Smart water solutions to minimise building systems downtime

Sector: Building Services

Challenge: Minimising system downtime

The rise in remote working and increased energy and fuel prices, coupled with the growing need to do more with less, is placing greater demand than ever before on our building systems.

It is imperative such systems operate effectively for the comfort of every user: if an HVAC system fails, it means no more heating or cooling, while water supply interruptions could seriously affect the wellbeing of residents; equally, if wastewater systems go down and waste is not properly removed, it can jeopardise users’ safety.

At Xylem, we help building designers, contractors, design engineers and specifiers get the most out of the systems they are creating and installing, with a suite of smart ways to boost performance and reduce downtime. We put building users first, which is why our solutions like remote monitoring or pioneering predictive maintenance tools ensure reliable uptime, whilst maintenance call-outs and energy costs are minimised for owners.

Choose right from the start

Selecting the correct product for its application, by not oversizing systems that consume too much energy, for example, plays a crucial role at the design stage to guarantee dependable performance, as does ensuring the right material is used - even down to appropriate seals and bearings.

We are here to help right from the initial stages, with some of the world’s leading experts in Building Information Modelling on the Xylem team in the UK to help build systems from the ground up that are optimised from the moment they begin operations.

Using data to optimise systems

With the latest connected building systems, there is a wealth of data available on their performance – and monitoring that data, then using the insights provided to adjust and improve, holds the key to optimising systems and therefore reducing the risk of unexpected downtime.

Our digital services can monitor the status of an asset to raise the alarm if service or maintenance is required, while advanced measurement systems can provide a complete dashboard to offer relevant information on performance to allow systems to be improved and reduce call-outs.

The next generation of devices take this up a gear by self-adjusting when needed, like the Resvari booster sets that can vary the speed of the pump motor dependant on demand, providing a greater range of performance for applications with fluctuating flow requirements.

Move to condition-based maintenance

While effective in reducing costs by up to a third, preventative maintenance regimes traditionally used on HVAC systems, for example, can waste time, effort and money with the majority of upkeep work being carried out prematurely.

Xylem’s unique Smart Asset Monitoring tool has the power to revolutionise the way maintenance is performed, by analysing electronic waveforms from any motor-driven asset to detect emerging issues long before failures can occur. This can inform a condition-based maintenance plan with the potential to prevent more than 90% of outages by only carrying out repair work when it is needed.

Save money and manpower

We want to make buildings, and their systems, work for you with our digital solutions capable of ensuring uninterrupted service and providing significant savings on operating and maintenance costs.

And when space is at a premium, Xylem’s products have a smaller footprint without compromising on performance: our smart, scalable, modular heating and cooling technology and digital devices are designed to suit new buildings or be retrofitted to boost the performance of legacy systems.