DHV restores riverbank in historic center of Paramaribo, Suriname

May 18th, 2012 by nwp

Dutch engineering and consultancy firm DHV is restoring the Waterkant, the riverbank in the historic center of Paramaribo, the capital of Suriname. The foreland of this UNESCO-protected part of the city is flooded a few times each year by 50 to 80 cm of water.

Sheet pile retaining walls will be fitted in the Surinam River and various structures will be built.

The first sheet pile was driven into the ground early May and the construction work will take roughly one year to complete. The total building contract is worth approximately 7 million euro.

Design and supervision of work
The site where the work will be carried out is directly adjacent to the government buildings and historic centre of Paramaribo. As a subconsultant of ILACO Suriname, DHV is responsible for the design and for overseeing the work in progress.

“The ground in this area is very weak so this is something that needs to be carefully addressed when erecting structures”, says DHV geotechnical consultant Andries van Houwelingen.

Sheet piling against riverbank erosion
The stability of Fort Zeelandia, built by the Dutch in the early 17th century, is under threat because of riverbank erosion. DHV Project manager Grard Blankers said: “So it’s good that action is being taken now to protect this monument and museum from the water of the Surinam River.” In addition to the sheet pile retaining walls, the plan calls for the construction of brickwork stairs that enter the water.

This will be a place where the ritual cleaning of the body can take place. The waterside will also be provided with facilities for passers-by and recreationists and with facilities for mooring government vessels.

Besides its flood protection work for the centre of Paramaribo, DHV is also involved in designing the flood defenses and hydraulic structures in the Commewijne district. The sheet pile retaining walls and mooring facilities near Nieuw Amsterdam have already been completed.

This press release was originally published on the website of
DHV.

More information
DHV
Amersfoort, the Netherlands
+31 33 468 20 00
www.dhv.com


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Official commissioning Nereda at wwtp Epe: Wonder-granule keeps its promise

May 9th, 2012 by nwp

The up scaling of process conditions to form aerobic granulate sludge in a municipal waste water treatment plant has successfully been completed at the first full scale Nereda plant at Epe, the Netherlands.

World’s first wwtp with natural formed aerobic ganulate sludge, was officially commissioned on May 8. The ceremony was attended by prince of Orange Willem-Alexander.

Ever changing influent
The first full scale Nereda installation is already operational since summer last year. According to Helle van der Roest, senior water expert at DHV, the company that developed the new technology in joint cooperation with Delft University of technology, the process of forming of the natural granulate has successfully been adapted to the hard circumstances of the day-to-day handling of waste water, with varying of both the quantity, temperature and quality of the influent.


Responsible for the daily operations of wwtp Epe, Douwe Jan Tilkema of water board Veluwe, shows the sedimentation of conventional sludge, compared to the much faster sedimentation of granulated Nereda-sludge. Watching are the prince of Orange (middle) and water earl Gert Verwolf of water board Veluwe (left).

Batch wise operation in three tanks
In the nineties of last century aerobic granular sludge was shown in laboratories for the first time. The research was initiated by the Delft University of Technology and the technical University of Munich. Fundamental research has been booming ever since and has given insights into the granulation process, although to date all mechanisms are still not fully understood.

On the other hand it has become clear that specific process and operational conditions play an important role for granulation and can be met using a batch wise operation. Both batch wise operation and excellent sludge settling properties are combined in the Nereda process.

Three processes with one granule
The cycle comprises of a first step in which fill and draw are combined. During this cycle step wastewater is pumped into the reactor and at the same time effluent is withdrawn. The combination of anaerobic conditions with high substrate concentrations promotes phosphorous release.

In the second step the biological conversion processes take place. The outer layer of the granules is aerobic and here nitrifying bacteria accumulate. The formed nitrate is denitrified in the anoxic inner core of the granules, where sufficient substrate is available as a result of the first phase.

Due to aerobic conditions also phosphorous uptake occurs. In the last step of the cycle the settling of granular biomass takes place.

No sedimentation tanks
Since the granules have excellent settling properties, settling time can be very short. Typical SVI values of 20 to 60 ml/g after 5 minutes of settling are seen. To enhance the denitrification capacity of the granules, separate anoxic phases can easily be introduced before and after the second part of the cycle, the aeration phase. These additional anoxic phases can be necessary, related to influent composition, effluent requirements and process conditions (e.g. temperature).

