Fluid conveyance and pumping solutions pro- vider Incledon has supplied more than 15 km of ductile iron and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) piping products for the R41-million Mbuzini bulk water augmentation scheme, in Mpumalanga.

Construction at the scheme started in January 2012 and is due for completion next month. The scheme entails the implementation of bulk water infrastructure to increase the capacity of the bulk lines from Khombaso to the Tsambokhulu and Mbuzini rural areas.

Incledon national product manager for civils Kelly Wilson says the project is about 75% complete.

The scheme entails the construction of two pumpstations, two 3 Mℓ concrete reservoirs, a 1 Mℓ concrete reservoir and 15.4 km of water pipelines.

Wilson points out that the company supplied the appointed civil contractors Gabby Construction and Thakitsi Construction with 9.5 km of 300 mm and 4.5 km of 250 mm Hydroclass ductile iron pipe, 1.4 km of 110 mm unplasticised PVC pipe, waterworks valves and water meters to complete the contracts.

“The Hydroclass ductile iron pipes and fitting systems are produced by French manu- facturer St-Gobain PAM, which is one of the first companies worldwide to comply with international EN 545:2010 and ISO 2531:2009 quality standards.

“These standards were set as a benchmark to ensure all ductile iron products comply with preferred pressure classes, in addition to reducing the environmental footprint when manufacturing these products,” he explains.

Wilson highlights that the Hydroclass ductile iron pipes are fully compliant with the local equivalent SANS 2531:2009 standard.

“This means that Hydroclass ductile iron pipes are manufactured with increased accuracy and in accordance to specific classes and wall thicknesses,” he notes.

Nathi Mnyaka, project manager at Monde Consulting Engineers, the appointed consultant for the project, states that another reason for the Hydroclass ductile iron pipe being selected as the product of choice for the 25 bar bulk line, was that the piping is easy to install.

“The water scheme is located along mountainous terrain, which is always more challenging when it comes to the installation of pipelines. Hydroclass ductile iron pipes are considerably easier to install than industry-standard steel pipes, as they are simply slotted into one another.

“Further, ductile iron is also competitively priced and easier to transport to site,” he says.

Wilson adds that traditional plastic pipes are not strong enough for high-pressure applications such as this one, which exceeds 16 bar.

He notes that all Hydroclass ductile iron pipes are produced with an external 200 g/m2 metallic zinc coating and then bitumen-coated. Each pipe has an internal sulphate-resistant cement mortar lining.

These measures increase the life span of the pipe by up to 55%, compared with older pipes that meet the minimum metallic zinc coating require- ment of only 130 g/m2.

“The coatings do, however, pose a challenge when it comes to logistics. The pipes need to be carefully handled, correctly loaded and off- loaded and correctly stored so as not to damage the coatings,” Wilson says.

To mitigate this, Incledon has a team dedicated to overseeing the installation of the Hydroclass ductile iron pipes.

“The team goes on site to ensure the pipes are handled in the correct manner by advising the customer on how to correctly handle, stack and store the pipes,” Wilson points out.

He notes that specialised handling equipment and dunnage are also used to ensure the correct handling of the pipes.

“Traditionally, we use steel pipes for water pipelines in South Africa, as we have local steel mills. Importing the ductile line pipe comes with logistical challenges, but we have been able to mitigate those effectively,” he says.

Mnyaka points out that Incledon has also provided Monde Consulting with after-sales service and support.

“The service from Incledon has been outstanding and the company’s sales representa- tives have not only educated us on the advantages of using Hydroclass but have also kept us up to date with the progress of the orders, in addition to offering support services to us on an around-the-clock basis,” he says.

With this in mind, Mnyaka is confident that the Mbuzini bulk water augmentation scheme will be completed by its stated deadline.

“A good working synergy between the companies involved in the project will play a sig- nificant role in ensuring that the community is provided with potable water in a time- ous and efficient manner,” he states.

Wilson says the project is currently within budget and running on time.

Incledon supplies Hydroclass ductile iron pipes, with dia- meters of between 100 mm and 1 000 mm, to the South African water supply market, but larger sizes are available on demand.