Efficiently installed, flexible, permanently leak-proof - FRIAFIT® sewage system for the largest hangar in Europe

In 2008, the Airbus A380 is to take off for the first time in Frankfurt am Main. For the two-storey giant with a wing span of 79.8 metres and a length of 73 metres, a special hangar is built in the south-west of the Frankfurt airport. The A380 hangar will have a length of 350 metres, a width of 140 metres, and a height of 45 metres. Construction work already commenced in May 2006.

PE-HD - flexible and safe
The first half of the hangar with a floor space of 25,000 square metres is expected to be completed in 2008. When the A380 with a weight of approximately 370 tons then taxies into the hangar, a huge pressure is applied on the subfloor.

The planning engineers of M+W Zander Gebäudetechnik GmbH, Dreieich, which is the technical general contractor entrusted by Lufthansa Technik Objektund Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, thus knew at once: For the building and surface draining, a sewage system is required which is able to flexibly adapt to the high peak loads during operation and which is permanently leak-proof at the same time.

The sewage water is to be centrally collected on the operating facilities and then to be treated on the premises. After completion of the installation work, a concrete bottom plate of approx. 80 centimetres will be installed above the drainage pipes. In this respect, the responsible persons considered the use FRIATOOLS scraper tool of various materials. “The easy processing and handling, the fusability and the high load-bearing capacity were the decisive factors in favour of pipes made of PE-HD”, explains the technical project manager, Daniel Schmidt, of M+W Zander Gebäudetechnik GmbH. Positive experience has already been gained with this material when erecting the hangar for the aircrafts of the type MD-11. “The resilient structure of PE-HD also does not break in case of high peak loads or floor movements”.

FRIAFIT a strong plus point for pipe-laying firm
Within the scope of the already performed civil engineering works for the roof and surface drainage of the hangar, PE-HD pipes SDR 17.6 of d 110 through d 400 were used which were fused with FRIAFIT couplers AM. The company of H. Lehmann Kunststofftechnik GmbH, Mülheim, installed approximately 3,200 metres of pipes on the premises. The pipe-laying firm deliberately decided in favour of FRIAFIT. The site manager, Arnd Koervers, is convinced of the quality of the products. “We have already gained excellent experience with FRIAFIT couplers in the past. We never had any problems during fusion and no lealeakages were reported”. Another important argument for him to use FRIAFIT for this project was the excellent fitting accuracy of the couplers. The pipes had to be scraped only once which guaranteed a quick installation.

Safety through homogenous joints
FRIAFIT couplers are the ideal solution for handling on construction sites thanks to their low weight. Their large insertion depth provides the basis for a good pipe routing. Exposed heating coils facilitate a simple processing, an optimal heat transfer during fusion and a good generation of the melt pressure. A homogeneous material bond is obtained thanks to the heating coil fusion technique. Pipe and coupler become an inseparable entity which even withstands root penetration. Fusion and cooling times are short; additional safety is provided for by the temperature compensation taking into consideration the relevant outside temperature during the fusion process. Superlong fusion zones provide for maximum processing safety and reliability. The enlargement of the force-transmitting surface guarantees permanently leak-proof joints. The result is a frictionlocked joint of the PE-HD pipes which withstands external loads because of earth thrust and traffic loads and compensates for these flexibly. “After the thick concrete bottom plate has been installed above the pipes, access is no longer possible. Safety is thus our first priority,” says Koervers.

Convincing service
The consultation and service options included in the FRIAFIT tender were also decisive factors for the quick and smooth installation of the sewage system. FRIATEC sales engineers instructed the pipe-laying team locally at the construction site and supported them with help and advice. And all this although the order was awarded on a very short notice: There was only one weekend between awarding of the order and start of the installation. Despite this tight timeframe, the fittings were delivered reliably and in time to the construction site. “FRIATEC proved to be a competent partner in any respect,” says Koervers. The project evidences that with FRIAFIT FRIATEC developed a trendsetting sewage system for pipes made of PE-HD which offer permanently leaktight solutions for all demands made on pressure and gravity-flow lines in municipal drainage, industrial waste water and landfill applications.


Further information:
FRIATEC Aktiengesellschaft
Technical Plastics Division
P.O. Box 710261
68222 Mannheim (Germany)
Phone: +49 0621/486-2202
Fax: +49 0621/486-1598
Web: www.friafit.de
Email: info-friafit@friatec.de