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9/3/24, 9:05 AM Water infrastructure management: Growing importance of digital solutions - builtenvironmentme.com
Water infrastructure management: Growing importance of digital solutions

Miguel Soares, Senior Product Manager, iTwin & Portal Experience, Bentley Systems explains how digital solutions can
guarantee the effective and sustainable management of water resources

September 2, 2024 SUSTAINABILITY

Water, one of nature's most valuable resources, is essential to all forms of life and trade. But the difficulties in monitoring and managing water resources
have become more complex due to factors including growing demand, deteriorating infrastructure, and the rising effects of climate change. However, digital
solutions have emerged as potent capabilities for addressing these issues and can guarantee the effective and sustainable management of water resources in
an era of rapid technological advancements.

Digitisation
Our understanding of water management is being completely altered by digital technologies including data analytics, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, and
smart metres. These technologies make it possible to optimise water distribution systems, detect leaks and inefficiencies promptly, and monitor water usage
in real time. While digitisation has been an inherent feature across operations for many years, companies still lack a comprehensive and integrated view of
their systems to effectively shift operations from reactive to predictive mode. This can only be accomplished through the curation of actionable strategies
that accelerate digital adoption.
Actionable Insights and Predictive Operations
While an integrated platform represents an important advancement, it is not enough. Stakeholders, including governments, municipalities, and the general
public, are putting pressure on water utilities to reduce operating expenses and maximise operational effectiveness, while also guaranteeing environmental
sustainability and raising customer satisfaction levels. There is a growing shortage of human resources to accomplish these targets. This is where digital
solutions come into play, such as digital twins. Given the increasing momentum surrounding digital twin adoption in the water utility sector, we have the
perfect opportunity to assess recent industry initiatives to standardise the definition of digital twins and evaluate the advantages that the technology brings to
water utilities.

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