One of the major innovative changes to take place within the StormMeister® organisation has been the introduction and application of CAD software to its flood protection products
It is now able to custom design and model StormMeister® flood protection products for projects throughout the UK and Worldwide. This has required a significant investment by the company in terms of software and the appointment of a dedicated member of staff, mechanical engineer Ryan Mitchell to specifically operate the CAD software.
Ryan has already produced significant results in terms of design, specification, modelling and simulation of bespoke flood protection products against a spectrum of floodwater heights. StormMeister® continues to work with software engineers TMS in Falkirk who is providing ongoing training and software upgrades.
Many flood product producers will not have their own testing facilities, so whilst some products might be independently tested this can be expensive and normally a one-off exercise carried out behind closed doors. StormMeister® has its own testing facilities and with eight testing tanks, it has the ability to test all of their products over and over again constantly improving not just in terms of performance but in terms of products that are easy to use and easy to install.
Its facilities are open to all to come and see the products being tested and throughout the years they have been host to many individuals from the public, industry and government departments. StormMeister® would be delighted to arrange a demonstration for you and don’t worry if you can’t make the journey they can arrange a live demonstration over the Internet!
Flood windows are a StormMeister® speciality and it is the only company in the world to produce inward opening flood protection windows. They have been asked to supply inward opening flood protection windows for an important building in Washington DC where the outside of the windows needs to be protected by welded stainless steel security mesh and therefore inward opening windows are the only option. The company has designed and modelled StormMeister® inward opening flood protection windows for this project in Washington DC, all of those windows will be fitted with its patented Active Flood Seal type tested to PAS1188.1 2014 the industry standard. As a matter, of course, they fit the Active Flood Seal all the way around the openers of the windows and doors to give ongoing flood resistance well above the PAS1188 level.
In the US everything is bigger including flooding and StormMeister® is providing flood protection doors and windows for projects in Ellicot City Maryland where during flooding situations the floodwater can reach heights of seven feet and more. Not only is the floodwater high it’s a roaring torrent down the High Street and the company have produced StormMeister® flood protection doors and windows to protect some highly vulnerable commercial properties. The flood doors and windows for Ellicott City incorporate armoured glass and CAD modelling has enabled them to verify the designs with results showing minimal deflection (in terms of a few millimetres) of the doors and windows at floodwater heights of seven feet.
Maryland flooding: Ellicott City street turns into a raging river
StormMeister® flood barriers are already renowned for their ease of assembly and disassembly and are now available with zero thresholds thus solving the problem of the trip hazard normally associated with flood barrier thresholds. It also produces commercial zero threshold flood barriers with thresholds that can cope with heavy vehicle or forklift traffic. All of the barriers are CAD modelled to the customer’s specified dimensions and flood height thereby enabling design and modelling in every barrier for every situation. Not only can the barriers keep water out, but the company are also now increasingly being asked for barriers that can keep fire hose run-off water in! Environmental legislation requires that in the event of a fire in commercial premises the toxic run-off water from fire hoses is contained within the building in order to prevent pollution of streams and rivers.
Pictured below is one of two StormMeister® Fire Water Retention Barriers installed at a new Veolia Waste Transfer Station in Poole Dorset. The removable central pillar is a StormMeister® registered design.
Aluminium Flood Doors are a new addition to the StormMeister® range and its Aluminium Bi-Fold Flood Doors are proving to be very popular. The Ultimate aluminium bi-folding flood door brings yet another cutting edge innovative product to the StormMeister® range with the additional security of PAS24 and Part Q compliance. As well as Aluminium, uPVC and Composite flood protection products Stormmeister® is also the producer of a range of timber flood protection products using ethically sourced timber which can be traced back to renewable resources. As a result of its innovative approach to product development hand-in-hand with their concern for the environment, they have established a business that serves a wide array of individuals, businesses and government bodies in establishing stringent flood defences.
Digital technology has allowed the company to work with customers to deliver bespoke products for specific projects, doors, gates, barriers, flood products of all types including low thresholds designed to be Part ‘M’ compliant for wheelchair access. Bespoke software allows the company to demonstrate the effects of specific heights of floodwater providing confidence in its designs for specifiers, architects, planners, contractors and of course most of all the end-user.
