Global textile, hygiene and facility services giant Elis (formerly Berendsen) has applied to self-supply water and wastewater services for its 32 sites across England in support of its work to enhance site level water efficiency.

Elis is a large provider of outsourced laundry, focusing on flat linen, workwear, washrooms, floor solutions and cleanrooms – all of which require large volumes of water and produce large volumes of trade effluent.

Elis has partnered with Waterscan, who will take on the role and responsibilities of the retail functions including meter reading, CMOS transactions and wholesaler management, as well as finding further water efficiency savings and providing technical support. It is the first time that the companies have worked together.

As a large industrial water user, the organisation has invested heavily in water efficiency measures – however it feels that more could still be achieved.

Jeanette Fyfe, Country Procurement Manager – UK at Elis explained:

“We have applied to Ofwat for a water self-supply licence (WSSL) because we firmly believe that taking this route and working in partnership with Waterscan gives us the best opportunity to build on the efficiency work that we have done to date.

“Whilst all of our sites have some form of water reclaim system in place, we’re keen to have an even closer understanding of our usage profiles through flow data so that site level efficiency can be improved even further. We believe that the deployment of AMR across our estate, being able to represent industrials in the open water market and the additional expertise that Waterscan brings, will enable us to drive further cost and consumption controls throughout our operations.”

If Ofwat grants Elis a WSSL, the company will be the first industrial organisation to be granted one, and will join the fast-growing ranks of blue-chip companies that are benefiting from self-supply.

Greene King, Whitbread, Marston’s, Coca Cola European Partners and Blackpool Council have all been granted licences, while Stonegate and Heineken await Ofwat’s ruling on their applications.

As managing agent for Elis, Waterscan will take on the role and responsibilities of the retail functions including meter reading, CMOS transactions and wholesaler management, as well as finding further water efficiency savings and providing technical support. It is the first time that the companies have worked together.

Claire Yeates, Director at Waterscan said:

“Elis has achieved a great deal in terms of working towards best practice water efficiency and we are thrilled to be joining forces with the company to take its work to the next level. If Ofwat approves its application to self-supply, Elis will be able to supply water services to multiple sites, pay wholesale prices and become a member of MOSL with voting rights and the ability to directly influence the future of the water market. We believe Ellis has a lot to offer and a lot to gain from this exciting initiative.”