Brabant Water, the Dutch drinking water utility for North Brabant, is partnering with global water technology company Xylem to create one of Europe’s largest digital water networks, serving 2.6 million residents and businesses.
To meet rising demand and strengthen resilience, Brabant Water is deploying a digital twin of its network and rolling out smart metering. The virtual model covers 29 treatment facilities and nearly 12,000 miles of pipelines, receiving real-time data from sensors, meters and pumping stations to give operators continuous visibility and quicker detection of issues such as leaks or equipment faults.
Using the Xylem Vue digital platform, the utility can simulate performance under different conditions—such as demand spikes or operational changes—so potential issues can be identified and addressed before customers are affected.
Over the next two years, Brabant Water plans to install 120,000 ultrasonic smart meters. These will give households and businesses a clearer view of consumption and feed live data into the digital twin to improve leak detection and network optimisation.
Wouter Huisman, Programme Manager, Smart Operations at Brabant Water, said: “Managing a network of this size demands more than experience; it demands real-time insight. By taking our digital transformation to the next level, we can see across the entire system, anticipate issues before they happen, and make smarter decisions that strengthen the network for the future.”
Independent research from Xylem and Global Water Intelligence indicates that digital water platforms can cut the cost of building resilience to floods and droughts by up to 40%. In Valencia, Spain, deploying a digital twin with Xylem Vue helped the utility reduce leaks, save energy and lower maintenance costs while improving customer satisfaction.
