Glenfiddich Distillery, Speyside
Client
William Grant & Sons Distillers Ltd
Project
GFEX expansion, Glenfiddich Distillery. Watermiser Model No 72 (6 cell) GRP Forced Draught Cooling TowerThe Client
William Grant & Sons Distillers Ltd were established in 1887 and are a family-owned premium spirits company which distils some of the worlds most famous brands of Scotch Whisky including Glenfiddich, Balvenie and Grants. In addition, they produce one of Irelands finest Whiskeys, Tullamore Dew as well as Hendrick’s Gin and Sailor Jerry Rum.
William Grant & Sons Distillers Ltd are a long-standing client of ours. We have successfully delivered projects in several of their sites. Their Girvan facility alone has 23 Watermiser GRP cooling towers of varying sizes and duties.
The Project
The project entailed the design, manufacture and installation of new cooling towers to accommodate the additional cooling requirements of the GFEX expansion at Glenfiddich Distillery.
Watermiser were approached by the client and their Consultant Engineers at the inception of the project and provided design data and budgetary proposals as it developed.
The scope included the selection, sizing, design, manufacture and installation of the towers, support steelwork, base frames and dual-level access. The project was an entirely new build and entailed detailed liaison with the client and preceding trades.
The Product
We manufactured and supplied a Watermiser No 72 GRP forced draught cooling tower with axial fans. This model comprises 6 cells which can be isolated individually for clean and inspection, thereby minimising process down time.
The cooling tower offered was manufactured in glass reinforced plastic (GRP), a material that is completely inert to attack by any type of sterilising chemical or water treatment regime and is exceptionally benign and sustainable.
We also provided a purpose-made elevated support structure and galvanised steel skid frames which were connected to the individual cell base tanks prior to delivery. This minimised installation time on site and negated the need for costly raised concrete plinths to be supplied by others.
In addition, we supplied a dual level galvanised steel access platform complete with vertical hopped ladders, safety cages, self-closing gates, open mesh flooring and kick plates. This platform will provide a safe working area for inspection and maintenance of the drift eliminators and water distribution system, and similarly the top level of the heat transfer pack.
The Result
The towers are successfully installed in and are in operation, supporting the Distillery expansion. Both client and Watermiser are happy with the result – hopefully the photos speak for themselves
