"Rohrbert" - Waterworks Nottuln

"It's nice that he is back," says a cyclist who is currently out and about with his dog in the Nonnenbachtal. "My grandson will surely be happy about it," he says, stopping to watch the little spectacle at the waterworks up close.
“Rohrbert,” the blue mascot of the Nottuln waterworks, is being transported back to his usual spot with the help of a wheel loader.
Many hands are needed for this task. After all, the big guy weighs about 1.3 tons, including the concrete base, estimates Franz-Josef Barth, head of the waterworks.
It will take a while until the concrete base, on which the running “Rohrbert” is firmly mounted, is back in place on the grass area in front of the waterworks. However, with the help of the wheel loader, expertly maneuvered by Stefan Langner, the whole operation almost becomes child's play.
Quickly, the grass sods around the base are relaid and pressed down, and then it looks as if “Rohrbert” was never gone.
But the iron man was undergoing restoration for a good six weeks. "We replaced the nuts and bolts, oiled and lubricated them, cleaned the figure completely, and it also got a new coat of paint," describes Franz-Josef Barth the work carried out by the waterworks employees in their spare time. "Whenever there was time, we worked on 'Rohrbert'," Barth says.
An effort that was worth it: Since Tuesday, “Rohrbert” shines again in new splendor.

Since 2010, the brightly painted blue figure, assembled from parts of water pipes and holding a water meter and a piece of plastic pipe in its iron hands, has stood in front of the waterworks in the Nonnenbachtal and has become the mascot of the waterworks team over the past seven years – originally conceived as a way to teach an apprentice at the waterworks about soldering and welding in a very practical way.

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