Driving efficiency, reducing carbon, and improving resilience with Xylem’s intelligent pumping technology
Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water will roll out hundreds of Flygt Concertor intelligent pumping systems across its wastewater network over the next five years, following a successful deployment during AMP7. This move is part of the utility’s wider strategy to improve environmental outcomes, service resilience, and operational efficiency.
As part of its commitment to enhancing customer service and protecting the environment, Welsh Water is significantly increasing investment in its wastewater operations. The utility plans to invest £1.9 billion during AMP8 – the company’s 2025–30 asset management plan, nearly doubling the £1 billion committed in AMP7.
This major investment targets reducing pollution incidents significantly and preventing 186 high-priority storm overflows from harming the environment. Innovative technologies, including intelligent pumping systems, are central to achieving these outcomes and Welsh Water’s broader goals, including energy reduction and achieving carbon neutrality by 2040.
Challenge
Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW) manages a large wastewater infrastructure portfolio, including approximately 2,800 pumping stations and 800 treatment works. Increased pressure from climate change and population growth has driven the need to modernise assets, build resilience, and reduce operational risks including blockages, pollution events, and flooding.
Trial results
In 2020, DCWW partnered with Xylem to pilot the Flygt Concertor 6020 pump and Nexicon control panel at 10 problem-prone pumping stations. These sites had experienced frequent blockages and required regular cleaning and maintenance.
Over the six-month trial:
- Blockages were reduced at all sites - with one station reducing blockages from 53 to zero
- Site cleaning requirements dropped significantly across all locations
- The reduced need for ancillary equipment freed up capital for other investments
Following this success, Welsh Water upgraded approximately 80 pumping stations with Concertor systems during AMP7.
The technology
The Flygt Concertor is a smart, adaptive pumping system with integrated sensing, control, and communication capabilities. Key features include:
- Self-cleaning functionality via integrated control technology to prevent blockages
- Energy savings of up to 70% due to real-time performance adjustment based on operating conditions
- 85% reduction in pump and parts inventory
- Nexicon smart controller, which optimises power usage via adaptive algorithms, and further reduces carbon footprint by lowering energy consumption and minimising site visits
Outcomes
Welsh Water reports the following improvements at the 80 sites upgraded with Flygt Concertor systems:
- Average energy savings of 40 percent
- Significant reductions in truck miles and site visits, lowering carbon emissions
- Improved resilience during storm and nighttime flows
- Lower maintenance demand and fewer manual interventions
- Standardised hardware and operations across sites – eight pump models now replace nearly 90 variants
This standardisation has reduced complexity, enabled dual skilling of engineers, and decreased reliance on specialist support. Engineers are now able to maintain systems independently, reducing downtime and support costs.
Next steps
Building on the strong performance of the initial rollout, DCWW plans to install Concertor systems at an additional 400 sites during AMP8, including the new, larger Flygt Concertor 6030. It is the first UK utility to adopt the model.
Welsh Water is now laying the groundwork for an intelligent, predictive operations model. As part of this digital transformation, the utility plans to integrate Xylem’s Avensor cloud platform to:
- Predict equipment failures and service needs before they occur
- Detect infiltration and leakage using weather-flow comparisons
- Pilot pressure and flow sensors at test sites to validate scalable approaches
- Reduce alarm fatigue and improve situational awareness using weather-integrated data
The integration of Concertor systems and Avensor will enable smarter asset management, data-driven decision-making, and long-term performance optimisation.