Protecting water sources from domestic wastewater pollution using Johkasou technology DAIE INDUSTRY CO., LTD. IP

Clean water is necessary for our life, but in many developing countries, access to wastewater treatment facilities is limited, and untreated wastewater is released to rivers, lakes and the ocean. Contamination of the source of drinking water causes water-borne diseases. DAIE INDUSTRY CO., LTD. has advanced technology for treating domestic wastewater. DAIE’s products are called Johkasou, which means “water purifying tank” in Japanese. Johkasou look like conventional septic tanks that are used in many Asian countries, but their functions are completely different from those of a standard septic tank.

Traditionally, septic tanks have been made out of concrete, a material that has a tendency to break down over time and that requires a considerable amount of maintenance. Although the company started out using concrete – DAIE's headquarters are in Aichi's Chita Peninsula, a region that is famous for its pottery, so it was natural that they began with the clay-like material – the firm developed materials that would allow them to make better products. DAIE now makes their tanks out of fiberglass-reinforced polymer (FRP) and polypropylene (PP), substances that stand up particularly well against the elements, and they need far less maintenance in the long run, making them very cost effective. DAIE has been awarded an Eco-Mark certification for its FCE models, which are made out of polypropylene.

The firm has both premade tanks as well as those that are built on site. They are designed mainly to deal with human waste, but other product segments include tanks for treating organic and inorganic waste for industrial customers. They are all multichambered, so they can move wastewater through multiple stages during treatment.

Managing Director Ikuo Tsuyuki explains that the Japanese market is relatively mature, but one region where DAIE's market is booming is in South and Southeast Asia. Countries like Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and India all have large populations but very limited access to robust infrastructure for sewage treatment, particularly in rural areas. As Tsuyuki explains, “filtration systems are the only practical solution in these areas. For DAIE, it was a chance to achieve a business goal and help these communities improve the quality of their local water.” With support from the SME assistance projects of Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) and The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), DAIE was able to reach out to these communities.

Flexibility and a strong understanding of how to treat wastewater from a wide variety of sources is a fundamental aspect of DAIE's technological advantage. For their industrial customers, this means that the company can treat the waste products of many different kinds of factories. And, as Tsuyuki explains, in the case of treating domestic wastewater, different countries may require different technologies: “One example is Indonesia, where toilet paper is hardly used, so that the composition of domestic waste is very different than it is in other countries.”

DAIE handles all stages of the process, from design and manufacturing to installation and maintenance of their systems.