Utility Week

26 | 23RD - 29TH NOVEMBER 2018 | UTILITY WEEK Customers Beast from the East report as being a high performer, effectively delivering for our cus- tomers within our 'business as usual' opera- tions," says Algaard. Nonetheless, the company acknowledges that there is still more it can do to improve its response to extreme weather events, and has taken on board comments made by Ofwat to make sure it is even better prepared for the winter months. "Good investment and hard work by our people have ensured that our networks and systems all perform well and are ready for the challenges that colder weather can bring." South West Water Another company that has taken lessons from February's freeze-thaw incident is South West Water. A spokesperson tells Utility Week the company has been making "extensive preparations" across its busi- ness for cold winter weather. This includes reviewing and updating its incident manage- ment procedures; ensuring it has adequate alternative water supplies and equipment; improving its information technology sys- tems and processes; and promoting its pri- ority services register, in partnership with other utility providers. "As the weather gets colder we will also be advising customers on how to prepare their homes for winter, using all the channels at our disposal." Anglian Water During the latest freeze-thaw incident, Anglian Water suffered very few customer supply interruptions. However, the company is not complacent, and says it is ensuring its network is prepared for another severe cold snap this winter. Key to this, it insists, is driv- ing down leakage. "We're recruiting 300 new roles in our war against leakage and deploying new, advanced noise logger technology across our network, which is revolutionising the way we're finding and fixing leaks," says Sean McCarthy, head of leakage. "And we're using modelling technology to plan the number of engineers needed on the ground optimising our network and repairing bursts to keep taps running." Anglian will also be issuing advice to cus- tomers to help them wrap up their homes for winter and prevent leaks and bursts on their properties. "This is all about being prepared should temperatures plummet," says McCarthy. "But this is also the kind of work we'll be continuing, whatever the weather, in order to cut our leakage target by another 22 per cent by 2025. This will take Anglian Water to world-leading levels of low leakage." Severn Trent Severn Trent didn't fare so well in Ofwat's report. It was highlighted as not being well- prepared for the freeze-thaw. However, the company claims it is prepared for potential pipe bursts brought about by cold weather. It began a fast-tracked recruitment process in July 2018 with the aim of increasing the total number of water network repair gangs, pri- vate side repair gangs and water engineers. This has resulted in an increase in its leakage-focused workforce, and further repair gangs will be in place by the end of this month. It has also installed more than 7,500 fixed acoustic loggers in areas of the highest risk within its distribution network, and a further 10,000 are planned to still be installed. A spokesperson says: "Our 'Get Ready for Winter Campaign' has already begun [12 November], encouraging customers to lag their pipes, wrap outside taps and under- stand where their stop taps are. During the cold weather we found that a huge propor- tion of leaks were on private property, so we're aiming our campaign at customers to hopefully help them to get prepared on their side." Thames Water Thames, too, was flagged as one of the com- panies that didn't perform well during the Beast from the East. The company says it has taken lessons from this and is improving its processes. "We have listened to our customers, learnt lessons and worked with other water compa- nies as well as engaging with experts outside the industry to understand the impact of what happened during the extreme weather ear- lier this year," a spokesperson says. "This has resulted in a number of improvements to benefit our customers and get us better pre- pared to meet future challenges." What are some of these improvements? For one, Thames says it has invested in more tankers and taken on more drivers, many of whom will be given specialist training to cope with adverse weather to ensure engi- neers can get out in the worst conditions. It has also improved its modelling of weather events. "This will allow early escalation and time to prepare comprehensive plans ahead of any forecast adverse weather." What's more, the company is developing real-time digital tools that take into account network information and customer con- tacts to provide a more detailed view of the impact of storms. This will allow it to react in a faster, proactive, more agile manner. And it has more social media agents working "around the clock". Northern Ireland Water Elsewhere in the UK, Northern Ireland suf- fered heavily during the severe weather ear- lier this year, and Northern Ireland Water says it is prepared for the same again this winter. "We have teams and measures in place should we need them," says a spokes- person. "NI Water repairs 6,000 burst mains and service pipes every year that are on our pipework. In winter, there can be an increase in defective pipe- work due to the colder weather. "We continue to work at all times to ensure we main- tain water supplies to customers as well as reducing leakage. We seek the support of customers in report- ing runs of water through our dedicated Waterline number as well as asking them to check and insulate pipework on their own property." Customer supply interruptions by company Water company Total customer supply interruptions Total customer supply interruptions during the incident period >4 hours during the incident period >12 hours (percentage of total customers) (percentage of total customers) Affinity Water 6,489 (~0.43%) 1,622 (~0.11%) Anglian Water 1,714 (~0.08%) 163 (~0.008%) Bristol Water 2,789 (~0.51%) 471 (~0.08%) Dee Valley Water 164 (~0.13%) 0 (0%) Northumbrian Water 571 (~0.05%) 24 (~0.002%) Portsmouth Water 58 (~0.02%) 4 (~0.001%) SES Water 4 (~0.001%) 4 (~0.001%) Severn Trent Water 4 56,767 (~1.27%) 13,586 (~0.30%) South East Water 24,747 (~2.78%) 10,086 (~1.13%) South Staffs Water 1,051 (~0.18%) 97 (~0.016%) South West Water 14,626 (~1.40%) 9,683 (~0.92%) Southern Water 7,700 (~0.72%) 2,246 (~0.21%) Thames Water 56,972 (~1.51%) 11,157 (~0.30%) United Utilities 2,191 (~0.07%) 142 (~0.005%) Welsh Water (Dwr Cymru) 20,951 (~1.42%) 11,566 (~0.78%) Wessex Water 0 (0%) 3 0 (0%) Yorkshire Water 7,950 (~0.35%) 67 (~0.00003%) Total 204,744 60,918 Source: Ofwat "During the cold weather we found that a huge proportion of leaks were on private property"

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