24 h/day
operation
Manufacturing industry
Industrial compounds
Italy
AFVC – Antica Fornace Villa di Chiesa
Water and sludge treatment plant for the manufacture of rubber seals.
960 m³/h
water flow rate
16 t/day
of solids to the filter press
Antica Fornace Villa di Chiesa (AFVC), based in Iglesias, Sardinia, is an industrial company specialising in the design and manufacture of seals and technical elastomer components for mechanical and hydraulic applications with demanding performance requirements. The company manages the entire product life cycle (from compound formulation to moulding), serving customers in heavy industry, automotive and OEM markets worldwide. To maintain consistent quality standards and reduce the risk of downtime for its customers, AFVC continuously invests in precision manufacturing technologies and structured quality-control processes.
Project challenges
Process-water quality requirements
The company needed high-quality process water to meet the process requirements for products such as O-rings used in precision engineering applications.
Water scarcity
Operating in Sardinia, a region subject to severe water shortages, the plant had to maximise process-water recovery and minimise water losses.
Preventing plant downtime
With 24-hour operation, it was essential to reduce the risk of production interruptions, requiring redundancy, energy-efficient operation and streamlined sludge handling.
Tecnoidea’s process-engineering approach
Automatic control and clarification systems
The plant was equipped with control systems for automatic chemical dosing, helping maintain the required treated-water quality.
Dual line for redundancy
To reduce the risk of plant downtime and allow scheduled maintenance without interrupting operation, the system was developed with redundant lines for critical equipment.
Tailored hydraulic and logistical design
The filter press was installed on a steel support structure that allows direct discharge into roll-off skips; at the same time, the pipework was designed to make full use of the hydraulic head, reducing pumping requirements and energy consumption.
Results
Operational continuity
Integrating automated control with the industrial process, together with a spare-parts strategy shared with Tecnoidea, supports continuous plant operation and reduces the risk of production interruptions.
Water recovery
In response to local water scarcity, water recovery was addressed throughout the process: drip water is collected, sludge dewatering is optimised to reduce residual water content and water use for chemical preparation is kept to a minimum.
Energy and logistics optimisation
The hydraulic design of the pipework made it possible to deliver the required flow rate of 960 m³/h with reduced electricity consumption, while the roll-off skips simplified the handling and disposal of the 16 t/day of solid sludge produced.
