Creative Edge conserving water, diverting run-off

Creative Edge Master Shop Inc. in Fairfield has received a $33,000 grant with the help of the city, which will pay two-thirds of water conservation projects and Creative Edge will contribute another third.

The factory began in 1988 at the Fairfield Industrial Park, pioneering the use of water jet technology to create architectural and industrial designs, flooring, murals and more, using marble, granite, ceramic, metals, terrazzo and resilient surfaces.

It has 12 large water jet tables, which handle big slabs of marble, granite, etc., and cut out shapes according to the template programmed into the computer controlling the table. A very high-pressure stream of water mixed with garnet sand cuts through the materials, which allows for more delicate and intricate work than other cutting technologies.

The water stream is built up to 40,000 pound-force per square inch by large hydraulic pumps. More water is used to cool the pumps.

?When we started up in 1988, it was set up this way, to pump water to cool the pumps that pressurize the water jets,? said Jim Belilove, president. ?As we?ve grown over the years, we started thinking about better ways to manage all this water. This plant uses large amounts of water. Not in the water jet, that?s a thin stream, it doesn?t account for much water use. But it takes 40,000 gallons a month to cool the pumps pressurizing the water jets.

?We applied for a state grant with the city?s help; you could say it?s a public/private partnership,? said Belilove. ?The city is looking at ways to reduce and conserve water use and sewer use. Our 40,000 gallons of water a month also went into the sewer.?

Now, with the grant from Watershed Improvement Review Board and support from the Soil and Water Conservation District, Creative Edge will install piping to recycle its cooling water within the building. It will save 40,000 gallons of water usage per month as well as diverting that amount of water  dumping into Fairfield?s sewer.

Another part of grant project will divert storm run-off from entering the storm sewer.

?Our roof sends half of the rain water to the north side and half to the south side,? said Belilove. ?The storm run-off on the north side enters the city?s storm sewer.?

The land to the south of the factory is mostly undeveloped, and was designated a storm water demonstration site a few years ago. The land slopes away from the factory, leading to a retention pond. The storm run-off from the south side of Creative Edge?s roof goes to the field, through a couple of small ponds until it reaches a large retention pond that sits behind Chappell Studio.

?This site helps clean the storm run-off water,? said Ron Blair, an independent project manager at Creative Edge. ?Storm water collects and carries particulates and debris, it?s referred to as ?hot? water. Filtering through the field and ponds renders it back to ?cool? or clean water.?

Blair said almost a million gallons of water flows off the factory?s roof and paved lot each year.

Creative Edge will install pipes to carry the north side storm run-off water to the south side, so none of the run-off enters the city?s storm sewer and all of it can be cleaned and cooled through the field and retention ponds.