From the 9th to the 11th of February three teams of professionals and one team of students took on the Levee Challenge in the Living Lab Hedwige-Prosperpolder. 

The teams had the following tasks:

• To repair a damaged levee as well as possible with surface protection measures within a timeframe of four hours, with a budget of 750 euros 
• The reparation of the levee needed to be sufficient to withstand a series of wave overtopping generated with the wave overtopping simulator.

Four teams

Four very skilled teams participated in this challenge. Three teams of professionals and one team of students competed against each other. They were:

1.    Team Bruges4Dike - students from KU Leuven, Bruges campus
2.    Team Bert’s Wig - experts from CTW
3.    Team Hoog en Droog (High and Dry) - experts and trainees from Rijkswaterstaat 
4.    Team De Vlaamse Waterweg – experts from the Flemish organisation that manages the Waterways in Flanders.

See the teams below from left to right, Bruges4Dike, Bert's Wig, Hoog en Droog and Vlaamse Waterweg.

Jury reports

The jury appreciated all the solutions very much and thought the teams prepared and executed the repairs effectively. Some comments on the teams’ performances:

Team Hoog & Droog: a reasonable storyline, a clear structured report, a scientific approach on the design. The solution offered a surprising result and has the potential of a permanent solution.

Team Bert’s Wig: the report was clear and concise, it was undoubtedly an innovative solution and multiple factors were accounted for, such as damage control. The solution showed a lot of flexibility and was easy to install. An out of the box idea.

Team Bruges4Dike: an extensive report, a solution that also held into practice. Good to see that the solution not only works for constant flow but also for wave overtopping. It is easy to apply, flexible, low weight, can be carried by hand and only minor damage occurred. Also, it has little impact on the environment. Big compliment on the self-reflection of the team. 

Team Vlaamse Waterweg: a solution that could be used in a handbook and shows new techniques and material, designed to last a storm and it seems to be able to last several storms. It fits the levee’s integrity.

The awards go to…

The teams could win a total of four prizes.

1. Innovation award
   This award is for innovative value based on the overall score of several criteria, such as durability, potential & value, method & implementation, practical feasibility, future potential and innovation.
   Overall, based on the criteria, team Bruges4Dike came out as the winner. 
2. Sustainability and Durability award
   The team that offered the most sustainable and durable solution wins this award. Important aspects are how long the solution lasts, maintainability, impact on the environment, impact on health and people, economic viability and more. 
   Team Vlaamse Waterweg won this award with a score of 80% on sustainability and durability.
3. Budget award 
   This award is based on what the solution cost per m2. 
   Team Bert’s Wig was the clear winner of the budget award with total costs of 584,34 euros. They spent more than 100 euros less than the runner up.
4. Promotional video award 
   The final award goes to the team that is best at selling their repairing solution in a promotional video. The team who gets the most likes on YouTube wins. Three of the teams completed a promotional video; Team Bruges4Dike, Team Hoog en Droog and Team Bert’s Wig. 
   Team Hoog en Droog won this prize with 32 likes on YouTube.

Congratulations to all the teams for winning these prizes. We thank all teams for their hard work, enthusiasm and the interesting solutions that they showed during the Levee Challenge. 

Read more

Read more about the Levee Challenge or watch the video playlist of the Levee Challenge on YouTube.