Job number: 14071

Flowserve Digital Water Blog R2

Meta Title
Digital Water Solutions Our Planet Can Depend On
Meta Description
Operating water processes at peak efficiency is critical. Flowserve encourages water plant managers operators
to invest in digital water solutions that provide them with the predictive power to see what matters.

Operating With Digital Predictive Technology to Advance the Water Industry

Population growth and development drive the ever-increasing global demand for clean water for drinking as
well as agricultural and industrial applications. In some countries, the forecasted need could be twice the
available supply by 2030.
This pressing reality has prompted many nations to prioritize water security. They’re significantly increasing
investments to expand their national and local, municipal water supplies along with sanitation and wastewater
treatment facilities.
The operators I talk with say they want to be confident about their water and wastewater plant uptime. They
need superior flow control equipment to reliably meet demand. They also seek digital solutions to monitor and
analyze water process conditions and provide data-based insights to predict maintenance needs.
And to avoid unplanned downtime, maintenance managers tell me they rely on quick turnaround for equipment
service and repair offered by the most experienced water industry leaders.
Every drop counts, which means that operating water processes at peak efficiency is critical. That’s why I
encourage reliability managers operators to invest in digital water solutions that provide them with the
predictive power to see what matters. With a complete view of equipment performance and predictive
maintenance capabilities, digital water processes can be more reliable and cost-efficient than ever — at a time
when our world needs them most.

High-stakes operations and priorities are drivers for digitization solutions

Across the water marketplace, I see systems, operations and maintenance teams working overtime to manage
supply in order to meet ever-growing demand. They are also tasked with meeting requirements for cost
reduction and efficiency. Desalination plant operators, for example, must adhere to requirements from plant
developers and owners to keep the price of water trending downward.

In addition to operating costs, cybersecurity, missed production targets and water quality control top my list of
significant challenges across the industry. These and other concerns have only intensified in often understaffed
facilities operating with antiquated distribution and control systems.

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Equipment failures result in costly downtime and repairs, fines and water loss. Failure can further lead to
contamination and health risks. This poses a danger to the billions around the world living in areas of high or
extremely high water vulnerability, who depend on the performance of these water systems.

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals must also be met as our world shifts to cleaner and more
sustainable practices.

Global challenges facing the water industry

Demand from consumers, energy costs and regulatory requirements vary from region to region. But the water
project developers and managers operators I’ve spoken with recently are looking for ways they can address
common pain points, such as:
Shortage of skilled technicians
Limited labor availability makes it difficult to monitor water equipment and processes effectively. This
becomes even more challenging in water, desalination and wastewater facilities with hundreds of
pumps spread across large areas or in water companies operating remote facilities with limited or no
technical staff on-site.
Inadequate IT expertise
Operators focus on moving water, not information technology (IT) connectivity. Without the technical
expertise to fully understand the intricacies of remote monitoring, cloud infrastructure and data
security, some water plant operators are hesitant to adopt new predictive maintenance solutions.
Reactive focus
Because resources are spread so thin, maintenance managers can only respond to issues once things go
wrong. Technicians are trained to respond to equipment problems, not to predict issues and act before
they occur. This means that when something goes wrong, it really goes wrong.
Lack of capital
Most water facilities are publicly funded, so reliability and quality managers carefully scrutinize spending
to keep costs down. Unlike other industries, water project developers and operators believe they don’t
have the option to invest in cloud-based infrastructures or new technologies that can help them lower
the total cost of ownership. So they often attempt to make do with existing equipment or purchase less
advanced equipment because the upfront costs are less expensive.

Transforming daily water operations and long-term resiliency

I expect digital technologies will transform the economics and reliability of the water industry.

These technologies can optimize day-to-day water management and build long-term resiliency to disasters and
climate change, according to the International Water Association (IWA). Such improvements can lead to
increased water security for the industrial, commercial, agricultural and domestic sectors, the IWA reports. I
agree with their assessment about how these changes will directly impact economic security and growth.

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Enabling this digital water transformation are advanced sensors, data analytics and artificial intelligence.
Examples include:

- Pumps, valves, seals and actuation equipment can be networked in internet of things (IoT) systems to
monitor, record and analyze flow, pressure, temperature, vibration and water levels.
- End-to-end digital water solutions can include real-time monitoring at central facilities where
experienced technicians watch for deviations from process requirements, equipment operating ranges
and water quality standards.
- When issues are detected, water plant supervisors can proactively respond to schedule maintenance or
repairs before equipment failure occurs.

How water plant managers can leverage Flowserve RedRaven digital technology

I’m often asked whether IoT technology makes sustainability, operational efficiency and reliability in the water
management industry possible.

There’s no doubt. Digitization gives systems operators a clearer picture of what matters in their pumps, valves,
seals and actuation equipment. With those powerful insights, no operational goal is too big.

That’s why I’m always excited to talk with water Plant and Reliability managers operators about RedRaven,
Flowserve’s complete end-to-end predictive maintenance solution for the industrial space. Maintenance
manager, operation supervisors and technicians can proactively schedule maintenance and act before
equipment issues cause failures that disrupt water production.

RedRaven incorporates sensors, networking and advanced software and algorithms developed based on our
decades of experience in design, engineering, manufacturing, commissioning and servicing fluid motion control
solutions.

This is a huge distinction from an algorithm based on artificial intelligence/machine learning, which works from
the existing condition of the equipment where the data is taken. This could cause serious problems. For
example, if the initial data taken on the machine is low quality, the baseline will be skewed and future
management and monitoring of this equipment will be wrong too.

RedRaven digital technology learns and tracks equipment condition and performance over time to:

- Interpret collected data and best identify performance patterns and trends among assets
- Identity problems that are “invisible” to older supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems
- Monitor water equipment and processes in near real time
- Avoid reactive maintenance and unplanned downtime
We designed RedRaven to equip water plant operators like you with the clear insights needed to proactively
identify and address issues before they cause downtime and disruptions. You can successfully lead the transition
to digital water with RedRaven’s data-agnostic, cloud-native platforms.

You’ll work alongside our dedicated team of vibration-certified, rotating equipment engineers, business analysts,
technicians and project managers. They’re available to offer diagnoses and sound recommendations 24/7,
through the Flowserve Monitoring Center.

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And of course, I look forward to sharing more with you about innovative digital solutions such as RedRaven from
Flowserve. Let’s talk about how RedRaven can help your company accomplish its water and wastewater plant
operational and maintenance goals.

Francesco Giuseppe Ladisa | Global Product Leader — Digital Water

Francesco Giuseppe Ladisa is the Flowserve global product leader for digital water. He develops strategies, tactics and
actions to increase IoT penetration for all Flowserve products, with a strong emphasis on digital water solutions. He is one
of our experts in industry 4.0 with a keen understanding of key market dynamics that enable him to develop impactful value
propositions to help customers accomplish their energy transition objectives.