Schneider Electric, the global leader in energy management and automation, has announced the availability of its 6500W + IMT65W battery-powered electromagnetic water meter, the Trio J-Series industrial Ethernet radios and SCADAPack 474i Smart RTU; all intelligent technologies that provide the water and wastewater (WWW) industry with greater accuracy, visibility, and resilience.

“Water scarcity is one of the most urgent and complex challenges facing the world today. Here, smart technologies can help utilities and municipalities manage this resource more effectively,” says Kobus Vermeulen, Direct Sales Executive, Process Automation at Schneider Electric.

“Our solutions are built to optimise network performance, reduce non-revenue water, and enable remote monitoring even in the most challenging environments.”

Looking at the solutions, water utilities are tasked with managing remote or off-grid assets where traditional metering is often impractical due to power constraints. The 6500W + IMT65W addresses this with long-life battery-powered operation, making it an ideal solution for remote district metering areas (DMAs), underground installations, or areas with intermittent infrastructure. 

Similarly, the Trio J-Series (JR900 and JR240) overcomes remote area issues by delivering long-distance, high-speed, secure wireless communication without the need for fibre or copper infrastructure. This is particularly critical for real-time telemetry in wide-area water distribution networks, pump station automation, and reservoir monitoring, where latency and downtime can lead to costly inefficiencies or water loss.

Lastly, the SCADAPack 474i combines remote monitoring with on-site intelligence to enable real-time decision-making, bringing edge computing to the water sector and allowing operators to automate processes such as pump control, pressure balancing, and alarm management, even when connectivity is limited.

Product and technical highlights:

6500W + IMT65W Battery-Powered Electromagnetic Water Meter

Key features:

•             Power flexibility - battery operation with up to 10 years of life, optional mains with battery backup, and renewable energy compatibility.

•             Integrated sensors - pressure and temperature sensors built in for leak monitoring and network efficiency.

•             Innovative flow tube - rectangular bore enhances signal-to-noise ratio and accuracy, requires zero inlet/outlet lengths.

•             Data communication – features RS485 Modbus RTU protocol, supporting low-power operation for battery mode and high-frequency polling for powered setups.

•             High accuracy - certified to OIML R49 and MID Annex III (MI-001) with bi-directional measurement.

Application areas:

•             District metering (DMA).

•             Revenue metering.

•             Leak detection.

•             Irrigation and dewatering.

•             Water distribution management.

Trio J-Series Ethernet radios (JR900 and JR240)

Key features:

•             Dual Ethernet ports - Auto-sensing 10/100 Mbps links.

•             SmartPath, LinkXtend, KwikStream - advanced network recovery and repeater functionalities.

•             JR900 - operates within the 915 MHz license-free frequency band.

•             JR240 - can be configured for use in the 2.4 GHz license-free band. 

•             Modbus gateway for seamless integration with legacy systems.

•             Rugged and certified - operates in extreme environments with Class 1, Div 2 and ATEX certifications.

•             Secure management - embedded tools for remote configuration and diagnostics with trusted access control.

Application areas:

•             Remote pump stations.

•             Reservoir monitoring.

•             Network telemetry where cabling is cost prohibitive.

SCADAPack 474i Smart RTU

Key features:

•             Edge analytics - supports real-time applications in Node-RED, Python, or C/C++.

•             Protocol Versatility: Compatible with Modbus, DNP3, MQTT, OPC UA, and IEC 60870-5-104.

•             RemoteConnect Software which centralises configuration, logic development, and diagnostics.

•             Cybersecurity - role-based access and secure authentication for critical infrastructure protection.

•             Extreme environment ready - operational from -40°C to +70°C, certified for hazardous locations.

Application areas:

•             Remote well field automation.

•             Water treatment and distribution network monitoring.

•             Infrastructure health diagnostics in real time.