As a consequence, Nereda is capable of achieving stringent effluent requirements and is very energy efficient since no (sludge) recirculation is required.

Step to full scale Nereda
Based on the results of the pilot research program and the excellent results of demonstration installations, the step to full scale Nereda applications are now within reach. The worldwide first full scale installation in Epe, the Netherlands is designed for 59,000 P.E. and a peak flow of 1,500 m3/h and consists of a conventional pretreatment to cope with the industrial waste discharges from two slaughterhouses.

To meet the stringent effluent requirements (TN < 5 mg/l and TP < 0.3 mg/l) the Epe plant is equipped with a sand filtration unit.

Two other municipal installations in the Netherlands are in the design phase and will benefit in 2012 from the granules that are being produced in the wwtp Epe.

More information
DHV
Amersfoort, the Netherlands
helle.vanderroest@dhv.com
+31 88 348 24 07
www.dhv.com/nereda

Posted in News.

Three inventors of Nereda water technology nominated for European Inventor Award

May 3rd, 2012 by nwp

The European Patent Office (EPO) has nominated the scientists Mark van Loosdrecht, Merle de Kreuk, Sef Heijnen (left to right on photo) of Delft University for the 2012 European Inventor Award (EIA) in the category research. They were nominated for their contribution to the development of the Nereda water technology.

The invention enables the purification of industrial and household waste water to be carried out much more efficiently and cheaply in a space four times as small. Which of the three nominated teams in the ‘Research’ category is to receive the prize will be revealed on 14 June in Copenhagen.

The EPO nominated fifteen scientists and entrepreneurs for five different categories. Covering the fields of medical technology and medicine, telecommunications, wastewater treatment, battery recycling, energy storage and environment, clothing, laser technology, railway manufacturing and construction.

It was already announced last month that Van Loosdrecht will receive the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2012 during the Singapore International Water Week in July.
(read more: Professor Mark van Loosdrecht wins Singapore Lee Kuan Yew water prize 2012

First full scale Nereda plant at wttp Epe
The first full scale Nereda plant for treatment of municipal waste water will be officially commissioned by his Royal Highness Crown Prince Willem-Alexander in Epe, the Netherlands on May 8.
(read more: )

Mark van Loosdrecht
Professor in Environmental Biotechnology Mark van Loosdrecht has spent more than twenty years working on improvements to the natural breakdown and reuse of waste materials. In addition to the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize, he was also awarded an honorary doctorate last year by the leading technical university ETH Zurich for his ‘outstanding achievements in environmental biotechnology and numerous practical applications of scientific knowledge in purification techniques, especially in the field of water purification.’

Merle de Kreuk
Merle de Kreuk has been involved since the outset and has played a key role in further developing the invention to create the internationally applied Nereda technology: “In 2000, I started my PhD research on aerobic granular sludge technology in the Biotechnology department at TU Delft. During my PhD and postdoc research, Nereda has grown in scale from a three-litre laboratory reactor to working plants like the one being opened in Epe on 8 May.” In 2007, she was awarded the Simon Stevin Fellowship Prize by STW and she won the Jaap van der Graaf award in 2010.

Sef Heijnen
Full Professor Bioprocess Technology Sef Heijnen is co-founder of the Delft Kluyver Centre for Genomics of Industrial Fermentation, which researches the practical applications of (parts of) living organisms in industrial production processes. He has been awarded the Akzo Nobel Science Award and has recently been appointed member of the ‘College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE)’, a group committed to the research field of biomedical technology.

European Inventor Award
The European Inventor Award (EIA) is presented annually by the European Patent Office (EPO), in alliance with the European Commission. The award is presented in the country of the incumbent EU president, which this year is Denmark. The prize is intended for individuals and teams ‘whose pioneering work provides answers to the challenges of our age and thereby contributes to progress and prosperity’.

See the original press release from the European Patent Office.

More information
Delft University of technology
Delft, the Netherlands
Ineke Boneschansker, Science Information Officer
I.Boneschansker@tudelft.nl, +31 15 27 88499
www.tudelft.nl

DHV
Amersfoort, the Netherlands
Andreas Giesen, manager innovation & product development water
andreas.giesen@dhv.com, +31 33 468 24 97
www.dhv.com

European Patent Office
Munich, Germany
+49 89 2399 0
www.epo.org

Posted in News.

