An innovative new rainwater recycling system, which can be used for providing water supplies for everything from washing down aircraft to flushing school toilets, is set to break into overseas markets.

ECO-VAT rainwater storage and recycling systems, which capture roof rainwater and store it in an underground tank, are due to be launched in the Caribbean, Europe, and the Far East, thanks to Business Link North Yorkshire.

The systems, which are designed and manufactured by ECO-VAT Ltd, Whitby, are environmentally-efficient because they recycle rainwater for non-drinking uses, "which saves drinking quality water and reduces water bills by up to 85 per cent."

Nick Bentley, ECO-VAT's managing director, a qualified chartered quantity surveyor, said: "As well as being environmentally-friendly, the payback period on capital costs varies from five years for homes to approximately two years for commercial buildings and schools."

ECO-VAT systems, which range in price from £1,215 to £1,599 plus VAT - operate with a 5,000-litre underground tank and an indoor control unit which also indicates the tank water depth. A valve automatically switches to mains water when the tank is dry or in case of power failure. For large scale users of water, additional tanks can be used to increase the storage capacity.

When there is water in the tank or power returns, the system automatically returns to the rainwater supply. With an additional filtration unit fitted, the ECO-VAT system can also be used for drinking water.

Nick's brother, Simon, a construction engineer, had the idea for the system after working in Papua, New Guinea, for 12 years, where rainwater taken from roofs was often the sole supply. The systems were developed over three years before their UK launch last year and are now in use in a series of local authorities, housing associations and schools.

Nick, who has already sold systems to India, said: "Following the tanking in of water by Yorkshire Water during the drought, we decided a rain water recycling system for this country would go down extremely well. In fact, they have been doing it in Germany for 20 years, so the technology was fairly well proved and tested.

"We actually researched our own system in New Guinea before launching it in the UK last year. We have had over 10,000 inquiries over the last year - one for over a £1 million of business - and our projected turnover is £250,000.

"The systems avoid the waste of expensively-treated drinking water for such things as washing machines or cleaning the car.

"Because some people had learned of our product overseas, we needed a formal approach to setting up agencies in interested countries and Business Link North Yorkshire came up with a sound and highly cost-effective solution. They arranged for an article to be written on our behalf that was sent to embassies and high commissions who placed it with appropriate journals to generate interest."

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