- Peak consumption places high demands on water and wastewater networks
- Touchless taps and flushing systems ensure cleanliness and less water consumption
Frankfurt, May 5, 2022 – On the occasion of today's World Hand Hygiene Day, the VDMA Valves Association is drawing attention to the fact that hand hygiene and saving water do not have to be contradictory, even in soccer stadiums.
The numerous relaxations of the Corona rules make it possible: Finally, the Bundesliga stadiums are well filled again. But only very few people know what is hidden behind the smart facades of the soccer stadiums: the sanitary supply of tens of thousands of spectators alone is a huge challenge for the technical equipment of modern arenas, as the VDMA Blue Responsibility initiative points out.
"Depending on its size and capacity, a professional soccer stadium consumes around 570,000 liters of drinking water during a first division match," explains Wolfgang Burchard, managing director of the VDMA Valves Association and spokesman for the Blue Responsibility initiative. "Energy, water and wastewater networks are therefore particularly challenged." On the other hand, soccer stadiums only see sufficient use of water delivery points every two weeks. As a result, the water stagnates in the time between matches, providing microbial pathogens with ideal conditions for rapid multiplication.
"Modern stadiums, however, are prepared for this," Burchard points out. "Their operators rely on fittings that meet high standards of hygiene and resource conservation." Examples include non-contact faucets and urinal controls. Taps with smooth, homogeneous, and non-porous surfaces that do not provide surfaces for dirt and bacteria to attack and require fewer cleaning agents are also an environmentally friendly solution. Automatic flushing systems flush out stagnant water as needed during interruptions in operation, thus ensuring regular water replacement. High-quality valves technology thus makes life difficult for dangerous legionella bacteria and is able to sustainably improve drinking water hygiene in stadiums. This means that the next season can go off without a hitch.
Under the umbrella of the Blue Responsibility initiative, leading brand manufacturers in the industry that are members of VDMA Armaturen provide information about their sustainable corporate philosophies. Blue Responsibility is an expression of their shared self-image of responsible use of our natural resources. You can find out more at www.blue-responsibility.net.
Do you have any further questions? Inga Kelkenberg, VDMA Valves,
+49 69 6603 1549, inga.kelkenberg@vdma.org, will be happy to answer.
The VDMA represents more than 3,400 German and European companies of the mechanical engineering industry. The industry stands for innovation, export orientation and medium-sized businesses. The companies employ around four million people in Europe, more than one million of them in Germany. Mechanical and plant engineering represents a European turnover volume of around 800 billion euros. With a net value added of around 270 billion euros, it contributes the highest share of the entire manufacturing sector to the European gross domestic product.