PT EN

Efficient Management Model of Water Distribution Networks

Thematic Area
Water and Cities
Location
Santiago, Chile
Application Areas
Water Services
Scope
Business
Combating water losses is a key factor for the efficiency of systems
Damaged customer meter
Network rehabilitation works
Real losses are one the main causes of inefficiency in water systems

Entity

Description

The project is part of improving the efficiency of non-revenue water management in the water supply systems of two Chilean utilities responsible for the management of the entire urban water cycle. To achieve the project objectives, a standardized methodology was applied based on the approaches of reference entities (LNEC) that included the development of the following activities: Diagnosis; Intervention plan; Action plan implementation and Technical support and monitoring.

 

Objectives

  • Non-revenue water reduction
  • Improvement of water networks management
  • Technical teams' capacity building

Results

The incorporation of the methodology in the utilities allowed to diagnose, identify priority areas and define actions to increase systems efficiency, promoting the improvement of service quality and the reduction of NRW volumes with significant economic gains: reduction of 4M m3 (6.4%) and 3.3M m3 (4.2%) in the two utilities, contributing to the reduction of 0.3% of Chilean NRW level. Also noteworthy are the gains in organization, communication and corporate image improvement among stakeholders.

Next challenges

  • Ensure the continuous and sustained reduction of real losses volumes.
  • Use of hydraulic modeling to support water loss reduction.
  • Improve monitoring and control of high demand customers.
  • Implement an integrated methodology for customer meters management.
  • Support for the definition of a rehabilitation plan.