What a Containerized MBR Is and Why It Fits Medan Projects
A containerized MBR combines activated-sludge biology with submerged ultrafiltration membranes inside a 20' or 40' high-cube ISO shipping container. Per Pure Aqua's MBR-C product page, the unit ships in 40' or 20' HC containers and uses 0.04 µm hollow-fiber PVDF membranes, with a 1.5 mm drum screen on the feed and built-in air-scour cleaning (Pure Aqua, S2). HUBER's MENA-Water states its containerized MBR plants scale "from a few m³/day to several thousand m³/day" per train and are pre-assembled in ISO sizes for fast transport and start-up (HUBER, S4).
For Medan, that footprint matters. Many housing blocks, hill-site residential clusters, and plantation or infrastructure worker camps are fly-in, fly-out sites where civil works, concrete tanks, and long pipe runs are not practical. A factory-built containerized MBR arrives on a flat-bed truck, needs only sewer connection, power, and a sludge-removal route, and can be relocated when the camp is demobilised. Compared with the HydropureWater WSZ underground package sewage treatment plant — a buried 1-80 m³/h unit designed for permanent residential clusters — a containerized MBR is above-grade, easier to redeploy, and produces a higher-quality effluent that can be reused for toilet flushing or landscape irrigation rather than discharged to a soak pit. Compared with a conventional activated-sludge STP poured in situ, the MBR removes the secondary clarifier entirely: the membranes retain the biomass, so the same biological load is handled in roughly a third of the civil footprint.
For sizing, that means the MBR is a fixed-vessel train with a known hydraulic envelope per container. The job is to match population and per-capita flow to that envelope, not to design the tankage from scratch.
The Four Sizing Inputs You Cannot Skip
Four numbers must be on the table before any vendor is contacted; without them, a quote is just a price tag. They are the population equivalent, the per-capita flow, the peaking factor, and the influent load.
Input 1 — population. Count full-time residents for a residential block, or the peak-shift headcount plus catering and laundry staff for a camp. MAK Water's published case studies use 100 persons (Karratha Airport, MAK Water, S3), 500 persons (Wheatstone LNG fly camp, MAK Water, S3), and 630 persons (PNG LNG permanent compound, MAK Water, S3) as the design populations, which gives a useful anchor for both ends of the Medan camp range.
Input 2 — per-capita flow. Pure Aqua's MBR-C sizing chart is built on 50 gpd per capita, roughly 190 L/day (Pure Aqua, S2). The supplied research does not publish a separate Indonesian SNI per-capita figure, so the practical step is to request the local Medan water-utility per-capita allowance and use whichever is higher. For a worker camp with kitchen and laundry, the camp operator's own measured greywater figure usually dominates.
Input 3 — peaking factor. Tropical residential and camp duty commonly peaks 1.2-1.5× the daily average, driven by shift-change showers, weekend laundry, and morning toilet peaks. The supplied research does not state a single Medan-specific factor, so a camp with shift-change showers should sit at the top of that range and a steady residential block closer to the bottom.
Input 4 — influent load. Domestic sewage is typically 250-400 mg/L BOD and 250-300 mg/L TSS at the headworks; MAK Water's reference table is keyed to Metcalf & Eddy 5th ed. (2014) typical domestic composition, with higher or lower design values available on request (MAK Water, S3). If a school, hospital, or food court discharges into the same sewer, take a site-specific grab sample — the load can easily double, and the MBR tankage must be sized for that, not the residential average.
Step-by-Step Sizing Calculation for a Medan Project
Step 1 — population × per-capita flow. For a 500-person Medan residential block, 500 × 190 L/day = 95,000 L/day, or 95 m³/day of average dry-weather flow on the 50 gpd/capita basis published on Pure Aqua's MBR-C chart (Pure Aqua, S2).
Step 2 — apply a peaking factor. 95 m³/day × 1.3 ≈ 124 m³/day design flow. The example uses 1.3 because the supplied research does not pin a single Medan factor; 1.3 sits inside the 1.2-1.5 range and is reasonable for a residential block without shift showers.
Step 3 — convert to hydraulic retention time. MAK Water's MBR is built as an anoxic + aerobic + membrane tank train inside a single FRP bioreactor, with a 2 mm automatic inlet screen up front (MAK Water, S3). The supplied research does not publish a default HRT for either vendor, so the next step is to request the vendor's hydraulic profile sheet and check the HRT against the design flow above.
