The Badger Meter acquisition of UK-based sewer monitoring specialist UDlive marks another significant milestone in the company’s strategy to build one of the water sector’s most comprehensive digital intelligence portfolios. The move not only strengthens the company’s BlueEdge® suite of water management solutions but also reinforces its growing position as a key technology partner for UK water utilities navigating increasing regulatory, environmental and operational challenges.
Completed in May 2026, the acquisition brings UDlive’s established sewer network monitoring capabilities into the BlueEdge ecosystem alongside SmartCover®. Together, the two solutions create a powerful global offering, combining SmartCover’s collection system monitoring presence in North America with UDlive’s leadership position in the UK sewer monitoring market.
UDlive has built a strong reputation among UK water companies through its low-power, easy-to-deploy sewer level sensors and cloud-based analytics platform. The technology provides utilities with continuous visibility of sewer network conditions, helping operators identify blockages, inflow and infiltration (I&I) issues and potential overflow risks before they escalate into costly incidents. With increasing scrutiny around storm overflows and wastewater performance, the addition of UDlive further enhances the company’s ability to support proactive network management with BlueEdge.
The acquisition, however, is just the latest step in Badger Meter’s broader strategy to expand beyond traditional metering and establish a leadership position in smart water management across the UK.
A particular strength of the company’s UK portfolio is its depth in water quality monitoring. Through the acquisitions of s::can and Analytical Technology, Inc. (ATi), the company has assembled a comprehensive suite of real-time monitoring technologies capable of measuring a wide range of water quality parameters across drinking water, wastewater and environmental applications.
These solutions enable utilities to continuously monitor key indicators such as turbidity, organic loading, nutrient levels, dissolved oxygen, residual disinfectants and other critical parameters. Real-time visibility is becoming increasingly important as water companies seek to optimise treatment performance, improve regulatory compliance and respond more rapidly to changing network conditions. Combined with powerful software analytics, these sensors support actionable operational intelligence for end customers.
For UK water companies facing ambitious leakage reduction targets and increasing pressure to enhance network resilience, the capabilities of high-resolution pressure transient monitoring, helping utilities identify bursts, manage pressure events and reduce leakage across distribution networks are highly relevant. High-frequency pressure monitoring allows utilities to move from reactive maintenance toward predictive asset management, extending infrastructure life while minimising service disruptions.
Through BlueEdge, Badger Meter offers UK utilities an integrated approach spanning flow measurement, water quality, pressure management, leak detection and sewer monitoring. As the sector increasingly embraces digital transformation, this breadth of capability positions the company as one of the most comprehensive providers of smart water solutions in the UK market.
Find Badger Meter with UDlive at the IWA World Water Congress in Glasgow October 4-8th.
