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Innovation took centre stage as the H2O Awards 2018 were assigned.
CH4 underlined the need to resolve the stalemate concerning contests for gas contracts
and warned that failure to do so would eliminate the potential for innovation
H2O 2018 has concluded with an increase in visitor numbers of over 10% and the number of foreign operators up by 20% compared with the 2016 edition. 6,030 m2 of exhibition space, 302 companies and more than 350 B2B meetings with official delegations from foreign operators from Azerbaijan, Georgia, India, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldavia and Russia, in addition to the representatives of the water authorities of countries that belong to the WAREG network of European Water Regulators. The event, which is organised by BolognaFiere with the support of the Italian Ministry of the Environment and Protection of the Territories and the Seas as well as the Emilia-Romagna Regional Administration, demonstrated how it has managed to place itself at the centre of the international landscape. Three days with innovative products from the sector in a context that has given a voice to all of the operators capable of creating value in the various fields that impact on the water sector: civil, industrial, agricultural. The event values the interest of the visiting public as it does the industrial supply chain, which is becoming increasingly sophisticated, and offers a healthy boost to the sector as a whole.
Innovation was the key feature of the 2018 edition of H2O, a positive signal indicating that the business fabric of companies in the sector is proactive in responding in an effective way to the demand for modernisation and development of the integrated water system and the sector of natural gas.
The H2O report, curated by CRESME, was presented on the opening day “The first joint report and forecast concerning innovation and the market for networks and water, sewage and treatment systems in Italy 2018-2020”. According to the data in the report, Italy is the second country in Europe, after Spain, in terms of irrigated land. In 2017 the civil sector extracted 9 billion cubic metres of water, of which 8.3 billion cubic metres reached the municipal networks and 4.9 billion cubic metres arrived at Italian households. 4.1 billion cubic metres of water were lost from the distribution network, the share of total water leaks reached almost 41.4%. Last year agriculture withdrew 17 billion cubic metres of water and consumed 14,5 billion, losing 2.5 billion cubic metres of water.
On the evening of Thursday 18 October, the winners of the “H2O Awards” were announced. The competition showcases the best innovations as selected by a special technical commission of experts from the worlds of science, utilities and associations. From a total of 94 participating products, 17 H2O Awards were presented.
H2O, instrumentation:
- Maddalena spa with ElecTo Sonic, an electronic and ultrasound water meter that offers flexible connectivity to the world of IoT and supports long distance communications technology.
- Temi Tecnologie srl with Sigrist Bactosense, the new battery-powered drinking water analyser that detects 99.9% of the bacterial presence in less than 20 minutes.
- Isoli Industria spa with the new in line monitoring system pipe::scan for analysing the quality of drinking water at any point on the network and at pressures of up to 10 bar.
H2O, pumps, machinery and systems:
- ITACA srl with the BFIPRO technology, an eco-sustainable solution for eliminating legionella and its reproduction through ionization with copper and silver.
- PR Raimondi Valves srl with the rotating disk valve PR TIME VALVE, which is used to intercept dense muddy fluids.
- Xylem Water Solution Italia srl with the adaptive Flygt mixing system that, thanks to the use of a highly efficient hydraulic mixer and permanent magnetic motors, offers clear energy and operational benefits.
H2O, pipes-wells:
- Centraltubi spa - System Group with the COR+ technology, an innovative system that revolutionises the world of waste pipes, moving beyond the concept of the spigot joint.
- Nova Siria srl with the cQuick system, the two-piece repair joint that offers a rapid and valid solution for carrying out permanent repairs to leakages deriving from cement asbestos sleeves, cast iron spigot joints or any other type of leak.
- Ritech srl the DynTec Rotech system for the renovation of hanging water pipes.
H2O, software applications-services:
- Fast spa with the product Aqualog-AW, a control system for water networks that enables control of the valves managing pressure and loads in different modalities
- Grundfos Pompe Italia srl with GCM: Grundfos Condition Monitoring, an innovative cloud-based monitoring system that, by using a single sensor to transfer information about the operations of a pump, enables predictive evaluations.
- 2F Water Venture srl, with the LIGHTHOUSE technology – a robot at the service of the water utilities, enabling the prediction of up to 70% of the breakages in pipes with at least 3 months advance warning.
CH4, services:
- Pergam Italia srl with LMC, a system installable on drones for locating gas leaks.
- Utiliteam Co srl with the instrument for business plan modelling for gas management, based on over 5 years of experience in providing consultancy for the definition of Business Plans for contract tenders.
CH4, products:
- Benassi srl Infrastructure Technologies with SAERTEX-LINER Gas for the repair of gas pipes at pressures of up to 2 bar.
- Rubinetterie Bresciane Bonomi spa with the gas counter valve with an electronic lock activated and powered by a USB key that enables the digital management of user IDs as opposed to the current system of mechanical keys.
- Soritecnica srl – TEEKAY with the definitive repair collars with NBR seals approved for gas.
At the H2O event, as part of the CH4 exhibition, which developed an exhibition itinerary and discussions about technologies and systems for the transport and distribution of gas, talks also took place concerning the tenders for gas with two particularly well-attended events, organised respectively by Unica Reti and Uniatem. The topic of gas contracts is extremely delicate and equally urgent, involving private owners of the networks, investments made and the role of the municipalities. There are numerous obstacles to overcome as well as interests to safeguard. In 2000 the Letta Decree was published only to be enacted 11 years later and the contests have been practically forgotten. Since 2012, only 2 of 177 of the Ambiti Territoriali Minimi (Atem) areas have proceeded to the auctions for the assignment of the service of natural gas distribution and the successive activities by the Contractual Counterparts. The cities of Milan and Turin have completed the procedure, identified the successful bid and are in the process of assigning the contracts, while the rest of Italy is silent. This situation has meant that investment and innovation in the sector have effectively flatlined, and this has negative repercussions across the entire industry.
See you at H20 2020.