Two big Dutch engineering consultancies Royal Haskoning and DHV announce merge

March 1st, 2012 by nwp

Engineering consultancies DHV and Royal Haskoning are delighted to announce their intention to merge. The new company will be one of Europe’s leading independent project management, engineering and consultancy service providers and will rank globally in the top 10 of independently owned, non-listed companies and top 40 overall.

New company with 8,000 staff
The intended name of the new company will be Royal Haskoning DHV, whereby for continuation of the Royal designation, a request will be submitted. With its headquarters in Amersfoort, the Netherlands, the company’s 8,000 staff will provide services from more than 100 offices in over 35 countries. Together, they deliver solutions to clients in planning & transport, delta & water technology, maritime, aviation, industry & energy and buildings. The new combination will have a turnover in excess of 700 million euro.

Much synergy
Bertrand van Ee, chairman of DHV and designated chairman of the Executive Board of the new company (left on photo), comments: “We are very excited about the opportunities for our clients and employees. This merger brings together an incredible pool of talent and immediately doubles our reach.”

Erik Oostwegel, chairman of Royal Haskoning and designated vice-chairman of the Executive Board of the new company (right on photo), says: “The synergy between the two companies is enormous. We have worked together on projects before, but this is a whole new ball game.”

Acceleration of international expansion
The merger realises the ambitions of both founding companies to be an industry leader backed by a financially sound balance sheet. It accelerates their strategies for international expansion with combined knowledge and geographic bases in Europe, South Africa, Middle East and Asia. The new company will be a significant global player in the maritime, water and delta technology markets and a major party in aviation, mobility and infrastructure.

Independent and wholly trust-owned
Both Royal Haskoning and DHV are independent, trust-owned, non-listed companies. The transaction will be a merger of equals, whereby the new company will also remain independent and wholly trust-owned. Common values are an important part of the equation. The companies share a profound commitment to business integrity, sustainable development and enhancing society. Each has a proud heritage of bringing leading expertise and innovation to the market.

The Letter of Intent for the merger was signed by both parties yesterday. Signing of the Merger Agreement is scheduled for mid-summer, after the due diligence and after all approvals, customary to this type of transaction, have been obtained.

This news item is based on the press release that was originally published by
DHV Group and Royal Haskoning.

More information
Royal Haskoning
Nijmegen, the Netherlands
www.royalhaskoning.com

DHV
Amersfoort, the Netherlands
+31 33 468 37 00
www.dhvgroup.com

Posted in News.

DHV and KuiperCompagnons design waterfront on Warta River in Poznan, Poland

February 8th, 2012 by nwp

Poznan Municipality and investor SwedeCenter have founded a partnership called “Na Rzecz Warty” with the Dutch consultancy firms KuiperCompagnons (Urban Planning & Design) and DHV (Engineering). This cooperation opens up an unique opportunity for designing a complex development plan for the waterfront areas situated on the Warta River.

The Dutch Government is supporting the project as part of its ‘Working with water worldwide’ programme. The total investment comes to 400,000 euro.

Several severe floodings
In recent years the Warta on several occasions has caused floods in Poznan, with major material and financial damage as a result. The canalized course of the river is no longer able to cope with the ever-larger peak flows. What’s more, the civil engineering approach to the river adopted by the municipal authorities in the past has led to the city now back-facing the river.

Improvement of flood safety system
The ‘Development Strategy River Warta Poznań’ project hinges on drawing up a strategy that allows water safety measures to be incorporated in Poznań’s broadly based social development while at the same time enabling spatial developments to be adapted to essential water management measures.


Artist’s impression of new waterfront along the Warta river.

The currently neglected river floodplains will be restored and made attractive in tandem with water safety improvements. Thus the historically mutually beneficial relationship of city and water will get a future-orientated refreshment.

The Dutch partners KuiperCompagnons and DHV will draw upon their experience from various ‘Room for the River’ projects in the Netherlands and urban innovations worldwide.

Working with water worldwide
The Dutch ‘Working with water worldwide’ subsidy program seeks to combine the strengths of experts to improve the international position of the Dutch water sector, thus contributing to solutions to the global water issue. For this purpose the program is supporting ambitious parties in the Dutch water sector by providing subsidies to carry out innovative projects in other countries.

The Partners for Water project is being implemented by NL EVD International (part of NL Agency) and the Netherlands Water Partnership (NWP).

