Reducing the risk of pollution incidents
We’re very excited to announce that JSat, JBA’s Spectral Analysis Tool which provides systematic satellite monitoring of potential pollution to drinking water sources, has been shortlisted for the finals of the Utility Week Awards 2023. Nominated in the Digital Transformation Award category, JSat is a powerful digital tool for rapidly detecting land surface changes and transforming the way water companies can monitor, identify and proactively manage risks of pollution to groundwater drinking water sources.
Supported by our innovation accelerator programme, JBA Labs, and working in close collaboration with Affinity Water, JSat has been developed to meet the specific need of groundwater catchment risk management. JSat demonstrates the power of combining machine learning technologies with satellite data to provide consistent, automated monitoring of risks to critical infrastructure. This initiative builds on our valued and long-established client relationships within the water industry.
JBA’s Discipline Lead for Remote Sensing, Dr John Bevington, said:
“We are very proud that JSat has been recognised in the Digital Transformation Award shortlist. It is a testament to all those at JBA and Affinity Water who have contributed to this highly innovative solution. Only through close collaboration with the team at Affinity Water were we able to design and develop this groundbreaking technology that now supports a more proactive management of drinking water quality. JSat’s systematic monitoring has already led to new insights in land management practices in protected areas that would otherwise have remained unknown. Although it’s still early days, JSat is already delivering benefits in terms of proactive resource prioritisation and reduction of carbon emissions.”
Affinity Water's Senior Asset Manager, Alister Leggatt, added:
“JSat is an amazing product and a fantastic collaborative effort with JBA. It will be a real game changer for us in terms of being able to identify pollution risks around our sources, making us more proactive than reactive, preventing issues before they occur. This will support us in protecting raw water quality from where we abstract and provide greater resilience in supplying wholesome drinking water to our customers.
I’m really pleased to see that JSat has been shortlisted for an award and hoping for its well-deserved win.
What is JSat?
JSat (JBA’s Spectral Analysis Tool) transforms water companies’ monitoring of ground water assets from reactive to proactive, dramatically reducing the risk of pollution incidents. The system uses a series of proprietary innovations to detect changes in land use through a machine learning-enabled analysis of satellite images, allowing users to proactively manage emerging pollution risks. Proactive monitoring and detection of land use changes not only helps in protecting drinking water from pollution but also reduces costs, resources and carbon emissions from the alternative monitoring process. The system is customisable to meet the varying needs of water companies.
JSat actively monitors over 80 Source Protection Zones (SPZs) with over 2 million reporting units, providing Red-Amber-Green scoring of risks around SPZs across all of Affinity Water’s supply areas.
Innovation through JBA Labs
JSat harnesses remote sensing, data science and software development expertise from across JBA. Machine Learning approaches applied to satellite Earth Observation technology allows us to capture data about locations and assets remotely - reducing the time, cost and carbon-footprint that would be associated with in-person data capture. Presenting this information through an intuitive web-GIS dashboard allows Affinity Water to quickly identify locations for further investigation and aids with tracking of decision making around management of potential pollution risks.
Through JBA Labs we’re accelerating the pace, the efficiency and the scale at which we innovate - delivering for our clients, our business and our people. With a dedicated team of innovation specialists, JBA Labs is here to nurture and support every stage of innovation - from scoping out ideas right through to commercialisation. We help deliver projects at any scale, from creating more efficient processes to developing game-changing innovations.
Contact Dr John Bevington for more information about JSat.
