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Synopex Water · Membrane Water Purification

Certified Membrane Infrastructure
for the Regions That Need It Most

2.2 billion people lack safely managed drinking water. Synopex Water — founded 1985, Pohang, Republic of Korea — delivers 38 years of membrane R&D in two battle-proven formats: stationary SWS community systems and rapid-deployment SMDT mobile trailers serving up to 200,000 people per day. No chemical dosing. PLC-automated. Proven by UNESCAP, Korea ODA, and K-Water. The Concept holds exclusive regional distribution.

UF / NF / RO Membranes No Chemical Dosing PLC-Automated SMDT Rapid Deployment 16 Registered Patents UNESCAP · Korea ODA · K-Water
Request a Deployment Assessment → View Synopex Product Range
2.2B
People without safely managed drinking water globally
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme 2023
200K
People served per day from a single SMDT-400 mobile trailer
Synopex Water SMDT series specification
16
Registered patents across UF, NF and RO membrane platforms
Synopex Water R&D, Pohang ROK
38+
Years of membrane R&D — founded 1985, K-Water installations since 2009
Synopex Water company heritage

The Access Gap

The Barrier Is Infrastructure.
Not Hydrology.

Sub-Saharan Africa holds some of the world's largest freshwater reserves. The Congo Basin carries 30% of Africa's total runoff. Aquifers run beneath the Sahel. Rivers cross Tanzania and Ethiopia year-round. The water is present. The problem is not scarcity. It is the absence of certified, deployable technology to make that water safe.

Conventional water treatment compounds the problem. Chemical chlorination requires an uninterrupted logistics chain for reagent supply. Coagulant dosing demands trained operators. Both approaches fail the moment the supply chain breaks — which in remote African locations, it does.

Synopex Water eliminates both failure modes. Physical membrane separation — UF, NF, RO — combined with UV sterilisation achieves WHO drinking water standards with no chemical dosing and minimal operator skill. Documented 30% extended membrane lifespan over conventional systems reduces the total cost of operation over the deployment lifecycle. This is the technology the environment demands. The Concept delivers it.

In high-consequence environments, optimism is not a strategy. Proof is.

Every Synopex system is factory-tested and validated before it ships. The SMDT programme has proven deployments under UNESCAP funding in Mongolia and Korea ODA funding in Nigeria. K-Water installations have operated continuously across the Republic of Korea since 2009. We do not deploy on assumptions.

Why No Chemical Dosing Changes Everything

No reagent supply chain required in-country
Eliminates chemical storage, handling, and dosing errors
Low-manpower operation — no specialist chemist required
No disinfection by-products (THMs, HAAs) in treated water
Mineral feeder for post-RO remineralisation to WHO taste standards
30% extended membrane lifespan vs conventional systems (documented)

Synopex Water · Product Range

Four Proven Platforms.
One Certified Partner.

Synopex systems are delivered in two field-proven configurations — stationary SWS community plants and self-contained mobile SMDT trailers — across three membrane technologies: UF hollow-fibre PAN, NF nano-composite, and RO sea/brackish. Systems combine as required for source water conditions.

Platform 01 — Stationary

Synopex SWS Community Water Purification Systems

PLC-automated stationary water purification plants for towns, hospitals, clinics, schools, and remote infrastructure. Pre-filtration (MMF + ACF) removes sediment and organics before membrane treatment. Bespoke MF/NF/RO trains are specified to source water analysis. Post-treatment mineral feeder restores essential minerals and taste after RO. UV sterilisation provides final-stage pathogen reduction without chemical addition. Automated backwash cycles require no operator intervention between scheduled maintenance visits.

Standard configurations SWS-030 / 060 / 100 / 120
Output range 30 – 120 m³/day (30,000 – 120,000 L/day)
Membrane options MF tubular · UF · NF · RO (bespoke train)
Pre-treatment MMF + ACF
Post-treatment UV sterilisation · mineral feeder
Control system PLC automated · low manpower

Platform 02 — Mobile

Synopex SMDT Mobile Drinking Water Treatment Trailers

Self-contained, road-deployable water treatment units that require no civil works or fixed infrastructure — operational within hours of arrival on-site. Designed for disaster response, off-grid settlements, humanitarian emergencies, and military or civil-defence deployments where a permanent facility is not viable. Each SMDT is a complete treatment system: intake, pre-filtration, membrane treatment, UV sterilisation, and storage — all on a single road-legal trailer. Reference deployments include UNESCAP-funded SMDTs in Mongolia and ODA-funded units in Nigeria.

