Comparing KETOS to Traditional Water Quality Testing Methods 

Recently, KETOS sat down with Nathan Askins, Director of Business Technology at Breakwater Energy Partners, to discuss KETOS SHIELD and their experience using the technology.

The session broke down the difference between KETOS vs. traditional water quality testing methods. 

While Nathan and his team wanted a lot of third-party testing, verification, and regular water testing, there wasn’t much they could do with the data. Third-party labs also sent the data in PDFs, which meant it wasn’t easy to begin building a database of information. Test results would just end up in email, looked at once, and forgotten while not leveraging many important historical KPIs. 

This isn’t just a Breakwater problem. This issue is typical across industries that require frequent water testing and monitoring. Before introducing modern digital water solutions, companies were in the dark about their water composition on a day-to-day basis.

The Challenge of Testing Across Multiple Parameters

There were specific parameters Breakwater was interested in following, and having an overview of current and historical data is invaluable information for their organization. For example, they needed ongoing readings for:

  • Total iron
  • ORP
  • TSS
  • Turbidity
  • pH

Having a solution that could follow these in real-time and ensure each was within a recommended range would help give them up-to-the-minute insights into the day-to-day quality of their water for their operations. \

Instead of having the in-house tools they needed to verify water quality independently, Breakwater provided samples to third-party labs. This is also the story of many companies. While third-party labs may be able to verify composition, the issue is that they only provide details on old, historical data. So much can change on-site by the time a sample gets pulled, arrives at a lab, is analyzed, and is placed in a quality report. That leaves water operators with no choice but to react to the data days or weeks after the fact.

Autonomous, Real-Time Data in Your Hands in Minutes – Not Days

The game-changer for Breakwater was the autonomous testing KETOS delivers. Water operators have much more control over what they monitor and can act on insights in minutes rather than days.

Since adopting KETOS, Breakwater has been able to set thresholds and handle hourly testing via the KETOS SHIELD. Each test is automated and provides real-time lab-accurate results on the current water quality for Breakwater. The hourly testing at the facilities influences how they handle their effluent.

Instead of manual processes, where someone needs to leave their position for upwards of 30 minutes to two hours to pull and run tests, the entire water sampling and testing process can automate, with results sent immediately to the cloud.

For Breakwater, the draw of KETOS was in its ability to remove the labor-intensive practices needed around collecting water quality insights. Going autonomous has meant increasing staff productivity while gathering a better overall understanding of their operations as it relates to water. Those who need the readings can see them in minutes and react accordingly, effectively in real-time.

Conclusion

Traditional water testing methods are slow, making operations play catch-up when they finally get results. Not only can digital water testing from KETOS provide operators with the ability to react in real-time, but they can also save hundreds to thousands of hours of labor, allowing personnel to refocus on other tasks.

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