Baseform and Grundfos’s strategic partnership for smart water utility digital services reaches the market
Baseform, a technology leader in software for water utilities, and Grundfos, the world leader in pumps and water solutions, are today announcing the next step in their strategic partnership to bring powerful digital services to all water utilities across the globe.
The Grundfos global value proposition is being up-scaled to address the water digital market with the state-of-the-art utility management technology provided by Baseform as Grundfos Utility Analytics. The Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine-learning digital solution allows utilities to better plan their network renewal investments (CAPEX), actively manage water losses or infiltration and inflow, and optimize their energy usage while enhancing operational efficiency and effectiveness (OPEX).
Building on the partners' complementarity, the collaboration began in November 2018 and developed into the strong strategic partnership, now formalized. Grundfos is stepping forward to considerably augment the market footprint of this advanced solution, starting deployments from next month onwards in selected markets in Western Europe and USA.
As water utilities strive everyday to sustain high-quality water services to cities, globally an estimated 126 billion m3 of treated, pumped water are lost per year1. Bluefield Research2 estimates that smarter, more advanced asset management strategies will save water utilities US$41.9 billion in CAPEX by 2027. Utilities must respond to these challenges amid ever stressed resources, shifting demands, growing scrutiny, and increasing digital complexity. It is decisive to be able to rely on the best and most usable analytics for the purpose.
Kim Jensen, CMO Group Head of Water Utility at Grundfos, said “Water networks are at a tipping point and this is a key moment to step up our comprehensive digital journey. The strategic partnership with Baseform will allow us to enhance our customers' service to the community and help them achieve their goals. Through such strategic partnerships, we aim to become a key player in the digital solutions and a valued service provider."
“Our simple goal is to provide the best analytics for the utility’s business outcomes, enhancing the individual human experience and judgement, and leveraging our ever-growing data pool. The partnership with Grundfos brings not only validation of our vision and technology, but a unique opportunity to share a common strategic path. It will help us realize our common goal of reaching out to every utility and city on the planet” added Sergio T. Coelho, Baseform CEO and co-founder.
The value proposition addresses water supply, wastewater and stormwater systems, separately or jointly. It is an end-to-end environment bringing together the most advanced engineering, data science, AI/machine-learning and computing knowledge to leverage existing data and achieve actionable, optimal results for the utility, regardless of size or data sophistication.
Built on decades of research and on direct, tried-and-tested utility experience condensed into the simplest form possible, the software brings about, among other results:
- support to operations with real-time predictive monitoring and event management
- on-demand, accurate water balance to drive non-revenue water (NRW) and infiltration and inflow (I&I) management
- increased predictability of maintenance requirements - world-class asset failure prediction and risk analytics
- enhanced CCTV inspection planning to optimize O&M, and sewer condition prediction to support I&I reduction
- asset replacement planning, with quantification of predicted impact in terms of cost, service levels, fail rate, risk exposure
- a common, enterprise-wide environment where financial, O&M, planning, engineering, water quality and compliance, all have access to the same unified experience and analytics
Aarhus Vand, in Denmark, is one of the first customers of Grundfos’s new offer. Michael Rosenberg Pedersen, Drinking Water Project Manager at Aarhus Vand, said "After implementing Grundfos Utility Analytics we quickly gained new insights. Other data integration projects we have been involved in, usually underestimated the tasks of data exchange and involvement of internal resources. Other projects covering our entire water distribution network had to use a year and a half to get to the point Grundfos Utility Analytics reached in just four weeks." Based on the positive experience of this phase, Aarhus Vand has decided to expand the solution to a larger part of its network.
About Baseform
Founded in 2015, we provide advanced software-as-a-service analytics for urban water networks, enabling cities to extract the best service, efficiency and sustainability from their infrastructure, operations and investments, regardless of resources or digital development stage. Today, over 25 million people in Europe, USA and LATAM are served by utilities that depend on Baseform, involving hundreds of active staff users. https://baseform.com/
About Grundfos
We pioneer solutions to the world’s water and climate challenges and improve quality of life for people. As a global pump and water solutions company we provide expertise in energy- and water efficient solutions and systems for a wide range of applications, including water utility, water treatment, industries and buildings. https://www.grundfos.com/
For further information:
Pedro Carreira, Baseform Sales
+351 213 973 322; pedro.carreira@baseform.com
Maria Andrén, Director, Group Communication
+45 52325195; mandren@grundfos.com
Mahathi Parashuram, Head of Global Public Relations
+91 96300063482; mahathi@grundfos.com
References
1. R. Liemberger, A. Wyatt 2019; Quantifying the global non-revenue water problem. Water Supply 1 May 2019; 19 (3): 831–837. doi: https://doi.org/10.2166/ws.2018.129
2. Bluefield Research 2018; Advanced Asset Management Strategies to Drive $41 Billion in Water Utility Savings over Next Decade, https://www.bluefieldresearch.com/ns/advanced-asset-management-strategies-to-drive-41-billion/