5 days ago
Selwyn Water partners with Datacom for digital water management
Selwyn Water has partnered with Datacom to provide a digital foundation for the management of water services as the first council-controlled organisation of its kind in New Zealand.
This partnership follows the establishment of Selwyn Water by Selwyn District Council to oversee water services for the Selwyn community. The move is part of the council's ongoing commitment to providing safe, reliable, and affordable water services and its proactive approach to water reform.
Selwyn District Council selected Datacom's Water Asset Intelligence (WAI) platform to support both the planning and management of water services through Selwyn Water. The WAI platform is a pre-configured solution that builds upon Datacom's existing cloud-based ERP council platform, Datascape, and is designed to help councils efficiently establish and manage their water services CCOs.
Service transformation
Alex Cabrera, Project Director for the Local Water Done Well initiative at Selwyn District Council, explained the shift in approach enabled by the partnership. "Our vision is to transition from a traditional council provider service to a utilities-type organisation. By investing in future infrastructure and leveraging Datacom's WAI platform, we are building the resilience and efficiency our network needs."
Cabrera noted that the implementation process has benefited from collaboration between Selwyn District Council and Datacom. "The Datacom team integrated closely with our project team, bringing technical expertise and problem-solving capabilities. Their local presence allowed for face-to-face collaboration, which was invaluable."
He highlighted the efficiency of the implementation process by noting that, "The whole setup was completed in just five and a half months, showing the agility and dedication of both Selwyn Water and Datacom."
Supporting council needs
Datacom's Water Asset Intelligence platform is positioned as a ready-to-go solution for councils seeking to establish or manage council-controlled organisations for water services. Peter Nelson, Managing Director for Datacom's SaaS products including Datascape, stated: "Our WAI platform is designed to provide a ready-to-go solution for those councils that choose to establish CCOs to manage their water services, supporting them to efficiently and transparently serve their communities now and in the future."
Nelson pointed to the platform's compliance benefits, adding, "We are committed to ensuring that councils have the tools they need to deliver high-quality water services. Our platform offers clarity around water services and asset management, ensuring full compliance with government policy and reporting requirements."
Digital integration
The council-controlled organisation model supported by Datacom's platform aims to integrate core components such as data management, IoT water metering, water network monitoring, billing, and tools for public consultation. This integration is intended to streamline data collection and analysis, improve accuracy in water monitoring, and provide real-time visibility into water network performance. The platform is also designed to simplify billing and customer service processes for council-managed water entities.
Cabrera identified the selection of Datacom's platform as a strategic decision for Selwyn Water's long-term development. He said the partnership reflects Selwyn District Council's, "commitment to implementing the right digital infrastructure and being strategic in its investment to ensure Selwyn Water is well-positioned to deliver long-term value to its local community."
The WAI platform's scalability is highlighted as a key feature, allowing councils to broaden their digital service offerings in the future as needed.
Datacom's ERP council platform Datascape, which serves as the foundation for WAI, is in use by over 75% of councils in New Zealand, indicating its established role within the sector for delivering cloud-based solutions tailored for local government use.