Configuration range SMDT-20 / 50 / 100 / 200 / 400
Output range 20 – 400 m³/day
Population served 10,000 – 200,000 people/day
Civil works required None
Time to operational Hours from site arrival
Reference programmes UNESCAP (Mongolia) · ODA (Nigeria)

Platform 03 — Membrane

Synopex UF Hollow-Fibre PAN Membrane Modules

Patented hollow-fibre polyacrylonitrile (PAN) ultrafiltration membrane modules — the core technology within SWS and SMDT systems, also available as standalone modules for integration into existing treatment trains. Physical pore-size separation removes suspended solids, bacteria, protozoa, and viruses to WHO drinking water standards without chemical addition. Auto-backwash cycles maintain flux and membrane integrity. Synopex's patented membrane engineering delivers a documented 30% extended service life over conventional hollow-fibre membranes, reducing lifecycle replacement cost in remote deployments.

Membrane material Hollow-fibre PAN (polyacrylonitrile)
Separation mechanism Physical pore-size ultrafiltration
Backwash Automated (no manual intervention)
Extended lifespan 30% over conventional UF membranes
Patents 16 registered · 5 national R&D programmes
Heritage Founded 1985 · K-Water since 2009

Platform 04 — Membrane

Synopex NF Nano-Composite & RO Membrane Platforms

Two higher-rejection membrane platforms for applications where UF alone is insufficient. NF (nano-composite) removes colour, hardness, pesticides, and moderate dissolved solids — a lower-energy option than RO for sources without high TDS. RO (sea/brackish) achieves 95%+ TDS removal, treating brackish groundwater and extending to seawater desalination. Both platforms incorporate Synopex patented nano-composite active layers for improved flux and fouling resistance. Integrated within SWS and SMDT bespoke treatment trains alongside UF pre-treatment, mineral feeder, and UV polishing.

NF active layer Nano-composite (patented)
NF targets Colour · hardness · pesticides · moderate TDS
RO configurations Sea water · brackish water
RO TDS removal >95%
Post-RO treatment Mineral feeder for WHO taste standards
Typical applications Brackish borehole · saline coastal · seawater

Reference Deployments

Proven in the Field.
Not Just on Paper.

Synopex Water systems have been funded and validated by international development organisations and national water authorities. Field performance, not just factory certification, is the proof standard we hold.

🇳🇬
Korea ODA Programme · Africa
ODA-Funded Community Water System — Nigeria
Official Development Assistance (ODA) funding from the Republic of Korea supported deployment of a Synopex Water community water purification system in Nigeria — a documented reference in a Sub-Saharan African operating environment. Validates both system performance and the supply chain logistics for African deployment under international programme scrutiny.
🇲🇳
UNESCAP · Humanitarian Programme
UNESCAP-Funded SMDT Mobile Trailers — Mongolia
The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) selected Synopex SMDT mobile water treatment trailers for humanitarian deployment in Mongolia. UNESCAP procurement standards require independent technical validation and field performance evidence — confirming the SMDT platform against international humanitarian agency procurement criteria.
🇰🇷
K-Water · National Programme · Korea
K-Water National Water Authority — Republic of Korea
K-Water (Korea Water Resources Corporation) — the national water authority responsible for water supply to the Republic of Korea — has been deploying Synopex installations continuously since 2009. Over 15 years of national water authority operation is the highest-grade validation a membrane manufacturer can demonstrate: not a pilot, not a single project, but a sustained national infrastructure relationship.

Target Geographies

Sub-Saharan Africa &
Remote Global Locations

Primary engagement focus is Sub-Saharan Africa, where the gap between water resource availability and access infrastructure is most acute. The ODA-funded Nigeria deployment provides a direct regional reference. Secondary focus includes remote mining and energy operations, island communities, and off-grid industrial facilities globally.

🇳🇬
Nigeria
ODA reference deployment · North-East and Delta communities
🇰🇪
Kenya
Rift Valley, Northern regions — fluoride and arsenic in borehole water
🇪🇹
Ethiopia
Tigray, Somali, Afar regions — remote communities and humanitarian settings
🇹🇿
Tanzania
Lake Zone surface water, mining regions — turbidity and microbial load
🇺🇬
Uganda
Northern and Eastern regions — seasonal surface water variability
🇷🇼
Rwanda
Rural health clinics and community water points — WASH compliance
🇬🇭
Ghana
Northern savanna and coastal — mining sector and rural hospitals
🇲🇿
Mozambique
LNG development corridor — worker camp and community access
🇿🇲
Zambia
Copperbelt mining sector — process water and camp potable supply
🇸🇳
Senegal
Casamance region, Sahelian communities — brackish borehole remediation

The Concept · Deployment Model

End-to-End Execution.
From Source Water to Safe Tap.

The Concept does not outsource accountability. Our factory-trained engineers manage every stage — installed, maintained, and supported in-house. Five stages. No gaps. No subcontractors.

