Thames Water is proposing to invest £1 billion in technology to “revolutionise” its operations and to boost efficiency by 20 per cent.
The money will be invested over the next six years and will predominantly be used to deliver its latest five-year plan, which it will have to re-submit to Ofwat by 1 April.
The company says its new command centre capability will increase trunk mains monitoring by 25 per cent, take live readings from up to 200,000 sewer depth monitoring points to prevent pollutions, and link-up all its engineers to a smartphone app giving total network visibility at street level, with a host of real-time information.
Furthermore the company’s in-house specialists will work with partners to roll out a new customer care platform to personalise service for customers, with information displayed relevant to where they live.
Thames also plans to install 700,000 domestic smart meters to put people in control of their water use.
John Beaumont, Thames Water’s chief digital officer, said: “This is a landmark and transformative moment in our company’s rich history, taking the old and making it fit for the future.
“We’re doing this by building a digital-first water company that will deliver an ever-improving service for our customers and dramatically boost efficiency across the board.
“Real-time data management and visibility will allow us to anticipate issues before they happen, speed up and personalise service, protect and enhance the environment, and keep taps flowing.
“We’re extremely ambitious in our targets and relentless in our drive to use the most effective, modern tools to ramp-up performance and deliver a brilliant experience to our customers.”
Thames adds it will further improve frontline operational capabilities through a digital app which will “greatly enhance its monitoring of water pipes and sewers” by using sensors and acoustic loggers to create a real-time nervous system to help anticipate and prevent incidents or speed up response times.
After submitting its PR19 business plans Thames was placed in the “significant scrutiny” category by industry regulator Ofwat.
Responding to the decision at the time Steve Robertson, chief executive of Thames Water, said: “Thames Water is disappointed with today’s announcement from Ofwat on our £11.7 billion five-year business plan, which is built on the feedback of nearly one million customers.
“We remain committed to our forward-looking plan, which prioritises investment over everything else – including shareholder dividends.”
“We are seeking Ofwat’s permission to invest more in areas where we know it is needed. Instead, it appears that we are being asked to reduce our current levels of spending. We are concerned that this will make it harder to meet the needs and expectations of our customers, amid the challenges of population growth and climate change.
“We’ll now study the feedback in detail and look forward to engaging constructively with Ofwat throughout this process.”