Pumping is truly a specialty

A strong piece of (groundwater) engineering for infra, water and construction projects. With this, Van Tongeren Watertechniek - Bronbemaling.com keeps many a project in motion. Throughout the Netherlands and sometimes abroad. With the operating company Raaijmakers en Zn. Bronbemaling, they are especially active in the south of the country. We do a 'tour of the fields' together with Nick Hermans of Raaijmakers en Zn. Bronbemaling and come across special solutions. Dewatering really is a specialism.

Raaijmakers and Zn. Bronbemaling is a specialist in all possible methods of pumping and performing soil drilling, according to Hermans. "We provide all kinds of drainage solutions in construction and infra. This ranges from deep-well dewatering for large parking basements to draining a small private basement, and everything in between. We also assist in the detection of unexploded explosives, such as at the Flight Forum near Eindhoven Airport and in downtown Eindhoven." Eindhoven is booming business anyway for Raaijmakers and Zn. Bronbemaling. "We are currently working at fifteen locations in the city," he said.

Complex locations

For three years now, Raaijmakers en Zn. Bronbemaling has been contributing to the "redevelopment of downtown Eindhoven" project on behalf of Broeren Civil Solutions. "The entire subsurface is going to be shoveled, with cable and pipeline routes being modified and sewers being replaced," Hermans explains. "This will all be done in phases at various locations throughout the city center. We provide the drainage consisting mainly of vertical filters, and sometimes have to deal with locations that are very complex, such as on Stratumseind, the longest entertainment street in the Netherlands. The accessibility and limited maneuvering space for our spray drilling machine is really a thing here. Safety is therefore a top priority, because passers-by walk right past our work area. The stores and cafes are open as usual during our work."

Zero emission

Since Jan. 1, 2025, a zero emission zone has been in place in Eindhoven's inner ring road. "Since then, we have been using electric pumps at various locations in the inner city, provided the facilities are available," says Hermans. Van Tongeren Watertechniek's zero emission spray driller has not yet been spotted in Eindhoven. "This can play an important role in the future for the next downtown tender, and also makes maneuvering a bit easier, as the machine itself is more compact." And speaking of sustainability, Hermans says return drainage has become a hot topic. "We are putting the extracted groundwater directly back into the soil in more and more locations. We are currently doing that at a number of WWTPs and at a large project in Venlo where a railroad underpass is being made. It is one of the largest projects we currently have in progress."

Drainage is increasingly becoming a specialty, notes Hermans. "Water boards are making ever-higher demands on water quality and are steering towards preventing desiccation and dehydration. No more may be extracted than necessary and it is important to ensure the quality of groundwater. Consequently, we are increasingly called in at an early stage to draw up drainage recommendations and plans. We think along in solutions to dry out a construction pit as quickly as possible, but with an eye for the environment and water quality. We distinguish ourselves in speed and quality, and work together with other specialists in our region. Together we are strong and take drainage to an even higher level."