Stage 01
Source Water Assessment
On-site sampling and laboratory analysis: TDS, pH, turbidity, hardness, heavy metals, microbial load, and trace contaminants. Flow rate measurement at source. Logistics route survey. Determines whether UF, NF, or RO is the correct membrane for the application.
Stage 02
System Specification
Synopex product selection — SWS stationary or SMDT mobile — based on source water, demand, and logistics. Capacity sizing against confirmed population, healthcare bed count, or industrial throughput. Membrane train design: MMF + ACF pre-filtration, UF/NF/RO selection, mineral feeder and UV post-treatment.
Stage 03
Regulatory Navigation
In-country import clearance and Ministry of Health approval. Country-specific product certification: KEBS (Kenya), NAFDAC (Nigeria), ZAMWIS (Zambia), NEMA (Kenya/Uganda), EWURA (Tanzania), and others. Environmental documentation where applicable.
Stage 04
Factory Build & Testing
Synopex factory assembly, pressure testing, and full performance validation in Pohang, Republic of Korea. Output water quality confirmed against WHO DWQG before shipping. Factory acceptance test (FAT) documentation provided. 12-month consumables pack pre-packed for deployment.
Stage 05
Deployment & Support
On-site installation and commissioning by The Concept's factory-trained engineers — not subcontractors. SMDT units operational within hours of arrival. Operator training, structured preventive-maintenance programme, and direct escalation to Synopex for technical fault resolution.

Applications

Where Water Matters Most.

Application 01
Rural Healthcare & WASH Compliance
WHO WASH in Healthcare Facilities guidelines mandate piped, treated water at every point of care, sterilisation room, and sanitation facility. SWS-030 to SWS-060 systems deliver compliant water supply to clinics, district hospitals, and maternal health centres. No chemical dosing eliminates the reagent supply risk that disables conventional chlorination-based systems in remote healthcare settings.
Application 02
Humanitarian & Emergency Response
Synopex SMDT trailers are proven under UNESCAP humanitarian programme funding. The SMDT-100 to SMDT-400 range serves 50,000 to 200,000 people per day with no civil works or fixed infrastructure. Compatible with UN agency procurement frameworks. NGO and civil-defence deployments operate the system on minimal manpower with no chemical handling. Pre-positioned spare membrane modules allow rapid field servicing.
Application 03
Remote Mining & Energy Operations
Off-grid mining sites, LNG construction camps, and renewable energy project camps require high-volume potable water for workforce welfare, dust suppression, and process operations. SWS systems provide regulatory-compliant water with PLC automation, eliminating diesel water trucking cost and supply chain exposure. Process water requiring food-grade quality benefits from the chemical-free UF and NF treatment train.
Application 04
Off-Grid Communities & Village Supply
SWS-030 systems serve village populations of 1,000–5,000 with a single PLC-automated unit requiring no specialist operators. No chemical dosing means no reagent logistics. Automated backwash requires no manual intervention. The ODA-funded Nigeria programme validates this configuration in an African community environment under international development programme accountability.
Application 05
Agricultural & Food Processing
Process water treatment for food and agri-processing facilities exporting to EU, UK, and GCC markets. SPS compliance and food safety standards at destination markets require documented, certified process water quality. Chemical-free Synopex UF/NF treatment eliminates chemical contamination risk in food-contact water. NF platform removes pesticide residues and hardness without RO energy demand.
Application 06
Schools, Education & Institutional WASH
School WASH programmes under UNICEF and government frameworks require sustainable safe water supply beyond project funding cycles. SWS systems with automated operation and minimal manpower are designed for sustainability in low-skilled-labour environments. Local operator training is embedded in commissioning scope. Mineral feeder restores natural taste — critical for uptake in community settings replacing unsafe traditional sources.

Standards & Certifications

Every Litre.
Proven to Standard.

Synopex Water systems are validated against international water quality and manufacturing standards. In-country regulatory approvals are managed as part of every deployment engagement — not left to the client.

