Pipeline dollar distribution: How Geospatial AI is helping water network owners prioritize repairs and save money

Water network owners are embracing powerful new AI-powered pipeline monitoring technologies that enhance operational efficiency and help to highlight risk. As geospatial AI becomes widely utilized across the globe, could this ground-breaking solution help you get more proactive with your pipeline network management?   

With 2.2 million miles of pipeline in the US alone, water network operators have their work cut out for them maintaining an entire infrastructure and delivering clean, safe drinking water to a nation. But in addition to public health, the financial cost of failure can also be significant. According to the Infrastructure Report Card’s 2021 Drinking Water review, there is a mains break every two minutes and enough water lost to fill 9000 swimming pools. This presents a major economic challenge and a number of risks for organisations managing water. So with the world’s pipelines ageing, could Geospatial AI be the answer to helping network providers reduce their reliance on reactive repairs and start proactively upgrading – in the right places – ahead of time? 

 An Intelligent Solution To Assess Multiple Risk Factors  

While age and material are significant risk factors associated with pipeline leakage, there are numerous other issues that can be identified thanks to new technology. Only by assessing an entire pipeline system and the environment around it, including anomalies on the surface, can water network owners really predict the risk of pipeline failures and leaks. These include the diameter of the pipe, salinity of the soil surrounding the pipe, weather conditions and temperature changes.

With intelligent software that utilizes Geospatial AI, water network owners can assess accurate data on all these elements at much greater speed and spot potential problems before they become serious. For example, Rezatec’s Geospatial analysis solution produces current risk maps which highlight the top 20% of a pipeline network at risk of failure, across vast geographical areas. Using this software, network managers and engineers gain powerful new insights that drive better business decisions, such as where to assign resources or schedule upgrades. And at the same time, they reduce the need for chasing leaks and conducting costly, disruptive repairs.

Improve Pipeline Maintenance Services with Remote Network Monitoring 

Inspecting and maintaining large pipeline networks manually often involves extensive teams over days, weeks and months. In addition, gathering and analysing the data adds more time onto your schedule. But leak detection technologies and other elements of geospatial analysis can solve this problem by collecting the data needed for risk assessments efficiently and remotely. Using technology to assess the condition of pipelines on a large scale gives owners the freedom to focus on the other aspects of maintaining their network, improving overall productivity and thus saving money by becoming a more efficient operation.

There are many challenges that come with pipeline maintenance, but thanks to advancements in technology they are becoming easier to manage and risk can be predicted and reduced. Geospatial AI solutions for pipeline risk monitoring have already been implemented across global pipeline networks and will be the long-term solution to proactive upgrade planning as well as keeping costs and risks low. They supercharge your existing data with new insights gathered from above rather than below ground. This ultimately leads to greater visibility, better understanding of the assets, a proactive approach and more efficient operations.      

Book a FREE demo of Rezatec’s Geospatial AI technology today and discover how you could prioritize pipeline risk, proactively plan your upgrade schedule and improve efficiency.