purity law water quality in the art of brewing “the global ... · length of coastline 193 km...

“Blue Gold”

Global struggle over a resource

Water management

economic boom in northern iraq

Purity law

Water quality in the art of brewing

interview with Asit K. Biswas

“the global water supply issue can be solved.”

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Unlimited no 05 _ 2013

Request your free subscription at:www.rehau.com/unlimited

Prof Asit K. Biswas

title picture: Singapore, 4 october 2012, 2:47 pm, roof of the marina Bay Sands Hotel, swimming pool for guests

Unlimited is one of europe’s best company magazines.

“if countries continue their mismanagement at the current level, the world will face a serious water crisis.”

ReHAU _ editorial

05/13 _ REHAU unlimited 03

dear readers

the topic of water is creating waves around the world like never before. When the United nations General Assembly declared 2013 the “international Year of Water Cooperation”, they had one goal in mind: to raise global awareness for the necessity of cooperation with regard to water in all areas of society – in education, diplomacy, cross-border water management, natio-nal and international legal frameworks. in all these areas, the global community faces enormous challenges.

Challenges, which in light of the increasing demand for water, as well as issues of access, distribution, and servi-ces related to water, cannot be ignored. According to Un estimates, around 1.2 billion people around the world lack access to sufficiently clean water. For years, ReHAU has taken an integrated approach towards holistic water management. And we have successfully established ourselves as a supplier of high quality, innovative systems. We offer the global water economy, solutions, both individual and complex, which put the spotlight on the entire water cycle: from the source to the extraction and subsequent recirculation of wastewater for targeted recycling.

With the international Year of Water Cooperation as a backdrop, this edition of Unlimited will address many aspects of the global water issue. there’s an interesting area of tension between the prosperity found in established indus-trial nations and the desperate situation in less developed regions and this tension reveals that around the world the use of the resource water is as diverse as the opinions of many experts on water management solutions. on one issue, however, there is a consensus: innovative ideas and new technologies for sustainable water manage-ment must be part of the future.

IMPRINT

uNLIMITeD NO 05_2013a magazine from Rehau aG + Co

PublisherRehau aG + Co

Project ManagerKaty hahn

editorial team Klaus GollwitzerWolfgang NarrNils Wagner

editor-in-ChiefKaty hahn

Contributors Tanja heinleinMaral JektaDieter Kühner

PhotographyChristian Grund

Design concept art DirectionSimone Fennel

LithoDetail aG

PrintMayr Miesbach Gmbh

Published biannually Print run: 35,000

Rainer Schulz, Ceo, Rehau Groupenjoy the read!

Rainer Schulz, Ceo, Rehau Groupenjoy the read!

Contents

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oktoberfestA toast to the Purity law.Page 22

interviewAsit K. Biswas on the “War over Water”.Page 34

Water managementScarcity of resources and its consequences.Page 08

locationViechtach, Bavarian Forest, Germany.Page 32

on SiteSales performance in the middle east.Page 16

Competenceingo von Ramdohr on water growth markets.Page 25

editorial 03news 05People 15Competence 25Statistics 38locations 39

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05/13 _ REHAU Unlimited 05

01outlook

Glacial melting european researchers are sounding the alarm: as glaciers european researchers are sounding the alarm: as glaciers continue to melt, water supply in Central Asia is under threat. continue to melt, water supply in Central Asia is under threat.

15,000 square kilometers of glaciers in the tien-Shan mountains have been supplying lower lying countries like Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, turkmenistan and northern China with water for centuries. in summer, this is the only source of water for drinking and the irrigation of agricultural land. Researchers are now predicting that even as early as 2050 people will have to depend on unreliable summer rains. And the continuing glacial melt doesn’t just aff ect the quantity and seasonal distribution of available water: researchers also believe that the anticipated water scarcity will lead to political conflicts in the region.

www.climate-change.ch

ReHAU _ news

tHe HUmAn BRAin tHe HUmAn BRAin iS mAde UP oF 85–90 % WAteR.

02ReHAU internal

Sustainable energyWith the renovation of its headquarters in Rehau, Bavaria, the polymer specialist ReHAU is once again stealing the limelight for its sustainability initiatives.

the renovation of the ground fl oor alone has reduced energy costs by around 280,000 euros per year and the annual Co2 emissions by an impressive 2,585 tons. making all this possible is the functional interaction between a block heating station, a heating system converted to hot water and a geothermal system. For all of these solutions, the company relies on its own in-house, innovative product development.

www.rehau.de/rheniumhaus

04Recycling

Building with PetBillions of Pet bottles around the worldpollute the environment. the effort to recycle them through complicatedrecycling cycles is enormous.

Pet bottles and their convoluted recycling cycles pollute the environment around the world. 90 percent of the more than 50 billion Pet bottles circulating in europe are recycled in China. three architects from the Swiss Federal institute of technology in Zurich came up with a clever alternative: the “United Bottle”. the bottle is shaped such that it can be used as a building block for buildings: it’s square instead of round with a lateral guide gib, and it can be filled with sand, soil or natural insulation materials. Relief organizations could use large quantities of these bottles in conflict or disaster areas for repairs or the construction of emergency housing.

www.united-bottle.org

03Knowledge

ReHAU _ news

06 Rehau unlimited _ 05/13

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08invention

Water from the desertHot desert air provides thousands of Hot desert air provides thousands of liters of drinking water per day. For even liters of drinking water per day. For even the driest air contains water molecules.

French engineers have developed an intelligent wind turbine, which sucks air into a nacelle attached to a power generator. the air is heated, compressed, and the moisture is then condensed. in addition, the turbine produces enough electricity to purify the water. A proto-type in Abu dhabi currently supplies 60 liters of water per hour, off ering a clever alternative to expensive desalina tion or groundwater wells.

www.wissenschaft-aktuell.de

05Research

Flying RiversAboard his single-engine plane in the Brazilian rain forest, British-born pilot Gérard moss (57) explores the phenomenon of “flying rivers”:

Huge masses of water in the atmosphere brought about by trees. one single tree can emit more than 1,000 liters of water per day. moss managed to follow one of these “fl ying rivers” for a distance of 3,000 km. the amount of water vapor measured was equal to 115 times the daily water consumption of the megacity São Paulo. thanks to his work, the Brazilian space agency inPe now tracks the moisture streams of the Amazon daily.

www.globalmagazin.com

06Water conservation

Repair dripping taps and Repair dripping taps and faulty toilet flushes faulty toilet flushes immediately: 20 drops immediately: 20 drops per minute make per minute make 5,000 liters per year!5,000 liters per year!

TIP

insulating with GelResearchers at the nASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, ohio, have developed a new aerogel, which provides up to ten times better insulation than current insulating materials. originally developed for the heat shields on space capsules, the gel in block form is so stable that it can support the weight of a car. As a thin sheet, it is fl exible enough to be wrapped around water pipes.

www.ceramics.org

07Space travel

ReHAU _ news


in the middle of Singapore: artificial waterway.


thirst for Water

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Water is considered our “blue gold”. This vital resource is becoming increasingly scarce so it’s more necessary than ever to be conscious of how we use it.

