Desalination & Reuse Handbook - Flipbook - Page 24
IDA
WATER SECURITY
HANDBOOK
Digital water network monitoring
Artificial intelligence in leak detection
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly used to detect leaks and optimise distribution networks, typically employing machine learning
techniques where systems adjust their decision-making process comparing inputs with actual and desired results. Based on these
comparisons, connections between units are weighted and modified to improve algorithm accuracy. Royal HaskoningDHV launched its
AI-based network optimisation technology, Aquasuite, two decades ago, while further AI tools have been released by Visenti (pressure
management), Servelec (leak detection) and Fracta (predictive maintenance) in the past few years. In June 2018 Kurita Water Industries
bought a majority stake in Fracta for around $37 million.
Leak detection from above
Satellite technology has found a new application: detecting leaks in water distribution networks. By searching for the unique salt content
of water treated to potable standards, satellite imaging uses electromagnetic waves to produce a comprehensive and detailed map of
networks and leakage. While the technology is potentially game-changing, long processing
times and variable reliability mean that satellite imagery alone is currently insufficient for
effective leak detection, and the maps produced must be cross-referenced with acoustic
data (either manual or automated) to produce useful results. Utilis, an early mover in
commercialising the technology, is in the process of partnering with Spanish leak detection
specialist Aganova to do just this.
Despite water-specific satellite technology being relatively embryonic, novel hardware
developments along with decreasing costs are likely to make leak detection through satellite
imaging both easier and cheaper. For example, the increased deployment of nanosatellites in
low Earth orbit may allow for more frequent and detailed scans of a particular location than
existing large-scale satellites, which have a much longer orbital period.
Consolidation and integration
The digital water industry is moving fast to address persistent obstacles relating to product integration and interoperability: an issue
that often limits potential clients’ willingness to adopt new technologies. Xylem’s Advanced Infrastructure Analytics combines a suite of
water- and wastewater-related acquisitions focused on leakage detection, pipeline monitoring, and network modelling to create digital
maps of a utility’s underground assets that can inform capital expenditure and asset management decisions. Visenti, also under the
Xylem umbrella, offers a similarly integrated product that combines data from multiple sensor types to provide real-time leak detection.
Xylem has been a particularly high profile advocate for product integration, acquiring Pure Technologies (pipeline diagnostics) and
EmNet (wastewater and stormwater management) in 2018, but the issue is on the minds of the entire digital water sector.
IoT integration takes a step forward with Itron acquisition of Silver Spring
Metering analytics giant Itron took a step towards creating an open and interoperable standardised communications network through its
$830 million acquisition of network provider, Silver Spring Networks, in January 2018. Silver Spring’s connectivity platform currently
connects over 27 million IoT-enabled devices, including smart water and electricity meters and smart street-lights. Its integration into
Itron’s Open-Way Riva network is a step towards the standardisation in IoT networks that has long been demanded by the water industry
to avoid the need for long and expensive investigation processes when adopting new systems. Improving connectivity between different
IoT-enabled devices through ‘mesh networks’ to transmit data along the most efficient route (for example using smart street-lights
installed with IoT-enabled communications devices) has the potential to bring down the cost of advanced metering infrastructure (AMI).
Many of our customers are small and don’t have the technological awareness or expertise to
roll out a network themselves. Most systems out there are proprietary protocols and without the
benefits of somebody who can analyse which system is best for them, they’ve shied away from
it. Standardising IoT will enable utilities to choose between different product suppliers without
having to go through an expensive investigation process. If it doesn’t work with one provider
they can easily switch.”
Gavin van Tonder, President of Itron’s water business
Smart metering widens global reach
Smart water meter adoption continues to expand far beyond traditional markets in wealthier countries. Metering giant, Kamstrup,
recently signed multiple pilot projects in the Middle East and Central Asia, as well as an MoU to supply 500,000 smart meters with
automated meter reading (AMR) capabilities to the Ghana Ministry of Water and Sanitation. Despite the increasing availability of
advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), in which drive-by data collection is unnecessary, AMR’s operational limitations are mitigated
by lower up-front costs and the ease with which the system can be upgraded to AMI capabilities at a later date. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia
recently announced the installation of almost 900,000 smart water meters, out of a target of 2.1 million by 2021, while Singapore’s PUB
is planning a ‘pilot’ project that would see the installation of 300,000 smart meters across the city.
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