Aquaten has developed a number of roof panels specialising in the management and conservation of water. Our business is dedicated to preventing the ever growing global problem of urban flooding. Legislation introduced by Governments around the world should make flooding a significant industry. We feel not a week goes by without news coverage of flooding and its devastating effects, see our blog www.lesswater.co.uk.
We believe traditional thinking is not working and that the market is open for new, effective ways to manage water, especially in developed urban areas. We have a solution based on AquaSAF, which holds water in a jelly format on the roofs of buildings in urban developments until it naturally evaporates back into the atmosphere.
The products are tested at Birmingham and Coventry Universities and we have worldwide patents pending, exclusive worldwide distribution agreements, sales and marketing agreements with UK based roofing specialists and we’re already selling in the UK.
The Problem
Rainfall events are measured by the experts responsible for controlling the effect of these by assessing the anticipated frequency of these events in terms of the number of years between occurrences. Following consultations with Severn Trent to understand their principles on this, we believe there is little they can do to control events that are classed as less regular than 1 in 50 years due to the cost of the work needed to protect against this. What we believe is required are solutions that cost significantly less and help mitigate the flow of water in more common occurrences so that the existing drainage systems can cope with the rainfall in more frequent situations.
This problem is particularly severe for cities and specific mention of this is made in the London Mayor’s Plan for London where planners are encouraged:
“To help deliver more living roofs and combat climate change the most recent alterations to the London Plan now ‘expect major developments to incorporate living roofs and walls where feasible.’”
We feel there is an opportunity for a lightweight, easy to install, maintenance free product that would fit well in a market increasingly focused on the problems of water attenuation, so we set about searching for solutions.
Green Infrastructure
Meeting the challenges of climate change means Green Infrastructure is one of the prime drivers and most important developments that is changing construction and it is here to stay.
As part of any planning application for the creation of new floor area, you may now be required to submit a Water Management Statement as part of the package. The statement is designed to inform the Local Planning Authority how the new development will deal with issues involving the water cycle.
The Water Management Statement will deal with issues such as water conservation, through metering and recycling. Pollution control through limiting water run-off from sites and Flood Risk through inclusion of a Flood Risk Assessment if the development is in an area that is deemed at a heightened risk of flood.
The planning policy statement above requires action to be taken to reduce the buildings impact. Developers and building owners are NOT allowed to simply ignore the problem or just discharge into existing sewers – they HAVE to meet discharge and pollution limits.
Types of Rain
Even the type of rain we get now is different. Short bursts of monsoon like events, they drop huge amounts of water in a short period – so drains, streams and rivers can’t cope with the deluge. This heavy rain coupled with hot dry summers is a recipe for trouble and this is the climate that experts predict.
One of the primary issues is dealing with the first 5mm of rain called a ‘first flush’. When rain lands on soil there is no run off issue as it can soak away easily, however a 5mm rainfall event landing on a roof ALWAYS causes run off disruption as well as pollution, picking up dust and debris etc along its way and it is tackling this 5mm issue that has led us to this point today.
To the best of our knowledge, current attenuation management involves expensive underground holding tanks which are not always suitable for inner cities due to their size, (the London super sewer is a classic example of this) or Balancing ponds (which are only really suitable for rural developments). We believe green roofs can also be used but because of their weight and bulk they can be difficult and restrictive to fit and are not suitable for all new roofs, especially for going onto existing buildings.
Rain hits roofs first therefore we aim to tackle the problem at first point of contact.
Our Product
We have two current systems:
All the products have one thing in common – AquaSAF (super absorbent fibres), a polymer fibre developed for use in a range of industries including medical, food packaging, fire prevention and clothing.
In essence, AquaSAF turns water into a jelly – almost instantly. It’s not a sponge – it locks water – even vertically, it can also wick water, and once it dries it can be hydrated again and again.
Currently, in Green roof solutions, we understand substrate is the only layer that holds water for the vegetation. Aquaten use is designed to reduce the amount of substrate that is required so it can be cost effective. Less substrate should mean less weight, less transport and less work, a desirable advantage.
Aquaten Panel
As much as it is desirable to increase the quantity of vegetation in urban areas we feel this isn’t always practical. Size, location and orientation, roof pitch, roof obstructions such as pipe work etc. could negate the use or potential of a green roof. However, water run off from these surfaces is vast and their contribution to flooding and pollution run off is staggering.
AquaPanel is a rigid panel with AquaSAF inside. The panels are designed to be light and to be transported in a lift – aiming to make them quick and simple to install. The panel is held off the ground to allow air flow both over and under the unit which is designed to increase the speed of drying. This process can also be enhanced by warming utilising solar power and or wind power.
Aquaten panel is not designed to absorb all the water – its function is to alleviate the pressure on the drainage system by taking some of the peak flow – called Interception – so that a more steady flow of rainfall goes into the drains and allows the system to cope. We believe reducing the 5mm peak pressure will play a key role in urban development.
