Calling All Entrepreneurs: Opportunity to Commercialise a Water Infrastructure Innovation

Research Contracts & Innovation has an exciting opportunity for aspirant or existing entrepreneurs wishing to establish a venture for commercialising a device and system for finding and characterising leaks in a water network such as a municipal water network.

Globally, fresh water is a precious resource that needs to be managed properly. This is especially true in drought-prone South Africa.

Considerable amounts of fresh water supplied via bulk distribution systems are lost through leakages in poorly maintained water network infrastructure. Utilities and network operators struggle to implement routine maintenance and condition assessment programmes that are effective in detecting leaks.

UCT in partnership with Stellenbosch University have developed a prototype, which has undergone field trials on municipal water networks. The system consists of a field device and a back‑end information management system. The field device temporarily connects to an isolated segment of a water supply network to assess its condition and assists the management team to detect and isolate water leaks. Information on multiple relevant parameters is collected such as pressure, leak information, as well as geographical information, inspection information and other associated maintenance information relevant to the management of the piping network. The system captures data in real time and wirelessly communicates it to a cloud-based information management system with a geographical information component. The field device is also mobile, allowing technicians to move it along the pipe network and collect multiple data points for the network. A back‑end real-time software interface can provide detailed information per pipe network-segment over a large geographical area, e.g., a suburb or city.

An entrepreneur could establish a business to use the equipment to provide the maintenance service to infrastructure owners such as municipalities. The company would have the potential to expand to several municipalities, or to consider a franchise model. If a new company is formed, it would be considered a UCT spin-off, opening potential opportunities for funding.

Please see our technology flyer on IN-PART and the Department of Science & Innovation’s Innovation Bridge Portal for more information on the technology, its benefits, and applications.