TEXT dieter Kühner PHOTOS Christian Grund

Though Singapore is surrounded by water, drinking water is scarce. Malaysia supplies the major proportion of water through huge pipelines. But this dependence has always been a thorn in Singapore’s “political” side. In 2005 a huge project was started: The Singapore River was dammed right in the center of the city. The lake, still mostly filled with salt water, is not expected to de-liver any potable water until 2015, and even then, it will only be able to meet approximately ten percent of total demand. Still, for Singapore, this is the first step to more water independence. a desalination plant, which will be located in close proximity to an innovative reverse osmosis plant, is already planned. The Singapore solution is not unique: there are several examples of huge regional projects aimed at making clean water available to lots of people. The artificial Lake Mead in the u.S. was already there in the 1930s. But are “island solutions” like these enough? how can we get a grip on global water issues? Given the limited availability of the resource and our increasing world population, immediate action is imperative. Only 2.5 per-cent of the world’s water is fresh water. Only 0.3 percent of it is readily available, coming from lakes and rivers. Potable water is unfairly distributed around the world. While the northern hemisphere in the temperate zones is less threatened by water scarcity, the situation in africa and australia is bleak. Increasingly, Central asia and North america are being included in the list of areas suffering from water shortages. Groundwater plays perhaps the most important role in terms of water supply. 30 percent of the world’s fresh water supply stems from groundwater; glaciers, icebergs and permanent snow

Project of superlatives: Singapore’s huge reservoir “marina Barrage”.

ReHAU _ Water management

Singapore

inhabitants 5.31 million, of which approx. 2 million are foreignersPopulation growth 1.8% annuallyPopulation density 7,022/m²Republic of Singapore main island of Singapore and 57 other small islandsland area 710.2 km²equivalent to about half of Greater LondonGeographic location 103–104° E, 1° NHighest point Bukit Timah Hill, 176 meterslength of coastline 193 kmlanguages Malay, English, Tamil, ChinesePer capita income € 36,721 (2011)GdP € 195 billion (2011)Current water consumption approx. 1,730,000,000 liters per day; by 2060, it is expected to have doubled


“Gardens by the Bay”: Singapore botanical gardens.



make up 69 percent. approximately one percent of the freshwa-ter deposit is tied up in soil moisture, in rivers or lakes. Canada, for example, has over half of the world’s freshwater lakes. Through its call for an International Decade for action “Water for Life” (2005–2015), defined in 2003, the uN General assembly caused this unequal distribution of water resources to be discussed on a global scale. The goal was to sensitize decision makers in politics, business and the general public to all issues pertaining to water. Water scarcity, access to sanitation and inter-national capacity building are stated uN objectives – even though experts from the Stockholm International Water Institute, for exam-ple, take a critical stance, believing that there is an unlikely chance that the implementation of these goals can be financed. Maude Barlow, president of Canada’s largest civil rights movement and winner of the alternative Nobel Prize, speaks of a

no country in the world can escape the crisis.

“global water crisis”. No country in the world will be able to escape this crisis in the long run. according to Barlow, the problems continue to grow with land acquisitions and the acquisition of wa-ter rights by large investment funds. “Thriving industrialized countries such as China, India and Saudi arabia are outsourcing water-intensive industries, such as cotton processing, to africa,” says Barlow. “and by doing so, they’re exporting the water prob-lem, too.” The territory allocated to this in africa is more than twice as big as Great Britain. She also foresees a “drastic short-age problem” as a result of taking water from the outskirts of cities which causes water tables to fall. In Vermont, Ms Barlow was involved in the drafting of a bill stating that water cannot be treated as private property. Only in 2010, following a request by Bolivia, did the uN General assembly add the “right to clean water” to the uN hu-man Rights Charter. One of the strongest advocates was Ger-many; the united States along with 30 other states abstained from voting. They said the draft didn’t go far enough. In any case, there is the stigma of a mere “symbolic act” attached to it:

The law is unenforceable and not binding in international law. But still, the 122 countries that did vote in favor succeeded in taking a stand. Water is the basis of all life. and an important economic factor to boot: 400 to 500 billion uSD are spent annually for the provision, treatment and purification of water around the world. and the demand is rising continuously. 8 percent of the water used around the world is for consumption in households; agriculture ac-counts for 70 percent, and 22 percent is used in industry. Market research firm, Marple Croft, issued a “water stress index” showing where there’s an imbalance in the ratio of water use between agri-culture, industry and household consumption. The comparison of water consumption with the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) clearly shows where an economic disparity exists. In economically developed countries, the proportion of costs for fresh water has been declining for years. On the other hand, the demand for more sustain-able “water-aid” for less industrialized countries continues to increase. apart from a few exceptions, industrial nations are ahead in terms of water quality. every three years, the uNeSCO World Water Development Report (WWDR) releases data on wa-ter quality for almost 120 countries. The 2011 list was topped by Finland, followed by Canada and New Zealand. The water quality index is based on several factors: the amount and quality of fresh water, especially groundwater, wastewater treatment, and compli-ance with environmental laws. astonishingly, coming in last, be-hind India and Morocco, is the eu country Belgium. according to the report, Belgium doesn’t measure up well, boasting neither

daily per capita water consumption

Source: GralsWelt, 51/2009

25

122

129

145

188

237

278

295

500

india

Belgium

Germany

Austria/denmark

Sweden

Switzerland

Japan

USA

dubai

liteR CoUntRY

Global water consumption per year

Agriculture

Private households

industry

70 %

22 %

8 %

Source: FoCUS 45/2012total approx. 4,000 km³

tourist attraction: waterfall in 54-meter-high glass dome.



quality nor quantity. Moreover, blame for the high level of water contamination is being laid at industry’s door. Germany, currently ranked 57, occupies the middle range. With a daily per capita consumption of less than 130 liters, the Germans are the world champions when it comes to water conservation. But there’s a downside to such vigorous saving: The fl ow rate in the piping system is greatly reduced and “stagnant wa-ter” in the sewers is leading to corrosion, clogging and contamina-tion. Many cities have no other choice but to fl ush the drainage sys-tem regularly. Due to the smaller and less frequent water intake as well as lower water temperatures in storage devices, there is also the increased risk of Legionella. The solution to all water issues will not be found in single, isolated projects. On the contrary, it is the diversity of existing approaches that offers the most cause for optimism: from international collaborative projects, like the ones the uN are pushing ahead with, through national mega-projects, like the one in Singapore, and regional water conservation measures, such as those in europe, to micro-projects in households. The latter could include, for example, wastewater treatment plants in the size of a household refrigerator, which recycle wastewater – so-called gray water – from domestic activities like washing or bathing and turn it into purifi ed water. Pilot projects on gray water purifi cation are already up and running in Jordan. Only if these approaches are put together like a mosaic, only if they engage with and benefit from each other will intelli-gent water management have any effect. If this happens, it will be possible to get to grips with water problems all over the world.