🌍
WHO Drinking Water Quality Guidelines (4th Ed.)
All Synopex system outputs are designed and validated against WHO DWQG microbiological, chemical, and physical parameters. The reference standard accepted by health ministries and international agencies across Sub-Saharan Africa.
🔬
16 Registered Patents · 5 National R&D Programmes
Synopex membrane platforms are the product of 38+ years of proprietary R&D in Pohang, Republic of Korea. Patent protection covers UF hollow-fibre PAN modules, nano-composite NF active layers, and fouling-resistant RO configurations — the foundation of the 30% extended membrane lifespan claim.
🏛️
UNESCAP · Korea ODA · K-Water Validated
Three international validation programmes: UNESCAP humanitarian procurement (Mongolia), Korea Official Development Assistance (Nigeria), and Korea Water Resources Corporation (K-Water) national water authority installations since 2009. Each programme applies independent technical and field-performance scrutiny beyond product certification alone.
⚙️
ISO 9001:2015 — Quality Management
Manufacturing and assembly at the Synopex Pohang facility operates under ISO 9001:2015 quality management. Factory acceptance test (FAT) documentation and production records are provided with every system shipment to The Concept and onward to the end client.
🇪🇺
CE Marking (Machinery & Pressure Directives)
CE marking confirms conformity with EU Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC and Pressure Equipment Directive 2014/68/EU for pressurised system components. Required for NGO and development agency procurement under EU-standard equipment specifications.
📋
In-Country Regulatory Approvals
Country-specific certifications and import approvals managed by The Concept as part of the deployment scope: KEBS (Kenya), NAFDAC (Nigeria), ZAMWIS/ZEMA (Zambia), NEMA (Kenya/Uganda), EWURA (Tanzania), and others as applicable. Not left to the client to navigate independently.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Clients Ask
Before Engaging.

Synopex Water is a Korean membrane technology manufacturer founded in 1985 in Pohang, Republic of Korea, with 38+ years of R&D, 16 registered patents, and 5 national R&D programmes. Its UF, NF, and RO platforms require no chemical dosing, operate on low manpower with PLC automation, and deliver a documented 30% extended membrane lifespan versus conventional systems. Reference deployments include UNESCAP-funded SMDT mobile units in Mongolia, an ODA-funded community water system in Nigeria, and K-Water installations across Korea since 2009. These characteristics — chemical-free operation, low manpower, and proven field performance under international programme accountability — make the platform exceptionally well-suited for remote African deployments where chemical logistics and skilled technicians are scarce.
Synopex systems handle borehole and groundwater, surface water including rivers and lakes, rainwater harvesting, and brackish water. RO platforms extend to seawater desalination. The UF hollow-fibre PAN platform is optimal for surface water with moderate turbidity. The NF nano-composite platform targets colour, hardness, and moderate TDS reduction. RO handles high TDS, brackish, and seawater sources. A source water analysis — covering TDS, pH, turbidity, microbial load, hardness, and key chemical contaminants — is conducted as the first step of every project, before any system is specified.
The Synopex SMDT (Self-contained Mobile Drinking water Treatment) is a complete water treatment system mounted on a road-legal trailer. Configurations range from SMDT-20 (20 m³/day) to SMDT-400 (400 m³/day), with the largest unit serving up to 200,000 people per day. SMDT units are pre-commissioned at the Pohang factory, require no civil works or fixed infrastructure, and can be fully operational within hours of arrival on site. They are designed for disaster response, off-grid settlements, humanitarian emergencies, and military or civil-defence deployments. The UNESCAP-funded Mongolia programme validates SMDT performance under international humanitarian procurement standards.
The Synopex SWS community water purification range covers 30 m³/day (SWS-030), 60 m³/day (SWS-060), 100 m³/day (SWS-100), and 120 m³/day (SWS-120). At 30 m³ per day — 30,000 litres — a single SWS-030 serves a primary health clinic or a village of approximately 1,500 people at WHO minimum water consumption guidance. SWS units are PLC-automated, bespoke MF/NF/RO treatment trains with pre-filtration, UV sterilisation, and post-treatment mineral feeder. Multiple units can be installed in parallel for larger demand without new engineering.
Synopex membrane platforms use physical separation — hollow-fibre UF, nano-composite NF, or semi-permeable RO membranes — as the primary treatment mechanism. Combined with multi-media filtration, activated carbon filtration, and UV sterilisation, the systems achieve WHO drinking water standards without chlorination, coagulant dosing, or biocide addition. In remote African deployments, chemical reagent logistics are the most common cause of conventional water treatment system failure. No chemical dosing eliminates the supply chain, storage, handling risk, and dosing error that makes chlorination-based systems unreliable in off-grid environments. It also eliminates disinfection by-products (trihalomethanes, haloacetic acids) from the treated water.
The Concept holds exclusive regional distribution for Synopex Water membrane systems. We operate as the end-to-end deployment partner: source water assessment, system specification from the SWS and SMDT range, in-country regulatory navigation, logistics coordination from Pohang, commissioning, operator training, and ongoing technical support. Factory-trained engineers handle installation and maintenance — The Concept does not subcontract. The minimum engagement is a source water assessment. Contact accelerate@theconcept.global to open a conversation.

Start with a Source Water Assessment.

We do not propose a system until we have tested your water. Every Synopex deployment begins with an on-site source assessment — the only basis on which to specify the right membrane technology with confidence.