Yorkshire Water Reduces Leaks By 57%, Eliminating 30% Of Annual Distribution Main Repairs

Yorkshire Water Services (YWS) is a leading UK water utility that serves nearly 5.5 million people and has a well-deserved reputation as a progressive and proactive utility. Their belief that innovation is one of the key driving forces that allows utilities to deliver better services to their customers while keeping costs down has led them to always seek out new ways to improve their operations both now and in the future.

In 2019, the UK’s Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat) issued a challenge to all UK water companies to look beyond business-as-usual solutions and embrace innovation to transform the way they serve both their customers and the environment.

YWS embraced that challenge and, in 2020, selected its Sheffield location to launch what would become the largest and most extensive smart water pilot in the UK. Sheffield’s harsh winters and freeze-thaw events would regularly result in leakage and maintenance cost challenges for the utility. This made it the perfect place to put this new approach to the test.

With the aim of incorporating the latest advances in technology and communications to create a true digital twin and revolutionize the way they manage leaks and supply interruptions, Yorkshire Water collaborated with 15 companies in the digital water space – including Xylem and Idrica – to transform Sheffield into the country’s first smart water city.