ReHAU’s contribution:StRonG inteRnAtionAl netWoRK

the German Water Partnership registered network the German Water Partnership registered network coordinates internationally active players in the water coordinates internationally active players in the water management sector in an effort to strengthen management sector in an effort to strengthen the competitive position of industry and research in the competitive position of industry and research in international markets.

in doing so, the internationally recognized network, of which polymer specialist ReHAU is also a member, is driving innovation and improving the conditions for international business developments. thanks to integrated and sustain-able approaches, it is also helping customers all over the world solve water management problems. operating with confidence in the innovative fields, the network’s members are presenting coherent approaches to the development, design, construction and long-term operation of plants.

the German Water Partnership network uses its know-how to bring about adequate water and sanitation services in emerging and developing countries and is committed to globally sustainable, resource-effi cient water consumption. this unique initiative is supported by the government.

www.germanwaterpartnership.de

Professor Rolf Gimbel from the university of Duisburg-essen is convinced that “the global thirst for water cannot be quenched by one single patent remedy. The answer is the right mix of approaches.” his colleague, Professor asit K. Biswas from the university of Singapore goes further and argues that practical, thought-out systems of water management, anti-corruption plans and fair, social pricing will solve the global water supply problem for everyone. <

“Virtual Water”

British environmental researcher JoHn AntHonY AllAn won the Stockholm Water Prize for his virtual water concept in 2008. Allan’s virtual water content equation makes it possible to show how much water is needed for the production of industrial pro-ducts, and more specifically, of individual food items.

16.000 liters

4.100 liters

3.000 liters

2.400 liters

1.000 liters

550 liters

140 liters

Source: www.waterfootprint.org

1 kg of beef

1 t-shirt

1 kg of rice

1 hamburger

1 liter of milk

400 g of flour

1 cup of coffee

ReHAU _ People


Verena Hecht(35) indUStRiAl CleRK

TEXT Katy Hahn PHOTO Christian Grund

“Lower Bavaria has become my home. My family and work, the focal points of my life, are here. I didn’t plan it that way, it just happened. I was 19 years old, had just completed my train-ing in General Business administration, when Rehau offered me a job in Viechtach, 200 kilometers away. I left upper Franconia on the spur of the moment. That was 16 years ago. Now, I’m 35, a mother of two sons, aged 7 and 9, happily married, and running a dairy farm, 750 meters above sea level, in himmelwies, with my husband and in-laws. It sounds idyllic, but it’s a lot of work. We have 200 animals on the farm, including 65 dairy cows, which need to be milked twice a day. add to this, the offspring – bulls and just over 80 calves a year, which I bring into the world with my own two hands. I really enjoy the work on the farm.

I never really considered giving up my job in the Production Plan-ning division. My work and colleagues mean too much to me. We’re a young team. There are seven of us and we like to meet up outside of work, too. I work part-time, 20 hours a week, and I’m responsible for external fabrication and returns processing. The office job is completely different to my farm work: it’s varied, lively and communicative. and that’s what I like about it. Often it’s a real balancing act, trying to manage everything – the children, the cowshed and my career. But loads of working mothers deal with their daily routine in a remarkable way. Personally, I think it’s a matter of organization and attitude.

My day begins at 5 am – even on weekends. I don’t have much time for hobbies, but when I do have some free time, I really make the most of it and focus on what’s important. Family and friends are very important to me, though my family always comes first. No matter what, we always have dinner together because that’s the only time of the day we’re all together.”

lives HimmelwiesAt ReHAU since 1994Position Industrial Clerk in Production PlanningReHAU location Viechtach, Plant 05, Germanymotto “Just be yourself and seize the day”

erbil’s “Big Ben”: redesigned tower in the city center.

ReHAU _ on Site


Clean Water for Kurdistan

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The northern Iraqi city of erbil is experiencing an economic boom. Many companies are trying to make a go of it. Collaborating closely with an old established local family, the Rehau team is succeeding where others are not.

TEXT maral Jekta PHOTOS Christian Grund

asso Beg knows how to do business. These days, he’s launching downright conquering expeditions – from his office in his company, “Kurdish German Business alliances” (KGe). Man-aged jointly by him, his brother, Rekar Bek, and former politician, Professor Friedbert Pflüger, the company has been paving the way for German entrepreneurs to do business in Iraq since 2010. With Pflüger based in Germany and the two brothers in erbil, the

capital of the Federal Region of Iraqi Kurdistan, the company li-aises between German companies and Kurdish clients – a role which will continue to grow in the future. as sales partner for Rehau, they have already scored a coup. Together with Tobias Demel and Lisa Kraske from the Sales Office of International Business Development, they are developing the market for Rehau pipes in Iraqi Kurdistan. KGe’s office is in ankawa, the Christian district of erbil. The Citadel, a historic fortress and landmark of the city, is a good half hour away. a few years ago, on a clear day, you could see the 32-meter high Citadel from ankawa. But today, the view is blocked

by luxury hotels, like the Rotana, and the roads are lined with cra-ter-like construction sites, bulldozers, ocher-colored houses and shopping malls. Despite its historical significance, asso Beg ac-cepts that the Citadel will practically disappear from the erbil sky-line; for according to local predictions, erbil is the next Dubai. and indeed, except for the road signs, which indicate the direction and

A new beginning: installation ofmodern water pipes in erbil.

According to local predictions, erbil is the next dubai.

ReHAU _ on Site


tobias demel and massoud Karash, director of the Water Authority.

Hospitable atmosphere: at the bazaar in erbil.

overwhelming range of goods: at the foot of the Citadel.

Quality where it’s needed: ReHAU drinking water pipes.

Sales talks in Kurdish.

ReHAU _ on Site


Shaping the cityscape: white sheet-metal caravans.

Snapshot at the construction site.

mobile fact-finding tour through erbil.

Popular backdrop for photos andhistoric landmark: the Citadel.