Step 4 — select container count. Pure Aqua MBR-C ships in 20' or 40' HC containers "depending on capacity" (Pure Aqua, S2), and HUBER's MENA-Water states a single train handles "a few m³/day to several thousand m³/day" (HUBER, S4). The supplied research does not publish a m³/day-per-container figure, so request the factory's container-vs-flow table to confirm whether one 40' HC is sufficient or a second 20' HC is needed for balance and treated-effluent tanks. Note that MAK Water sells the treated-effluent tank separately (MAK Water, S3), so the container count on the vendor's BOQ is not the same as the ISO count on the shipping manifest.
Step 5 — validate the effluent contractually. Use MAK Water's published performance table as the benchmark: BOD <40 mg/L (or <10 mg/L reduction from the influent value), TSS <30 mg/L, turbidity 4-12 NTU, NH3-N <5 mg/L after biological treatment, with bacteria removal by the membrane and additional log credits available with UV and chlorination (MAK Water, S3). If the local receiving-water body needs tighter numbers, the UV or chlorination step goes downstream of the MBR container, not inside it.
Matching Container Size to Population Bands
The table below is a planning estimate only. It is built on the 50 gpd per capita basis (Pure Aqua, S2) and the 1.2-1.5 peaking range from the sizing inputs, and the supplied research does not publish a specific m³/day-per-container figure, so each band needs a factory quote to confirm the container envelope.
| Project band | Population (persons) | Average flow (m³/day) | Design flow at 1.3× peak (m³/day) | Typical container count |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small residential cluster | 50-100 | 10-20 | 13-26 | One 20' HC; confirm factory envelope |
| Mid-size housing block (worked example) | 200-500 | 38-95 | 50-124 | One 40' HC plus optional second 20' HC for balance/treated-effluent tanks |
| Worker camp (small) | 300 | 57 | 74 | One 40' HC; confirm with vendor whether treated-effluent tank is in scope |
| Worker camp (large) | 630-1,000 | 120-190 | 156-247 | Multiple containers; MAK Water's 630-person PNG LNG camp combined a packaged MBR with a separate SWRO (MAK Water, S3) |
For a camp on the 300-person end, the design flow sits at roughly 74 m³/day. The 40' HC envelope from Pure Aqua or MAK Water is the natural starting point, but the treated-effluent tank is "sold separately" in MAK Water's scope (MAK Water, S3), so the BOQ needs to spell out whether the second 20' HC for balance and treated-effluent storage is included.
Comparing the Leading Containerized MBR Designs You Can Quote Against
Before signing a PO, benchmark any local or Chinese supplier's offer against three published international designs. The table below pulls the verifiable specs from the supplied research so a quote can be sanity-checked on membrane type, power, and scope.
| Parameter | Pure Aqua MBR-C (Pure Aqua, S2) | MAK Water MBR (MAK Water, S3) | HUBER MENA-Water MBR (HUBER, S4) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Packaging | 20' or 40' high-cube ISO container | FRP bioreactor with plant room; containerized scope supplied on a project basis | Containerized in ISO sizes, pre-assembled |
| Membrane | Submerged hollow-fiber UF, 0.04 µm PVDF (TIPS) | Flat-sheet membranes with air scour and CIP | Membrane module within ISO container; scope includes blowers, permeate pump, controls |
| Pre-treatment | Drum screen, 1.5 mm perforation | Automatic inlet screen, 2 mm in two dimensions | Screen included in package |
| Standard power | 460V / 3Ph / 60Hz | AC 415V, 3 Phase, 50 Hz (other voltages and frequencies available on request) | Confirm at RFQ; HUBER does not publish a single standard on this page |
| Operating temperature | 20-30°C (design 20°C) | Not published on this page; air-conditioned plant room integral to FRP bioreactor | Not published on this page |
| Capacity range | "Depending on capacity"; chart keyed to 50 gpd per capita | Modular; standard FRP trains plus balance and treated-effluent tanks | "From a few m³/day to several thousand m³/day" per train |
| Effluent benchmark | Per published MBR-C chart | BOD <40 mg/L (<10 mg/L reduction), TSS <30 mg/L, turbidity 4-12 NTU, NH3-N <5 mg/L | High-quality effluent suitable for irrigation; specific numbers not published on this page |
| Disinfection | Optional post-treatment | UV and hypochlorite optional; additional log credits with UV and chlorination | Optional UV in scope of supply |
| Notes | Built-in membrane cleaning and air-scour system | Balance and treated-effluent tanks sold separately; ClearAccess remote monitoring optional | Includes screen, bioreactor, membrane module, blowers, permeate pump, controls; optional UV |
For a domestic alternative, the HydropureWater MBR integrated wastewater treatment system covers a 10-2,000 m³/day capacity band with HydropureWater DF-series flat-sheet MBR modules at 0.1 µm PVDF, 80-225 m² per module, and 32-135 m³/day per module — a useful reference when a Chinese or local panel-builder quotes against an unspecified "membrane bioreactor module".
