Mar 26 2019
According to a new report, research, innovation, education, and entrepreneurship can play a role in the development of new technologies in the water sector.
(Image credit: Technical University of Denmark)
The water sector can indeed become more innovative, efficient, sustainable, and less fragmented if all cooperate to realize the next technology dive into digitization and Industry 4.0.
This is one of the inferences of the DTU sector development report “Lad vand og data strømme” (Let water and data flow), which has been issued with funding from the Confederation of Danish Industry and the Danish Association of Consulting Engineers and many other players in the Danish water sector.
The objective is to speed up the development of new methods and technologies in the water sector and to support Danish consultants, technology manufacturers, and utilities in the area.
In working with the sector development report, we have listened to the water industry in general, and we have also tried to get a sense of international trends. The Danish water sector has made great strides, but more is needed to meet the goals in the water industry’s ‘Vandvision 2025’ (Water vision 2025) for more growth and exports. In addition, there is broad demand for a joint vision and overlapping incentive structures that can support the ambitions of taking Denmark to the forefront of developments and supporting this position in future.
Peter Steen Mikkelsen, Center Leader, Water DTU.
Peter Steen Mikkelsen is also a professor at DTU Environment.
Water Supports Growth
At present, water assists nearly all economic growth across sectors, and water-related problems—such as adverse weather, drought, failed climate adaptation, and natural disasters —are considered to cause the greatest risks for human well-being and prosperity. Even Denmark has suffered unexpected and heavy rain and increasing water levels, incurring considerable financial and infrastructure expenses.
Therefore, new water technology systems should be developed on the basis of more intelligent products, new data sources, and robust planning tools. It also requires more service-based business models, concerted autonomous systems based on intelligent water technology components, and multi-utility systems that integrate water treatment and energy and resource recovery in a cyber-safe framework.
Peter Steen Mikkelsen states that chief investments are made in the pipeline. This demands climate adaptation, construction of new wastewater treatment plants, and considerable improvement in the monitoring of water resources. Moreover, all of this must be accomplished in a manner that meets the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The UN SDGs specify the main technological and management challenges associated with water. Innovation, research, entrepreneurship, and education can all contribute to dealing with these issues. However, an interdisciplinary effort is needed to make the association in the sector’s ecosystem strong, and to combine the deep domain professionalism on water with the profound knowledge on digitization and more general system integration abilities.
A Common Vision
A potential common vision for the water sector could be to see digitization and the integration of disciplines as drivers of interdisciplinary transformation that can make the sector more efficient and innovative while at the same time less fragmented and more sustainable. For decades, Denmark has been focusing on the green transformation of large parts of society. The time is now ripe to focus our efforts on the water sector and to kick-start the blue transition. Knowledge about water can become a new business adventure for Denmark, but there is a need for action both politically and among the sector’s players to initiate focused initiatives within the water field.
Peter Steen Mikkelsen, Center Leader, Water DTU.