You know what they say – if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. But this isn’t always the right approach for the water industry. Although your existing solutions work, are they serving to optimise your processes? Do you know which of your departments, problems or processes are your highest priority, or which would be the best allocation of capital? If not, maybe tech can tell you.

The water industry is filled with experts. But, with this level of knowledge and expertise typically comes a reliance on traditional methodologies and practices. Why switch to some new-fangled tech solution when the old way works just fine. Perhaps a more crucial question would be, why should you change?

The key lies in what positive change can do for your business. Introducing new technologies, such as automation into your business, results in ground-breaking changes that can have a positive impact on your business and your employee experience.

We’re taking a look at how our next-generation technologies can help maximise your efficiency, employee experience and business results.

How do you identify business-critical tasks?
We know you want to hear value-based conversations on how to drive real business impact – which is why we show credibility with our proven use cases that we have implemented across multiple industries, including comparable asset-heavy industries such as Energy and Natural Resources. We help you to identify which areas of your business most require attention and which of these changes will deliver the most value, so you can rest assured that your decision to allocate capital is backed by clear data.

Our data analytics and AI technologies help you mitigate risk, enabling you to judge which investments will be riskier than others and which will ensure ROI. Coupled with our experience in other industries, we have proven solutions that can be configured for the water industry in just a few weeks, so you can ensure swift implementation of a proof of concept (POC) and begin identifying areas of transformation quickly.

European Water: Systems at greater speed
European Water is a non-profit that supplies 112 billion litres of purified drinking water to 1.7 million customers annually. But, as the company began to provide more innovative customer services, their application landscape and systems could not keep up.

European Water quickly determined that Microsoft Azure Integration Services (AIS) could provide the enterprise integration landscape they needed to connect various applications and services while also reducing its operational costs. Avanade built the solution, equipping the company with a toolbox of components for integrating both on-premises and cloud-based applications, data and processes across the enterprise.

By rebuilding its integration landscape with AIS, European Water increased platform stability, scalability, reliability and performance. Results included:

• Reduced downtime, assuring customers have continuous access to digital services
• 65% lower operational costs
• Quicker, more standardised and stable workflow processes

Avoid Ofwat fines, and reap rewards
When you hear the word Ofwat, it’s understandable that your first thought may be ‘targets and fines’ – but what about the rewards? Ofwat’s £862 million investment in green projects means there’s never been a better time to consider improvements to your operations, infrastructure and technologies.

By focusing on the simplification of processes and maximising data usage, we can not only help you work faster and better, but also give you the tools you need to hit regulatory ODIs. At Avanade, we help you to implement data analytics and automation so you can clearly track and manage key Ofwat ODIs, such as the performance of below-ground assets. Therefore, you can save money and perform well in Ofwat’s competitive environment.

What can Microsoft technologies do for you?
A major pipeline company was facing a number of aging workplace and technology challenges after a rapid spin-off from its parent company. It wanted to establish industry-standard business processes that would help increase efficiencies and meet intensifying safety, social, regulatory and environmental obligations.

Leveraging a variety of Microsoft technologies, including Microsoft Dynamics 365, Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Azure, Avanade worked with the company to co-create new business models, processes and practical strategies that deliver more comprehensive, data-driven outcomes and prepare employees for the future.

As a result of this digital transformation, the company reduced more than 60% of its IT landscape through application consolidation – all of which are now cloud-enabled. Additional results included:

• Greater data integrity
• Improved resilience and enhanced operations
• Greater security and business agility
• Increased employee collaboration
• Increased system integration for improved business insights
• Easy transition to remote working

Keep up with digital changes
Firms that engage the right partner for their digital transformation achieve better results, faster and for less cost. That’s where Avanade comes in. We have the largest community of Microsoft-skilled experts in the world, and masses of Microsoft certifications.

As a Microsoft innovation partner, we have 32,000+ Microsoft certifications and 100+ Microsoft Partner awards, so we can help you gain a comprehensive visualisation of your operations and customer data. This will enable you to judge which investments are sure to generate ROI.

Our early adopter programmes give you access to next-generation Microsoft technologies. Together Avanade and Microsoft have won countless accolades, but the most powerful evidence of what we’re capable of – and what we’re most proud of – is the success of our clients.

We’d love to discuss your goals and challenges and how we can guide you through your future digital transformation. Speak to our experts today by calling +44 20 7025 1000 or drop us an email.

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