New Drinking Water Pipeline for Amsterdam’s Trendy District

As part of the expansion of the drinking water network on a former Amsterdam shipyard site, the egeplast Barrier Pipe SLA^® was installed trenchless using the flush drilling method. It was weighted during installation to cross water bodies. The permeation-resistant pipe system is certified by Kiwa for drinking water transport.

The drinking water project at Amsterdam’s Grasweg was successfully completed by Gebr. van Leeuwen Boring in cooperation with BAM Infra Energie & Water. The former NDSM shipyard in North Amsterdam had developed into a cultural hotspot with a constantly growing number of bars, restaurants, and artist communities. For the expansion of the drinking water network, a new 770 m long egeplast Barrier Pipe SLA^® with an OD of 500 mm was installed using the flush drilling method.

To protect the drinking water on the former shipyard site, the permeation-resistant Barrier Pipe SLA^® was selected. The protective casing pipe system reliably prevents the permeation of pollutants and is therefore certified by Kiwa Nederland B.V. as a PE pipe system with an aluminum barrier layer for drinking water transport. The damage-free installation of the pressure pipe during trenchless installation is achieved by the special, additive protective layer.

On site, the 20 m sections were connected using the butt fusion welding method. Eleven telescopic cranes and several mobile crane systems guided the pipe string in a controlled manner over access roads and paths to the starting pit. There, the drilling was initiated, and the SLA^® pipe was pulled under the harbor basin. To counteract buoyancy caused by air in the pipeline and reduce resistance during pulling, the pipeline was weighted. To achieve this additional weight, a second pipe was pulled in and filled with water. “After five hours, the SLA^® pipe reached the target pit, and the drilling was successfully completed to the great satisfaction of all involved,” said site manager John Henzen from Gebr. van Leeuwen. BAM Infra Energie & Water documented the construction work with a camera. You can watch the video at www.egeplast.de/egeplastube

Barrier Pipe SLA^® with an aluminum barrier layer are now also KIWA-certified for highly contaminated soils of class III. The protective casing pipe system reliably prevents the permeation of pollutants and is therefore certified by KIWA Nederland B.V. as a PE pipe system with an aluminum barrier layer for drinking water transport. The damage-free installation of the pressure pipe during trenchless pipe installation, such as flush drilling, is achieved by the special, additive protective layer.