ReHAU _ on Site


distance to Baghdad, Mosul and Kirkuk, there are no reminders of the fact that you are in one of the most unstable and violence-charged regions of the world. The image of Iraq that prevails in the minds of many in the West no longer corresponds to the reality in the north of the country. Since the u.S. invasion and the fall of the Ba’athist regime in april 2003, this northern region of Iraq has been experiencing an economic boom. What are the conditions that could turn this area into the next Dubai? Stability, a GDP growth rate of seven to eight percent, a liberal investment law and the need for infrastructure all make northern Iraq increasingly attractive to foreign companies both near and far. The word in business circles is that everything’s lacking. The investments required will soar into the billions. and the contracting authority is the Kurdistan Regional Government, which last year alone generated eleven billion u.S. dollars in oil revenues. understandably, international companies are very keen to secure contracts here. Rehau representatives interested in the

local commitment shown to drinking water projects have been travelling around the country since 2007. entering the market, however, wasn’t easy, and not just because of the competition. The seal “Made in Germany” carries with it one flaw: the products are just too expensive by international standards. This is also true for Rehau pipes. “The decision makers know by now that quality has its price, but the willingness to look beyond cheaper products from countries such as Turkey and Iran was not always there at the beginning,” explains Tobias Demel. and he should know. In cooperation with asso Beg, he ultimately suc-ceeded in placing the product in the highly competitive market. Today the team supplies several construction projects in and around erbil. The biggest contract right now entails delivering pipes for a drinking water supply scheme for the project “New erbil,” a housing development for 150,000 residents. But just how hard it was to get to this point becomes clear at one of the regular meetings at the office of the Kurdistan Directorate General for Water Supply and Sanitation. Massoud Karash, the director of the water authority, and his right-hand man, Yusuf Taher amin, the director of engi-neering, describe, with an air of desperation, the mountain of offers they have to deal with every day. “Since the Iraqi market opened in 2003, we’ve been swamped by the selection of goods officially offered to us. So, in addition to quality, what’s important to us is the close contact and a relationship of trust with Rehau.” Demel knows from experience that visiting the country twice a year isn’t enough. Personal contacts play a major role in Kurdish business life. The social structure is based on the family, the clan or party affiliation. Business success is often linked to being a member of one of these groups. “That’s why collaborating with asso Beg is so important,” says Demel. “First, it means we have a local contact and second, in addition to his skills, his name affords him a certain social standing in the community.” This so-cial standing is based on decade-old business relationships, which the Bek family has been cultivating in erbil since the ’70s. The descendant of the Khoshnaw clan, one of the largest tribes in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, literally has the instinct for busi-ness in his blood. In the ’70s and ’80s, his father, anwar Bek, owned several factories in erbil, one of them very close to the Citadel. But managing a company in the region back then was not always as easy as it is today. The war with Iran from 1980 to 1988 over the oil-rich Khuzestan province left Iraq in economic ruins. all imports and exports, and consequently the production in factories, came to a halt. The sanctions set in place between 1991 and 2003 by the uN in response to the Iraqi government’s invasion of Kuwait finally finished the country off. The Beks left their home in the mid ’90s and tried their luck in europe. Not until 2010 was the time right to return. a de-sire to do business in Kurdistan, led to a meeting between Fried-bert Pflüger and Rekar Bek at a conference in London. Quickly it

toBiAS demel

Age 34training Degree in Business AdministrationPosition at ReHAU Area Sales Manager, Near/Middle EastAt ReHAU since January 2011marital status married, one sonFavorite travel destinations Greece, Egypt, Dubai, KitzbühelWhat i like about near/middle east lifestyle, the relaxed people

liSA KRASKe

Age 23training Industrial ClerkPosition at ReHAU Sales CoordinatorAt ReHAU since September 2009marital status singleFavorite travel destinations America, Australia, ThailandWhat i like about near/middle east lifestyle

mission market success: on the way to the customer.

ReHAU _ on Site


became clear the Bek brothers and Pflüger had the same plans. They all wanted to take advantage of the economic boom in north-ern Iraq. But this was not the only motive for returning, assured asso and Rekar emphatically. Like their father, they wanted to give something back to their country. “Our father was not only a suc-cessful businessman, he was an employer and a respected mem-ber of society,” insists asso proudly. “This is what we want to achieve, too.” That’s why he takes his work so seriously. Together with Tobias Demel and Lisa Kraske, he is always available to lend a helping hand to the engineers at the water authority. This re-quires the use of all communication channels. “I’m even friends

with some members of the water authority on Facebook,” says Kraske. “We are always very warmly received in Kurdistan; there’s hardly any separation of private and professional life.” everyone involved hopes that the friendship will last a long time. In the erbil province alone, five to ten percent of all water pipes are expected to be replaced each year in the future. Like everywhere else, prac-tical infrastructural measures, like water supply, will be necessary in the historic center of the Citadel. Perhaps, the Bek brothers say, they will also find themselves doing business where their father once had factories. <

Asso Beg: determined to shape progress.

Between tradition and modernity: a region awakening.

the seal “made in Germany” carries with it one flaw:

the products are too expensive by international standards

ReHAU _ oktoberfest


For some, it’s the hops that gives beer “its soul”. Others are convinced that malt is the key ingredient and a third group swears that only the right yeast brings forth the right taste. Yet there’s one ingredient that’s often overlooked: water. around 90 percent of the amber nectar is water. and every water tastes different, giving every beer an individual nuance. Nowadays, beer is not just beer, it’s a real taste experience – sometimes mild, sometimes bitter, light, or even subtle. So, let’s take a sip! It is one of the world’s oldest consumer protection laws: the German Purity Law, passed by Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria in 1516. Still applicable today, this food regulation law states that beer may only be made from yeast, hops, malt and water. The long-standing edict adds to the already huge demands on the quality of beer. around the world, “the Reinheitsgebot” is highly valued. “Many brewers in europe have adopted the German standard,” said Dr. Michael henkel, corporate head of the German dispensing system manufacturer InterSysTec. “On the international

stage, German brewing stands for quality and tradition – even from a modern perspective.” his company supplies small and large breweries around the globe, and he’s a valued partner for the hosting brewers of Munich’s Oktoberfest. Yeast, hops, malt and water: four seemingly simple ingredients. Yet, they inspire greatness. Some 1,300 German breweries employ a sizable amount of intuition, even more gut instinct and innovative techniques to create over 5,000 different brands of beer. That’s more than in any other country in the world.

Beer shouldn’t always taste the same, but it should always taste good. high-quality raw materials afford brewers an enormous range when it comes to the taste experience. Complex quality management systems, periodic inspections and testing mech-anisms before, during and after the brewing process ensure a closed quality chain, from stalk to glass. German brewing water need not shy away from comparison. In terms of quality, it’s usually better than drinking water. and so it should be, for only the highest quality water is put into the brewing copper. anheuser-Busch InBev Germany supplies its traditional breweries in Munich – Spaten, Franziskaner and Löwenbräu – with water from six private wells. It draws around 1.2 million cubic meters of water per year. “We regularly test the purity of the extracted well water,”

Purity is in order

TEXT tanja Heinlein PHOTOS Christian Grund

>

Why are regional beers so different?One of the reasons is the quality of the water.It gives the beer its special character.

Fun at the oktoberfest.

6.9 million liters of beer for 6.4 million visitors.

tradition in a tankard: Water makes up 90 percent of beer.

