South Australia's $403 Million North South Interconnection System Project (NSISP) Uses A "Super" Valve To Perform In A Variety Of Extreme Conditions

By Celso Iglesias and Mark Gimson

NSISP is one of South Australian Water Corporation’s (SA Water) biggest infrastructure projects undertaken in Adelaide metropolitan to connect the north and south drinking water distribution systems and to increase access to their desalination plant. The project included the construction of 32 km of pipeline through metropolitan main roads and suburban inner streets. This is no small feat and getting it done right meant fitting together a lot of different moving pieces.

To deliver this project, SA Water assembled an Integrated Project Team comprising staff from a range of private sector companies in order to secure the right expertise and skills necessary for the success of the project.  A Managing Contractor framework was established to deliver the ancillaries program across the entire water network.   The John Holland Group partnered with Leed Engineering as to design, construct and local commission new valve stations and upgrades to the existing network.  Robert Bonner, Commissioning & Handover Manager for John Holland, said, “We knew our biggest challenge was going to be to complete this quickly and efficiently to allow the continuing success of the wider NSISP team to hit their milestone dates.”