PROJECT
37
Rosebank Fire Station
gets a facelift
Rosebank Fire Station has a rich heritage and a long history
dating back to the 1930s. The original building is one of the
oldest and most well known in the area.
By Dineo Phoshoko
Whilst having a captivating modern design, the
new building is still respectful to the heritage of
the protected fire station. GDM Plumbing & Projects
was responsible for all plumbing-related work
required for the new building. GDM began work
on the project in November 2016, with completion
expected at the beginning of March 2018. On the terraces, a cast-in-concrete Hydrotec floor drain
system was installed. More than 150 drains reticulate
down the side of the building in the aluminium glass
facade and are collected into a main HDPE launder pipe
in the basement levels, flowing down four basement level
floors and ultimately discharging into the municipality
stormwater system.
SYSTEM IN DETAIL
Water supply
The plumbing company installed a domestic water
supply system, which is fed from the municipal water
supply down to the fourth basement level. In the
basement, the water is stored in two 5 000ℓ Jojo
tanks. The water from the system is used to supply the
building’s various sanitary fittings. Another area of the building that required a stormwater
system is the car park. For this, two sump pumps were
installed in catch pits in the building. This catches any
subsurface and car park run-off and pumps it from the
building into the municipality stormwater system.
The water is then pumped up the 16 storeys of the
building through a Grundfos Hydro MPC-E 3 booster
pump in a main water line (80mm galvanised pipe).
GDM used pressure-reducing valves (PRVs) to create
distinctive pressure zones on the various floors of the
building, whilst maintaining the higher pressure in the
main line to reach the upper levels of the building. The
water splits off the main galvanised line and is fed via
the Geberit Mepla pipe system to numerous ablution
blocks and kitchenettes.
Sewer
For the sewer waste system, Geberit’s HDPE pipes were
installed to collect all sewer waste and feed it to the
external municipal sewer line.
Stormwater drainage
GDM also worked on the stormwater drainage system
for the building. For roof drainage, the Geberit Pluvia
syphonic rainwater collection system was incorporated
on the roof of the building. This is made up of 12
outlets on two floors that collect all water and reticulate
it down to the ground floor and into the municipality
stormwater system.
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Power supply and backup
The Grundfos booster pump uses an electrical feed to
pump water from the basement to the entire building. To
cater for power disruptions, the design team has made
provision for the pump system to use power from the
backup generator system. In the event of a municipal
water cut, the two JoJo tanks store enough water to
supply the building for eight hours during the water cut.
CHALLENGES DURING THE PROJECT
Working on a project of this magnitude, one is bound to
experience numerous challenges. The biggest challenge
for this project was installing the over 150 cast-in-floor
drains to accommodate stormwater from the terrace
areas. These needed to be perfectly aligned and spaced
in confined areas. The main contractor, Aveng Grinaker-
LTA, came up with a temporary steel channel system
that was placed onto formwork decks prior to pouring
concrete. The drains were then fixed directly to the
system and the temporary steel system later removed.
Another challenge was dealing with 10 different sewer
stacks that ran directly through tenant office space.
This would have been an enormous