What specialist technical services does your company deploy and how are they all coordinated?
RC Our technical staff provide engineers with design information and best practice principles. Field staff train contractors at the start of a project and oversee the installation of the pipes, offering advise where needed. This all contributes to a quality installation, which contributes to the life expectancy of the pipeline.

Concerning research and development, what innovations do you bring to the water and wastewater industry?
Fiberpipe manufactures the Flowtite brand of GRP pipe under licence from Flowtite Technologies. They have an R&D department in Norway that is constantly busy with new developments in the market. Over the years, small changes in the design of the pipe and improvements in the raw materials have managed to increase the design life cycle of Flowtite GRP pipes from 50 to 120 years.

Please tell us about some recent projects and successes. Were there any challenges, and how were they overcome?
One of the advantages of using GRP pipes is that you can easily combine materials and different joining methods. In a recent project, we had to combat a river crossing and with the help of our field representative and the contractor, we designed a stable crossing on the unstable bed of the river using a combination of the Flowtite and biaxial Vectus range of GRP pipes, using bends and butt welds to ensure a stable installation. Fortunately, the non-corrosive properties for GRP pipes are an added advantage, allowing a long lifespan of the pipes under water.

In another project, we had a client looking for a solution to prevent long-term leakages in sewerage manholes. Historically, manholes are made with cement rings and, with the acidic tendencies of sewage, the concrete slowly breaks down and the sewage leaks into the surrounding water table through the ring joints. In a joint effort between our Cape Town branch manager, Heinrich Mostert and the consulting engineer, they designed an integrated pipe and manhole that connects to the sewerage pipe line using the normal jointing method. In this case it was the Reka Coupling used in the Flowtite pipe.

How will your company’s service and maintenance agreements benefit the proposed project, placing a special emphasis on the quality of the end result?
Fortunately GRP pipes are maintenance-free and unless the pipes are damaged prior to installation, the pipeline will outlive the people installing them. Installation is key in this regard and, if the pipes are installed according to our installation guide, no maintenance will be required. GRP pipes do not corrode and have a very smooth bore, which lends to this statement.

What challenging work environments have you encountered and how did you overcome them?
Are there any innovative solutions that you would like to mention especially for rural African conditions? We have recently encountered a project that required a pipeline to be installed through a section of a game reserve, which means that very little to none of the flora could be disturbed. This means that the trucks could not deliver the pipes to the installation point and could not be transported by heavy equipment. Due to the lightweight nature of GRP pipes, these could fortunately be carried by the local community to the installation point, which, in turn, also created jobs for the local community.