ABB Supports Innovations For Improved Water Management

Sponsorship of Global Water Leakage Summit continues leadership in tackling leakage and managing water more responsibly

ABB is once again leading the conversation around water leakage with its sponsorship of this year’s Global Water Leakage Summit, taking place at the Amba Hotel Marble Arch, London, 13^th – 14^th March.

Now its ninth year, the event will provide a forum for the exchange of ideas, techniques and technologies from around the world to help tackle the problem of leakage from water distribution networks. Representatives from manufacturers, including ABB, water operators and consultants will gather to discuss ways to solve the problem of water leakage, currently estimated to be around 45 million cubic metres per day.

As a manufacturer and supplier of instrumentation and analysers for water and wastewater treatment and distribution applications, ABB has been involved with the event since its inception. Started in 2008, the Global Water Leakage Summit has established a reputation as a forum for leakage practitioners from around the world to demonstrate and exchange best practice around tackling leakage in water distribution networks.

“With the constant growth in the world’s population, the strain on the world’s water resources continues to mount,” says Joydip Sanyal, Global Product Manager for electromagnetic flowmeters at ABB Limited. “The scale of the challenge means that new ways must be found to manage water resources more carefully which can be put into place quickly and easily, with the ability to be measured to monitor and assess their effectiveness.”

“By bringing together expert specialists, manufacturers and water operators from around the world, the Summit offers an opportunity for the discussion and exchange of ideas and technologies that can be deployed to provide as many people as possible with access to high quality, treated water with minimum wastage.”

The event will cover a broad range of topics surrounding water leakage management and minimization. These will include using metering to tackle background leakage and the role that innovation can play in helping to identify leaks. There will also be a focus on ways to improve the handling and analysis of ‘big data’ from water networks to help water companies identify and fix leaks more quickly.

In addition to sponsoring the event, ABB will also be demonstrating its latest technologies for accurately pinpointing and measuring water leakage. Products on show will include the new AquaMaster 4 electromagnetic flowmeter, featuring Near Field Communications (NFC) technology. When used in conjunction with ABB’s new Velox app installed on a smart device such as a mobile phone or tablet, NFC enables users to configure the AquaMaster4 offline. Available for both Android and Windows devices, the app helps to reduce the time and cost of set up and configuration by eliminating the need to connect bespoke cables and laptops. Once the configuration settings are ready, they can be simply downloaded to the meter by tapping the transmitter with the smart device.

In addition to the AquaMaster 4, ABB’s stand will also include the AquaMaster 3 flowmeter with WITS and the WaterMaster flowmeter for water and wastewater measurement applications.

The AquaMaster 3 with WITS DNP3 based open protocol offers access to a raft of operational and maintenance data. Based on tried and tested network technology originally designed for process automation in electrical utility applications, WITS DNP3 enables communication between different types of data acquisition and control equipment. Using the AquaMaster 3 with WITS, users can now download a high speed, high resolution log to investigate any water network anomalies in conjunction with detection methods such as step testing, burst / pressure transients or nightline monitoring.

This same level of intelligence also extends to the AquaMaster 3 itself. DNP3 enables remote access to a wide range of data including diagnostics and configuration changes. Any problems such as power management issues, sensor coil damage or damage to the sensor cable caused by third parties can be quickly identified, together with the time those issues occurred and the exact location of the affected device.

In this way, the need for engineers to physically visit devices is eliminated. Instead, users will be able to use the diagnostic data to ensure that engineers are only deployed when and where necessary.

The WaterMaster is ABB’s MCERTified, world class flowmeter for water and wastewater applications. With a wide flow range and unsurpassed accuracy, WaterMaster improves control and quality for applications in water treatment works and now features Profibus communications. A key feature is its revolutionary octagonal internal bore design that reduces sensitivity to flow profile disturbances. This results in outstanding performance in less than ideal installation conditions, allowing the flowmeters to meet the most stringent internal accuracy standards. Its buriable sensor eliminates the need for expensive meter chambers thereby providing a long, productive and maintenance-free asset life.

Coupled with the AquaMaster 3’s unrivalled accuracy across an extremely wide range, plus a range of power options including wind and solar, the flowmeter provides a powerful tool in the fight against water leakage.

Another highlight will be the Gala Dinner event at the end of the first day of the event. Open to all delegates, the dinner will feature a charity auction on behalf of WaterAid, which works to provide the world's poorest people with safe domestic water and sanitation and education on hygiene.

As key event on the water industry calendar, the Global Water Leakage Summit has established itself as a highly successful platform for raising awareness of water leakage issues. For more information, including how to register, visit http://www.global-leakage-summit.com.

About ABB
ABB is a pioneering technology leader in electrification products, robotics and motion, industrial automation and power grids, serving customers in utilities, industry and transport & infrastructure globally. Continuing a history of innovation spanning more than 130 years, ABB today is writing the future of industrial digitalization and driving the Energy and Fourth Industrial Revolutions. As title partner of Formula E, the fully electric international FIA motorsport class, ABB is pushing the boundaries of e-mobility to contribute to a sustainable future. ABB operates in more than 100 countries with about 136,000 employees. For more information, visit www.abb.com.