WATERQUEST 2019

In the sixth edition of 2018 of this magazine, the competition launched by Nering Bögel was highlighted for the first time. Even before its official launch at Infratech, the first entries are already in. 

Speaking is Richard Janssen, owner of Nering Bögel. "Yes, fantastic right? It's an even hotter item than we already thought. We have received overwhelming responses, students of various nationalities have already signed up, as well as an investor and a property developer. And then there is a municipality that would like to join the think tank to listen in on all the ideas that are going to arise here. We've even had a question from a government body about whether we might eventually start an energy think tank as well."

Nering Bögel booth at Infratech 2019.

Dry feet Netherlands
Although the Netherlands is known worldwide for its water management, taming the sea is not enough to keep our feet dry. Due to the climate problem, rain showers cause a lot of inconvenience. When nuisance turns into disruption of the existing infrastructure and entire residential neighborhoods, shopping areas and industrial sites are flooded, the damage is enormous. The drainage of rainwater is therefore just as important, and Nering Bögel is the expert in this field. Richard: "We have been successfully resolving flooding locally for a long time. But there are now so many signals that we can no longer ignore; climate experts foresee an increase in both the frequency and intensity of showers, with all its consequences. So we are now looking at the bigger picture. It is necessary to make better predictions of water levels in rivers. We will also have to work on hydrological infrastructure, artificial buffering and natural infiltration. All kinds of measures to prevent flooding." 

Because there is no ready-made answer for this issue, Nering Bögel is looking for creative ideas to initiate feasible models. And that is exactly what this competition is for. 'Dry feet' is really a challenge for the young generation of upcoming scientists in water management and civil engineering. "They know how to make models and can calculate effects. We need students who are not yet conditioned and therefore do not think traditionally or commercially," said Richard.

Volume buffering: large diameters, easy to install. Can carry heavy traffic load without additional features.

Think tank as an enterprise
"We really try to put together a group that is averse to anything and creatively seeks the foundation of the solution. Students who in heart and soul want to add something (as entrepreneurs) but yearn for spiritual freedom. I am convinced that such a group can start to be a success as long as they dare to persevere," Richard continued. "These students are going to work on the question: besides technical measures to control water, are there opportunities to physically create more space for water? Our plan is to serve the government and business sectors with solutions to flooding. The students remain the think tank and owner of the idea: they get to try and pioneer and Nering Bögel provides the experience and facilitates the venture. Encouraging people in this way and giving them a future perspective is great in my opinion. Far too much talent gets lost in big buildings and good ideas in desk drawers. We want to try to break that with this. I hope that other top companies will do the same ... only then will we really make use of talent!"

Nering Bögel is showing smart innovations at Infratech: deep concrete gutters for rainwater drainage and with substantial storage capacity.

Infratech 2019
"At Infratech, in addition to launching the WATERQUEST, we showed products that are characteristic of today's solutions. Solutions to control local flooding. Beautiful are the developments to treat rainwater immediately as soon as it is discharged (NeboPur). These products are very recognizable and partly define the streetscape. New are the pipes for water storage/management. Despite their large diameters, they are very easy to install and, due to their round shape, can carry heavy traffic loads without additional provisions. Easy inspection, cleaning and measurement are also important advantages of these pipes over the existing existing storage products in the market today. Also new are the deep concrete gutters, which not only provide drainage of rainwater but also have a substantial storage capacity. So there were once again many smart innovations on display at Infratech," Richard concludes. 

NeboPur: transport and treatment of rainwater.

Participate, participate, compete
Help think of solutions to the stormwater problem. Help keep the next generation dry feet too. Sign up, there is an attractive prize pool waiting for you! 

Prof. Dr. Ir. Nick van de Giesen is judging.