Hugues Haeffner, Smart Metering Project Director at SUEZ, recently emphasized the transformative potential of smart metering and high connectivity in water management. He highlighted how these technologies could revolutionise the way we manage and conserve water, our most precious resource.
Smart metering, when combined with high connectivity, can provide more accurate billing, identify network leakage, improve efficiency, and help meet industry targets. It can also play a crucial role in identifying and reducing customer-side leakage and Per Capita Consumption (PCC). With additional data analysis, smart metering can highlight profile usage and encourage water efficiency, promoting conservation and sustainability.
Haeffner explained that with more granular reading and consistent high connectivity, we can harness the power of data to gain deeper insights into what is happening in homes, businesses, and utilities’ water networks. However, the effectiveness of this approach hinges on the level of connectivity.
At 85% connectivity on a daily basis and 95% over a week, water companies can gather enough information for billing purposes. However, to extract real value from smart metering, higher connectivity is required to access more detailed information from the meter. At 95% complete data on a daily basis and with minimum night flows, the utility will be able to provide the home or business with their daily consumption and issue leakage alerts.
Haeffner pointed out that customer-side leakage amounts to 10% of consumption and network leakage is close to 30% of consumption. Without the data from this higher level of connectivity, the UK water utilities may struggle to tackle the problem effectively.
With 95-98% daily connectivity, combined with the power of edge computing, utilities can provide customers with precise information on their consumption habits. The UK targets are that by 2030, PCC needs to be down by 4%, by 2038 by 20%, and the national goal is 110 litres per person per day. Without the awareness that comes with this level of data analysis, people will struggle to understand where and how they can reduce their water usage.
As UK utilities are expected to spend £1.5 billion on smart meter rollouts during the 2025-30 AMP cycle in England and Wales, it is important that their investment is spent wisely; that the return on investment materialises in terms of lower leakage and reduced consumption.
Haeffner concluded by emphasizing the need for smart metering systems equipped with the right levels of connectivity and suitable analytic capabilities. These are crucial for reducing leaks and enhancing the efficiency of water usage in both households and non-household settings. He urged the industry to embrace this digital transformation for a more efficient and sustainable water industry.
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