Costain partnerships was scooped £3.5 million in funding from Ofwat for initiatives that could change the way leaks in the water network are detected and how data is shared within the industry to improve collaboration.

The projects are two of the solutions being awarded a share of £40m in the water regulator's latest innovation competition – the Water Breakthrough Challenge.

The first initiative, Fibre Optic Leak Detection, has been awarded £1.5m to find a leak detection solution using the fibre-optic cables already adjacent to water mains. These cables (often part of the broadband network) can be used to report tiny changes in ground stability, which in turn acts as an early indication of water leaks. This technique is cheaper and more environmentally friendly than current monitoring practices. The concept has already been successfully demonstrated in the first funding round and the additional funding is to prove the solution at scale. This project will see Costain work in partnership with Severn Trent Water, Focus Sensors, Welsh Water, Northumbrian Water, South Staffordshire Water and Hafren Dyfrdwy.

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The second project, Stream, has been awarded £2m to unlock the potential of data to benefit water customers, society and the environment. Stream will put in place technology and processes to remove the barriers to sharing water company data within the industry. Costain is partnering with Pinsent Masons to provide the legal and commercial framework that will enable this improvement in collaboration.

Costain's Head of innovation investment, Aarti Gupta said: "Today's water industry is facing huge challenges from population growth, extreme weather and ageing infrastructure. It’s vital we harness innovation to tackle these issues, thinking in creative ways to drive down costs for consumers and to improve the sustainability of solutions."