Market consultation: the tubular screw pump as an innovative key to sustainable water management

To gain the necessary market insights for a successful tender, the Department of MPW, PIO, and Verhaert are organizing an online market consultation. We invite the international screw pump manufacturing, hydraulic engineering, CFD, and academic research communities to join us in reviewing the project’s parameters and assessing the feasibility of the technical requirements. 

In this project, we aim to integrate pump design, structural inlet geometry, and complex fluid dynamics; therefore, we are seeking consortia or individual partners in the following fields:

• Screw pump manufacturers and engineers with specific experience in closed-impeller pump systems (with fixed or rotating casings, made of steel or composite materials).
• CFD experts and knowledge centers specializing in advanced, transient multi-phase flow fluid simulations (air-water interactions and vortices).
• Hydraulic engineers and large contractors (integrators) with experience in civil engineering renovations of pumping stations and providing system guarantees at the interface between the structural work and the pump.
• Ecological consultants and researchers in the field of fish passages and migration validation.

Both parties with proven market solutions and R&D professionals are welcome. Since we expect some technical depth in this session, we ask that your organization be represented by R&D managers, systems engineers, or business developers.

Purpose of this market consultation

During this online consultation, we aim to align our needs analysis and technical requirements with the state-of-the-art capabilities available on the market. Given the wide geographical distribution of market players, we have opted for an efficient online format to involve as many parties as possible. The outcome of the market consultation should enable us to issue an innovative public contract to address the knowledge gap regarding the reliability of screw pumps. In doing so, weaim for an integrated R&D approach involving CFD modeling, scale model testing, and a field test at the pumping station in Steenkerke. 

Specifically, we will conduct the market consultation through interactive sessions:

• Defining MOW’s challenge: explaining the long-term strategic needs and the business case for the market.
• Discussing the technical design risk and R&D scenarios: explanation of the parallel testing approach and risk reduction at the pump/structural interface.
• Mentimeter survey to gather feedback on the feasibility of the proposed performance criteria (such as minimum efficiency targets).
• The strategy regarding intellectual property (IP) and contract structure: an explanation of the policy that protects your commercial product geometry (background IP), while granting the government a one-time license to the generic curves and inlet insights (foreground IP) for Standard Specification 280 to avoid vendor lock-in
• Mentimeter survey to gauge market acceptance of this licensing structure and the contractual breakpoints (go/no-go matrix). 

Online 1-on-1 meetings

Interested market parties get the opportunity to schedule a digital one-on-one meeting with the government. During this confidential meeting, you can provide specific feedback regarding your own R&D capabilities and consortium preferences. You can indicate your interest in this via the online registration form. No preparation in the form of pitches or presentations is required.

Based on the market consultation, an anonymized public report will be prepared and shared on the project page. Participation in this market consultation has no legal impact whatsoever on the chances or opportunities to participate in the subsequent public procurement process.

Programma

Participation is completely free, but online registration is required. You can register for this market consultation and book an optional one-on-one meeting using the online form by June 16, 2026, at the latest.