Mikk Valve is the brainchild of plumber, Michael Phillips. After 40 years of call-outs to fix leaky taps, locating seized joints in awkward locations, wasting 50 gallons of water a time, and throwing thousands of taps away, Michael knew there must be a better way. If a tap’s default was a ‘valve closed’ position, he wouldn’t need to turn off the mains supply or knock through tiling to locate a problem. He had the idea of a valve that sits below the counter and controls the water supply.

A fortuitous meeting in an airport bar with Angus Walker, an expert in product design, turned Michael’s idea into reality. Angus and business partner Robin Gale saw the potential, not only to revolutionise day-to-day plumbing, but to preserve water on a global scale. After a patent search revealed that nothing like this existed, Angus commissioned technical drawings and a prototype. Tests proved that the Mikk Valve concept worked and could easily withstand more than 10,000 uses with no sign of wear/ leakage. Seven years later and the Mikk Valve is being patented worldwide, approved in the US, South Africa and Europe and in the advanced stages of approval in ARIPO and India.

It’s a simple default closed system that requires the spout to open and release the liquid (or gas). Full details about this are available within our brochure and on the website at mikkvalve.com.

No.

Inasmuch as the valve isolates the flow of a liquid to the spout, it performs an isolation role.

As long as the materials don’t compromise the performance or the certification required locally, many materials can be used. In the UK this is usually Brass. The real advantage is that the spout can be made of a wide range of materials from cheap to luxury. This enables householders to decide what taps they would like without affecting the water supply. They will for example, be able to take a favourite tap with them when moving house. Or, as we have recently experienced, if there is a health issue where taking your own tap with you gives you greater confidence, you will be able to do so.

The initial installation will need a plumber this will be a one-time fit only. This can be carried out when an engineer is called on site to fix an existing fault or as with conversations already had with housing associations, it can be done as part of their maintenance program. Ultimately, it is a great advantage to have the Mikk Valve in place as the tap will save customers and utilities money, water and have a positive impact on their carbon footprint.

Yes that’s correct. The Mikk Valve works on a default closed setting, using the laws of physics. The pressure of the water in the system and a spring in the valve ensures that it is closed until a user operates the tap to open it and release the flow of water. The Mikk Valve will close automatically when the tap is not being used or lies idle for long periods of time. The Mikk Valve prevents it from being under full mains pressure, so reduces leaks irrespective of the taps (spout) condition.

Yes, and potentially many other applications as well. We are concentrating on the tap at present, but the plan is to develop other uses for the valve, both within domestic or commercial locations, as well as possible applications at larger scale in the mains system. We also will be considering applications for the control of gas as well as liquid flow.

Yes. Any existing water system can replace a conventional tap with a Mikk Valve.

Yes.

We did consider the problems that might be caused by any dirt or foreign bodies in the water supply and found that, after testing, by re-grading the diameter of the top of the spindle in the valve, this gave sufficient clearance for such problems to be avoided. The sample brass push down tap in this format was tested by a lab in Bristol over 10,000 times.

In a conventional screw down or push down tap, the valve is working against the flow of water to turn off. If there is a bit of grit etc that gets stuck then closing the valve will trap it and the harder the tap is screwed down (e.g., to stop it dripping) the more the grit will be squashed and embedded into the valve seat or the rubber washer so the harder it will be for the tap to clear itself. The only way then to fix it is to turn off the water and dismantle the tap.

It would be similar with a ceramic valve too, except that unlike a rotary tap there’s no way of increasing the pressure to close the tap and no rubber washer to make the problem worse. In the Mikk Valve, water flows more or less linearly through the so dirt is less likely to become trapped in the first place.

The Mikk Valve works with the flow of the water and it’s the pressure of the flow of the water that causes the valve to close. The water pressure is likely to be less than the pressure applied to the valve seat by a user determined to close the valve on a dripping conventional screw down tap. So, with the Mikk Valve, if something gets in there and stops the valve from closing then it’s unlikely to become embedded in the valve surface in the first place and reopening the tap will push open the valve and release whatever’s in there. In most cases the valve will clear quite easily and without dismantling anything.

Also, the materials in the Mikk Valve are relevant. Everything is made of hard stuff! There’s no rubber washer in which grit might get embedded.

This is underway and we await the results.

WRAS (Water Regulations Advisory Scheme) is the approval scheme of the UK Water Industry, which ensures that products approved by the scheme have been shown to comply with the requirements of the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999 and amendments. All products related to the delivery of water for human consumption in the UK have to have WRAS certification. The normal practice is for manufacturers of taps to get this certification for their products and this will apply regardless of whether we separately hold the certification. Mikk is currently engaging with Kiwa to get approval. On this basis we will consider ex- tending this to include WRAS for the valve. However, tap manufacturers currently have to get WRAS certification each time they develop a new tap, so we don’t intend to extend this to include any taps that we create in the proof of concept activity.

No. One of the intentions of the valve is to separate the spout from the valve. It is a huge waste of resources to replace the valve part of an existing tap each time it’s replaced. The valve requires a new design for the delivery part of the tap the spout. Once fitted, replacing the spout is easy and an operation that anyone can do, SO not requiring the services of a plumber, the use of special tools or the need to turn the mains off. We know that establishing the valve as the default operating system is a long term plan. Our evaluation is based on a 10 year cycle.

