Utilities Business Review: Specials Magazine

Water damage starts small; faint stains across a wall or a quiet trickle that goes unnoticed. Though seemingly harmless at first, it can jeopardise a property’s structural integrity and lead to serious health and financial consequences—a lesson Dr Dan Simmons learned the hard way. While renovating his first home, he didn’t expect that slow leaks hidden behind plaster would turn his dream project into a costly, mould-ridden ordeal. While simple leak detection alerts were available, Dr Simmons saw a need for proactive prevention—a complete system that learns and acts automatically. The experience—part frustration, part revelation—stayed with him. Determined to create a solution, Dr Simmons founded Quensus in 2015. From overcoming the hurdles of being the first-to-market to weathering the strain of the pandemic, the company has surpassed every obstacle to become an industry leader in smart water management. “Our origin story is baked into our DNA and forces us to think differently,” says Dr Simmons, managing director. “We are a team dedicated to safeguarding the spaces where people live and work by harnessing the power of advanced AI-powered technology.” Dr Simmons is an AI technician and water conservationist with nearly two decades of academic and industry leadership. After earning his PhD in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Nottingham, he developed dynamic-threshold, leak-detection algorithms that continue to serve as the foundation of his research and innovations in water conservation. He continues to drive Quensus’ vision and innovation. Intelligence at the Core At Quensus, water management isn’t a one-off hardware sale. It has built a complete, intelligently orchestrated ecosystem to help properties manage water as a strategic resource and reduce waste. Its offerings stand out for their intelligence and adaptability, while a comprehensive, customer-centred approach guarantees every solution delivers real-world impact. LeakNet, Quensus’ flagship product, acts as a vigilant, always-on guardian for a building’s entire water system. After installation, it gathers highresolution flow data, which is wirelessly streamed to the company’s cloud platform. Machine learning algorithms analyse the information, learning the distinct ‘water heartbeat’ of the property. The system monitors typical water consumption patterns and detects anomalies in real time, automatically shutting off the supply and sending instant alerts through the FlowReporter app—the user-facing environment of the cloud platform.