ReHAU _ oktoberfest


explains company spokesman, Oliver Bartelt. anheuser-Busch InBev is the world’s largest consortium of brewers. Light, hops-accentuated beers are brewed with soft water; for dark, more full-bodied beers, hard water, also common around Munich, is put into the brewing copper. The Purity Law dictates what goes into the beer – but not in what amount. The recipe is probably the breweries’ best guarded secret. Oliver Bartelt: “What our three Munich beers have in common is the water, which is used for three different things: production, bottling and technical supply. During production, water is added to the malt and hops, a small portion of which evaporates. We also use water for cleaning the bottles and for cooling.” The highlight of the year for the brewery, as well as for Dr. Michael henkel, is the Oktoberfest, where, adhering to tradition, only Munich beers are served. and of course, they’re all made in accordance with the Purity Law. “The Oktoberfest requires special dispensing solutions: at peak times, over 15,000 liters of beer fl ow through a tap in a tent per hour. The average is three liters per minute.” Dr. henkel assures us: “It’s a logistical and technical achievement. Tanks holding 25,000 liters are laid in the ground. The bar area in the tents is supplied by large ring feeders.” In 2012, during the two weeks of the Bavarian festival, 6.9 million liters of beer flowed down the thirsty throats of approximately

6.4 million festival-goers. “We use modern brewing technology and traditional recipes for our brands at the Oktoberfest in Munich,” says Oliver Bartelt, who stresses that the brewery pursues ambitious goals with regard to environmental protection. “We want to reduce water consumption at brewery locations to an average of 3.5 liters of water per liter of beer produced. In 2008, the water consumption was still around five liters per liter of beer.” active environmental management is now necessary for all brewers. Five decades ago, around 25 hectoliters of fresh water were needed to produce one hectoliter of beer. Today, it’s five. even during food scares, German brewers can safely say that beer was and is a delicious product made from high quality ingredients. In 2011, approximately 1.9 billion hectoliters of beer were brewed worldwide. and putting broad smiles on German brewers’ faces in 2011 were the total worldwide sales of around 100 million hectoliters and position No. 5 in the international ranking. hats off! <

ReHAU’s contribution:energy effi ciency, low-cost and easy-to-clean dispensing energy effi ciency, low-cost and easy-to-clean dispensing equipment and pipes are crucial not only for breweries, equipment and pipes are crucial not only for breweries, but for the safeguarding of the highest internationally but for the safeguarding of the highest internationally applicable standards of hygiene. this is not news to applicable standards of hygiene. this is not news to ReHAU. With its tried-and-tested products, ReHAU has ReHAU. With its tried-and-tested products, ReHAU has been a competent partner for the drinks industry for been a competent partner for the drinks industry for many years:many years:

BeVeRAGe HoSeSWhatever the drink – soft drinks, beer, wine – ReHAU offers flexible solutions for delivering it from the vat to the tap without compromising on quality. Specialists in the field, ReHAU provides beverage hoses for closed refrigeration systems in dispensing equipment or in drinks machines.

RAUiSo ReHAU’s pressure pipe system, the RAUiSo, is made from top quality materials. its complex structure of carrier pipe, diffusion barrier layer and insulating foam make it optimally suited for the food and drink industry – and a cost-eff ective alternative to the traditional stainless steel pipe system. Pressure and temperature resistance, as well as physiological and toxicological inertness, are just some of the many advantages.

RAUiSo BeVeRAGe HoSeS

German brewing stands for quality and tradition.

ReHAU _ Competence 01


“mr von Ramdohr, is Water management the Growth market of the Future?”

TEXT Katy Hahn PHOTOS Christian Grund

Connoisseur of cultures: ingo von Ramdohr.

name Ingo von RamdohrAge 50 lives Lauf an der Pegnitztraining Graduate Civil EngineerAt ReHAU since September 1998Position Head of International Business Development Construction for Central Europe

mr Ramdohr, you were born and raised in Germany. nowadays, access to clean water in europe is practically a given. is that how you see things, too?In our cultural spheres, this is certainly the case. We go to the pool, bathe, shower, flush the toilet, all without giving it a second thought. In many parts of europe, water is no longer perceived as a gift. That only becomes clear when you know that billions of people around the world do not have any. This is a concern for me.

You travel a lot for work in Africa and the middle east, how do you feel about the use of water in these areas?It varies. Not every country is the same. The differences in the level of technical knowledge and financial resources are enormous. There are oil-producing countries and then there are countries that do not have this collateral. Dubai can aff ord expensive desalination plants to make water usable in dry areas, or to supply islands in the shape of palm trees with water. While Jordan,



one of the most arid countries in the region, uses the resource with the utmost care, and with much less sophisticated technology at their disposal.

the middle east still has serious shortcomings. in Saudi Arabia, for example, fossil groundwater resources that are just as finite as oil are being tapped. doesn’t the debate on water resources veer into the political sphere, here? absolutely. In the Middle east, they’re trying to tap everything that’s there, everything from normal to fossil ground water. This is very critical. It’s becoming more and more important for states to provide their growing populations with water. So, rivers are being dammed. and downstream countries are finding themselves in trouble. The scarcer the resource is, the tougher the fight for it. and the result? The Middle east conflict is a good example.

Quo Vadis? What is being done about it?Today, almost every country in this region has a Minister for Wa-ter. Wells are being constructed, water tanks are being built, pipes are being laid. The budget is always tight. Typically cheap technologies are used to quickly hook up lots of people to water. The systems are usually broken after two or three years. Clearly we need to raise awareness in this area.

Because sustainable technical solutions are the better solution, even when financial resources are limited?exactly. Companies also have to do their bit to bring organizations, authorities, and local planners up to the necessary technical level. That way, they can perform their tasks responsibly. This requires a completely different sales approach. What works in europe, where we can more or less assume a high level of know-ledge, doesn’t always work elsewhere. Often in developing countries, only 50 percent of water makes it from the point of origin

to the point of use. usually defective pipes are the cause. There aren’t enough high quality technologies, which suit the local needs, and which the people are able to use. In northern Iraq, for example, where open surface water and groundwater is pumped and distributed through wells, the ground is rocky and hard. For this market, Rehau developed special high quality, robust drinking water pipes, which don’t require a sand bed and can withstand the harsh geological conditions and mechanical influences. This way we ensure that the water in the well actually reaches its user. don’t you feel like the tooth fairy, bringing water and technology to people? Collaborating with people who want to help shape their country fascinates me. Being able to see first-hand how our technology is reaching people is great. It works, and in a sustainable way.

is this the opportunity for companies like ReHAU: sales activities that deliver technical know-how and education?What’s important is that customer relationships are based on trust, logical and technically sound solutions – not short-term, once- off business deals. Business relationships grow through the trans-fer of know-how; only then do they last. This is especially true in regions where hardly a single building project runs smoothly, where sometimes one missing truck can bring an entire con-struction project to a halt.

in your opinion, could europeans do with a spot of awareness education, too?even in those areas where there’s enough water, people need to be sensitized to how they use it; they need to learn not be satisfied with the status quo. Smarter solutions for water supply and sanitation are needed. There are lots of approaches.

“In the Middle east, they’re trying to tap everything that’s there, everything from normal to fossil ground water.”

Serving tap water with coffee: in europe it goes without saying.



Particularly in terms of water hygiene, sewage and its reprocessing possibilities?exactly! To give you an example: years ago, dirty water and rain water were fed into one channel; today, we reuse the surface water, or we pass it back to nature. The next step will be to ex-tract the dirt; that is, fi lter out the fecal matter contained in the wastewater and use it as an energy source in biogas plants. The first projects are already underway.

