Northumbrian Water: 53.17% leakage reduction achieved across 200 KM of network

After a very successful phase 1 with Northumbrian Water (NWL). FIDO has returned to carry out the FIDO Direct Service on a further 200 km of Northumbrian Water’s network.

In Phase 1 of the project, NWL asked FIDO to target 15 problematic District Metering Areas (DMAs). The pipe material consisted of 62% metallic and 38% plastic. FIDO Direct achieved a 37% average leakage reduction across the 15 DMAs.

You can view the full phase 1 case study here: https://fido.tech/case-studies/fido-direct-achieves-37-leakage-reduction-across-dmas-in-northumbrian-water/

The success of FIDO Direct has continued across phase 2 of the project. FIDO has achieved an average leakage reduction of 53.17% across the 200 KM of the assigned network.

What we achieved:

1505.52 (m3/d)

Total reduction across all DMAs

53.1%

Average reduction across all DMAs

67

Total leaks located across all DMAs

“Fido’s unique selling point that has been demonstrated throughout their partnership with NWL, is commitment to achieving both flawless integration and their personal desire to reducing leakage through collaborative working”.

Paul Walker, Leakage Area Manager

A particular DMA stood out to both FIDO and NWL. It required skill, patience, and collaboration.

Before the deployment of FIDO AI, NWL informed FIDO that this DMA was leaking at a rate of 8.93 (m3/hr) and other leakage detection methods had failed to locate the leaks. After an initial sweep of the DMA, FIDO AI was indicating ‘no leak’ across all areas of the DMA except one stretch of the network. It is unusual for all leakage to be in the same stretch of the network within a DMA.

FIDO AI identified that the leak was located on a 6” main, on a hydrant, 400m away from any fittings. 400m is too far for any correlators to pinpoint a leak. FIDO and NWL Water worked together to safely shut off the main so that the leak could be pinpointed.

The evidence suggests that this single large leak was responsible for the increase of leakage in this DMA.

The graph shows the DMA’s leakage levels from October 2022 to June 2023. Which has dropped from an average daily leakage value of 220 m3/d to 55m3/d now that the located leak has been repaired.

The DMAs leakage has now been reduced to 2.5 (m3/hr). Which is an 75.15% reduction in leakage across the DMA.

“FIDO has continued to deliver excellent results throughout this second phase of work. 

Working with FIDO has been very easy, we provide them with the DMAs, and they find us leaks which have reduced the night lines. In a particularly difficult DMA, FIDO showed great commitment and determination to keep going until they got to the root of the problem.”

Andrew Blenkharn, Technical Policy Manager at Northumbrian Water Group

It has been a pleasure for FIDO to collaborate with Northumbrian Water. Problematic DMAs across NWL’s network are dropping back to historic lows and precious water is being saved.

We look forward to what will be achieved next as FIDO continues to support and deliver Northumbrian Water’s leakage strategy.