KENYA PRISONS SERVICE UNVAILS PRI AQUA WATER BOTTLING PLANT
By Pili Chimerah
At the Prisons Staff Training College in Ruiru, stands an innovation: the Pri Aqua Water Bottling Plant, one of the iconic projects pioneered by the Kenya Prisons Service.
With the capacity to produce 1500 litres per hour, water packaged in 500ml bottles, and 20 litres, the plant was inaugurated on 28th October 2021 by retired president Uhuru Kenyatta.
During a visit to the plant, the State Department for Correctional Services Principal Secretary Dr. Salome M. Beacco toured the bottling facility, she was impressed by the project and promised to work hand in hand with the Commissioner General of Prisons Brig (Rtd) John Warioba to ensure the product becomes a household brand.
“We should ensure that this product is supplied to all government offices and supplied to all supermarkets in this country,” she said while addressing senior staff at the prison Staff Training College.
According to the company, the bottled water is safe for human consumption having followed all requisite standards as spelt out by the Kenya Bureau of Standards and related regulations.
The production of the water utilizes reverse osmosis technology and linear filling system to purify and package its water respectively.
Inspector of Prisons Samuel Njoroge, a trained and certified Chemist, is in charge of the water bottling plant.
“As we know, osmosis is the movement of particles from a high-concentration region to a low-concentration region through a semipermeable membrane. Reverse osmosis on the other hand implies the movement of particles to one side of the membrane (concentrate) while clean water passes through the membrane (permeate),” he explains.
In the reverse osmosis technique, he explains that high pressure is injected through a high-pressure pump forcing the contaminants to move to one side of the reverse osmosis membrane allowing only clean water to the other side of the membrane.
The Reverse osmosis process comprises four segments which include sediment filters whose function is to reduce particles like dirt, dust and rust, carbon filters which reduce volatile organic compounds, chlorine and other contaminants that give water a bad odour and taste, glass filters which remove dirt, dust, rust and large particles and finally the Ultraviolet lamp which aids in sterilization.
Njoroge’s duties include supervising operations in the production and packaging departments, monitoring and maintaining all applicable production permits ensuring that the facility complies with all local, county and country company policies, and monitoring production to ensure quality standards are met.
The workforce includes five other staff members who are also Kenya Prions Service officers who are well-trained water engineers, pharmacists and accountants.
Pri Aqua water has been on display across various ASK shows as well as during the 2023 Correctional Service Week, 2022 Public Service Week held at KICC and the 2022 Africities summit held in Kisumu last year. Plans are to grow the brand further.