So, the West also needs to be more economical in how it uses the resource, water. Some water experts, like Hans-Jürgenleist from the Hanover environmental institute ecolog, woulddisagree. He thinks the Germans’ proclivity for water conser-vation is actually harmful to the environment. even the Federal environment Agency recently warned against blatantactivism with regard to water conservation. How do you see that?When one considers that at least 500 million people around the world have no access to clean water, and that according to uN projections, this number will increase significantly, then I think it’s pretty questionable. The consumption of more water definitely can’t be an approach. There’s a limit to the resource; we can suff er shortages, too. I can remember summers when drinking water was scarce and washing cars was prohibited. The facts speak for themselves: we need to use water more intelli-gently, more sustainably. That’s the challenge.

And is there an economic opportunity, too? Water management, the next big thing? the epitome of a growth market?absolutely! Technology has to improve efficiency around the world so that in rural areas, and especially in the rapidly growing urban centers, sufficient water is available – supplied, processed, recycled. The entire water cycle takes on a central role. Rehau is very well positioned here.

to conclude, mr von Ramdohr, a glass of water?Sure, but from the tap. Drinking mineral water out of a bottle doesn’t make sense here in europe. <

ReHAU’s contribution:the demands on pipe systems are high and diverse. the demands on pipe systems are high and diverse. Regardless of what they’re delivering, the materials Regardless of what they’re delivering, the materials always have to be perfectly matched and the processing always have to be perfectly matched and the processing fastidious.

ReHAU’s pipeline construction offers future-oriented, holistic solutions for all fi elds of operation, especially quality systems for the supply of drinking water. they need to satisfy the highest standards of safety, reliability, and cost-effectiveness.

RAUPRoteCtRegions with rocky soil in particular make the laying of standard drinking water pipes without a sand bed im -possible. For the harsh, geological conditions that prevail in much of the middle east and Africa, ReHAU developed the RAUPRoteCt, a specially designed drinking water pipe. the point load-resistant, solid-walled pressure pipe made from the high quality material Pe 100-RC, which due to its material properties is extremely robust, requires no sand bed and can withstand the toughest mechanical forces.

U-linerthe U-liner series by ReHAU is used for the trenchless renovation of drinking and wastewater pipes and sewers. the liners are fed through chambers or small pits into an existing old or damaged line, and then gradually heated so that they fi t closely into the existing line, like a second wall on the inside, and without any signifi cant annular passage. As a new self-supporting pipe, the U-liner fulfills the requirements on static and withstands operating pressures up to max. 10 bar.

RAUPRoteCt U-lineR

28 Rehau unlimited _ 05/1328 Rehau unlimited _ 05/13

From the Source to the SourceFrom the Source to the Source

01 Pressure pipes made of Pe-Xadrinking water pipes in cross-linked polyethylene02 RAUPiAno sound absorbing domestic drainage system03 RAUtitAn permanently tight domestic installation system with compression sleeve jointing system

04 AWASCHACHt sewer chamber made of polypropylene, dn 1000, dn 800, dn 60005 RAUPRoteCt drinking water pipes for trenchless installation and installation without sand fi lling06 AWAdUKt PP sewer pipe system for wastewater with AWAdoCK jointing system

An experienced systems specialist, ReHAU has beendemonstrating its expertise in water management fordecades. the polymer expert’s product solutions cover the entire water cycle: from the source to the point of useto the subsequent removal of the waste and surfacewater, all the way through to the point of recycling.


01

02

03

04 05 06 07

08 09



07 AWAdUKt PP blue sewer pipe system for rainwater08 RAinSPot road gully with the highest demands on imperviousness and fl exibility09 RAUSiKKo HydroCleansystem for the physical-chemical treatment of rainwater

10 RAUSiKKo SediCleansedimentation plant for contam-inated rainwater11 RAUSiKKo Box block system for rainwater percolation, retention and storage

12 RAUPRoteCt pressure drainage pipes for trenchless installation, installation without sand filling, renovation13 RAUdRil Rail PP civil engi-neering drainage pipes, heavy-duty pipes for rail and tunnel construction

14 RAUdil Rail chamberinspection chamber for the use in rail and tunnel construction15 RAUBioXon pipe aerator system for biological purifi cation stages in sewage treatment plants16 U-liner pipe system for trenchless renovation of pres-sure pipes

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object Radisson Blu HotelProject drinking water installationProduct RAUTITANVolume 5,300 metersFunction hygienic, permanently leak-proof domestic installation system with the unique “compression sleeve” connection technology

Water makes the World Go Round

object island of NeuwerkProject drinking water supply Product RAUPROTECT PE 100-RCVolume 9,000 metersFunction point load-resistant, solid-walled pressure pipe for transporting drinking water, trenchless deployable

ReHAU systems are used to provide intelligent water ReHAU systems are used to provide intelligent water supply and sanitation solutions all around the globe: fromsupply and sanitation solutions all around the globe: fromhigh-altitudes in the tibetan mountains to sea level onhigh-altitudes in the tibetan mountains to sea level onthe north Sea coast, in dry desert regions and tropicalthe north Sea coast, in dry desert regions and tropical

climates, in luxury hotels, prisons and along the mostclimates, in luxury hotels, prisons and along the mostmodern railway lines. the reference list is long; modern railway lines. the reference list is long; here's an excerpt:

With a total area of 300 hectares, neuwerk is the smallest of the German north Sea islands. it is home to about 40 residents who, during the summer, play host to some 500 holidaymakers every day. in the busy season, the drinking water consumption rises to over 100 cubic meters per day. in 2010, the island, which lies seven meters above sea level, said goodbye to its well water supply in favour of a leak-free supply of drinking water from the mainland. laid along the seabed, ReHAU’s RAUPRoteCt pipes deliver clean drinking water, day after day.

SoUtH AFRiCA – Port elizabeth

GeRmAnY – island of neuwerk

Showering, rinsing, washing: in densely popu-lated cities, a quiet drainage system in buildings means a lot. in areas, where many people live in very close proximity to each other, sound absorb-ing waste water systems increase the quality of life. this is the case in the “Pinnacle Collection”, a 300-unit apartment building in the high-end area of Sentosa, an island off the coast of Singapore. thanks to good sound insulation values, the do-mestic drainage system, the RAUPiAno PlUS, spanning 20 fl oors, provides privacy, peace and quiet.

object Pinnacle CollectionProject building drainageProduct domestic drainage system RAUPIANO PLUSVolume 12,000 metersFunction building drainage with excellent sound protection according to VDI 4100, for new construction and renovation

SinGAPoRe


Playing an enormous role in complex drinking water systems, such as those found in hotels or hospitals, is impeccable hygiene. this is what visitors to the newly built Radisson Blu Hotel in South Africa’s coastal town of Port elizabeth can absolutely bank on – and that’s not just while splashing about in the pool area, or relaxing in the almost 350 m² spa area, or during dinner in the restaurants. the RAUtitAn drinking water system ensures that in all of the resort’s 173 rooms, guests can expect first-class water hygiene.