The Mikk Valve offers substantial financial reward for a potential partner. We are currently in discussions with governments, agencies, manufacturers and charities about maximising the potential of the innovation. In the Indian market alone Water Aid is currently discussing ways in which we can partner with them on government initiatives to provide clean water to homes and schools in urban and rural areas totalling an estimated $500 billion USD over a five-year period. The project was announced by the Indian finance minister to incorporate 5000 municipals (states) covering over 500 major cities. The target is to put a tap and clean water into 30 million households the project is called “one tap for every home”. The Mikk Valve is the perfect product for this as it will save money and water in the most extreme of situations.

Indeed, we have spoken to major developers for new builds, and they are very interested especially with new government proposals being set in place by reducing the massive carbon footprint of millions of households with constantly dripping hot and cold taps. We feel our immediate target market in the first instance is water utility companies and Service and Maintenance companies who look after millions of homes. Further detail is available in our brochure, business plan and information memorandum which demonstrates that these companies could save millions of pounds in outgoings and save millions of gallons of water. We continue to gather information that supports our position and will continue to update our documentation with this.

The Mikk Valve has any number of potential uses in domestic applications (taps, showers, toilets, radiators and boilers), industrial and water treatment settings- and can conserve water wastage at each phase of deployment – so this question is not straightforward to answer specifically. What we can say is that the design lends itself to being incorporated into anything from ultra-low-cost units to high end luxury hotels and homes, and will cost no more than current applications.

Though the valve has been successfully lab tested, actual studies in a property require completion of the proof of concept and certification from Kiwa/WRAS (in the UK). Once this is in place, we are in discussions with potential partners in the property maintenance sector to carry out extensive feasibility studies.

Yes. But whilst they are based on industry supplied figures and have been approved by industry experts, a feasibility study will provide a case study that will confirm the benefits that the valve will deliver.

‘As someone working in the social housing arena I can see the direct and indirect benefits of the Mikk valve and tap. Any innovation that brings both bankable, cash savings to a landlord and a positive benefit to the end customer is to be welcomed’.

‘The use of the Mikk valve and tap can generate real savings in time and money in the maintenance and improvements of homes. When looked at in scale, in the context of a ten year maintenance cycle for a housing provider, these savings can release significant capacity to support other asset investment priorities or deliver capacity to support the building of new homes’.

‘In addition many social housing tenants are low waged or on fixed incomes, any saving on utility bills can make a real difference to them. The Mikk valve and tap has demonstrated that it prevents water leakage which can translate into real savings for the end customer, particularly those with metered water’.

Bob Heapy, CEO of Town & Country Housing Association

It would depend who we were talking to. If a government, charity or agency we would say: ‘We all need to take our responsibilities for the sustainability of our planet seriously. The preservation of our water resources is part of that responsibility, the Mikk Valve can support that responsibility across the globe and particularly in areas of ‘water poverty’.

Bob Heapy, CEO of Town & Country Housing Association f we were talking to a commercial business, we would present the facts and figures which are very compelling.

This depends on location. Most developed countries will range from 5 – 12 taps per typical house. This number drops dramatically in those countries that are developing their water supply programs, and can range from no taps at all to 2 or 3. Most of those developing countries have plans or programs to connect poorer and rural communities to their mains systems, so globally the number of taps is only going to increase.

The evidence shows that the cost of installation of the Mikk Valve will be the same as the current tap. The benefit comes after that initial installation. Once the valve is in place, future maintenance or tap replacement becomes significantly cheaper and quicker.

No, not beyond proof of concept to ensure that the interface between the valve and the spout is complete. We would expect tap manufacturers to want to continue creating their own unique designs.

Not at this moment in time. We have covered what we feel are the markets that will have the most impact on humanitarian sustainability together with maximising profit to shareholders. New technology and government projects are continuously moving forward, thus creating year upon year of opportunities, so we regularly review the status.

We are open to different ways to approach this. Whilst we would be happy to sell the global patent (at the right price), we are also open to localised sale and licensing options as well. The figures that we have for the savings for maintenance, water supply and manufacturing, along with the creation of a new market in spout products give us a clear indication of the potential long-term value of the innovation, so we want to retain a share in the business, whatever way the IP is sold.

Absolutely. Whether a manufacturer, maintenance and facilities management business, government or a charity, this product ticks all the boxes. As an example, we have spoken to the manufacturer of taps, Jaquar, both in India via an introductory conversation and in more detail here in the UK. The CEO of Jaquar UK has seen the innovation and feels it’s a very interesting product. In tandem with these discussions, we have been talking to the charity WaterAid in the UK who have shown great interest and signed NDA’s. On the basis of that, Jaquar are keen to move forward to the next levels. The reason for the dual interest is that the Indian government are proposing a $40 Billion USD ‘1 tap to every home’ project throughout rural and urban Indian cities. WaterAid are happy to promote the project with us, as they feel that the CSR aspect that Jaquar and other companies are strongly involved in throughout India is perfectly aligned with their ambitions and ethos. Once the tap with our Mikk Valve is incorporated into homes, the need for further maintenance or repair is significantly reduced if not eliminated. As we all know, it’s very easy to discuss ideas but the true test of any humanitarian sustainability project is the aftercare service which so often falls short of expectations and is not easy to follow through. Making that process as simple and cost effective as possible will hugely help businesses balance the often tricky relationship between SR and profit.

The potential benefits of CSR to companies include:

• better brand recognition.
• positive business reputation.
• increased sales and customer loyalty.
• operational costs savings.
• better financial performance.
• greater ability to attract talent and retain staff.
• organisational growth. easier access to capital.

We see the Mikk Valve providing most benefit for those businesses operating at scale, e.g. larger housing providers, maintenance contacting and house builders, large asset owners/operators, facilities management contractors and hotel chains.