Smart Water Management, a Growing Market

The figure speaks for itself; in 2020, the Smart Water Management (SWM) market will move approximately $18.31 billion. At least, that is what emerges from the recent report published on marketsandmarkets.com.

Smart Water Management (SWM) is the combination of intelligent hardware, software, and services to minimize water waste and improve the distribution network.

Why is the term ‘smart’ used here? Because of everything related to solutions that can provide real-time information about leaks and general monitoring of the water distribution network. And all this, when well implemented, directly impacts the reduction of water losses: savings or efficiency of recent reports, courses prepared for the start of the project, water losses. In short, savings and efficiency.

Water scarcity is frequent in many parts of the world and, unfortunately, has been growing dangerously since the last decade. Therefore, the need to avoid water waste has also grown, which, in turn, has led to water management companies adopting smart solutions. With technological advances and the increasing use of sensors, SWM has evolved rapidly, and a very different landscape is beginning to emerge in which even traditional water meters will not be valid in the immediate future.

The SWM market has already involved significant investments in smart grids for projects around the world; however, in this new scenario, SWM is still struggling to justify the return on investment (ROI) in high-tech spending.

But the reality is that most developed economies have outdated infrastructures that often lead to pipe breaks, leaks, and consumer complaints. We are in a phase in which both European and US governments are legislating regarding water supply quality standards, which involves the renovation of infrastructures. In this sense, the American Water Works Association (AWWA) states that around one million miles of drinking water pipes in the US need to be replaced, which would require an investment of one trillion dollars by 2035. This has acted as a trigger for the great boost of the smart water management market.

Currently, although the use of Meter Data Management (MDM) platforms and SCADA solutions is widespread in many countries, a gradual transition towards smart technological solutions based on distribution network monitoring, advanced pressure management, and optimal data analytics is expected.

The report has been segmented based on devices, solutions, and services. Devices include advanced water meters. Solutions consist of Enterprise Asset Management (EAM), network monitoring, advanced water pressure management, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), advanced analytics, Meter Data Management (MDM), residential water efficiency, and smart irrigation. Services refer to valve management, pipe condition assessment, fire hydrant management, and information management.

The market growth potential is very optimistic. It ranges from $7.34 billion in 2015 to $18.31 billion in 2020, with an annual growth rate of 20.1% during that period.

With such promising figures, it is not surprising that the main technological multinationals in infrastructure management are taking positions. Thus, the report also includes the landscape of the main companies involved in this market, among which are: ABB Ltd., General Electric (GE), IBM Corporation, Itron, Schneider Electric, Arad Ltd., Elster Group, Sensus, Siemens AG, and TaKaDu.