This was the first of the luxury JW Marriott chain to be built in Turkey, and the owners demanded that it set standards of enduring excellence. In addition to its 413 rooms, the hotel offers 68 suites and conference facilities, occupying some 14 thousand square meters.

When it came to the choice of sanitation and plumbing suppliers, main contractor Gelişim Teknik had no hesitation in choosing from the Wavin AS range.

The Wavin products were also favoured thanks to the company’s clear environmental and sustainability position, and to their inherent durability and resistance to contamination: encrustation is near zero meaning water quality remains optimum. Their safety characteristics were important too, guaranteeing high standards of fire retardation, with a guaranteed minimum of 90 minutes barrier time – a further bonus in any public building.

All building activity is managed under a single contract by this regional Italian health authority, and in order to maximize project efficiency, the main contractors chose partners who could meet the full range of requirements.

Wavin was recognised as one of the very few potential suppliers of all roof dispersal and internal drainage systems, including those required for all clean and waste water management.

Wavin's QuickStream siphonic roof drainage system ensures that rainwater can be efficiently dispersed and retained for re-use in irrigation and flushing, while the near-silent SiTech system enables low-noise waste water discharge so patients and staff are not disturbed. Low maintenance costs on all systems were also important and Wavin won here, too.

For Leonardo Alderighi, CEO of prime contractor Alderighi Impianti S.p.A., “Wavin was involved from the start, providing the highly specialised consultancy we required. It was essential that the practical implementation of roof and internal systems could be implemented without modification to the overall building design, and with Wavin’s expertise we achieved this.”

The extensive roof area of the new terminal included a mixture of traditional straight sections and highly distinctive lighting domes. The centrepiece of the terminal was itself a large roof dome.  These architectural features would make it difficult to establish a standard run-off for rainwater.

The use of traditional downpipes would also be impossible, due in part to the full-length glass walls. Not only did the design team need to respect the building’s aesthetic. They would also need a solution which allowed the downpipes to be installed as a largely standalone construction. In addition to draining roof surfaces effectively, the airport would need to channel excess water to storage tanks for re-use. These were located around 300 meters from the terminal building, and were almost level with it. This prevented the adoption of straight gravity-fed drainage.

Wavin was able to provide end-to-end solutions for rainwater dispersal from the roof; transport to the storage tanks; and indeed for the tanks themselves.  Wavin QuickStream was adopted for all collection and dispersal to the tanks, which were constructed using the highly modular Wavin Aquacell system.

The installation contractor, Hidro-Obras, was impressed not just by the ease with which all Wavin systems could be installed, but by the high quality of technical support offered by Wavin’s specialist design team throughout the project.

The final 5.2 kilometre section of the new sewer network posed particular challenges. The route passed through swampy waterlogged ground, with very high groundwater tables. The sewer would need to carry high volumes of corrosive waste to the new treatment plant.

The civil engineering team wanted pipes that would resist corrosion, that were chemically inert, and were exceptionally robust.  Their preferred polypropylene double wall corrugated pipes would need to conform to the EN 13476 standard.

Wavin X-Stream complied with the contract’s specifications and these polypropylene, double-wall, corrugated sewer pipes would be deployed in diameters of 400, 500 and 600 mm.

Wavin Overseas provided:
•    On-site practical installation guidance
•    Product training on storage, handling, installation and testing
•    Factory visits and demonstrations showing quality assurance and product testing

For contractor Spencon, the product excellence combined with the extensive training by Wavin Overseas was very important and certainly helped completing the project to the highest standards.

Years of corrosion made renewal a priority – both as a means of saving water and of restoring water quality.  But the city’s traffic conditions made very special demands on the project team.

The mapping and documentation of existing pipe systems was old and uncertain. The team would only discover the real conditions below ground once the job had started.

Even more challenging was the need to avoid disruption to day-to-day city life.  The tramways and busy city traffic ran above the water pipelines, and could not be disrupted.

Primary contractor Excel Engineering chose Wavin Compact Pipe for this challenging job.  Pulling through the existing pipelines was possible for the full 120 meter length, avoiding the need for trenching.

Initial inspection showed that the straight pipe alignment marked on the plans did not correspond to reality.  The team would need to deal with multiple bends along the pipe length.

Herman Lo of Excel Engineering was an instant fan of Wavin Compact Pipe, “We needed to deal with severely limited diameters in the old pipe system. With Wavin Compact Pipe we pulled through with the pipe folded for minimum space and then inflated for full capacity using steam under pressure.”

