Glan Agua Awarded R&D Feasibility Grant
Glan Agua, a designer, builder and operator of water and wastewater facilities in Ireland, have just announced that they have been awarded a R&D Feasibility Grant by IDA Ireland.
This €30,000 grant will support Glan Agua’s study at identifying full R&D projects that will effectively raise the saleability of water and wastewater designs and characterise how the integration of Artificial Intelligence will offer the best competitive outcome.
Glan Agua are also earning a rapid growth in the complex MEICA sector in the United Kingdom and continue to provide innovation to the water sector, striving to adapt to new demands by offering novel technologies.
Glan Agua have been allocated two lots of projects by Affinity Water as an integral abatement prevention programme counteracting potential impacts to the chalk aquifers in the St Alban region of North London caused by excavation and tunnelling for the HS2 development. In addition to other UK projects, the award-winning company have qualified for the Yorkshire Water Major MEICA Framework for the Asset Management Programme 7 (AMP7), effectively making the expansion to the UK the long-term business plan for Glan Agua.
Dr Fabio Bacci, Innovation Manager at Glan Agua, said “The water industry is realising the value that progressive digital transformation can generate. Buzzwords such as Smart Water, Water 4.0 and Digital Twins are becoming cliché of conversation on innovation; however, the widely accepted fact is that the industry is afflicted by the data rich, information poor syndrome. Networks have been developed and perfected to harvest data, now it is time to harness that data. As the principal investigator in this development, I am thrilled to lead Glan Agua in prudently embarking on this ambitious radical change; this is a timely challenge which we can, collectively, turn into a pivotal opportunity for our company.”
The feasibility study will identify a number of potential R&D projects for distinctive AI/Machine Learning applications in water and wastewater treatment. It will also allow Glan Agua to understand the implications of embarking in AI and Machine Learning developments and ensure that appropriate commercial protection measures are taken to maximise the impact of the development. This will be an essential step process necessary to de-risk subsequent R&D undertakes and will penetrate the AI/Machine Learning sector of the Irish and UK water utility market.
Glan Agua’s R&D study will commence in January 2020 and will identify a number of potential R&D projects for distinctive AI/Machine Learning applications in water and wastewater treatment, undoubtedly increasing job creation in Ireland.