REDUCING WATER WASTAGE WITH A SMART MONITORING TOOL
In 2019, Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) launched its Integrated Operations Centre (IOC), using IoT and various smart technologies to monitor multiple aspects of the campus, namely security surveillance and utility consumption.
To reduce water leakage, NP’s facilities management (FM) team had to deploy FM staff to collect data onsite, and work with domain experts to troubleshoot before rectifying the leakage – leading to a turnaround time which can take a few days.
Since 2021, Dell Technologies and SMU have collaborated to boost students’ employability with cloud-native skills. As businesses ramp up the use of digital technology, students need to be armed with in-demand computing skills, including emerging technologies such as cloud-native skills, to value-add as businesses transform.
IS483 and IS484 are IS project experience modules, which are compulsory modules for Information Systems students. These SMU-X modules aim for the students to work with an external project sponsor to develop and scope a solution to the business problem and prototype the solution within one semester.
The project helped the FM team to overcome this pain point by building a web application to provide them with data on NP’s water consumption. Besides the fact that the application is easily accessible from the comfort of team members’ laptops and mobile devices, the data must be pre-processed and represented on the web application using data visualisation tools so that they can be interpreted easily. This will aid the FM team in reducing the time needed to rectify the leakage and glean insights to improve their decision-making process.
The triumphant group, comprised five students - Kaniel Koh Wei Zhe, Clark Koh Si Jie, Shinta Karolina Bek, Huang Jing Yi, and Sherrill Tan Kai Hui - currently pursuing their Bachelor of Science in Information Systems, joined forces with Ngee Ann Polytechnic. Their mission was to enhance the efficiency of the FM department by streamlining the process of reporting water leaks.
Leveraging the capabilities of digital tools, specifically Telegram and Tableau, the students successfully curtailed the turnaround time required for identifying and addressing water leaks. This was achieved by developing a web application that not only grants accessibility through laptops and mobile devices but also employs data visualization techniques for easy interpretation. This pivotal innovation significantly reduced the time and resources expended in dealing with water leakage issues.
The application of Telegram facilitated swift communication about leakages, while Tableau provided a comprehensive visual representation of the data. This breakthrough led to a reduction of approximately 12 hours per month in reporting and identifying water leaks, translating to an annual resource saving of around $2,000 for the polytechnic.
The commendable outcomes of the project garnered praise from Ngee Ann Polytechnic's FM staff. The user-friendly interface and detailed analytical insights furnished by the dashboard proved invaluable in making informed decisions regarding water conservation and maintenance. For more details on the project, visit this website.
“Enriching NP’s IOC with actionable and easy-to-use analytics helps them become more efficient. This also shows how digitalisation can help boost sustainability in the use of water in a climate-sensitive time.” - Mr Pavneet Singh Bedi, SMU Adjunct Faculty Member, Capstone Project Supervisor
“We're thrilled with the results and highly recommend this tool to businesses looking to improve their water management practices” - Mr Toh Joo Wah, NP’s Data Engineer for NYP FM team
“The user-friendly interface and detailed analytics in the dashboard helped them to make informed decisions about water conservation and maintenance.” - Mr Keck Meng Teck, a Real Estate Manager with NYP FM team