A final camera inspection showed Hong Kong’s new water mains ready to operate at full capacity, delivering water quality without obstruction – and without disturbing the busy life of the city.

Watch the video about Compact Pipe installation in Hong Kong here!

Warmafloor combined geothermal ground-source heat pumps, recently endorsed by the Environment Agency, with its underfloor heating and cooling systems. Heat pumps provide water at the 45°C required for under-floor heating rather than the 70–80°C needed for radiators. During warm weather, cooling is provided by the same under-floor circuit manifolds.

Intelligent control makes it easy to adjust the temperature for maximum comfort. This is especially important in a school: children can’t concentrate in overheated classrooms.

Underfloor heating also eliminates the need for radiators – allowing maximum use of the floor space and removing sharp edges too. The solution is also healthier: by reducing convection currents there are fewer disturbances of dust mites, fibres and other microbiological contaminants. This provides purer air quality for students and teachers.

Derrick Pope, Director of Pope Consulting, who specified Warmafloor on this project, explains the choice, “We wanted as many cutting edge sustainable initiatives as possible.  We aimed for a BREEAM excellent rating and the Warmafloor heating and cooling systems on the ground, first and second floors helped us achieve this goal.”

Mike Lamb, Managing Director of Warmafloor said, “For us, sustainable development means a reduction in CO2 emissions, more efficient use of resources and increased consideration for people’s wellbeing:  for Meadway School we delivered exactly that.”

The potable water pipeline was installed on behalf of WMD. Wavin has a framework agreement with WMD and is currently the main supplier of the potable water pipelines. The quality and competitive price were once again the reasons why WMD chose Wavin. According to Petra Holzhaus, Distribution Manager at WMD, this project enabled WMD to kill two birds with one stone. "The drinking water produced in Beilen can now be mixed with softened drinking water from Assen, which means that softer water will flow from the taps in Beilen and the surrounding area. Not only is this good for residents - it also benefits other users, such as industry. Softer water requires less maintenance to appliances such as washing machines. In addition to improving the water quality, safeguarding the supply also is a main priority for WMD. The new pipeline links the production stations in Assen and Beilen, allowing supply to central Drenthe to be guaranteed, even in an emergency."

WMD was conscious in its decision to choose Wavin Apollo PVC-O potable water pipelines. "The quality of these pipes is even better than our conventional pipeline. The difference lies in the production process, as Apollo pipes are biaxially orientated PVC. This means that the pipes have a higher impact resistance, more resistant to crack growth and can withstand higher pressures and lower temperatures. Apollo pipes also weigh less." The 400-mm diameter was also a carefully considered decision. "We discussed 315 mm but ultimately chose a 400 mm pipe. In the long term, this will mean that reduced investments will be necessary at the production station in Beilen. The savings in energy costs, thanks to the lower friction in the large pipe diameter, is a bonus."

WMD purchased the pipes to allow for growth - capacity will not be fully utilized just yet, but may be in the future. Since the pipes last for at least fifty years, this is a sustainable choice.

With no fewer than 19 kilometres of drinking water transport pipes, this is a pretty large project. Wavin manufactures the pipes in 24-metre lengths and delivers these to the construction site. This is an exceptional load, and Wavin holds a special license for this type of delivery. The contractor uses lifting equipment with suction cups to place the pipes in the trenches. Wavin PE pipes (450 mm) provide a solution for locations where controlled drill holes need to be made, such as under motorways, nature reserves or buildings. According to Petra Holzhaus, everything has run very smoothly so far. "We can order our materials on demand from Wavin and it is neatly supplied in sections. An advantage of the long pipes is that we can make quick progress. However, it is sometimes a challenge to get them to the right place, for example in fields. We might take a slightly different approach next time. No matter what, we are very impressed with the quality of the Wavin Apollo PVC-O pipes."

Until recently, raw sewage was being discharged straight into the sea. This was in part due to lack of environmental awareness and in part due to the lack of money needed to remedy the situation.  

Not only was this disastrous for the sensitive marine environment. It was also a serious risk to public health, particularly during the regular rainy season, when flooding is the norm in low-lying island areas.

ECVM (the European Council for Vinyl Manufacturers), in partnership with Dutch NGO Agua4All, donated both the PVC pipes and the necessary technical expertise required to build a new waste water system on Pemba.

The project uses international aid and enables local communities to help themselves - improving quality-of-life for local residents; minimizing environmental impact; and boosting the local economy.

Wavin provided over 590 Tegra inspection chambers and all the plastic pipe and fitting needed to complete this extensive 12.1 kilometre infrastructure project.