Aarhus’ sewer system, which connects the city’s residents and businesses, is not only vast in scale but also complex in operation. With many aging pipelines, increasing wastewater volumes, and a climate bringing more frequent and intense rainfall, extensive monitoring and maintenance are necessary to ensure smooth operation.

Aarhus Vand has identified 28 so-called "high-risk pipelines" that have historically faced frequent issues such as blockages and overflows. These pipelines require special attention and are therefore manually inspected by operations staff approximately once a month. However, this practice involves significant resource consumption in terms of both time and cost.

For each high-risk pipeline, the following tasks are performed:

With an average hourly rate of 580 DKK per operator, the manual inspections amount to a monthly cost of 48,720 DKK. This amount covers both salaries and travel expenses for the employees responsible for the inspections.

The Solution

Manual inspections of Aarhus' sewer system are not only resource-intensive but also inefficient compared to the possibilities offered by modern technology. Aarhus Vand has therefore recognized the need to find a smarter, more cost-effective, and sustainable approach to monitoring and maintaining the city's extensive wastewater network.

The solution was to implement digital sensors from Drip, which provide operators with a new way to monitor the sewer system. Six wireless level sensors are strategically placed in areas where high-risk pipelines have historically caused issues. These areas include downtown Aarhus, Studstrup, and Solbjerg, which have experienced problems such as blockages, overflows, and flooding in the past.

The sensors continuously monitor water levels in the high-risk pipelines and send real-time alerts if the level reaches critical thresholds. This enables quick responses to problems before they develop into larger issues. As a result, the need for regular manual inspections is eliminated, allowing resources to be focused where they are most needed.

This shift from a reactive approach to a proactive operations strategy not only leads to significant cost savings but also paves the way for more efficient management of future challenges—whether related to population growth, climate change, or the increasing pressure on the city's infrastructure.

This effort marks an important step in Aarhus Vand's strategy to ensure an effective, reliable, and sustainable supply that delivers value to both present and future generations of Aarhus.

Value Creation

The implementation of the sensors will bring several benefits:

Time and Resources:

Economically:

Efficiency:

Working Environment

Next Steps

Aarhus Vand is closely monitoring data from the new sensors and has not yet fully adjusted their operational routines, as they want to ensure that the sensor data aligns with real-world conditions. A comprehensive evaluation will determine whether the sensor program should be expanded further. If the evaluation proves successful, this solution could potentially be rolled out to more areas of Aarhus' sewer system, further increasing the economic and operational benefits.