Setting rules to distinguish trends and identify issues based on existing data

In the water industry, listening devices are deployed in underground pipes to measure noise levels. By measuring the noise levels at different sections of the system, water departments can tell if there is a active leak. For Suez, a leak in the pipes represents non-revenue water, or water that can’t be billed to a specific entity. Identifying these leaks saves the company money.

Brio worked with the team at Suez to set thresholds based on incoming data to trigger an alert that something was amiss. Because the leak detection devices rely on noise, their accuracy can be affected by their location.

For instance, if a leak detector is at a busy intersection, Suez expects it to record noises at a higher megahertz. In those scenarios, we were able to set hyper-specific rules on what noise-level represented a leak.

Actionable alerts, trends, and reporting

With a set of rules in hand, Brio developed a leak reporting web app. The app takes in data from each detector and processes it based on the rules developed alongside the Suez team.

Every day, the web app crunches data and emails a report to the company’s leadership. The report tells Suez what problems exist so they can deploy a team to address the leak quickly, stopping excess water flow.

Savings so big, even the electric company noticed

When Suez finally had the insights it needed from it’s data, they were able to find and fix water leaks quicker — leading to savings substantial enough that their electric company called to ask if they switched providers.