Liquid Assets: How a U.S. pharmaceutical manufacturer embraced smart water management to achieve 100% uptime

The pharmaceutical industry is entering a new era – one defined by smarter, more connected manufacturing. Known as Pharma 4.0, this shift is advancing the industry by utilizing intelligent infrastructure, automation and data-driven strategies to enhance quality, efficiency, and responsiveness, all while managing increasing regulatory requirements.

Water systems are part of this transformation. Pharmaceutical leaders are rethinking how they monitor, manage, and maintain water operations – not just to meet compliance, but to drive higher performance and reliability.

In this conversation, Ann Yates, Director of the Pharma Vertical at Xylem, and Siva Iyer, Digital Product Manager, explore how they’re partnering with pharmaceutical industry leaders to optimize operations and accelerate the transition to Pharma 4.0.

Ann Yates: What does Pharma 4.0 mean for our customers, particularly in how they manage water?

Siva Iyer: Pharma 4.0 represents a shift from static, schedule-based systems to agile, responsive manufacturing environments. For our customers, that means optimizing their infrastructure, including water systems, to support real-time, traceable insights.

Water, particularly ultrapure water, is essential in pharmaceutical production. It is not just a utility; it is a regulated input and a core part of product quality.

To help our customers align with the demands of Pharma 4.0, we’re working with them to integrate digital monitoring, automation, and predictive capabilities into their water management systems.

These digital systems help our customers make smarter decisions, reduce risk, and adapt to increasing complexity in both production and regulation.

Ann Yates: How have you helped your customers evolve their approach to meet this transformation?

Siva Iyer: Many of our customers had relied on time-based maintenance models supported by external contractors. That approach worked, but it lacked the flexibility and foresight needed in today’s high-stakes environment.

Our role has been to help them move toward a service-based, digitally enabled model. We introduce tools like continuous monitoring, remote diagnostics, and machine learning to create real-time visibility into system health. These capabilities allow operators to act early, prioritize resources, and avoid service disruptions.

This shift is also cultural. We support our customers in building confidence across their operations, helping production teams, quality leads, and compliance officers work from the same set of timely, reliable insights. When you equip teams with the right data at the right time, everything becomes more streamlined.

Ann Yates: What technologies are making the biggest difference in that process?

Siva Iyer: We always start by aligning on outcomes. Often, that includes water quality assurance, uptime reliability, and audit traceability. From there, we tailor a solution that meets the customer’s specific goals.

Xylem’s Sophis platform enables customers to achieve those goals through smart, timely interventions that maximize reliability and compliance.

At its core, the platform provides secure, smart monitoring of critical variables across the water system, providing continuous visibility and control.

But monitoring alone isn’t enough. Backed by advanced machine learning, Xylem’s experts transform complex system data into clear, actionable insights. This allows them to define thresholds for intervention, establish clear escalation protocols, and integrate automated reporting tools that support both day-to-day operations and long-term regulatory confidence.

The result is a smarter, more proactive approach that helps pharmaceutical manufacturers safeguard water quality, ensure uptime and simplify compliance.

Ann Yates: Can you share an example where a smarter approach to water helped a customer advance their Pharma 4.0 journey?

Siva Iyer: We saw this firsthand with a pharmaceutical manufacturer in the Southwestern U.S. that was scaling production and needed to evolve beyond traditional contractor-based maintenance. In line with Pharma 4.0 principles, they turned to Xylem for a digitally enabled service model that could deliver real-time visibility and predictive reliability across their water systems.

The impact was immediate. Within four months, system alarms dropped by 82 percent, from 147 to just 27. That shift didn’t just reduce noise; it freed their teams to focus on quality and optimization, not troubleshooting.

Over that same period, the manufacturer achieved 100% uptime on monitored systems – a level of reliability that helped avoid lost product, delivery delays, and compliance risk. With real-time insights, they could anticipate issues before they escalated, protecting operations and peace of mind.

The financial results were just as strong. In this case, water-related operating expenses were reduced by 25%, creating room to reinvest in broader quality and innovation initiatives. Audit preparation became simpler and more consistent thanks to automated data capture and traceable reporting structures embedded in the platform.

Ann Yates: What advice would you give to others who are just starting their digital water journey?

Siva Iyer: Start with your goals. Technology should be a tool, not an objective. Focus on the operational outcomes and compliance requirements that matter most to your business, then identify how digital capabilities can help achieve them.

It’s also important to start small. Some of our most successful projects began as pilots. Those early wins build confidence and momentum.

Once teams see the value of real-time data, they start asking new questions and exploring new possibilities.

Finally, choose a partner who can grow with you. Pharma 4.0 is an ongoing transformation. We see our role as a long-term partner, helping the industry stay ahead of both challenges and opportunities.

Learn more about how digital monitoring and predictive service models are shaping the future of pharmaceutical manufacturing.