Robot May Help City Reduce Water Loss
By Sara Jerome,
@sarmje
A Texas city recently invested in robotic technology to prevent it from wasting treated drinking water.
"Each year, more than 2 billion gallons — or 12 percent — of Arlington’s treated drinking water is wasted before it arrives at homes and businesses," the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.
"After years of encouraging residential and commercial customers to use water wisely, Arlington is turning to infrastructure improvements designed to cut waste," the report said.
The effort to cut water loss includes the deployment of robotic technology.
"A robot equipped with a high-resolution camera and special sensors, [will] detect leaks and flaws in pipe that can’t be seen from above ground," the report said.
The city has already tested out robotic equipment this year.
"A contracted crew from Pure Technologies deployed a robotic crawler to inspect the inside of a 24-inch water main running beneath [the city streets]. The city, which will soon widen Stadium Drive near the railroad tracks, wants to determine whether the entire section of the 30-year-old water main should be replaced at an estimated $1 million or spot repairs could be made for less," the report said.
The effort has multiple phases, including traditional infrastructure upgrades.
"Plans include replacing aging and brittle concrete water lines, manually inspecting thousands of water main valves," the report said.
City officials framed the investment as a cost-saver. If the city cuts water loss by 1 percent, it would save the city $300,000 each year, according to Water Utilities Director Buzz Pishkur.
“Because we will reduce the number of outages and the duration of these outings, our costs will be reduced through more timely repairs and reduction of emergency situations. Quite frankly, I believe this is what our customers pay us to do,” he said, per the report. “We are focusing on doing more for our customers, not to our customers.”
Arlington is not the only city with water infrastructure challenges. In 2013, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) gave the nation a D+ for water infrastructure in a 2013 report card.
"Assuming every pipe would need to be replaced, the cost over the coming decades could reach more than $1 trillion," the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) reported, citing the American Water Works Association (AWWA).