Invergordon Distillery, Ross-Shire
Client
Whyte & Mackay
Project
Invergordon Distillery. Watermiser No 48 (4 cell) GRP forced draught cooling towerThe Client
Founded on the docks of the River Clyde in Glasgow in 1844, Whyte & Mackay has retained its founders’ pioneering spirit for over 170 years – proud of its heritage, passionate about its history, its people and most of all its award winning Whisky.
The company sells Single Malt and Blended Scotch whiskies, liqueurs and vodkas. Their brands include the Whyte and Mackay blends, Dalmore, Jura, and Fettercairn single malts, Glayva liqueur and Vladivar vodka.
The Project
Watermiser were commissioned to design, manufacture and install a new GRP cooling tower complete with fan silencers and high level access platform, to replace the aging structural timber tower at the Invergordon Grain Distillery site.
Having previously installed galvanised and painted cooling towers, the engineers onsite had seen first hand the problems which occur when using materials which are not suitable for the aggressive nature of cooling tower water treatment chemicals. This led them to support the idea of using a GRP cooling tower that would be completely inert to any type of water treatment chemical they choose to use.
The Product
We manufactured and supplied a Watermiser No 48 GRP forced draught cooling tower with axial fans and pod type noise attenuators. This model comprises 4 cells which can be isolated individually for cleaning 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, water distribution system and similarly the top level of the heat transfer pack.
The Result
Design, manufacture and installation were planned specific to the client’s production requirements, ensuring minimum down-time. Delivered on time by our expert team.
