August 2023

Welcome to our bumper edition of the IWN Newsletter – Your Update!

We know it’s been a while since we last produced a newsletter but in that time, we’ve been busy changing our Comms Platform, integrating our contact list with VicWater and producing a new easier to use Newsletter format. Please let us know what you think of our new format!

Our big news has been the launch of the Water Minister’s Climate Innovation Challenge. At the IWN Members Conference on 22 May, the Hon Harriet Shing MP, Minister for Water, announced that IWN would receive funding to conduct the Challenge for 3 years, commencing in 2023. Thanks to a whole lot of hard work from our IWN Champion Group, IWN Partners and DEECA, we launched the Challenge on 24 July. See more details in the update below.

In other big news, the DEECA/IWN co-funded Functionalised Biochar trial using the RMIT developed Pyroco technology is now in pre-commissioning getting ready to commence trials at Greater Western Water Melton at the end of October. All the FOGO/Biosolids blended feedstocks have been prepared and shipped in readiness for the trial. We sincerely thank the project partners RMIT University, The Biosolids ITTC, South-East Water, Barwon Water, East Gippsland Water, Greater Western Water, East Gippsland Water and Westernport Water for their contributions to this important project.

The Biochar generated from the trials will be used to develop go to market use cases for biochar, such as agricultural uses, manufacture of sodium ion battery anodes and even super capacitors (pictured is the blended FOGO/Biosolids feedstock, the new Pyroco pilot plant in pre-commissioning, and a prototype super capacitor developed by RMIT from biochar)

Biochar is certainly a hot topic in our industry (pun intended). IWN has contributed strongly to the conversations in this space in recent times, attending the launch of the ANZBIG Biochar Roadmap, the WSAA Biochar Group and the Circular Economy Working Group. I will also be working from the RMIT Biosolids Centre at RMIT Bundoora a couple of times a month to continue to grow our important collaboration with the Centre.

It’s been a busy couple of months for trials too. We’ve successfully completed trials on:

- AI assessment of drone footage for condition assessment of levees at Lower Murray Water and tunnels at TasWater

- Leak detection in the water network through AI analysis of specific vibrations detected in the existing optic fibre infrastructure with FiberSense, Veolia and Greater Western Water and

- Sewer Condition Assessment and Maintenance prioritisation using AI analysis of CCTV footage with VAPAR, TasWater and Goulburn Valley Water.

In the next month we will be trialling

- Detection and location of high-pressure transients at South East Water with Spiral Data and AWS,

- Scoping up phase 2 of the digital twin trial at South Gippsland Water with partners NCS (formerly ARQ Group) and AWS and

- The integrity of concrete liners with Goulburn Valley Water and Liquid Integrities. Plenty to get excited about!

You can read about these trials and get access to trial reports in Our Trial Outcomes section below.

In June, after much consultation with our Members, we launched the refreshed IWN Purpose Statement: “Our purpose is to contribute to the transformation of the water industry by driving the exploration and adoption of innovative approaches, thinking and technologies and create opportunities that foster emerging leadership talent.”

This purpose statement moves IWN beyond conducting trials into the adoption space. In line with this, and in partnership with VicWater, IWN is informing vendors about the requirements of the state procurement processes to enable the sector to buy and adopt these innovations. Following successful trials of the LeadingEdge Innovations RealWear Headsets and the VAPAR AI CCTV Assessment Technologies, these vendors are now listed on the Buying for Victoria e-services register, enabling Victorian Water Corporations to procure these service offerings direct from the vendors.

In other adoption news, TasWater have commenced a pilot adoption of the SNAPI technology following their successful trial. Its great to see these innovation trials converting to adoption and adding value to our members and their customers.

You may have heard that IWN has been conducting a Program refresh. We have been getting across the strategies of our member organisations and looking for opportunities to align the IWN Programs with these strategies. This will be an ongoing process until the end of the year.

The outcomes of this refresh so far are:

We have expanded our current Biosolids and Resource Recovery Program to become a Circular Economy Program, led by Program Manager Michael Thomas from Barwon Water. The Biosolids and Resource Recovery will become a stream of the Circular Economy Program and will continue to be led by Aravind Surapaneni from South-East Water. Michael will be consulting across the sector to develop a roadmap for this new Program.

We have commenced 2 new programs – Safety Innovation and Contaminants of Concern. We are actively looking for Program Managers and Deputy Program Managers for these programs to collaborate on developing and implementing a road map for each new program. If you are interested in these awesome roles, please give me a shout.

I’ve continued to get out and about talking to members about the opportunities for innovation and understanding how IWN can further develop its member collaborations. I’m grateful to our Champions and the Exec Teams at Coliban Water, Gippsland Water, South Gippsland Water and North-East Water for the conversations during these visits and for the collaborations we have in bringing to life the value from innovation in our sector.