Medan-Specific Risks That Change Your Sizing Decision
The global vendor brochures stop at the container door. Four Medan-specific issues need to be in the specification before a PO is signed.
Container internal temperature. Pure Aqua's MBR-C is designed at 20°C with an operating range of 20-30°C (Pure Aqua, S2). Medan ambient regularly exceeds 32°C, and a dark ISO container in full sun will run hotter than that. Request a container ventilation or air-conditioning package for the plant room, and confirm the membrane manufacturer's upper temperature rating — the supplied research does not give a specific Medan figure, so this is a contractual clarification, not a detail to assume away. MAK Water's FRP bioreactor ships with an air-conditioned plant room integral to the bioreactor (MAK Water, S3), which is one way to handle the same risk.
Power quality. Pure Aqua's standard supply is 460V / 3Ph / 60Hz (Pure Aqua, S2). Medan's PLN grid is 380V / 3Ph / 50Hz, so a Pure Aqua unit will need a transformer. MAK Water explicitly offers "other voltages and frequencies available on request" on its 415V / 50Hz base spec (MAK Water, S3), so the RFQ must specify 50 Hz from day one — do not assume the vendor will standard-build for PLN. The same logic applies to standby generation sizing if the camp runs on genset only.
Sludge handling. A containerized MBR still produces waste activated sludge. The supplied research does not quantify the WAS rate for the populations in the table above, so the next design step is to size a sludge holding tank and route the cake either off-site for disposal or through a HydropureWater plate and frame filter press if the camp produces enough sludge to justify on-site dewatering.
Receiving-water limits. MAK Water's BOD <40 mg/L, TSS <30 mg/L, and turbidity 4-12 NTU numbers are useful benchmarks (MAK Water, S3), but they are not a substitute for the local Medan receiving-water body's regulatory limits. Confirm those limits against the MBR's guaranteed effluent before signing, and add UV or chlorination downstream if faecal-coliform or NH3-N caps are tighter than the MBR alone can deliver.
Frequently Asked Questions
What per-capita flow should I use when sizing a containerized MBR in Medan?
Use Pure Aqua's 50 gpd per capita, about 190 L/day, as the baseline (Pure Aqua, S2) and apply a 1.2-1.5 peaking factor. The supplied research does not publish a separate Indonesian SNI per-capita figure, so confirm the local Medan water-utility allowance and use the higher of the two. For a worker camp with kitchen and laundry, the camp operator's measured greywater figure usually dominates over either standard.
How many containers do I need for a 500-person residential block?
A 500-person block produces about 95 m³/day of average flow and roughly 124 m³/day at a 1.3 peaking factor (based on the 50 gpd/capita figure from Pure Aqua, S2). The supplied research does not state a m³/day-per-container number for either vendor, so the next step is to request the factory's container-vs-flow table to confirm whether one 40' HC is sufficient or whether a second 20' HC is needed for balance and treated-effluent storage. Note that MAK Water sells the treated-effluent tank separately (MAK Water, S3), so the BOQ needs to spell out what is and is not in the container scope.
Can a containerized MBR run on PLN 380V / 3Ph / 50Hz, or do I need a transformer?
It depends on the vendor. Pure Aqua's standard supply is 460V / 3Ph / 60Hz (Pure Aqua, S2), so a Pure Aqua unit on PLN will need a transformer. MAK Water explicitly offers "other voltages and frequencies available on request" on its 415V / 50Hz base spec (MAK Water, S3), so a 50 Hz variant is buildable but must be specified at the RFQ stage. If the camp runs on genset, confirm the genset capacity covers the MBR's peak load plus the air-scour blowers before signing.
Is a locally built MBR cheaper than importing from China, the US, or Australia?
The supplied research does not contain price data for any of the vendors, so a direct landed-cost comparison is not possible from the evidence in hand. The actionable step is to request an itemized quote that separates the MBR train, the ISO container, the instrumentation, international and domestic shipping, and the balance and treated-effluent tanks — because MAK Water's treated-effluent tank is "sold separately" (MAK Water, S3), and the same is true for most Chinese exporters once the BOQ is broken out. A local panel-builder using HydropureWater DF-series flat-sheet MBR modules removes the international shipping line but adds panel-fabrication QA risk; price both routes on the same scope before deciding.
