As UK Water Companies have taken on increasing responsibility for wastewater networks, the need to ensure easy, clear and speedy access to pipeline condition survey data has become ever-more important. This has been very much one of the drivers behind the adoption by Southern Water of the WinCan Web system recently launched by industry-leading CCTV reporting software provider, WinCan.

Southern Water has for some years utilised an alternative document management system for the compilation and storage of its pipeline survey data. The system whilst useful was by current standards somewhat cumbersome and not very user-friendly. With survey data being provided largely on DVD, the method of electronic storage meant that should engineers wish to view a survey, first the data file had to be retrieved and then the whole video had to be watched to find the location of interest as the system could not utilise effectively location selection.

With a long-standing reputation for being conservative, the wastewater industry has sometimes been slow to embrace innovation. There are compelling reasons for that: health protection, security, and compliance concerns often eclipse the benefits of new technologies. Plus, short innovation cycles in technology typically do not match well with an industry that plans in long-term investments.

However, cloud computing is an innovation that is hard to refuse - not least thanks to its inherent cost advantages. IT infrastructure and management are centralized and can be scaled to project size. Plus, the initial investment is relatively small and pays off quickly thanks to saving on infrastructure management and through attractive added value opportunities. Many other industries are utilizing cloud services which enable them to react much more quickly and take corrective action before something becomes a real problem.

Heathrow airport is known the world over as the UK’s premier international airport and also Europe’s busiest international airport. Some 80 airlines fly from Heathrow direct to over 180 destinations worldwide, carrying on average, around 200,000 passengers per day into and out of the UK from its four terminal buildings. To ensure the smooth running of such a massive operation requires some major behind the scenes work, not least of which is the ongoing management and maintenance of the utility services serving the airport.

The airport is served by some 530 km of surface water drainage, the effective operation of which is vital to the continuing workings of the airport’s runways and aprons especially during the worst of weather. There is also a network of some 120 km of foul sewers that also need to be continually maintained to handle the product of so many passengers, aircrew and other airport staff. Across the whole pipeline spectrum, diameters vary from as small as 80 mm up to 1,800 mm diameter.