We are also growing our collaborations with Universities and actively looking for research outcomes that we can trial in our sector. Elisa and I were hosted at Monash University last month for what we called “Sharing Day”. We held conversations across multiple faculties to share the role and purpose of IWN and our program areas of focus. We explored the outcomes of the amazing research that these faculties are doing and identified several high potential opportunities. We will update you more on the collaboration opportunities in the coming months.

And finally, we are grateful to VicWater for inviting IWN to host the Water Digitisation program at the upcoming VicWater Conference, 13-14 September. We will showcase 4 use cases of the application of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning that we have recently trialled with members and take some of the mystique out of this growing area of technology – its not all about ChatGBT! Registration details for the conference are later in the newsletter.

That was a bit to get through, but I wanted to update you on the great work that’s been happening in the IWN recently.

Thanks for reading and see you soon! Cheers JC

Welcome to our new Chair 

Jen Rebeiro

 As the Chief Transformation Officer at Greater Western Water, Jen loves ‘doing things’, catching up with friends for a meal, going to the theatre, trying a new activity; Just like joining the IWN Executive group in 2019, and taking on the role of Chair in July this year... 

Intelligent Water Networks is thrilled to announce the Hon. Harriet Shing MP, Minister for Water, has launched the Water Minister’s Climate Innovation Challenge.   

In collaboration with the Minister for Water and DEECA, IWN is inviting all Victorian water corporations to take part in this exciting new challenge that encourages innovation, collaboration and sustainable thinking.  

With a prize pool of $85 000 up for grabs, we’re looking for projects that improve climate resilience through reducing the effects of climate change or finding new ways and opportunities to respond to these impacts. Submissions to the Water Minister’s Climate Innovation Challenge can be made via Climate Innovation Challenge Website. 

We’re encouraging a range of ideas focused on adaptation to the impacts of climate change whether by reducing carbon emissions, improving water conservation practices, reducing waste, or any other approach that mitigates climate change impacts. 

Submissions for the challenge will be accepted until 22 September 2023.  

Honouring a year of exceptional leadership

Andrew Jeffers - Outgoing Chair

It's with deep gratitude that we recognize Andrew's outstanding contributions to IWN. Since our inception, Andrew has been a driving force, propelling us towards the remarkable success we celebrate today. 

For the past 12 months, Andrew has held the pivotal role of IWN's Chair. Andrew's leadership isn't just about words; it's about actions.

His hands-on approach, combined with his open-door policy, has fostered a culture of collaboration and unity within the IWN family. We are so pleased that Andrew will continue on as part of our IWN Executive Group.

Thank you Andrew. Your guidance has been instrumental in shaping the IWN of today and laying the foundation for a thriving tomorrow.

From our members

Data Architecture, Data Governance and Data Science Workshop: A Central Highlands Water and Coliban Water collaboration, June 2023 

Data Science, Analytics and Digital Program leaders from Central Highlands Water and Coliban Water, met in Bendigo in June this year to discuss shared experiences, opportunities and challenges associated with transforming water utilities into modern, data-driven businesses by leveraging best-in-class methods, practices and technology in data. 

Participants presented case studies that prove business operating models are optimised when data is properly architected, governed, distributed and analysed across organisations. Recent trends in data technology also show that cost curves are continuing to fall, meaning innovations in this space are becoming rapidly achievable.  

The June workshop covered topics including: 

• Digital water meters 
• Data architecture and modern warehousing 
• Data governance and security 
• Victorian Water Industry Applied Data Science. 

Workshop members enjoyed a collaborative and spirited environment, showing there is commercial value gained by building organisational cultures of data literacy, advocacy and behaviour. Across the Victorian water network, there is vast potential for operational and strategic insights through ongoing research and collaboration. 

As this workshop was such a success, we are planning a follow-up with a full-day session in Spring 2023, hosted by Central Highlands Water. Stay tuned for further updates as this develops. Thank you to Dr Peter Prevos, from Coliban Water, and his wonderful team for hosting the Central Highlands Water team members for this engaging and enjoyable workshop. We look forward to seeing you all again in the spring.  

Central Highlands Water delegates attending Coliban Water for their combined Data Architecture & Governance Workshop, 14 June 2023 

 [L-R: Harry Singh – CHW Digital Solutions Architect, Scott Fitzgerald – CHW Head of Digital Programs, Jenny Fogarty – Coliban Water Data Architect, Dr. Peter Prevos – Coliban Water Manager Data Science, David Brown – CHW Team Leader Data & Analytics, Tharindu Basnayake – Coliban Water Data Science PhD Candidate.]  

Digitising water meters – SNAPI 

AI powered, digital meter reader- trial report

The report from our three-month trial of SNAPI digital meter technology with TasWater is available for our member organisations. 

Sewer CCTV analysis - VAPAR 

Using AI to read and analyse Sewer CCTV

The Vapar trial report of sewer CCTV technology at Coliban and TasWater are available for our member organisations. You can also watch the Vapar Webinar hosted by our Pipeline Intelligence program and presented by Mark Lee from Vapar. 

