504 Intelligent Water Management: Catching Leaks Before the Next Bill with David Benaiges

Intelligent water management starts with a question a utility bill cannot answer: what is happening inside the building right now? David Benaiges, Vice President of Intelligent Water Solutions at Watts Water Technologies, joins Trace Blackmore, CWT, to explain how flow, leak, temperature, and pressure data can help teams investigate abnormal usage and prioritize their response.

Look Beyond the Monthly Bill

A higher bill can signal a problem without identifying its cause. David explains why ongoing flow monitoring provides a more useful view of changing water-use patterns, including underground leaks that may remain out of sight.

Trace supplies a practical example: a failed cooling tower makeup valve caused an overflow at a client’s site. Because the controller was monitoring the system, his team caught the problem the same day.

Match the Monitoring to the Risk

David describes an approach that can expand from the main meter to individual building areas and specific equipment. Main-meter flow data establishes a broad usage profile; additional meters and leak sensors provide more detail near kitchens, washing machines, ice makers, or other areas of concern.

The appropriate combination depends on the building’s risk and the value of exposed equipment. He also explains how automatic shutoff or a manually activated remote valve can add another layer of protection when someone cannot reach the site quickly.

Turn Sensor Data into Priorities

AI can help distinguish unusual consumption from recurring patterns, such as a regular event that increases demand. However, David emphasizes the continuing role of people who understand water systems in interpreting anomalies and helping facilities teams decide where to investigate.

Temperature readings across domestic hot water systems and pressure measurements extend that visibility beyond consumption. These measurements can help teams assess whether systems are operating as designed and investigate issues such as incorrect mixing.

Evaluate Security and Insurance Alongside Performance

For connected systems, David describes Nexa’s network architecture and access controls for functions such as changing a mixing-station setpoint. His explanation gives building teams specific questions to raise about monitoring, control, and system access.

Insurance outcomes require a separate conversation with the insurer. David shares a customer example involving a premium discount, while explaining that results depend on the insurer, the building’s history, and the protection deployed.

Looking ahead, David presents his “2030 divide” as an expectation that proactive water management will become a competitive advantage. His closing invitation to water treaters is practical: connect treatment expertise with building water management to improve outcomes for the building and its users.

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Timestamps

01:20 — Trace introduces David Benaiges and his role in bringing building water systems into the digital era.

02:40 — David defines intelligent water through visibility into water use, damage risk, and system performance.

04:20 — Utility bills reveal symptoms, while more frequent measurements help teams investigate the underlying causes.

05:40 — Flow monitoring and submetering provide a clearer picture of usage patterns and potential hidden leaks.

07:30 — David explains how main-meter monitoring, downstream measurements, leak sensors, and shutoff capabilities can build layers of protection.

09:40 — Temperature and pressure readings help teams assess hot water performance and investigate incorrect mixing.

11:40 — AI supports anomaly detection, while water-system expertise helps translate alerts into practical priorities.

13:50 — Network architecture and access controls become key considerations when water equipment connects to digital systems.

17:10 — David discusses insurers’ interest in leak protection and explains why building teams may need more than isolated leak sensors.

20:20 — Automatic and manually activated remote shutoff offer different response options, followed by a discussion of backflow-preventer monitoring.

22:40 — A leaking toilet illustrates how changes in low-use baselines can expose water losses that otherwise go unnoticed.

24:10 — David explains his “2030 divide” outlook and why he expects proactive water management to affect building competitiveness.

29:20 — Water treatment and building water management become a shared opportunity for collaboration around the same system.

34:20 — David names Joseph Watts as an inspiration for thinking about future water-system standards and innovation.

Quotes

“Flow tells us a lot of things that are going on in that building.”

“If you start coding that manually, you would be there all day, right?”

“We have a lot of customers that really don’t want the automated portion, but they do want the ability to do it remotely.”

“There is a lot to be gained from managing water better.”

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