Northumbrian Water is working with internet experts B4T and Welsh Water in trialling an innovation in smart water metering which could help customers avoid large bills.
B4T’s Jellyfish device clips on to existing water meters, which are typically in underground chambers and do not easily connect to 4G, 5G or WiFi. Jellyfish gets around this problem by connecting wirelessly over 0G, a low-power technology from Sigfox.
Data is analysed by B4T’s software to identify and prioritise leakage which helps to prevent damage to people’s homes – and wallets. Preliminary results showed the device was 96% reliable, even from the most challenging of underground meter boxes.
Northumbrian Water has helped to fund the project – which is taking place in Cardiff and Tywyn, north Wales – and will analyse additional benefits for their own smart water metering programme.
The Jellyfish device, a unique alternative to installing smart water meters, is being utilised in Welsh Water’s ‘Cartref’ programme, which aims to reduce instances of leaks in customers’ pipes.
Leakage affects an estimated 30% of English and Welsh households and leads to the loss of 24 million litres of water a day.
Gary Adams, Head of Smart Programme at Northumbrian Water, said:
“This timely collaboration with Welsh Water and B4T presents an opportunity to further our understanding of new and innovative solutions in the smart metering space and proactive identification of leakage.
“Working closely together we can learn quickly and reduce the need to replicate costly large-scale trials so we can deliver value to our customers.”
Alex Barter, managing director of B4T, added:
“B4T are on a mission to redefine smart water metering. Jellyfish was designed from a blank sheet of paper to meet the unique demands of the UK water sector and our environmentally-charged business principles.”
Hampshire-based B4T are the leading internet-of-things experts for the water industry.
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