Ministry encourages use of trenchless technology

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Public Works and Housing Ministry encourages the use of trenchless technology as an important component in the country's 2015-2019, US$460 billion infrastructure development programme, through the Trenchless Asia 2019 international exhibition held at the Jakarta International Expo (JIExpo), July 17-18.


Trenchless techniques which provide economic solutions and reduced environmental impact, during the installation and refurbishment of underground services, is a new technology in infrastructure development in the country.

"This exhibition and workshop is a major opportunity for us to see the development of trenchless technology," the ministry's Director General of Construction Syarif Burhanuddin said at the opening of Trenchless Asia 2019 in Jakarta, Wednesday.

Trenchless technology is a type of subsurface construction work that requires few trenches or no continuous trenches. It integrates digital technology and construction services that are used to install underground infrastructures without disturbing the buildings or landscapes above it.

The technology is claimed to reduce social impacts on conditions around project locations, as well as to reduce work accidents and duration of the project so the costs will be cheaper, without reducing the quality of the project.

"Our construction projects have been disrupting roads and traffic. With this environmentally friendly technology, we hope the construction project will not disturb people's activities," Burhanuddin noted.

According to Burhanuddin, trenchless technology had been used in 2015, especially in oil and gas drilling areas. A number of projects in Indonesia have also used the technology for the construction of wastewater treatment and drinking water.

The Public Works and Housing Ministry has begun to use trenchless technology on several projects, such as the Ciliwung River line in Jakarta, the Banjir Kanal Timur (East Flood Canal) in Semarang, the Cisumdawu toll road construction project in West Java, as well as waste water development projects in several major cities in the country, including in Denpasar, Yogyakarta and Medan.

In addition, a study of the direct costs incurred by the trenchless method, compared to the conventional method of open trench, shows that the use of trenchless technology only costs US$3.12/m3 compared to US$18.46/m3 in the open trench method.

Trenchless Asia 2019 is held by the Public Works and Housing Ministry in collaboration with the International Society for Trenchless Technology (ISTT), the National Construction Services Development Agency (LPJKN) and Westrade Group United Kingdom LTd.

The exhibition was attended by approximately 30 countries from Europe, America and Asia, targeting visitors and participants from Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, India and Thailand.

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