The water industry is at the beginning of a significant change, which is already well established in other sectors of the process industries, named as digital transformation. Due to the high complexity, digital transformation should begin with the development of a digitalization strategy which covers technical as well as organizational issues.
The digital transformation of the water industry opens up the opportunity for numerous improvements to operational and organizational workflows, but also requires a structured approach. Many digitalization elements already exist; these must be brought together in the next few years if acceptance problems shall be avoided. The "Picture-of-the-Future" is characterized by a disintegration of existing automation structures and is characterized by merging of Operation Technology (OT) with Information Technology (IT) and the associated possibility of collecting and processing large quantities of data.
The water industry is thus following a platform approach established by the global digital champions, which essentially includes:
- a modular hardware/software portfolio
- an open ecosystem and
- a marketplace
The water industry will synchronize itself more closely with other sectors of the process industry and thereby benefit from parallel developments. However, digitalization also leads to higher risks of cyber attacks. Highly specialized specialists are required to implement the necessary protective measures.
As a summary of the key findings, 16 theses were formulated that describe the Picture-of-the-Future in the year 2035. Due tot he fact that the digital transformation takes place at different levels, speeds and depths of implementation among the players in the water industry, four visions of the future were developed for the operators:
- Isolated digital skeptic
- Future-oriented digital pioneer
- Holistic digital expert
- Integral Digital Master
In summary, the project partners recommend that all actors in the water industry engage intensively with the new possibilities and implement them comprehensively and consistently.
The final report can be requested via the following website (in German language only):