Anita McKenzie

Program Manager, Diversity & Inclusion Technology

With a diverse working background, Anita McKenzie has worked in people and culture, Australia Post and many places in between. Having found her groove at South East Water, we’re lucky to have her lead our Diversity & Inclusion Program too..... 

At IWN, we are looking for passionate people who are genuine about identifying solutions to drive improvements across our industry, through knowledge sharing and technology trials. You don’t need to be a subject matter expert, simply bring your enthusiasm to our fabulous network.
These volunteer roles involve about four hours/month. If you'd like to see a position description or have a confidential discussion with us, please get in touch via our enquiries email. We are looking for our next...

Program Manager

Program Manager & Deputy Program Manager

Deputy Program Manager

We are also putting out a call for a small focussed working group of up to six members. 

News Programs

 We have just added to our suite of program offerings. 

Safety innovation

The first new program is Safety Innovation and we are looking for a Program Manager and Deputy Program Manger to lead and develop this program to its full potential. 

Contaminants of Concern

 Our second new program is Contaminants of concern and we are looking for a Program Manager and Deputy Program Manger to lead and develop this program to its full potential. 

Expressions of Interest

ARMS Reliability (Baker Hughes)

At the Asset Management and Optimisation working group on Wednesday 23, we had a fabulous presentation from David Turner, the Global Training Manager of ARMS Reliability.

David spotlighted various projects, inviting the team to discover shared resonances. 

The presentation included details of enriching training programs, covering reliability and RCA topics, while unveiling cutting-edge enterprise software tailored for asset maintenance strategy management and optimisation. This remarkable trio of opportunities promises to fuel collective innovation and align seamlessly with AMO interests. We have recorded the presentation and Q&A from the session for those who were unable to make it along to the working group.

Join our working groups

• Alumni Program: 11.00-12.00, 08 September
• Data & Analytics; 11.00-12.00, 15 September
• Biosolids & Resource Recovery, 3.00-4.00, 18 September
• Diversity & Inclusion Technology, 10.00-11.00, 28 September
• Digital Metering Systems: 3.00-4.00, 28 September

August Webinar

Aerial drone asset inspection - IUAI

12.00-1.00pm, 24 August

 This month's webinar explores the outcome of a recent aerial drone trial completed in conjunction with IWN, Lower Murray Water and TasWater using IUAI Drones. Join Paul Sewell (IUAI Managing Director) along with Norton Antony from Lower Murray Water and Martin Ankor from TasWater. 

August Lunch & Learn

Modla water industry asset model build - 12.00-1.00 pm, 31 August

 You won't want to miss out on the innovative collaboration happening between WSAA, IWN and Modla to capture the asset knowledge of Australian water utilities.  

VicWater Annual Conference 

Navigating the Waters: Adapting to Economic Challenges in the Water Sector

In light of the current economic landscape, we are confronted with significant challenges that demand our immediate attention and collaborative efforts.

The 2023 Annual Conference will explore the current economic state and how it is impacting the water sector.

This conference will bring together the leaders of the Victorian water industry as well as external experts to share their experiences and provide insight into how we navigate the waters of these uncertain economic times.

Wear it purple day

2023, Write your story...

Wear It Purple strives to foster supportive, safe, empowering and inclusive environments for rainbow young people. Rainbow young people do not just exist in schools but will one day be or are already part of our workplaces too. It's important that everyone knows they are safe and supported in the workplace. 

Want to know more or show your support?

Here are some resources:

• Wear it Purple Website
• Minus 18 Website
• Celebrating 10 years of Wear it Purple (2020) Video 

R U OK? I'm here to hear

There's only 3 weeks until R U OK?Day, our National Day of Action on 14 September 2023. 

We're calling on all Australians to let the people they care about know they're here, to really hear them. Asking, 'are you OK?' is the first step, but we also need to genuinely listen to what comes next. Head over to the R U OK Website to find out how.

Back yourself and give it a go...

Andrew Jeffers, Managing Director Wannon Water

“Fake it until you make it” is an old saying and possibly has some negative connotations about overstating your own capability. But in a modern day context, we hear more about the ‘imposter syndrome’ that exists in the consciousness of many successful and accomplished leaders and we also hear that some people may not apply for a new job/opportunity unless they genuinely believe that they meet all the requirements.

Generally speaking, that internal voice in the back of your head that knows your strengths and weakness, that knows the good and bad judgements you have made and knows your successes and failures – it tends to be biased towards the negative more so than the positive.

So my tip is - Personal growth occurs when you are challenged and feel uncomfortable, therefore look for opportunities that stretch you. Listen to the voice in the back of your head, but don’t treat it as truth. So when opportunities arise – like a speaking opportunity or it could be to lead an IWN program for a couple of years, or an exciting new job opportunity – don’t wait until you feel ready and comfortable, back yourself and give it a go. 

Did you know we now have 12 different delivery programs?

You can head over to our website to see what's happening on our program pages.

Check out our operating structure....