iSOLUTIONS is an integrated intelligence technology with inbuilt controls.

Sanjeev Sirsi

- Head - Municipal Water Supply Water Utility, Grundfos India

With the growing demand for water across domestic, industrial and commercial purposes, it is pertinent to deploy smart water management processes and solutions to effectively manage this limited resource,” says Sanjeev Sirsi, Head - Municipal Water Supply, Water Utility, Grundfos India. Excerpts from the interview…

How do you assess the scope and potential for energy efficient and smarter water management technologies in the wake of renewed focus on Swach Bharat Swastha Bharat and smart cities by the government?

While urbanization and development are critical to the country's growth, it is also imperative to effectively manage the usage of water. With the growing demand for water across domestic, industrial and commercial purposes, it is pertinent to deploy smart water management processes and solutions to effectively manage this limited resource. In such a scenario, it is commendable to see our government's efforts in working towards mitigating these issue by introducing stellar initiatives like Jal Jeevan Mission, Atal Bhujal Yojana that has the true potential to transform the water crisis situation of our country.

With the increasing awareness about conserving water and the need to manage it efficiently, there is a growing demand for stricter policies and for sustainable process and solutions that can quickly address the current issues as well be ready for the future requirements. Intelligent technologies can address the water issues in a sustainable manner, be it metering on intake of water, reducing leakages or ensuring they are energy efficient. One such example is the Grundfos' iSOLUTIONS, a technologically advanced system that is connected to work seamlessly together with IoT, AI, and cloud computing to deliver the highest level of energy and cost savings for smart water management. These innovative solutions can not only address the water and wastewater management both at micro and macro level but also help in creating a wholistic circular economy.

Individuals, commercial buildings and communities / homes need to adapt to the changing technologies in large-scale manner to conserve water and improve savings in terms of energy and overall operations. The scope and potential to provide smart water solutions for the country, keeping in mind energy conservation and cost efficiency, is immense and organizations like Grundfos, where sustainability is at the core of the business, are well equipped to partner with the government in such initiatives.

What is the impact of combining life-cycle thinking with eco-designs' principles on Grundfos' products design for smart and sustainable cities?

It is the need of the hour to combine the use of intelligent technologies and resources in a sustainable manner to promote a circular economy in our country. Authorities should consider the entire 'life cycle costs' of technologies, products and solutions when they plan to incorporate these in practise be it rural or urban water infrastructure and not just the initial capital investment that would be required. The focus must be on minimizing  the inputs of energy and  water while drastically reducing the generated waste, reducing CO2 and methane emission levels, and water pollution. Since inception we at Grundfos have been promoting the concepts of life-cycle cost to help create awareness around the benefits of a long term approach and ensuring that the ideal and efficient technologies were not overlooked just because of their initial costs.

Grundfos has developed its own methodology which combines life-cycle thinking, eco-design principles and guidelines with our product development and innovation processes. We have broadened the focus -considering the whole life-cycle of a product that demands us to work systematically with material selection, production, packaging, distribution, use and lifetime, and end-of-life. It is of highest interest to us as a company to design our products in a way for them to be re-cycled with maximum resource extraction and reuse whilst ensuring high quality and functionality.

Implementing eco-design principles in a product's life-cycle provides scope for recycling, significantly reducing waste generation and decreasing the burden of waste management - a longstanding problem in urban areas. As the name suggests, eco-design principles go beyond the manufacturing of products, ensuring a comprehensive system of reuse. 

Could you brief us on iSOLUTIONS package, and its techno-commercial benefits?

Grundfos' iSOLUTIONS is a testament to the company's relentless research and development (R&D), years of market insights and customer understanding. One-of-its-kind in water technology, it is a frontrunner in digital water technology capable of performing real-time monitoring, remote control, predictive error determination and system optimization, and aims to advance an entire pumping system rather than an individual component. iSOLUTIONS is an integrated intelligence technology with inbuilt controls such as variable speed drives and sensors, which meticulously adapt to a pump's requirements, allowing flexibility in installation and customization to an extent that independent technologies required for a project can be chosen.

iSOLUTIONS intelligence enables it to understand a pumping system's behaviour and adapt accordingly, hence saving customer energy spent on the overall operations. With reduced downtime and faults in the system, iSOLUTIONS additionally increases the system's productivity. Thereby, helping customers save money and time by presenting them with precisely what is required.

For example, Grundfos provided CII's Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Center (CII Godrej GBC), Hyderabad, with iSOLUTIONS and the CRE pumping solution to revamp the building's air-conditioning systems. Our solution resulted in 50% reduction of energy consumption plus increasing water efficiency by 75%.

What are the major challenges in faster adoption of smarter and intelligent water management technologies? 

The major challenges for faster adoption of water management technologies are:

• Focus on initial cost or lowest bid tender
• Focus on products rather than solution
• Low awareness of latest technologies in water management
• Legacy specification and adaptability to current requirements
• Adoption of digital technologies to existing systems

In today's scenario where having data or utilising data to improve our daily life is a reality, somehow the water management sector is yet to adopt these upgrades at a large scale. It is high time we act fast and step on the accelerator to change the pace of water management scene in India.

Our water / energy audit and digital team are constantly working with water utility providers across the globe to improve their water supply, distribution and treatment systems. We are working with few municipalities and PHED's (Public Health Engineering Department) in India to help design their new or revamp their existing systems which would ensure access to water to all and also reduce the non-revenue water (NRW) which is the need of the hour.

Our teams are also working on field to install and showcase the advantages of solar pumping solutions which help the remote places in India. Our solar pumping solution has provided thousands of rural communities get access to water which otherwise was a distant dream to them.

Could you also throw some light on the cost factor?

When investing in a product/solution or a service, we often weigh the features against its selling price to analyse if the purchase is worth it. This means we need to make choices between:

• Spending less initially but live with its high maintenance and operation cost throughout its lifetime.
• Spending wisely initially and ensure that we have minimal maintenance and operation cost throughout its lifetime.

For water technology, Grundfos believes that a reliable solution in the long run dictates the life-cycle cost. Furthermore, an initial investment into a pumping system with energy-efficient features can lead to overall energy conservation, eventually saving energy and money. Therefore, it is always smarter to choose a pumping solution that is technologically superior and minimizes operational costs.

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