The second largest of the six state-owned sewage treatment plants treats the wastewater of around 1.6 million Berliners. Two new plants are planned to further improve water quality in the future, so that the water can be discharged into Berlin's two major rivers, the Havel and the Spree, all year round. With the help of a flocculation filtration system, phosphate in particular can be completely removed from the water, thus reducing the risk of algae forming in the rivers during the summer months. Another plant for UV disinfection is used to directly inactivate microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses and protozoa.
Two-shift operation ensures completion date is met
The construction pits are divided into nine sections by sheet pile walling. The partial construction pits, which are between five and eight metres deep, range in size from 100 m² to around 2,330 m². As they are around 2.7 metres below the groundwater level, they must be waterproofed with horizontal sealing slabs. In total, the PORR special civil engineering team will construct 10,000 m² of jet-grouted concrete by the end of the project. The contract also includes the back-anchoring of the sheet pile walls with 4,870 m of temporary strand anchors.
‘We have already worked successfully and trustingly with Echterhoff in the past. So far, we have been able to meet the high demands for adherence to deadlines and quality of execution in this project as well, particularly with regard to the impermeability of the jet-grouting base. The tight schedule for the first two construction pits made it necessary to work in day and night shifts, which we were able to do thanks to our flexible capacities with two jet-grouting units,’ says PORR project manager Lars Erbe.