This press release was originally published on the websites of
DHV and KuiperCompagnons

More information
Na rzecz warty partnership
www.dorzeczni.pl

DHV
Amersfoort, the Netherlands
+31 33 468 20 00
www.dhv.com

KuiperCompagnons
Rotterdam, the Netherlands
+31 10 433 00 990
www.kuiper.nl


Posted in News.

Dutch consortium granted contract to assist Vietnamese government in long term Mekong Delta plan

January 24th, 2012 by nwp

The Dutch government has awarded a contract to a consortium of Dutch consultants and institutes to assist the Vietnamese government to develop a long term Mekong Delta master plan.

The consortium is headed by consultancy firm DHV and includes Royal Haskoning, Wageningen University & Research Centre, Deltares, RebelGroup and Unesco-IHE.

The project will last 18 months and the contract is worth 750,000 euro.

Special cooperation between Vietnam and The Netherlands
The contract is part of the special cooperation between the Netherlands and Vietnam, formalized in 2010 in the Viet Nam – Netherlands Strategic Partnership Arrangement on climate adaptation and water management.

In October 2011 a similar contract was granted to a Dutch consortium to advise the city of Ho Chi Minh on climate adaptation.

Mekong delta: very sensitive to climate change
With its 17 million inhabitants, the Mekong Delta is one of the world’s most densely-populated regions. It is also one of Vietnam’s most productive agricultural areas. However, the Mekong Delta is increasingly being confronted with the effects of climate change.


Dike breach in province of An Giang in October 2011.

Plans not contradictory to each other
The existing problems in the delta and the expected future developments require an integrated approach. Plans have already been made on sectoral subjects. But these plans may be contradictory to each other and some have insufficiently taken into account the future developments.

Also there is the aspect of time and priority. Some measures are more urgently needed than others.

Urgently needed salinity barriers along canals
For instance the improvements of the water supply system and salinity barriers along canals are urgently needed and continue to require upgrading to solve future demands. But more fundamental strategic decisions are needed on how to meet the combined impacts of these changes.

Using Dutch expertise
The purpose of the plan is to create a strategic long-term vision (2100) for the Mekong Delta, to set out a long-term programme with a range of short-term measures (2015-2025) and to strengthen water governance for the delta.

The Dutch consortium will advise on the water system, land usage, scenario development and water governance.

Winfried Pietersen, DHV project director, said: ‘The most important thing is for the Vietnamese to be able to use our knowledge and experience to develop a clear long-term vision that will truly set a course for sustainably developing the valuable Mekong Delta.’

This news item is based on a press release (in Dutch) originally published on the website of DHV.

More information
DHV consortium
Amersfoort, the Netherlands
+31 33 468 3029
www.dhv.com


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WWTP Dinxperlo turned into public water garden with latest Nereda water treatment technology

December 19th, 2011 by nwp

Water board Rijn & IJssel signed a contract with engineering and consultancy firm DHV to replace its outdated waste water treatment plant Dinxperlo by a completely new one, using the energy and space saving Nereda technology. The contract represents a value of approximately 8 million euro.

Upgrading of former landfill site
Construction of the new plant will be integrated in the Brüggenhütte spatial plan in which the water board and municipality of Aalten are jointly turning a former waste disposal site into a public water garden and green area.

Smaller footprint and energy saving
The selection of the Nereda technology enabled the water board Rijn & IJssel to build an efficient new plant, requiring a far smaller footprint. Philip Schyns, project leader at the water board: “Besides needing less space, this technology will enable us to save energy and costs in the longer term. These advantages have knock-on benefits for efficiency and the environment.”

The strength of the Nereda technology lies in special bacteria that grow in concentrated and fast settling granules. Conventional methods of treating wastewater use bacteria in fluffy flakes, which take much more time to separate from the treated water.

Attractive water garden
The water board attaches importance to corporate social responsibility, efficiency (particularly energy efficiency), sustainability and cooperation. There is close collaboration between the water board and Aalten municipality to create an attractive area in tandem with construction of the new treatment plant.

The Nereda-treated wastewater is going to flow into attractive parcels of water and reeds through a public water garden.

DHV board member Piet van Helvoort states: “Internationally this technology is regarded as a breakthrough in wastewater treatment and the expectation is that the technology will become the new global standard.”

State-of-the-art: aerobic granular biomass
Nereda is an innovative state-of-the-art biological wastewater treatment technology that purifies water using the unique features of ‘aerobic granular biomass’. Contrary to conventional processes, the purifying bacteria concentrate naturally in compact granules, with superb settling properties.