object Magdeburg PenitentiaryProject rainwater percolationProduct RAUSIKKO BoxVolume 1,215 piecesFunction innovative block system for rainwater percolation, retention and storage

GeRmAnY – magdeburg

Under sealed surfaces, rainwater percolation systems do a magnificent job: they take in rainwater and either gradually return it to the soil or hold it back and store it. especially in confined spaces and where installation is restricted, the RAUSiKKo box system has proven to be the most compact and easiest-to-install system in europe – both in public spaces as well as in less popular places. in 2010, no fewer than 1,215 pieces were installed in front of the magdeburg Penitentiary. the box system can store up to 487,000 liters of rainwater.

object Xizang Lhasa STPProject sewage treatment plantsProduct RAUBIOXONVolume 18,000 RAUBIOXON 300 disc aerators with saddle lock connectionFunction intelligent aeration system for the treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater

tiBet – lhasa

the highest sewage treatment plant in the world is at 3,600 meters. in lhasa, capital of the tibet Autonomous Region, more than 50,000 tons of waste-water are purifi ed and recycled every day. due to the rapid population growth in recent years, nearly 475,000 residents in and around the world-famous city need access to clean water. An integral part of the ultra-modern plant, completed in 2012, is the RAUBioXon system. Using innovative aeration tech -niques, it supplies the necessary oxygen to accele -rate biodegradation processes. in the last two years, some 200 sewage treatment plants in China alone were equipped with ReHAU aeration systems.

itAlY/SWitZeRlAnd

the Simplon tunnel, one of the most important rail routes through the Alps, connects Switzerland with italy. every year, two million passengers travel through the 100-year-old, 20-kilometer-long tunnel, made famous by the James Bond film “From Russia, with love.” Approx. 100 passenger and freight trains make the journey every day. Comprehensive measures are being taken to ensure that it is completely reno vated by 2014. Approxi-mately 10,000 meters of drai nage pipes are being used in the tunnel. Customized to meet the requirements, the pipes will ensure long-term stability and security along the railway tracks.

object Simplon TunnelProject drainageProduct RAUDRIL Rail PPVolume 10,000 metersFunction heavy-duty drainage pipes for rail and tunnel construction


ReHAU _ location


Viechtachthe health resort town of Viechtach, some 177 kilo-meters northeast of munich in the Bavarian Forest, has been the seat of one of the fi rst big ReHAU plants for over 50 years. Products for the construction industry, manufactured using injection molding or ex trusion processes, journey from here to the entire world. Customers from over 50 countries around the world rely on these building technology systems. Built some years later and located just 1.5 kilometers away is another plant, specializing in the pro -duction of automotive components. today, ReHAU has nine plant locations in Germany: in Brake, Feuchtwangen, marlesreuth, Rehau, triptis, Velen, Viechtach, Visbek and Wittmund; Viechtach is among the largest.

Coordinates:

Plant founded 1960employees 450Plant area 22,292 m²Production drinking water pipes, joining techniques, pipes for floor and panel heating systems, cable ducts, etc.Coordinates 49° 5' N, 12° 53' Etime zone UTC +1Population 8,250language Germaninformation www.rehau.com.mx

ReHAU _ location


Frankfurt/Main

Stuttgart

Munich

Hanover

Bielefeld

Hamburg

LeipzigBochum

Berlin

Brake

Wittmund

Visbek

Feuchtwangen

Marlesreuth

Viechtach

Velen

Rehau

Mosel

Erlangen

Triptis

Nuremberg

Ingolstadt

ReHAU _ interview


“Water management isn’t rocket science!”

>

For Professor asit K. Biswas, talks on global water crisis or “war over water” are just rhetoric. he believes that the water problems can be solved.

TEXT dieter Kühner PHOTOS Christian Grund

>the United nations declared 2013 as the international Year of Water Cooperation. What do you think will be achieved this year?Being realistic, I am not expecting any concrete outcome, say, in terms of more people receiving access to clean water. Neither do I expect this declaration to contribute to any new insight that can help us to plan, manage or operate water management systems better. The uN had already declared the years 2005 to 2015 as the “International Decade for action: Water for Life”. To this end, a new authority in Saragossa, Spain, was set up. Sadly, it served to create jobs for unwanted uN bureaucrats! Its new director has made some commendable attempts to do something meaningful. however, there have been many shortcomings for this decade. Its mandate was not clear, goals and objectives were not defined, and no reasonable financing was available to establish programs. The quality and expertise of the staff have left much to be de-sired. all that has come out of this eff ort are eminently forgettable meetings and documents!

>Are you expecting a “war over water” due to shortages or decreasing water quality? is not there already a secret war for water? like in Palestine?In entire human history no two countries have ever fought a war that was because of water alone! The world is changing very fast and it is difficult to predict the future. however, I can say with 99.9 percent certainty that during the next 3 to 4 decades there will be no war for which water will be the main reason. The prob-lem between Israel and Palestine, for example, is not water. The main issue is there is no trust between the two countries. Water is only one component of this sustained mutual distrust.

>You tend to see water more as an instrument of cooperation between countries rather than a catalyst for conflict. is this not naive?Not at all! Water will always be an instrument for peaceful cooperation and countries that choose to cooperate will benefit

ReHAU _ interview


greatly. There is no question about that. Those countries that prefer conflict will be the big losers. Countries are slowly realizing that cooperation provides better dividends than conflicts.

>i hear the message; it is the faith i lack.Let me give you an example. In South asia, some 30 years ago, Bhutan had the region’s lowest gross domestic product (GDP) per capita by far and also the lowest energy consumption per capita. Then, Bhutan and India entered into collaboration. India planned, designed and funded hydropower developments in Bhutan. These currently supply all of Bhutan’s electricity needs and the excess is sold to India at an agreed price. as a result, electricity has become Bhutan’s largest export item. The country now has the highest GDP and the highest electricity consumption per capita in South asia. India, thirsting for power, has a reliable electricity supply at a predetermined price. Bhutan has developed success-fully its agro-industry because of energy availability. Sale of hydro-power to India has significantly accelerated its socio-economic development. This has been a win-win situation for both the countries. In contrast, Nepal’s hydroelectric potential is compar able to that of the united States, but it has only developed about five percent of this potential. If India and Nepal had better relations, Nepal could have been a much richer country simply through the sale of electricity to India. The Nepalese standard of living could have increased significantly and the terrorist threats would have been much less because of poverty reduction. India could have had an assured power supply. Thus, both the count ries would have been winners.

>You said that the world is not facing a crisis because of physical shortage of water, but because of poor water management. Can you please elaborate? undoubtedly, if countries continue to mismanage water at the current level, the world will face a water crisis that no earlier generation had faced. every country or city has enough water, if it is well-managed. unlike oil or coal, water is a renewable re-source that can be treated and then reused. This process can be repeated many times. It is now estimated that every drop of the Colorado River is used seven times. With better management, this rate could easily be increased.

