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Metering specialist offers local municipalities water loss solution

Sensus Metering Systems MD Basil Bold discusses Sensus' solution to unnecessary municipal water loss in South Africa. Camerawork: Nicholas Boyd. Editing: Shane Williams.

8th November 2013

By: Samantha Herbst

Creamer Media Deputy Editor

  

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While water-scarce South Africa requires R670-billion for its water sector over the next ten years to keep up with growing demand, inefficiencies in the country’s water systems need to be dealt with as a matter of urgency, says water metering and smart grid specialist Sensus Metering Systems South Africa MD Basil Bold.

“There are few water supply authorities that can claim a water loss of less than 30% from their purified water input,” he says, adding that the amounts quoted more frequently range from 36% and higher.

Bold tells Engineering News that one of the primary factors for increasing water losses is ageing reticulation infrastructure, which comprises pipework and metering systems. He adds that, while several municipalities in South Africa recognise the importance of accurate metering to identify water loss points and avoid unnecessary loss of revenue, the accuracy of water meters, and particularly volumetric-type mechanical meters – used mainly for domestic metering – deteriorates over time.

“Currently, South Africa relies almost completely on standard mechanical meters which are equipped with dated technology,” he says, adding that the deterioration of volumetric mechanical water meters has resulted in ever-increasing volumes of water remaining unchecked by local municipalities.

While improvements have been made to the design and construction materials, the fundamental technology has not changed in decades, bringing into question the efficacy of replacement programmes, given the relatively short life span of the replacement meters.

By contrast, there is a legal requirement in Germany stipulating that mechanical domestic meters are replaced every six years and that the South African Water Meter Manufacturers Association has proposed legislation to set the local target at ten years. The reality, however, is that most South African meters have been in service for between 10 and 15 years or more.

With the introduction of radio communication capability and new measurement tech- nologies, Sensus Metering embraces the concept of ‘smart’ water meters with the design of the Sensus iPerl – a meter with no moving parts, which uses electromagnetic remnant field technology.

The meter is capable of sustaining its original accuracy for at least 15 years, com-pletely service free. Equipped with a radio transmitter, it is capable of transmitting data from the meter to a central database, which enables the automated remote reading of meters.

The iPerl was first made available to the market in 2012, after a ten-year development process, which included exhaustive testing over the last five years.

“Sensus evaluated different metering technologies, including ultrasonic, fluidic oscillators and standard electromagnetic flow meters. However, the incorporation of remnant field technology into an electromagnetic flow meter vastly increased the low flow rate accuracy of the meter, while substantially decreasing the power consumption, which enabled an extended battery life,” explains Bold.

Seeking to stretch the boundaries of what has been expected from standard water meters, the Sensus iPerl provides water utilities with immediate information on reticulation, enabling them to make informed decisions about the water network.

“The iPerl can monitor water use and warn consumers timeously about leakage and overuse,” explains Bold.

The static, electromagnetic measurement principle implemented by the iPerl enables a metrological performance that provides linear accuracy across the meter’s flow range.

The metrological performance is also maintained across its complete working life, which ensures that the value of the product does not deteriorate over time and that all data is reliable.

The iPerl also ensures that water utilities enjoy optimal revenue gain from the smart water end point – as more than a million iPerl users in the US have testified.

Further, the efficacy of the iPerl was recently reinforced by the signing of a smart metering project in the UK, which will incorporate ten-million end points under the Sensus Flexnet smart grid umbrella

Bold mentions, however, that the initial capital outlay of any smart metering system can be three times more than that of conventional mechanical meters, which presents a significant challenge for South Africa’s water utilities.

However, he emphasises that installation and ownership costs are greatly reduced, as these meters do not require protective housing or maintenance in addition to its expanded life span.

“If the cost of servicing current mechanical meters is factored in, which involves cleaning strainer blockages and replacing stopped or inaccurate meters, the cost of ownership is strongly in favour of static meters.

 

“Moreover, meter reading errors are elimi- nated, as these meters are read remotely. Nevertheless, despite incontrovertible evidence reflecting a staggering drop in water loss, coupled with a substantial increase in revenue, I understand that it requires a leap of faith to make the change to smarter metering technology,” he says.

With this in mind, Bold puts forward an interim solution – a new-generation volumetric meter with the intelligence of a smart meter.

 

“This type of volumetric meter employs the very latest construction materials, which are lighter and more sensitive, and [have] improved wear resistance. More importantly, it is fitted with an intelligent radio transmitter module that features an accurate, high- resolution inductive interface,” he says.

He explains that the module also has the ability to detect leakage and overuse, as well as store information for up to 12 months, allowing for consumption pattern data to be backtracked, should a utility lose connection.

 

“It is, of course, a much cheaper solution than the iPerl, but it does not do away with the mechanical meter, which is the Achilles heel of traditional water metering systems,” adds Bold.

Highlighting the perception that consumers do not want to pay for water, he further points out that one of the surprising outcomes of smart water meter installations is that bad debt and the legal costs of debt recovery are greatly reduced.

Edited by Martin Zhuwakinyu
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

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