The tiles are designed to absorb in excess of 15mm of rainfall which is 6 days average UK rain. There may also be other added benefits that are as yet un-quantified – Thermal benefits and pollution mitigation could be added bonuses of the product.
We already have a patent pending on a water attenuation product in UK and worldwide.
Route to Market
We feel the products have been well received by all areas of the industry and the importance of this is underlined when you understand the key issue when considering your route to market which is specification in building design, so the people in the industry are key to our growth plan:
Dusty Gedge is a green roof consultant, ecologist and evangelist and has been promoting Aquaten into green roof construction and has already started specifying Aquaten in jobs. Gary Grant is on a similar par to Dusty and both are influential in advising Government and industry on green roof issues.
We believe Aquaten has established a strong channel for sales into the UK through distributors, the NFRC which has a membership of over 1200. We are already in conversation with the chief executive with regards to becoming a member.
IP
We have an IP – worldwide patent pending on Aquaten panel – We are into the second year of the patent process.
We have secured a worldwide exclusive distribution agreement, with the multi-national manufacturer of the water absorbent material, for our chosen market areas.
And finally, with a view to R&D, we are joined on the project by Birmingham University/Warwick University’ s commercial ventures arm utilising the expertise of their respective material science and engineering departments to develop this and other projects.
Market size and route to market
The size of the roofing market is vast and expected to continue to expand over the next decade as outlined in the following recent quotes.
UK Growth
Our Primary focus is to develop UK and international sales of the current suite of products. And if we take the UK market alone then we are looking at sales of new roofs in excess of 50 million sq m pa. – We forecast to reach just over 1.0% of this in year three of our forecasts.
All references – ttp://www.freedoniagroup.com/Roofing.html
Green Roof market
The rapidly-growing market for green roofs is expected to surge to $7.7 billion by 2017. Installations of green roofs will rise 70% by then, to 204 million square meters. Many cities around the globe have been providing incentives and creating mandates to drive their use, says Lux Research.
This market surge is expected to present “a $2 billion opportunity to suppliers with key cities around the world putting incentives in place, a significant market opportunity is emerging.”
The report by Lux Research is titled “Building-Integrated Vegetation: Redefining the Landscape or Chasing a Mirage?” Source: Business Wire
(Source: Lux Research Intelligence team leading the Sustainable Building Materials Intelligence service – http://cityminded.org/building-integrated-vegetation-mitigating-urban-environmental-challenges-with-building-material-technologies-8238)
Green Roof Market in London alone, including Retrofit
We believe the potential in London alone is massive; estimates indicate that in four areas of central London alone over 3 million m2 of roof space could be greened, offering potential 80,000 m3 of rainwater stored at roof level equivalent to 35 Olympic swimming pools. ref GRO and London Plan.
With concentration on commercial roofs which, to the best of our knowledge, account for 75% of total and are obliged to include water attenuation as a planning requirement.
However, this doesn’t account for the retrofit opportunity which we are already looking to address; initially focussing on London because we believe it’s planners are the most aggressive when addressing the issue of attenuation and the level of contacts through our association with selected distributors, Dusty Gedge and other forward thinking clients should enable us to make inroads into this market.
Our team consists of the three core founders:
Charles Martyn Melling
Martyn has a range of experience (not only of financial matters) within a number of industries having previously worked in Financial Management consultancy for PWC and his own practice.
Mike Cottage
Mike was the founding director of SkyGarden Greenroofs which established Green roofs as a mainstream business in the UK. Under Mike’s directorship the business grew to a £3.5 m t/o in the 6 years. Also a founding member of GRO (Green Roof Organisation).
Andrew White
Andrew has a varied background in sales & marketing roles for companies such as AT&T and Expedite.
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The intention is to build a company and product range that is attractive to suitors looking for a range of niche products with strong potential growth and significant gross profit.
Therefore it is our wish that by March 2018 we are in a position to licence product to some of the major players in the world market and/or sell the company to them.In addition.
The company will be grown with an ethos of minimising its fixed cost overhead structure so that cash required for re-investment in infrastructure is kept low.
In this way we intend to build cash reserves that can be repatriated to shareholders by means of dividends. We believe that with the prospects for growth of our products in Europe and across the globe, these would return a significant return for investors and Directors alike. Forecasts show a profit o £14 per share in the year to 31 March 2018 against a cost price per share of £7
If we are unable to arrange a sale of the business, then it our intention to repatriate funds to the shareholders, after retaining sufficient for re-investment purposes. This would be by way of dividends or share buy backs. The directors main financial incentive comes from the rewards that will be shared by all shareholders.
We wish to offer all investors who invest over £ 1000 the opportunity to enjoy the aesthetic effects of a green roof in their garden We will supply up to 5 sq metres of a domestic version of living roof lite for fitting in a garden shed / garage roof free of charge This value is over £100 at retail value