Test setup

The test setup IJkdijk is the location for two activities:
1. Having new sensor, inspection and observation techniques tested and validated by participating companies.
2. Conducting experiments to answer water barrier managers' questions in order to improve the inspection process.

The test levees can be experimentally subjected to such forces that they collapse under controlled conditions. That yields information about:
- the suitability of sensor and communication technology for monitoring levees;
- the yield mechanisms and the prediction of the moment of collapse based on the measurement values provided by the sensors;
- the yield mechanisms in relation to the structure and base of the levee;
- the validity of current and future models for these yield mechanisms;
- the best price/quality ratios of the systems on offer for large-scale applications;
- technological issues in sensor and communication technology that have yet to be solved;
- possible scenarios for the large-scale application of sensor and communication technology, both technologically and organisationally aimed at management but also at disaster prevention.

The project thus generates valuable information for agencies involved in water and water barrier management in the Netherlands, especially water boards and Rijkswaterstaat (the Directorate General for Public Works and Water Management). That information could result in a substantial improvement in the effectiveness and efficiency of water management.  Additionally, the project will provide insights in the area of sensor technology and will also form a test bed that can be used by sensor technology developers.