ENSURING CONTINUITY
AND WATER QUALITY
UNDER ALL CONDITIONS
The construction of the new plant for the Nossana spring (BG) represents a strategic intervention for the safety and quality of drinking water supply for Bergamo and its surrounding area.
The project, developed for Uniacque and financed by Sanpellegrino, includes the introduction of advanced solutions to ensure service continuity and infrastructure resilience.
per second
of treatable
water
to be installed
ultrafiltration surface
THE CHALLENGE OF QUALITY IN SPRING WATER
The management of spring water is increasingly exposed to variability and operational challenges.
In recent years:
extreme weather events have affected turbidity and water quality
the need to ensure service continuity under all conditions has increased
quality standards and regulatory requirements have increased
In this context, upgrading infrastructure becomes a key lever for the safety and reliability of the water service.
THE NOSSANA PROJECT – UNIACQUE, SANPELLEGRINO & AQUANEXA
Operational resilience for a strategic spring in the Bergamo area.
This project represents a concrete example of our commitment undertaken through the F.O.N.T.E. program to contribute to the regeneration of hydrological cycles, to the protection and sustainable management of water resources in the territories where we operate.
Investing in resilient infrastructure means creating shared value for communities and for the future of the territory.”
Alessandro Negri,
Sustainability Delivery Manager Water Regeneration
San Pellegrino
THE CLIENT
Sanpellegrino S.p.A., a company of international relevance in the beverage sector and historically linked to the enhancement of local water resources, fully financed the intervention within the F.O.N.T.E. program (Future, Origin, Nature, Territory, Ecosystems) as one of its water regeneration projects.
THE BENEFICIARY
Uniacque S.p.A. is the operator of the Integrated Water Service of the Province of Bergamo. It is responsible for water abstraction, drinking water treatment, distribution, sewerage and wastewater treatment, operating in a territory characterized by a strong mountainous component and numerous strategic springs.
Among these, the Nossana spring represents one of the main sources of drinking water supply for the city of Bergamo and its surrounding area, with an average flow rate of approximately 800 liters per second and a service that reaches around 315,000 inhabitants.
THE PROBLEM
The management of the Nossana spring presented critical issues related to variability in water quality, particularly in the case of intense weather events that increase turbidity.
This was combined with the need to manage high flow rates from a strategic source, while ensuring service continuity and compliance with the required quality standards.
THE RISK
Without a structured intervention, the system would have remained exposed to several operational and management risks:
• possible interruption or limitation of the water service
• impacts on civil and industrial users
• difficulty in ensuring consistent quality standards
• reputational risk for the operator
• environmental impacts linked to non-optimal resource management
THE NEED
An intervention was required capable of strengthening the reliability and resilience of the infrastructure, through the design of a new plant and the integration of advanced technological solutions, in order to:
• manage high flow rates under variable conditions
• ensure service continuity even in critical scenarios
• comply with defined technical and economic timelines and requirements
AQUANEXA’S INTERVENTION
An integrated engineering and design approach for the construction of a reliable,
resilient plant focused on service quality.
“Working on a strategic spring such as Nossana requires a design approach capable of integrating hydraulic, plant engineering and process aspects. Our contribution is to translate complex needs into reliable and long-lasting technical solutions, designed to ensure service continuity even under the most critical conditions.”
Enrico Di Rubba,
Direttore BU Infrastructures & Plants Aquanexa
PROJECT GOVERNANCE
AND EXPERTISE
The complexity of the intervention – still ongoing – required a multidisciplinary approach, capable of integrating expertise in hydraulic engineering, filtration processes, electrical systems and automation.
In this context, Aquanexa – through TEC AM – contributed to the development of the executive design, ensuring technical coordination among the various stakeholders involved and consistency between design solutions, operational requirements and client objectives.
The team’s contribution covers the main activities of:
- BIM design with development of the plant’s digital model
- structural design of the building and metal structures
- hydraulic and process engineering design
- electrical design and automation systems
- risk analysis and definition of technical solutions
- coordination with designers and operational partners
- technical support throughout the project development phases
The key element is the ability to operate in a multi-stakeholder context, facilitating dialogue between operator, funder and technical partners, and ensuring project progress consistent with timelines and requirements.
The construction of the new plant for the Nossana spring significantly strengthens the reliability of the water supply system. The intervention will allow us to manage even critical situations related to resource availability with greater safety, ensuring continuity and high standards for citizens and businesses.”
Pierangelo Bertocchi,
CEO Uniacque S.p.A.
THE PROJECT
The project was developed starting from the analysis of the final design resulting from the collaboration between Sanpellegrino and Uniacque S.p.A., with the objective of defining a technical-economic proposal capable of meeting the requirements of reliability, quality and service continuity.
The project required and requires:
• 1 digital BIM model of the plant
• 8 working teams including Designers, Contractors, Construction Management and Clients
• 50+ workers involved in construction
The activities were structured into coordinated successive phases, some already completed and others currently in progress:
• analysis of the final design and definition of the proposal
• executive design of the plant
• construction works
• testing and commissioning
• temporary management and monitoring phase
The intervention aims at the construction of a new filtration plant designed to manage variable operating conditions, ensuring high performance even in the presence of critical issues related to the quality of the incoming water.
“Every design choice was guided by a precise objective: ensuring service continuity. This means designing not only for ideal conditions, but above all for critical ones, anticipating problems and building flexible solutions capable of effectively adapting to the changing needs of the water service.”
Eng. Fabio Gagni,
co-designer and Construction Manager,
Taccolini Ingegneri Associati (Bergamo)
RESULTS
The intervention aims to deliver concrete benefits in terms of reliability, service quality and plant performance:
Increase in infrastructure reliability and durability
Improvement in the quality of treated water
Greater capacity to manage flow rates
Reduction of operational risks
Energy efficiency of the plant
The project also aims to strengthen the overall resilience of the water supply system, ensuring greater continuity of service for the territory.
WHAT MADE
THE DIFFERENCE
The value of the intervention lies in the ability to integrate technical expertise and design vision, transforming an infrastructure requirement into a project focused on resilience and risk management.
Among the distinguishing elements:
Integrated technical-strategic approach
Ability to coordinate different stakeholders
Digital BIM digitale
Systemic vision of the water service
Anticipation of operational criticalities
Design focused on continuity and quality of service
SERVICES AND SOLUTIONS
ENABLING
Within the project, the technical and operational approach was made possible by a series of enabling services along the value chain, which made it possible to collect reliable data, analyze it in depth and correctly diagnose the state of the network:
INFRASTRUCTURE
AND PLANTS
FURTHER DEVELOPMENT
The value chain can evolve through a series of action-oriented services, a natural extension of the enabling activities, to transform collected data into concrete interventions in the field and decision-making tools for proactive network management:
DATA MEASURING
& IOT
DIGITAL
PLATFORMS
PARTNERS INVOLVED
DO YOU WANT TO LEARN MORE?
DO YOU HAVE A NETWORK TO ANALYZE, MANAGE OR IMPROVE?
This intervention is just one example. Every network is different, but the method is replicable.
Discover how an integrated and scalable approach can make a difference in your operational context. Fill out the form below and an Aquanexa expert will contact you.