ACO

The History of ACO
ACO Water Management is a division of ACO Technologies plc, established in 1984 and is based in Shefford, Bedfordshire. We offer landscapers surface water management solutions for domestic and civil engineering projects including channel drainage products, infiltration solutions, ground reinforcement products for gravel and grass surfaces and wildlife habitat products. ACO offers landscapers comprehensive design and support services from small garden through to large infrastructure projects. ACO Technologies plc is the UK division of the ACO Group, which has been manufacturing and supplying drainage systems for over seventy years and now operates in over fourty countries.

The ACO Ethos
ACO is a water technology company that protects water. Building on our global drainage expertise that protects people from water, we increasingly understand our mission is also to protect water from people. ACO - we care for water.

ACO's Products and Systems
Channel Drainage: a comprehensive suite of products for landscapers to manage rainwater runoff effectively from all sizes of paved surface and to fulfil every trafficked scenario from prams to HGVs. ACO’s range of gratings enables landscapers to fulfil briefs from the functional to high-end aesthetic. Landscapers will deliver effective and swift installations with the ACO HexDrain, RainDrain and Threshold Drain ranges of channels, alongside an extensive range of slots, exchangeable gratings and accessories for efficient drainage connection.

Dispersal Products - ACO’s StormBrixx soakaway system can be used to either hold rainwater during a storm event for controlled release into the sewerage system or for onsite dispersal into the ground. StormBrixx’s pillar design ensures strength, yet a high void ratio of 95% and stackability to minimise storage in transport and on site. ACO also manufactures products to clean contaminated rainwater before release and flow controls.

Ground Stabilisation - With ACO’s suite of products, landscapers can create permeable surfaces that lock in gravel or grass, prevent dipping and displacement and enable easy access across the surface. Products accommodate different weight loads, from pushchairs to SUVs. ACO GravelGuard comes with attached geomembrane and is suitable for pedestrian areas, while ACO GroundGuard is for trafficked areas and ACO BorderGuard completes the transition from either product to lawn or flower bed.

Wildlife Habitat Products - As the built environment continues to erode wildlife habitats, ACO has responded with a wildlife range that enables landscapers to literally build wildlife habitats into their designs. ACO’s Wildlife Refuges provide homes for different small animals. Made from polymer concrete, they are strong enough to be installed long-term into landscaped features such as banks. ACO Nest and Bat Boxes are sized at a brick and a half, made of polymer concrete and so can be built into walls.

Design and Support - With ACO’s online tools, landscapers can check their choice of channel meets the drainage requirements of the paved area. They can use ACO’s online visualiser tool to show clients the completed finish of ACO’s range of channel gratings against different paved surfaces. ACO’s QuAD Hydraulic Design calculator allows landscapers to select the ACO channel that has sufficient flow capacity for the area to be drained.

ACO's Sustainability and Environmental Policies
As a manufacturer, there is recognition of the ongoing challenge always to look at how we can reduce our environmental impact, both in our manufacturing processes and in the design, delivery and final use of our products. The ACO business is committed to a variety of different policies and procedures in our ongoing drive for sustainability, including measures to continually reduce carbon emissions across all stages of the lifecycle.
ACO Technologies plc has been certificated by BSI to operate an Environmental Management System which complies with the requirements of ISO 14001:2015. Captured in our Environmental Policy, the company is committed to complying with relevant environmental legislation and minimize the risk of pollution. As a minimum, we will do this in compliance with all applicable statutory obligations – exceeding these where possible – to maintain market-leading credentials that better serve our customers, business and employees.

What Sets ACO Apart
  • Innovative design and high-quality manufacture from our UK site and other factories within the ACO group.
  • During uncertain times, investment in a completed new UK logistics centre to ensure stock availability and swift delivery.
  • Long-standing commitment to support UK building and landscaping merchants to serve their customers.
  • Comprehensive design and product training – delivered both in person or online.

Our Future
We are all conscious that as our climate changes, we are experiencing more intense weather, too much rain at some points, too little at others. Both water quality and water quantity are becoming pressing national issues. In response, ACO is exploring integrated rainwater solutions from the roof level to the ground level and below. How can we treat rainwater less as a water product to be swiftly disposed of and more as a precious resource to channel, store, enjoy, slow and disperse.