Rural Water Operations: SCADA Systems That Don't Break the Bank

Choosing a SCADA system for any water or wastewater operations is an important decision, and one that could have a great impact on providing your community with safe, clean, affordable water. 

However, choosing a control and monitoring system can be a particularly daunting task for rural communities. Small water operations and city governments often face budget constraints and cuts that may make it difficult to afford the initial investment of traditional SCADA systems. These smaller water and wastewater operations often can’t afford a technical staff with expertise or specific experience running these systems, or may simply not have enough people to do so. 

While this may be the initial perspective for many rural water operations, most modern-SCADA and automation applications actually provide the opposite. 

For example, SitePro’s remote monitoring and control solution requires no coding or development experience. Our team walks you through the initial training to learn the software, then you’re able to instantly customize and make changes to your site as needed. No third-party engineers or developers required. You know your site best- you should run it how it needs to be run.

Not to mention, we have a 24/7 support system in place just in case you ever need anything. 

Alliance Water states that “utilizing efficient and precise water and wastewater monitoring systems is critical to providing your community with clean, affordable water” and that “older wastewater and water monitoring systems require a lot of staff, time, and resources to keep operations running.”

Outdated monitoring systems (or no system at all) can actually end up costing you more money than simply replacing it with a new SCADA program. The cost of replacing hardware, updating software, and adjusting sites in a legacy system can put huge dents in a city’s budget.

At some point, many water and wastewater plants will also be exposed to elements (i.e. thunderstorms, snow storms, extreme heat) that can cause power outages. These power outages can lead to unexpected infrastructural damage if your team is unable to accurately monitor and control your operations. 

According to Water World, modern, cloud-based systems can actually cut up to 90 percent of costs associated with traditional water systems. These savings are often attributed to the minimized cost of integrating hardware and the shift of cost in the development of the software.    

Most modern SCADA systems also provide remote monitoring, control, and alarms that are accessible via a computer or even mobile phone. No more wasting time driving to and from your water plants to check the on-site panel. Simply check on your operations from your phone and make any changes necessary.

As with any sensitive information, there are security concerns. Public water systems have quickly grown into one of the United States' most critical infrastructures. They are responsible for gathering, treating, and distributing water to 90 percent of Americans. With that critical role in our society comes its own vulnerabilities, and public water systems are no exception to the growing concern in cybersecurity.

However, many cloud-based modern systems can actually be a safer alternative to protecting your critical infrastructure. 

According to Water World, “cloud providers typically have dedicated personnel that specialize in security, staying abreast of emerging threats and constantly auditing and patching these security measures. These patches are instantly updated to users without any user action required to make sure utilities have the latest security provisions.”

Modern SCADA That Checks all of the Boxes and Doesn’t Break the Bank

In summary, it is possible for your rural water and wastewater systems to have a SCADA system in place that can safely provide clean water to your community without pushing the boundaries of your city’s budget.

According to the National Rural Water Association, "small towns and rural communities need modern, reliable infrastructure to thrive, specifically to maintain, modernize, or build water and wastewater systems. When these systems are updated, you will find economic development and job growth."

The NRWA can help cities apply for loans and grants specifically created to help communities improve their critical infrastructure. Our employees also work with your city budgets to ensure you’re getting exactly what you need and to assess if your costs are covered by any grants or funding that’s available. 

SitePro's unique software system has one goal in mind: to make our customers' lives a little easier by revolutionizing the way they see, control, and analyze their automated facilities. View your operations and make changes to it from anywhere, at any time. No need to hire a third-party developer or engineer. Our product is not only easy-to-use from on-site or a desktop, but is also just as functional from a mobile device. (We even have an app!)

In addition to remote control and monitoring, SitePro's data and analytics feature gives an inside look at what's happening within your rural water operations. Make quicker, more accurate responses. 

Improved uptime? Check.

As your site expands, we'll expand with you. SitePro's "organic" software is able to keep your current assets up and running as you update or add to your existing infrastructure. Just like your operations will evolve over time, SitePro's software will change and update too.

Let's grow together. To learn more about SitePro's all-in-one platform, schedule a personalized meeting with us now.

Resources:

• Alliance Water
•  National Rural Water Association
• Water World