>Can this be achieved just through better water management? Let us look at the facts. In Riyadh, the capital of Saudi arabia, a desert region, the current water consumption per capita is nearly three times higher than in hamburg, which does not face any scarcity. In addition, almost half of the water in Riyadh does not

Professor Asit K. Biswas was born in Baleswar, india, in 1939. educated as a civil engineer and a Canadian citizen, he has spent his entire life on water and assoc-iated resources management. He has been professor in four continents, and he is one of the founders of the Canadian environment depart-ment, World Water Council and international Water Resources Associat-ion. He is also the founder of the third World Centre for Water management in mexico. He advises 19 countries, six Heads of United nations Agencies, and several Ceos of Fortune 500 companies. He received the Stockholm Water Prize in 2006 for “out of the box thinking”, and was named “Water Hero of the World” by the impeller magazine, and the “World’s top 10 water trailblazers” by the Reuters Foundation. Author of 68 books and over 600 papers, his work has now been translated into 34 languages.

ReHAU _ interview


in entire human history no two countries have ever fought a war that was because of water alone!

reach its consumers due to leaks and poor management. If Riyadh were to improve its water management, and introduce proper pricing, it could easily provide water for all its residents, both now and for decades to come. Water management isn’t rocket science! We know the solutions. We have the money and the technology. unfortunately, we do not apply them. Instead, people complain that the world is running out of water!

>in nearly all developing countries, people cannot drink directly from the tap because of poor water quality. What is the solution? Some cities in developing countries have made remarkable pro-gress in the past decade. Take for example Phnom Penh in Cam-bodia. 15 years ago, Phnom Penh Water Supply authority was bankrupt. The city lost 73 percent of its water and corruption was extensive. Water supplied was undrinkable without additional treatment. Through good management, Phnom Penh now pro-vides all its residents with clean water 24 hours a day, and this water can be drunk straight from the tap. Both the rich and the poor pay for the water they consume. The authority is now an autonomous public company and it generates a steady and in - creasing profit each year. Many of the city’s performance indica-tors are better than those of London, Paris or Los angeles! This shows that given good management, water problems are solvable.

>is Phnom Penh a good example for other cities?There is absolutely no reason as to why cities like Delhi, Jakarta, Mexico City, Buenos aires, Cairo or Lagos cannot follow the example of Phnom Penh. Compared to Phnom Penh, they all have better management and technical capacities, access to more sophisticated technology and robust finances. a bad water supply is bad primarily because of absence of good governance. Of course, the politicians try to justify it with other reasons, such as the lack of water, expertise or funds. Sadly, these are only ex-cuses and not the real reasons.

>the third World Center for Water management, of which you are the founder, is a think tank. Have you been successful in implementing your ideas?There is no question that we have had a significant influence in the water sector in terms of solutions as well as in generation, synthesis, dissemination and application of knowledge. For exam-ple, we currently advise 19 countries, both industrialized and developing, on how to solve their water problems. We dissemi-nate information throughout the world, explaining what works, what does not and why. Indicators of our success are that our work has now been translated into 34 languages and we can now only accept 25 percent of the requests we receive for help.

>there seem to be a lot of experts in water management who only see a doomsday scenario.This is absolutely correct. If one puts “water crisis” in Google, over 100 million items are displayed! I have no doubt that the current consensus on water scarcity and water wars is absolutely wrong! Based on current and emerging trends, I am cautiously optimistic on the world’s water future. <

ReHAU _ Statistics

* ReHAU’s specially developed pipe connection technology, the RAUtitAn PX. over 40,000,000 pieces are added each year.

Since 2008, ReHAU has manufactured more than 150,000,000 polymer fittings* for drinking water installation systems.

ReHAU _ World map


ReHAU locations:

Stat

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ARGentinA Buenos airesRosario*

AUStRAliAadelaide Brisbane Melbourne Perth Sydney

AUStRiAGraz Guntramsdorf Linz Neulengbach Vienna

AZeRBAiJAnBaku*

BelARUSMinsk

BelGiUmBrussels

BoSniA And HeRZeGoVinASarajevo

BRAZil arapongas Belo horizonte Caxias do Sul Mirassol RecifeSão Paulo

BUlGARiASofia

CAnAdA Baie-D’urféMoncton Montreal St. John’s Toronto Vancouver Winnipeg

CHileSantiago

CHinABeijing Chengdu Guangzhou TsingtaoShanghai Shenyang Taicang Xian

ColUmBiABogotáManizales

CRoAtiAZagreb

CZeCH RePUBliCJevíčkoMoravská Třebová Prague

denmARK Copenhagen

eStoniATallinn

FinlAnd helsinki

FRAnCe agen Bourges Lyon Metz Morhange Paris Poix de Picardie Rennes

GeoRGiATbilisi

GeRmAnYBerlin Bielefeld Bochum Brake erlangenFeuchtwangen Frankfurt hamburg hanover IngolstadtLeipzig Marlesreuth Mosel MunichNuremberg Rehau Stuttgart Triptis Velen Viechtach Visbek Wittmund

GReAt BRitAin amlwch aspen Blaenau Glasgow London Manchester Rowy Slough Widnes

GReeCeathensThessaloniki

HonG KonGhong Kong

HUnGARY BudapestGyör

indiA Bangalore*Bangladesh MumbaiNew DelhiPune

indoneSiA Jakarta

iRelAnd Dublin

itAlYMilan Pesaro Rome Treviso

JAPAnTokyo*

KAZAKHStAn almaty

KoReASeoul

lAtViARiga

litHUAniAVilnius

mACedoniASkopje

meXiCo/ CentRAl AmeRiCA CelayaGuadalajara LeonMexico CityMonterreyPanamaQuerétaro

moRoCCo Casablanca

netHeRlAndSNijkerk

neW ZeAlAnd auckland

noRWAYOslo

PeRULima PolAndKatowicePoznań Śrem Warsaw

PoRtUGAlLisbon Oporto

QAtARQatar*

RomAniABacău Bucarest Cluj

RUSSiA Khabarovsk Krasnodar Moscow Nischni NowgorodNovosibirsk Rostov-on-Don Samara St. Petersburg Voronezh Yekaterinburg

SeRBiABelgrade

SinGAPoReSingapore

SloVAKiABratislavaLozorno

SoUtH AFRiCA Cape TownDurbaneast London*Fort JacksonJohannesburgPort elizabeth Sebenza

SPAinBarcelonaBilbaoMadridTortosa

SWeden Örebro

SWitZeRlAnd BernVeveyZurich

tAiWAnTaipeh

tHAilAndBangkok

tURKeYIstanbulOsmaneli

UKRAineDnepropetrowskDonezkKievLvivOdessaSimferopol

United ARAB emiRAteS Dubai

USACullmanDetroitGrand RapidsLeesburgLos angelesMinneapolisSturgis

VietnAmho Chi Minh City*

* new locations

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