Significant Cost Savings for Water Utilities Thanks to the Portable Ultrasonic Flow Meter

Water utilities often supply large areas with drinking water through extensive pipeline networks. Suitable measurement points are often located in remote areas, are difficult to access, and rarely have access to power lines. In such cases, a portable flow meter is ideal, as it is both resistant to environmental influences and has its own power supply.

The city of Wädenswil (Switzerland) ultimately found what it was looking for at Katronic and its Swiss distribution partner, Rolf Muri AG. Working together with the customer, a solution was developed that allowed measurements to be taken over an extended period, thereby enabling conclusions to be drawn regarding the correct sizing of the pipeline network. Peak consumption levels were of particular interest, as it was hoped that narrowing the pipe cross-section would result in more thorough flushing of the pipes. Water losses of approximately one liter per second were also expected to be eliminated through the modernization.

After determining all relevant application parameters, the decision was made to rent a portable KATflow 210 ultrasonic flow meter to meet the measurement requirements. With its rugged housing meeting IP 67 protection standards, the device was suitable for remaining installed outdoors on-site, regardless of weather conditions. The long-life rechargeable batteries built into the flow meter ensured that measurements could be taken over several weeks even without an external power supply.

After a suitable measurement site had been excavated, the Swiss distribution partner commissioned the measuring device. To enable quick and easy retrieval of the measured values at the office via the device interfaces, Rolf Muri AG provided the Tetraedre system for remote data transmission. The recorded values confirmed that even with pipes having smaller nominal diameters than the previously standard pipe diameter of 400 mm, the maximum consumption peaks were not exceeded. In addition, the success rate of flushing operations in the pipeline system increased significantly to 86% (up from 26%), which in turn leads to lower water consumption.

The customer has realized massive savings in the six-figure range by installing smaller pipes into the existing pipeline network, thereby avoiding costly earthwork.