As a result of the large variety of biological processes that simultaneously take place in the granular biomass, Nereda is capable of producing excellent effluent quality. Even when not particularly targeted, extensive biological phosphorus and nitrogen reduction is an intrinsic attribute of this technology, resulting generally in chemical-free operation.

The first full scale Nereda installation for municipal waste water at WWTP Epe, the Netherlands, it finalizing commission soon. A number of demo installations with Nereda technology for municipal wastewater is already operational in the Netherlands, Portugal and South Africa. For the treatment of industrial waste water, several Nereda installations have been commissioned since 2006.

This news items was originally published on the website of DHV.
DHV.

More information
DHV
Amersfoort, the Netherlands
Ronald Niermans, Project Manager
E ronald.niermans@dhv.com T +31 33 468 37 70
www.dhv/nereda.com

Posted in News.

DHV to operate five Australian sewage treatment plants remotely from the Netherlands

October 24th, 2011 by nwp

The West-Australian Watercorporation has awarded DHV a 3-year service contract for the maintenance and support of the aeration control of five wastewater treatment plants (wwtp) in Australia. Special software allows remotely controlled maintance of plants from the Netherlands.

Advanced automation
These five plants vary in capacity from 25.000 to 150.000 population equivalents and have been built according to DHV’s Carrousel treatment system. The plants are equipped with the advanced Aquasuite CarCON aeration controller. The wwtp’s, located at great distance from each other, are remotely operated most of the time which asks for advanced automation.

Prediction of loadings
The unique feature is that CarCON predicts the wwtp loadings 24-7 and optimizes its control parameters through a self learning mechanism. This allows CarCON to accurately and energy-efficiently control the effluent quality.

Boost to operator’s knowledge
The 3-year service contract incorporates client support, process- and control performance evaluation and maintenance of software and control through, amongst others, a yearly software upgrade. The online support also allows DHV to boost the operator’s knowledge of process and control.

CarCON is part of DHV’s Aquasuite products and services for control of water treatment systems.

Read more about CarCon: www.aquasuite.nl

This press release was originally published on the DHV website.

More information
DHV
Amersfoort, the Netherlands
+31 33 468 22 59
info@aquasuite.nl

Posted in News.

DHV successfully completes French waste water treatment plant at Léry

July 8th, 2011 by nwp

The waste water treatment plant at the French community of Léry was officially inaugurated on June 23rd 2011. A consortium led by consulting and engineering firm DHV completed the water treatment plant under a Design & Build contract with a total value of EUR 20 million.

More capacity
The new plant has a capacity of 60,000 p.e. (population equivalent) and replaces an old physical chemical plant with insufficient capacity that could not meet the European standards for effluent quality. The effluent of the new plant is first revitalized in various ponds and watercourses on site, and is then discharged into the Eure, a tributary of the Seine River. The sewage sludge is composted in a newly built composting plant adjacent to the water treatment plant.

Integrated in environment
As the plant is situated in an area that is also used for recreation, the project’s principal – Communauté d’Agglomération Seine Eure (CASE) – had set high standards for the plant’s design. DHV project leader Hans Hekelaar is happy with the result: ‘The plant has turned out wonderful. Wherever possible, we have used natural materials, and we have made sure that the plant is properly integrated into the environment.’ A heat pump is used to heat and cool the plant building sustainably.

Consortium leader
DHV was the consortium’s mandataire, i.e. being the joint and severally liable party and spokesperson. Other consortium members were Demathieu & Bard for the civil works, and Sources was responsible for engineering, supply and installation of mechanical and electrical works and coordination on-site..

Piste pédagogique
A so called ‘Piste pédagogique’ (a safe route with information panels) has been integrated into the plant, allowing school pupils and other visitors an up close look at the plant’s features and functions.

The project was funded by CASE, Agence de l’Eau Seine Normandie, and the Conseil Général of the Eure department.

DHV is a leading international consultancy and engineering firm, providing services and innovative solutions in Transportation, Water, Building & Industry, Urban and Regional Development, and Environment & Sustainability. DHV, headquartered in the Netherlands, is part of the DHV Group which maintains a network of 75 offices worldwide. The DHV Group has a staff of 5,300 and its turnover in 2010 was € 469 million.

More information: www.dhv.com.

Posted in News.

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