Restoring Drinking Water Supply in Downtown Amsterdam

After the collapse of a drinking water pipeline in downtown Amsterdam, the capacity of the potable water supply network to the town center was significantly reduced. Insituform was contracted to reline a close to 100 year old pipe underneath one of the canals. Water was restored successfully within five days, with minimal impact on traffic and the environment. Insituform worked closely with AOC to develop this innovative relining technology.

On March 3rd, 2018, a large drinking water supply pipeline unexpectedly collapsed with part of the quay near the Nassaukade in historic Amsterdam. The 600 mm diameter pipe was a vital part of the city’s drinking water network, delivering water to a large number of households in the center of town.

Tough Challenge

“The customer initially thought that a brand new pipe would need to be installed as a permanent solution,” says Ton van Geest, R&D Manager of Insituform Europe. “However, they realized this involved doing major construction work in a very busy part of the town. Because of the complexity of the operation, it meant that both road and water traffic would likely be blocked for several months.”

The soil underneath the historic town of Amsterdam is relatively soft. So this also means that during larger construction projects extra care has to be taken to avoid major soil displacements, which could potentially lead to cracks in the monumental buildings and costly reparation work as a consequence.

Relining Solution

Fortunately, there was still a nearby 100 years old, unused cast iron pipe underneath the canal, which could be converted into a new drinking water pipeline by applying innovative relining techniques.

“Insituform supplied a state-of-the-art relining system based on our Insitumain^® Technology, which is a proven solution around the world for renovating drinking water pipelines”, explains Ton van Geest. “Through this technique we create a new, clean and resilient pipe inside the existing pipe. The composite pipe provides structural integrity, corrosion resistance, and can cope with water pressure fluctuations, ensuring a reliable network operation for many years to come.”

“Insituform and AOC have been working together for the last 5 years to develop this robust relining technology”, adds Rob van de Laarschot, Head of Technical Service, AOC. “The liners are impregnated with the new styrene-free Beyone™ 700-T-01 FC resin from AOC. The ingredients of this resin are on the positive list for food contact applications, the resin is manufactured in line with GMP, and resin/ glass liner systems have been approved by KIWA-ATA as a sign of quality and trust. Liners impregnated with Beyone™ 700-T-01 FC resin have already seen many successful installations for drinking water networks in several European countries.”

Quick and Easy Installation

Insituform relined the pipe, which was 600 mm diameter and 50 meters length, in only two days. This result was only possible because of the excellent site preparation, the experienced Insituform crew, the robust material system, and the cooperation with the sub-contractor responsible for the civil works.

The renovated drinking water pipeline was back in service within five working days without any impact to quality or reliability, and to the full satisfaction of the customer. “Our customer was very happy with the support received from Insituform and AOC during project preparation and execution”, adds Ton. “They were delighted that the whole renovation did not require major reconstruction work. Obviously, this was also a relief to the nearby residents.”