufacturing unit where all types of stainless steel drainage systems will be produced to serve the GCC market in particular and the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region in general. The 3,000-sq-m factory will produce complete drainage systems that will pave the way for future drainage solutions in the region and enhance them with new hygienic and customised designs and solutions.

“The opening of this facility has provided us with the possibility to carry a larger stock and offer our customers larger production capacity,” says the spokesman.

“The new production and warehouse facility in the Jebel Ali Free Zone will be able to offer our clients and partners greater service and more options in the future,” he adds.

ACO Group is a leading manufacturer and supplier of corrosion-resistant polymer concrete, stainless steel and plastic, internal and external surface drainage systems. It also supplies intelligent solutions for grease and oil separation, as well as wastewater management systems for the treatment and reuse of black water.

ACO can be visited at Stand A81, Hall 5, at Project Qatar.