The Water Tower Conservation Project as Sustainable Industrial Heritage Restoration, has been awarded the prestigious Energy Globe national award by Energy Globe International in 2022. The is considered as the most important Award for Sustainability worldwide.
This project was funded through the ReSHEALience Horizon 2020 project in Ultra-High Performance Concrete (European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research & Innovation programme under Grant Agreement No 760824), the University of Malta, the Public Abattoir, the Government of Malta and the Planning Authority. It was led by Prof. Ruben Paul Borg, Construction Materials Engineering Research Group, Faculty for the Built Environment at the University of Malta.
The Water Tower constructed in the 1930s, stands as a key representative of the Industrial Heritage in the Maltese Islands which, until now, has been largely ignored. The structure which was set for demolition in 2010, has been restored, through advanced engineering solutions, innovation in high-performance materials and sensor systems, with potential for wider applications and interventions in Buildings and Infrastructure in Malta.
The restoration project had been recognised at the Malta Architecture and Spatial Planning Awards in 2021. The project was also awarded the Prix d'Honneur in Restoration for “the outstanding contribution to Maltese Cultural Heritage and the achievement of architectural excellence in Malta” and the 2021 Judge Maurice Caruana Curran Award for the best project in all categories, by Din l-Art Ħelwa.
The reinforced concrete water tower was constructed in the 1930s to serve the needs of the Public Abattoir. It is the only structure of its type and size in the Maltese Islands and consists of a reinforced concrete structure c.15 m high with a c. 10m diameter tank having a capacity of 400 cubic m. The tank consists of a shell structure with a cylindrical drum resting on a truncated conical structure with a dome at the base and ring beams, supported on 12 slender reinforced concrete columns. The structure had been considered for demolition in 2010 as a result of severe degradation and significant loss of section particularly of the shell structure of the tank. The case for the conservation of the unique water tower was made by the University of Malta, leading to a strategic conservation programme.
The project required the development of new methodologies in the emerging field of reinforced concrete conservation, which had to be designed for the complex structure whilst effectively addressing the severe degradation.
The intervention was conducted on the basis of scientific restoration methodologies and included key strategic steps in the assessment of the structure. New complex techniques for restoration were developed and applied in the resoration project. Ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) with increased ductility, self-healing and self-compacting properties, based on nano-additives, together with carbon textile reinforced high-performance concrete were developed and tested at the University of Malta, and then applied to the Water Tower.
An advanced sensor network system based on 150 sensors for monitoring over time was designed based on durability monitoring, structural health monitoring and environmental monitoring, through the collaboration of the Faculty for the Built Environment and the Department of Nano and Micro Electronics. The Government of Malta and the University of Malta entered into a new framework agreement, setting up of the Water Tower research and monitoring station.
The complex restoration of the Water Tower has led to its Scheduling as a Grade 1 National Monument in 2022, marking a first important step towards a wider appreciation of Industrial Heritage in the Maltese Islands.
