Water meter initiative to save Scottish public sector £2.7m

Business Stream has won a contract to implement the UK's largest ever non-domestic smart water meter roll out, saving an estimated £2.7m over the next three years.


Over the next six months the firm will fit 3,000 smart meters across 18,000 public sector buildings in Scotland, including hospitals, schools and prisons.

The automated meter readers (AMRs) measure water consumption every 15 minutes so quickly highlight anomalies in water use, allowing underlying problems to be fixed and inefficiencies addressed, thus saving water, energy and, of course, money.

“The bottom line is if a business improves its water efficiency it will save money,” said Business Stream chief executive Mark Powles. “Customers are often surprised at how much they can reduce their water bills just by cutting back on their water use.

“As well as financial savings there are also environmental rewards to be enjoyed, such as reducing the carbon footprint of a company and preserving natural resources. Achieving these environmental accolades can significantly boost corporate social responsibility efforts.”

In fact, Business Stream said it has helped its customers to save more than £19m and cut carbon emissions by 12,400 tonnes, the equivalent of taking 3,500 cars off the road.

Speaking of the public sector contract Mr Powles said: “We hope such a commitment from the public sector will inspire other businesses to think about reducing water wastage. The information smart meters provide can highlight a wide number of underlying problems, from poor practice to burst pipes, all of which lead to money literally draining away.”

Business Stream said AMRs are responsible for saving £8.7m of the £19m quoted, an average of £20,800 per meter, although it stressed that savings vary depending on the size of the premises.

Will Parsons

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