Composites reach the Antarctic

This specialist system is essential for treating all black and grey waste water generated on the base before it can be safely discharged into the sea.

David Holmes, Fibrelite’s technical director, explained: “The lead designer on this project came to us very early on with his brief which was very stringent:  not only did the specifications require custom-designed access, other requirements included easy access to internal workings as well as needing to be chemically inert, corrosion-resistant and able to withstand extremely low temperatures.

“In addition, the rigorous rules requiring any base on Antarctica to leave little environmental impact meant that those working on the site would need to lift the covers regularly to ensure the system was working efficiently, so operator safety was also a critical requirement.

“Fortunately, our composite covers are available in a range of sizes and load ratings, and we can also make them to customer specifications as we did for this project.  Designed to be a ‘fit-and-forget’ product, they are maintenance-free, lightweight, durable and very strong as a matter of course. And specialist lifting handles are all that is required for operators to remove the covers as and when required.”