UNIVERSAL CITY, CA, May 24, 2007 -- Reaffirming GE's ecomagination commitment to new technologies that help customers meet environmental challenges, GE Water & Process Technologies, a unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), announced today that four of its advanced water treatment technologies have received ecomagination certification. As water demand grows and global water supplies and quality decrease, GE's Homespring™ Central Water Purifier, ZeeWeed® Ultrafiltration Membranes, ABMet® Advanced Biological Metals Removal Process and Permatreat™ Enhanced Performance Pretreatment technologies will help increase water availability and protect global water sources.
"Our ecomagination offerings help customers cut operating costs while meeting regulations, saving water and energy," Jeff Garwood, president and CEO of GE Water & Process Technologies said at GE's "Green is Universal" ecomagination anniversary celebration at Universal City, CA. "By bringing sustainable water solutions to residential homes, communities, commercial operations and industries, our technologies are helping sustain and protect our world's water sources."
GE Water & Process Technologies' new ecomagination offerings include:
Homespring Central Water Purifier
GE's Homespring Central Water Purifier uses ZeeWeed® hollow fiber ultrafiltration membrane technology to provide safe and reliable water to homes, small communities, businesses, rural locations and areas lacking adequate infrastructure. The Homespring Central Water Purifier requires little to no energy to operate and does not require chemicals to rid water of contaminants, such as parasites, bacteria, viruses and particles.
ZeeWeed Ultrafiltration Membranes
ZeeWeed hollow-fiber ultrafiltration membranes provide water or wastewater treatment for a broad spectrum of municipal, industrial and commercial customers. The environmental benefits of producing superior quality membranes include: compact plant size; reduced chemical requirements; low energy consumption; and innovative solutions for conserving and managing limited water resources.
ABMet (Advanced Biological Metals Removal Process) Technology
ABMet (Advanced Biological Metals Removal Process) is the simplest and most cost-effective technology available to protect the environment from harmful levels of selenium, nitrate and other heavy metals found in power plants, mines and agricultural wastewater streams. This innovative low-energy system uses beds of granular activated carbon with naturally occurring, non-toxic and non-pathogenic microorganisms to produce treated water that exceeds the world's most stringent regulatory standards for selenium removal.
Permatreat Enhanced Performance Pretreatment (EPP)
GE's Permatreat EPP improves corrosion protection for painted metals. Permatreat EPP was developed to replace iron-phosphate pretreatment systems and to reduce toxic discharges from surface treatment processes. Permatreat EPP uses less energy and reduces phosphorous discharge by more than 99 percent.
Today more than 1.1 billion people lack access to clean safe water sources, and many more are expected to face water scarcity and water quality challenges as populations increase and demand grows. GE's Homespring Central Water Purifier, ZeeWeed Ultrafiltration Membranes, ABMet Advanced Biological Metals Removal Process and Permatreat EPP join an expanding portfolio of ecomagination certified water treatment products. Each certified ecomagination product underwent a rigorous qualification process that examined its overall operating performance and environmental performance and benefits.
This is one of several announcements GE and its businesses are making today at their Green is Universal event in Los Angeles, California. For more information on GE Water & Process Technologies' ecomagination product offerings or to see the other GE ecomagination announcements, please visit www.ecomagination.com.
GE Water & Process Technologies, a unit of General Electric Company, is solving some of the world's most pressing water challenges by providing industrial, agricultural, potable water, and wastewater solutions that lessen the overall dependence on our world's fresh water sources.
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