Ground-breaking efficiency in waste water disposal at the Philharmonie de Paris

The project: Waste water disposal at thePhilharmonie de Paris

Paris is a city that is full of iconic landmarks and architectural masterpieces. The latest architectural masterpiece is the Philharmonie de Paris, which was inaugurated in 2015. Situated in the Pantin Gardens, the concert hall rises to a height of 37 metres, and is capped by an aluminium wrap-around screen some 52 metres high. Spanning an area of 100 metres by 330 metres, the concert hall features eleven overlapping levels of different heights, nine floors and two basements.

The customer: Joint water supply project with the JULES CUNIN Group

In cooperation with the Jules CUNIN S.A. Group (Epinal), KSB France established the comprehensive infrastructure for the Philharmonie de Paris, which includes a system for waste water transport, water supply and drinking water distribution. The system also ensures the recovery and recycling of rainwater from the 22,000 square metres of roof space which is used for green areas, cleaning and maintenance.

The challenge: Water supply and waste water disposal under special conditions

The design of the water supply and waste water transport system has posed many environmental challenges. The concert hall’s design followed an environmental approach in accordance with the French standard Haute Qualité Environnementale (HQE) for sustainable building.

Due to the building’s irregular shape, several hundred water extraction points, some 30 kilometres of pipes and a fluctuating demand for water throughout the day, a robust solution was required both for the supply of water and the disposal of waste water.

In addition to accommodating fluctuations in flow both in the piping and the waste water disposal facilities, other important aspects such as aesthetics, odour control, ease of daily maintenance and system reliability also had to be taken into account.

Apart from attendance peaks when all waste water facilities are heavily loaded, the varying throughput of visitors over the course of the day makes for irregular usage, resulting in peaks and troughs in the concentration of solid matter. Thanks to the SRL lifting units from KSB, the risk of clogging is reduced to almost zero.

The solution: SRL lifting units and pressure booster systems from KSB

The Philharmonie de Paris is an innovative, eco-friendly and energy-efficient building in which high priority has been given to its water supply infrastructure and the maintenance of its associated systems.

KSB installed an SRL lifting unit for waste water transport and disposal. As they are compact, odour-free, easy to maintain, robust and reliable, KSB’s SRL systems were the ideal choice for the building’s conditions and confined spaces, Thanks to their modular design, the systems can be lowered into tanks via narrow openings and installed on site.

The equipment installed included three SRL lifting units capable of handling solids-laden fluids and rainwater, with each unit comprising two pumps with frequency inverters for speed control. An unobstructed flow of solids-laden fluids is ensured by the impellers and casings of the Amarex pumps installed in the SRL systems. The installation in the tank and the closed pump design prevent odours and gases from escaping, as the waste water flowing through the pipes does not accumulate. It also saves maintenance personnel from working with waste water.

For the Philharmonie de Paris, pumps that adapt their output to the actual demand and thus consume less energy are particularly important for HQE certification. KSB SuPremE® IE4 motors were used to supply 500 extraction points with water in line with hygienic requirements at constant pressure. Following its successful development, the KSB SuPremE® IE4 motor precisely meets the requirements of the HQE certification and thus helps to further expand KSB’s portfolio of products for hygienic water supply applications. This is the first time in France that a KSB pressure booster system driven by a high-efficiency motor is being used for this type of application.