Acquedotto del Fiora Adopts Geospatial AI To Drive Down Leakage And Inform Asset Improvement Program

In Italy, regulation to reduce water leakage and provide a secure water supply is a fundamental part of resolution 917/2017. Many water utilities are stepping up their game to comply with the regulations.

In response to this, Acquedotto del Fiora has invested heavily in improving their data over the last year. The utility started with a standard GIS approach, which enabled them to have a better understanding of their network, and kickstart the implementation of a more advanced solution - Geospatial AI.

“We’re excited to undertake work with ISOIL and Rezatec. Our goal is to drive down leakage and intelligently inform our capital improvement program. We’re impressed with Rezatec’s capability to predict likelihood of failure, and although we’re a smaller utility this allows us to replicate the operations of much larger utilities, with much larger budgets” commented Piero Ferrari, Chief Operating Officer, Acquedotto del Fiora SPA.

Acquedotto del Fiora joins the likes of multi-utility HERA in the adoption of Rezatec’s Pipeline Risk product, through partner ISOIL.

By using a more advanced approach, Acquedotto del Fiora will be able to continue building on the existing data for their network, whilst advancing intelligent leak detection and pipeline replacement programs, enabled by understanding the likelihood of failure of each section of pipe.

“Rezatec’s Geospatial AI continues to help utilities better understand their water networks, intelligently prioritise investment and better their leakage results. Budgets are always tight, and this is enabling utilities to make smarter decision, whilst optimising the budget they have, along with where engineers need to focus their time.” Luca Scansetti, Water Utility Service Manager, ISOIL Industria SPA.

The Geospatial AI product works by using historic pipe failure data to build a model, which then analyses data about the material, diameter and age of the asset. This is combined with environmental data including soil and terrain inputs, as well as satellite data. The model continues to learn as more data is fed in and will continue increasing in accuracy, month on month.

“With more utilities using Rezatec’s Pipeline Risk product, we are helping them to prioritise investment in infrastructure, whilst making significant savings in maintenance and repair. It’s all about optimising the budget and resource available, by becoming more proactive, efficient and resilient.” Philip Briscoe, Chief Operating Officer, Rezatec.

Pipeline Risk, highlights the pipes that will have the greatest impact on your bottom line, for example by saving costs of fixing bursts, or by preventing a perfectly good pipe being dug up.

You can learn more about Rezatec’s water management solutions here.

About Acquedotto del Fiora
Acquedotto del Fiora S.p.A., today also AdF spa, born with resolution no. 477 of 12 July 1983 of the Tuscany Region, was set up as a Consortium of Municipalities.

Following the profound reorganization process of the water sector initiated in the 1990s, it first became a Special Company and in 1999 became a Joint Stock Company. From 1.1.2002 the Company becomes the Sole Manager of the Integrated Water Service (SII) in the Optimal Territorial Conference n.6 "Ombrone" (formerly ATO 6) and deals with the collection, adduction and distribution of water for civil use , sewerage and wastewater purification. It thus becomes the largest ATO in the Tuscany Region, managing the networks (aqueducts and sewers) and plants (water purifiers, purifiers, desalinators, etc.) of 55 municipalities - all 28 in the province of Grosseto and 27 in the province of Siena - which together make up ATO 6 “Ombrone”. In 2004, acknowledging the regulatory framework introduced by Law 36/1994 (the so-called "Galli Law) and the legislative path undertaken by the European Community, following the tender called for the choice of the Private Shareholder to whom to entrust 40% of the share capital, there is the start of the "mixed" public-private management: alongside the Municipalities, Ombrone SpA joins the team.

The served area is about 8,000 square kilometers, for a total resident population of more than 400,000 inhabitants, increasing in the summer due to tourist flows, with a density of about 53 inhabitants per square kilometer. The managed network, between the aqueduct and the sewer, is almost 10,000 kilometers, equivalent to the distance between Florence and Beijing. Overall, the managed plants are more than 3000.

About ISOIL Industria
ISOIL Industria is a global manufacturer and supplier of electromagnetic and ultrasonic flowmeters for liquids, thanks to HEMINA, its production centre and LIBRA, its accredited calibration laboratory. With product lines covering Flow, Levels, Energy Measurement, Analysis, Automation and Controls, Hardware Systems and Software, we operate mainly in the sectors of the integrated water cycle, HVAC, industrial automation, security and transport control, food and chemical industries, agriculture and building automation.

ISOIL, in turn, partnered with Rezatec, to deploy its pipeline risk assessment solution, combining satellite data with machine learning techniques, to produce likelihood and consequence of failure risk maps, identifying parts of the network at higher risk of failure.

About Rezatec
Rezatec applies data science to satellite imagery and geospatial data to deliver sophisticated, cloud-based analytics to customers owning and operating high value, distributed land-based assets. Rezatec data services enable improved margins, enhanced competitive advantage and optimised asset management for its customers. Rezatec customers cover the globe and are leaders in their respective industries in the water, agriculture, infrastructure, and forestry sectors. For more information, visit www.rezatec.com.