Hydroworks has been involved in the design of water turbines and pumps since 2001. The proprietor, Rik Hothersall, has designed turbomachinery for over 25 years (from a tiny 5 kW cross flow turbine operating on a mission station in PNG, to a 100 MW pump turbine runner at Cruachan, Scotland).

Whilst an independent company, Hydroworks operates in close collaboration with Mace Engineering Ltd on many important contracts. An example of this collaboration is the In Race Turbine, a high specific speed generic turbine that operates on heads between 4 and 8 m. The IRT can be configured into either a vertical pit or tubular arrangement.

The IRT model test was manufactured by Mace Engineering and tested in the hydraulics lab of the Univeristy of Canterbury in March, 05. The 250mm runner and model test assembly are shown on the right.

The first full size IRT was manufactured by Mace and commissioned in Jauary 06. It produces 500 kW on 8m head and can fill an Olympic sized swimming pool in under five minutes. An AB2 runner blade and the runner hub are pictured on the left.

Our first Francis Runner was installed at Mangorei power station, New Plymouth in 2003. The 1.8 MW runner (right) met its performance predictions and is operating well.