Yorkshire Water’s record-breaking ‘ears’ seek to cut leaks by nearly half
30 Apr 2019
Yorkshire Water is aiming to cut leaks by 40% in just six years, thanks to a record breaking investment in technology.
It is spending £10 million to install 34,000 ‘acoustic ears’ following a pilot test of sensors supplied by HWM.
All told, by the end of 2019, the utility company will boast 40,000 sensor devices – more than any other water company in the world, it claims.
Head of leakage operations Martyn Hattersley said: “Each logger is capable of identifying a leak within a 150 meters radius, which is much more accurate than current technology allows.
“It will give us a much greater understanding and visibility of what is happening in some of the areas most prone to leaks."
Yorkshire Water’s aim is to reduce leakage by 15 per cent by 2020, and a further 25 per cent by 2025.
A trial of the technology involved 600 devices installed in the pipe network in west Yorkshire. Withina month 35 underground leaks were located, helping to save approximately 86,400 litres of water.
The latest and largest tranche of sensor installations will extend over one fifth of the company’s extensive distribution area.
