Background
Facilities using solvents on a daily basis are often required to submit a Solvent Management Plan (SMP) to the Environment Agency (EA) or Local Authority. An SMP details how a site controls the use and emissions of organic solvents, particularly Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). It verifies compliance with emission limits, identifies opportunities for reduction, and frequently involves mass balancing to track all solvent inputs and outputs. Alkali Consultants have prepared SMPs across a wide range of industries — from shoe manufacturing to automotive and metal coating — covering solvent usage from as little as 5 tonnes to over 9,000 tonnes per year.
Challenge
A metal coating factory required an SMP to demonstrate permit compliance. The facility operated eight spray booths, each with different operating hours and solvent-based products. Initial calculations suggested the site was exceeding its total emission limit value (ELV) by 25%, with one booth in particular showing unusually high VOC emissions.
Solution
Alkali Consultants' stack testing team carried out on-site measurements at the "rogue" booth to validate emissions data. By working closely with the client, detailed operating schedules for each booth were compiled. This allowed the Alkali team to recalculate solvent use and emissions with far greater accuracy, producing a revised SMP that reflected the site's true operating conditions.
Outcome
- The recalculated SMP reduced the reported exceedance from 25% to below 15%, well within a more realistic range.
- The final figures aligned with the site's actual solvent consumption of ~7 tonnes per year.
- The client achieved full permit compliance without costly changes to equipment or operations.