Football stadium tracks water use, saves £40,000

Scotland's national football stadium has reduced its water consumption by 35% in the space of 15 months after installing monitoring equipment which identified anomalies and spikes in water usage.


The 52,000-seater Hampden Park stadium in Glasgow installed automated meter reading (AMR) devices, which automatically collect data on the site’s water consumption every 15 minutes.

The AMR devices found that automatic-flushing urinals were using up water at the same frequency for 50,000 people as they would for 200 people.  The software also identified a leak in the football pitch’s water irrigation system, which was further adding to the Hampden Park’s water bills.

This reduction in water use – which equated to £40,000 in savings – came about after Hampden Park changed its water supplier to United Utilities in November 2014 – serving to highlight the benefits of a competitive non-domestic water market in Scotland.

Water competition

Hampden Park’s managing director Peter Dallas said: “Working with United Utilities has made us smarter about water use and efficiency. In addition, we have experienced excellent customer service, with one point of contact and accurate billing.

“In the running of a major venue, it is reassuring to know that our water is in good hands, enabling us to concentrate on other areas of the business.”

Competition in the water market, which allows businesses to select suppliers to receive a better deal, was introduced in Scotland in April 2008. Only the largest water users in England are currently free to switch suppliers, but full competition is set be introduced to England’s non-domestic water market in 2017.

United Utilities Scotland sailes director Tony McHardy said: “The water market is entering a new period of maturity, with more organisations looking at their options. This approach with Hampden underlines our commitment to helping Scottish businesses cut their water use, understand consumption and ultimately save money.”

Sustainable stadiums

Hampden Park’s water monitoring software is the latest in a line of onsite sustainability solutions being installed by sports stadiums across the globe.

Earlier this month, edie reported that Aviva stadium, home of the Ireland rugby team, is fully powered by renewable energy for the 2016 Six Nations tournament, becoming the first stadium in the competition to be so. Meanwhile, Levi’s Stadium in California – which hosted the recent Superbowl – has been connected to the City of Santa Clara’s recycled water system, which provides about 85% of total water use within the stadium.

Greening the game: The world’s most sustainable sports stadiums

edie Corporate Water Management Conference

The opening of water market retail competition in England is among the key themes to be discussed at the edie Corporate Water Management Conference taking place at the Hallam Conference Centre in London on 26 April, 2016.

Taking a new orhalf-day format, the event will focus on the diverse and wide-ranging strategies and technologies available to help with water management, the challenges are as diverse as they are numerous.

Find out more about the Conference and register to attend here

Luke Nicholls

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