MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., March 27, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Based on its recent analysis of the industrial water and wastewater treatment technology market, Frost & Sullivan recognizes the QUA Group with the 2013 North America Frost & Sullivan Award for New Product Innovation. The QUA Group's Fractional Electrodeionization (FEDI®) and hollow fiber ultrafiltration membrane (Q-SEP®) utilize proprietary technology to maintain distinct process and production patents to stand out in a competitive market. Both the FEDI and QSEP products have bolstered end users' goals, such as lower operational costs, operational flexibility and efficient treatment capabilities.

By addressing key challenges in both FEDI and Q-SEP applications, the company has come up with unique design features for both products. The three key design features for its Q-SEP ultrafiltration systems are higher fiber strength, uniform pore distribution and consistent treated water quality. The company conducted a two-year patent design review, along with a differentiated manufacturing process, to develop a core fiber that maintained its mechanical integrity throughout the lifespan of the membrane system.

"Achieving a uniform pore distribution within the overall design allows the Q-SEP ultrafiltration membranes to improve reverse osmosis performance further down the process cycle—a key achievement which differentiates QUA from most competitors," said Frost & Sullivan Industry Analyst Eric Meliton. "As a result, the Q-SEP ultrafiltration membranes offer a consistent treatment quality, maintain a high level of bacteria and virus rejection during operation, and provide a lower silt density index than competing products."

Also, the innovative design of the Q-SEP ultrafiltration membrane in most applications eliminates the need for coagulant chemicals, which reduces operational costs.

Meanwhile, the key design features for the FEDI system include reduced susceptibility to scaling and better handling of varying feed water quality. EDI systems have traditionally faced some resistance to adoption in the high-purity industrial water treatment market due to scaling challenges and high operational costs. Acknowledging these issues, the QUA Group designed its FEDI system to utilize a dual voltage process, by incorporating a two-stage separation process with different voltages to achieve a higher hardness tolerance by having distinctly different concentrate chambers with separate reject streams and thus reducing the potential of hardness scaling. This design alteration reduced affinity to scaling, and simultaneously lowered relevant operational and energy costs.

These design improvements are advantageous, as the FEDI system is designed to replace mixed-bed technology. The system has higher tolerance for water hardness and scaling, resulting in a diminished need for cleaning and maintenance, while enhancing the overall reliability.

"Both systems are designed to improve operational efficiency and lower the need for ancillary chemicals, maintenance cycles, or increased energy outputs," noted Meliton. "These benefits boost the company's market potential as they ensure quick return on investment (ROI)."

The QUA Group's Q-SEP system has more than 30 global installations that can also be used to showcase the ROI potential of the ultrafiltration membrane. The three installation bases in the U.S. can demonstrate Q-SEP's applications, including wastewater reuse, reverse osmosis pretreatment, as well as cooling water treatment and recycling.

The FEDI system has more than 20 global installations; seven are in the U.S. The existing installed base for the FEDI system includes applications in the power generation and pharmaceutical manufacturing markets; however, the FEDI system is applicable in any industrial vertical segment with a need for high-purity deionized water.

"Both products are designed to address existing challenges related to operational costs, treatment quality, and overall operational efficiency by leveraging unprecedented innovations," remarked Meliton. "As the QUA Group continues to focus on designing new membrane products to address key industry demands, it will grow in the industrial water and wastewater treatment technology market."

Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents this award to the company that has developed an innovative element in a product by leveraging leading-edge technologies. The award recognizes the value-added features/benefits of the product and the increased ROI it offers customers, which increases customer acquisition and overall market penetration potential.

Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Awards recognize companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.

About QUA Group

QUA (www.quagroup.com) develops, manufactures and markets advanced membrane products to treat challenging waters. Headquartered in the USA, the company also operates facilities in Europe and India. The company is committed to ongoing innovation, leveraging its deep roots in R&D and the expertise of staff that is highly experienced in water treatment technologies. QUA manages the entire lifecycle and manufacturing chain of its products from the initial concept to manufacturing according to the most rigorous quality standards. QUA products are sold and serviced through a global network of qualified equipment manufacturers.

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SOURCE Frost & Sullivan