PRODUCTS
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PRODUCTS
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Digitisation of water processes saves
almost 40% in costs
Key plant processes within the water and
wastewater operations can now be digitised,
which can generate 20-40% in cost savings.
This is good news, especially for an industry
under pressure to both lower operating
expenditure (OpEx) and manage an ageing
workforce.
“Trends such as the Industrial Internet of
Things (IIoT), cloud computing and ‘edge’
control are emerging as technology engines
that present cost-effective options for
modernising operations,” explains Jacques
Squire, Water and Wastewater Segment
Leader at Schneider Electric South Africa.
“It is estimated in South Africa that almost
50% of existing wastewater treatment
infrastructures are not functioning adequately
and require some form of intervention. As
water systems’ physical assets age, the
cost of maintenance rises exponentially, and
instances of downtime increase in frequency.
Maintenance is often performed in a reactive
mode; only once equipment breaks down.
During such instances, stress levels are high,
productivity is lost, and costs accelerate.
“These technologies will both enhance
knowledge retention and provide more
flexibility when managing a changing
workforce – another crucial part of the
modernisation puzzle, which requires careful
consideration. Digital technologies will be
key for attracting and training new workers
now and into the future. Such tools also
enhance the ability of the plant to capture the
knowledge of the more experienced workers
so that it can be shared with the new
generation of incoming workers.”
An example is England’s Anglian Water
company, which covers a geographical
radius of 16 100km, 12 000 remote stations
and 630 000 telemetry data points. The
company also has 25 years’ worth of data
since the time an old system was installed
in the 1970s. In order to complete its
modernisation project successfully, it needed
to migrate this data and integrate it with
existing systems, while still maintaining
operations. The result is that it has achieved
a leakage rate at 4.97m 3 /km/day, one of the
lowest levels in the UK. PA
“These plants depend heavily on a pool
of experienced workers to ensure that
operations are run efficiently, safely and
securely; generating high quality output in a
manner that adheres to regulations. Ageing
facilities is not the only problem. A full 38%
of utility employees will be eligible to retire
within the next decade. The expertise they
have nurtured over the years will disappear.
From carrying head on water to digitisation – the future of water in Africa.
November 2019 Volume 25 I Number 9
www.plumbingafrica.co.za