Technical Lab supports ultrasonic water metering in China

Jiangxi Water Group needs real-time, high-precision data to better understand customer usage profiles to dynamically manage its water distribution infrastructure and services to around ten million households. As the first water company to install city-wide ultrasonic water meters in Greater China, the company will use new water meter designs based on ams ultrasonic flow measurement solutions connected to the utility via an NB-IoT wireless network. 

Yimin Cai, President of Jiangxi Water Group, said: “As a company we want to be ‘as good as water, and to aim for absolute perfection’. That is why we intend to be the first utility in greater China to implement ultrasonic water meters, providing real-time, high-precision data. By accessing this kind of big data about our business, which was not possible with traditional mechanical meters, we not only improve service delivery, we also make more sustainable use of this precious resource, and maximise our return on investment.”

Jiangxi Water Group established the Jiangxi Water Utility’s Technical Lab in collaboration with Qingdao iESLab and ams to provide utility companies in Greater China a demonstration of real-time data generated by a network of wireless ultrasonic water meters.

The centre will demonstrate actual applications for the meters’ accurate flow measurements, including: 

• Water waste reduction achieved by precisely locating leaks, enabling faster and more efficient maintenance and repair operations.
• Improved quality of service, maintaining stable water pressure at end-user outlets by detecting and responding quickly to local peaks and troughs in demand.

Feizhou Han, CEO of Qingdao iESLab, added: “The new generation of water meters developed by iESLab and Jiangxi Water Group is set to transform the operation of the water supply network throughout China. Benefiting from the proven ams ultrasonic flow measurement technology, our water meter system will enable China’s water industry to cut leakage and improve operational efficiency. Ultimately this means that utilities can improve the quality of service while reducing the cost of service – a win-win for suppliers and customers.”

Jiangxi Water GroupŽs innovative implementation of connected ultrasonic water facilitates the digital transformation of the water supply industry. Real-time flow data from millions of consumer premises and distribution nodes, are transmitted via China’s cellular mobile networks and aggregated in a virtual data centre provided by Ali Cloud.

The Big Data can be mined using sophisticated data analytics programs, detecting patterns in the timing, location, rate and variation in consumption, enabling the water company to improve operations by: 

• Predicting consumption more accurately.
• Identifying early warning signals of potential problems.
• Informing investment decisions to better match supply resources with demand requirements.

Stefan Raible, Engineering Fellow at ams AG, said: “China’s strategic investment in advanced ultrasonic metering technology will provide far-reaching benefits to consumers, operators and the environment. Like all innovative technologies, ultrasonic meters require training and expertise to facilitate rapid adoption. We expect the Jiangxi Water Utility’s Technical Lab to make a huge contribution to the implementation in Greater China.”

The iESLabs IA-UWM-2-GP30-DN20 ultrasonic flow sensing module is available now from authorized distributors.