Match at RDM

How

Erik Leenart of Leenheer BV posted a call on LinkedIn that they were looking for someone with AutoCAD knowledge, or rather the software AutoSPRINK. The ball started rolling, via Marc Oosterveer of iTanks, a knowledge and innovation platform on RDM. His office is just a few meters down the quay. Marc shared the call, and less than 100 meters away, in the RDM Innovation Dock, Gertjan Vermaas of Machine Design read the mail, grabbed the phone, and within the hour they were sitting at the table at RDM. Simão Veloso and Richard Bruijn of Machine Design are both engineers and trained in Mechanics & Fluid Dynamics and already have a lot of experience with CAD systems. In short, a ‘match made’ at RDM.

The software

Erik: “The AutoSPRINK software is still hardly used in the Netherlands. It is software that is used for the 3D design of pipes and the calculation of sprinkler installations. It is therefore quite complicated; we want to use it to calculate flushing protocols. Simão and Richard from Machine Design are real experts, they draw and let the software do the math.” Richard: “We really had to dive into the software; we do have experience, but this software was also new to us. A fantastic challenge! Fortunately, we have close contact with the AutoSPRINK helpdesk.” “They really help us a lot,” agrees Simão.

Flushing protocol

Adrian de Graaf of Leenheer: “Our customers are required by law and regulation to flush a pipe at least twice in a year at a minimum of 3 m3 per second. That is a given. Often these are huge pipeline systems, sometimes up to 60 km long. We then receive a drawing from the customer. Such a system has to be divided up into sections, which cannot always be done in one go. This requires all kinds of hydrostatic calculations, which can be done with AutoSPRINK. In this way, customers now receive a calculated flushing protocol that they can carry out step by step. They can then open and close hydrants and valves and turn pumps on and off themselves. You simulate the flow of water with a computer program. If the pipes are dirty, for example, you get different results from the calculations. The software then tells you whether the route will achieve the m3 volume per second and whether the flushing is going well.”

Network

“Not only do we find each other quickly on RDM, but it also avoids a lot of travel time,” Erik says. “We can work together remotely, but it’s so much easier when you’re near each other,” Richard adds. Especially in the beginning of the project. Erik: “Trust is important. It’s nice to have these guys so close. I find that easier to work with. Especially when you start something new, you want to see each other. You build experience together and you learn a common language.”

Future

Simão: “We immediately started two projects after our first meeting. One pilot to investigate AutoSPRINK’s new software and the other project was site mapping. Both projects have now been completed.” Erik: “But that’s certainly not the end of it. This is a long-term collaboration. We have many more such assignments.”

Innovation

Erik: “Basically, innovation is adding value to your process, and that’s what we do. The program AutoSPRINK is not necessarily made for this purpose; it is used for above-ground sprinkler systems, but we are going to use it for underground fire-sprinkler systems. The innovation is also in the collaboration. We could not do this alone, and we are now one of the few companies that can start offering this.”