Water Parameters and The Four A’s for Successful Monitoring

4A's for Water Parameters

Managing instrumentation and analytical systems for water parameters is not a primary focus of water managers per se but rather a means to an end — i.e., identifying the most productive path to cost-efficient operation and regulatory compliance. 

Across diverse applications in the water market, specific needs for data accountability can vary widely by function — industrial, municipal, agricultural, surface water, groundwater, wastewater, to name a few. Yet, the underlying goal of each application is to gain the best insights on water parameters for informed decision-making at the best overall value between a capital expense (CAPEX) and operating expense (OPEX). Water monitoring Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) offers new ways to achieve exactly that.

As technology solutions and business models innovate and evolve, water operators have a more significant opportunity to do more with less. Large CAPEX investments, staggering long-term service contracts, extensive training, and endless ongoing expenses are no longer always necessary. Point solutions can be implemented simply and quickly – and large, autonomous, holistic solutions can now be implemented for a fraction of the cost of conventional solutions. 

Whether looking for the most straightforward implementation of a single, new water quality parameter or considering large-scale replacement of instrumentation or manual lab sampling, it is essential to evaluate the entire IaaS process, not just the hardware itself.  And that comes down to the four ‘A’s of water monitoring: 

The 4 A’s of Monitoring Water Parameters

When weighing the pros and cons of any new system, a new addition to any water parameter monitoring process must pass the four ‘A’s of water monitoring. These are:

Affordability. In-house solutions assembled from piecemeal components — purchased instruments, data transmission services, installed software — often come with hidden costs for initial integration and ongoing maintenance. A leased IaaS solution, which can address a single, new measurement parameter or provide practically unlimited measurements across multiple parameters for one flat fee (with no hidden costs), makes it much easier to calculate payback benefits against a fixed budget. 

Accuracy. Accuracy is more than just the precision of each numerical reading. It is also a reflection of how well the entire monitoring system enables users to make more informed business operations decisions. An IaaS solution with robotic control over cleaning, calibration, and test execution can deliver timely and accurate feedback across numerous parameters — within +/-10% accuracy of certified lab results, every time.  

Autonomous. Unlike an independent IaaS solution, traditional instrumentation hardware and analytics software often require significant attention from in-house personnel. Initial setup, ongoing maintenance, and quality control can cut deeply into productivity and add to costs. IaaS solutions can be labor-free, removing the need for weekly calibration and cleaning and collecting samples. 

Analytics-Driven. With IoT technology integrated within IaaS solutions, there’s the capability of communicating with external instrumentation, databases, and other analytics tools. This makes it easier to evolve new insights into chemical feed rates, predictive maintenance, and leak detection without overlooking historical data’s value. The ability to mix in machine learning and artificial intelligence helps to refine insights. These predictive analytics make for better long and short-term decision-making. 

With these four pillars in mind, we’ve developed solutions to meet water operators’ needs across industries. As a modular, autonomous piece of equipment, our KETOS solutions are self-powered. They are also regularly updated and maintained to ensure that each KETOS device is always providing real-time lab-quality results that are easily interpreted. 

This new level of insight and efficiency gives water operators the critical information they need to act immediately. Gone are the days of waiting on labs and data scientists to provide information and insights. With an affordable and autonomous IaaS system, water operators are empowered to leverage the transparency that real-time lab-accurate data provides.

Are you an operator that needs more transparency brought to your water quality initiatives? We can help. Schedule a demo to learn how KETOS can change the way you monitor your water parameters.

 

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