The training program developed by BKP Berolina Polyester GmbH & Co. KG based in Germany, which focusses on the installation of polyester reinforced fibreglass liners, has been a major success in Turkey. Since May 2018, AOL Istanbul Insaat Makine Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi (AOL) and Budo İnşaat ve Taahhüt A.Ş. (BUDO) have collaborated to repair existing sewer lines in Istanbul using the Berolina-Liner System. Installation speed has reached up to 6,000 metres per month, which is quite impressive considering that it is carried out by only two teams, neither of which had any prior experience with installing UV Cured In Place Pipes (CIPP) liners.
In late 2017, Istanbul Su ve Kanalizasyon İdaresi (ISKI), the Istanbul water provider, tendered a pipe rehabilitation project comprising 100 kilometres of UV CIPP project in the European part of Istanbul. A few short months later; AOL İstanbul garnered enough confidence within ISKI within the last 14 years in trenchless rehabilitation market; that ISKI awarded first UV CIPP Rehabilitation contract with AOL and their partner company BUDO. Besides the seamless design of the Berolina-Liner as well as the endless production method were the key factors which led to the selection of the two installation companies. In May 2018, BKP delivered the first 4,000 metres of DN 300 liners to the Turkish metropolis Istanbul. Shortly thereafter, three application technicians from the Velten-based company travelled to Istanbul to provide training to the local employees. The participants learned about the trenchless embedding process of BKP polyester reinforced glass fiber liners and received initial support and assistance from the German technicians. “It is becoming increasingly important for us and our customers that we provide training in the special features of our products. We as BKP application technicians provide support worldwide,” says Jeroen Jacobs.
BKP training has led to installations at record speed
During the four-day training, the group of around eight AOL engineers gained detailed knowledge of the installation process. The programme included theoretical and practical instruction with different test routes, a demonstration of UV CIPP liner installation at a construction site, and the increasing delegation of responsibility to the installation trainees. The participants mastered their first attempts superbly. The training was followed by an additional four days of support, during which the BKP engineers no longer had to play a leading role, but rather a guiding one in which they provided assistance and oversaw the actual installations. “Despite the demanding requirements, the AOL and BUDO employees remained patient and diligent in their quest to apply what they had learned. Their willpower and work ethic will grant them continued success; Quite Honestly, any concerns we initially had about the ability to support a licensee in Turkey were ultimately allayed by our confidence in AOL. As it turns out that confidence has been well placed.” says Christian Moser, the Technical Director of BKP. The installation of up to six kilometres per month and a maximum of more than 425 metres per day means that the two AOL teams have already accrued an impressive body of work in the field of UV CIPP as well.
AOL works flawlessly
The installation teams were able to overcome initial difficulties very quickly; since then, the AOL/BUDO employees have worked flawlessly. By the end of last year, BKP had delivered around 32 kilometres of tube liners to Istanbul, which amounts to over a quarter of the total amount. Since the initial contract conclusion with AOL and BUDO, the UV CIPP rehabilitation project can also be expanded by 20% by ISKI. The current order comprises a total of 100 kilometres – 84 kilometres of DN 300, 10 kilometres of DN 400, 4 kilometres of DN 500, and 2 kilometres of DN 600.