Laguna Water, the main water provider in the province of Laguna, has announced it recently purchased the country?s first SMS-based monitoring system that provides real-time status of its water supply facilities.
Using the technology developed by the Singapore based Pico-Box, sensors were placed in more than 50 water supply facilities of Laguna Water in order to determine the operational status of each facility, visible from a central monitoring station.
The system also transmits text messages to key field personnel to provide them information on power supply, status of pumps, and water levels in reservoirs.
According to Innovative Control, the sole distributor of the Pico-Box-assisted system, this is a first in the province of Laguna and even in the country.
While monitoring systems applying the same principle are used in other types of businesses, this is the first attempt to use the technology in the water supply environment.
According to Melvin Tan, general manager of Laguna Water, the company is already the biggest water service provider in the province.
Its customer base with 74,780 connections serving a population of about 448,680 is expected to grow further as there are still pockets of unserved and underserved communities within its concession area.
?It is for this reason that the company is investing in modern technology to ensure that quality of service is not sacrificed as it reaches out to the clamour of waterless communities for water service,? said Tan.
Laguna Water is a joint venture company between the Provincial Government of Laguna and Laguna AAAWater Corporation, a Manila Water subsidiary. Its concession area covers the cities of Bi?an, Santa Rosa and Cabuyao.
