This news article was originally written in Spanish. It has been automatically translated for your convenience. Reasonable efforts have been made to provide an accurate translation, however, no automated translation is perfect nor is it intended to replace a human translator. The original article in Spanish can be viewed at Sensus prevé una migración en España hacia los contadores volumétricos y el composite

The park of counters of national water keeps on being “obsolete”

Sensus Foresees a migration in Spain to the volumetric counters and the composite

Editorial Interempresas03/07/2012

3 July 2012

The gestión of the water in Spain has turned into the last years no only in an economic question, but also in a question of survival of the style of society that pretends for the future. According to the Observatory of the Sustainability in Spain (DARE), in the last two decades the discharge of the rivers has diminished 5%, and even ensures that the consumption of water in Spain exceeds the available resources in the hydrographic basins.

In spite of this lack of resources hídricos, in the networks of urban distribution in Spain follows losing 16,79% of the water by breaks or escapes (last corresponding available data to 2009). A percentage that, compared with the previous year increased slightly, what indicates that it has not improved the efficiency of the networks of distribution of water. In fact, the figure increases until 25,69% if it adds the volume of water no registered because of consumptions estimated, errors of measure or fraud.

Sensus Composite.

“Does indispensable improve still more the management of this resource, and is possible to do it of important way with the current technology, especially in the field of the contaje”, explain sources of Sensus Spain, subsidiary of the international company of reference in manufacture and distribution of solutions of measurement.

To national level exists a park of 16 million counters of water, of which 30% surpasses the 10 years of antiquity. Besides, on the contrary that in other European countries, the technology of measurement of these equipment keeps on being of majority form of chorro only, the less reliable of the existent and with an error of measurement very high, preventing the correct management of the networks of distribution of water. “In countries like France, –indicate in Sensus Spain- 95% of the installed counters are of volumetric type, much more exact and precise, by what is esperable that in Spain, with an obsolete park, follow this tendency, and of fast form to recover the stray terrain”.

Stray water in the network of distribution of water in Spain (real losses). Source: DARE/INE.

The technology of the volumetric counter sustenta in a camera with a pistón or émbolo in his interior. This turns satisfied flows the water, even to very low discharge, since every time that goes in a drop of water in the camera of the pistón causes a twist that transmits to the totalizador, contabilizando the smallest discharges of work. To the margin of the greater precision of the volumetric counters, these have other very useful characteristics, since it is difficult to manipulate through magnetic fields, can install in almost any position with the same precision, is very stable with the step of time and, what is more important to effects of uses domóticos and readings automated, the information that obtains is the most real possible by his bajísimos discharges of start and work and by his stability with the step of the time.

Estimates that annually they renew 8% of the equipment of contaje national, what supposes around 1,2 million units. “A so much percent very elevated of these future counters, more those that install in networks of new utilisation, will tend to be volumetric”, confirm from Sensus Spain.

Diagram of operation of a volumetric counter.

Composite

Another of the technologies that is going in with strength in the international market is the one of the material composite used in the manufacture of the equipment of measurement. Sensus Was the first company of the sector in investigating and bet by this material for his new counters, developing an authentic substitute to the traditional brass. Thanks to the composite has been able to install the volumetric technology in types of waters that does years were unthinkable, with a high hardness as in zones of the Raise and of the Canary Islands. “In so alone five years –explain the same sources- have multiplied by 50 the number of equipment composite of Sensus installed in Spain, and the tendency does not leave to grow”.

Curve of comparative precision between the different technologies of manufacture.

The last appearance that denotes the future of the contaje of water in Spain goes through the transmission of the data of the networks. In this sense, Sensus carries working for many years so that his equipment of contaje are compatible for the transmission of data, in fact his volumetric equipment composite come prepared for a safe and reliable reading road so much mobile as through fixed networks by means of the installation of the corresponding modules radios.