Published:  30.11.2021

The Suomussalmi Municipal Waterworks is responsible for arranging water supply in accordance with the Water Services Act. The municipality of Suomussalmi has signed a ten-year agreement with Digita for the digitalisation of the water supply, using Digita’s IoT network based on LoRaWAN technology.

The agreement’s pilot stage is expected to last until the end of the year. The process of swapping out water meters en masse is set to begin early next year and will be completed within the following three years. “We will be replacing all 1,900 water meters in our area with remotely read meters over the course of three years. This means replacing more than 600 meters per year,” explains Suomussalmi’s Water Supply Manager Jukka Malinen.

Suomussalmi Municipal Waterworks operate in a large area. The waterworks manages over 100 kilometres of distribution lines. This means that transitioning to a digital operating environment is a significant step forward. “Improving efficiency, diversifying the data we collect and gaining the ability to monitor the data provided by water meters for purposes like detecting leaks and frozen pipes are all important things. Transitioning from billing based on an estimate to billing based on actual usage is also significant,” Malinen says.

According to Malinen, cooperation with Digita has gone off without a hitch. Malinen is also open to new digital solutions. “Everything has gone as we agreed with Digita, and we’re open to the possibility of new digital solutions in the future,” Malinen says.

“We are extremely pleased about launching a long-term collaboration with the Suomussalmi Municipal Waterworks. The project has progressed smoothly thanks to their excellent expertise and clear vision of how they want to move forward. The collaboration will unlock the benefits of digitalisation for the municipality’s water supply,” says Digita’s IoT Sales Manager Mona Miettinen.

Nature is always close by. Suomussalmi. www.suomussalmi.fi

Digita is a provider of digital infrastructure and services and the country’s largest independent owner of telecommunication masts. The company owns and operates Finland’s leading national terrestrial television and radio network, acts as a pay-TV operator for the antenna network, and develops future broadcasting services. Digita’s telecommunications services include private networks, indoor coverage solutions, telecommunications rooftop management services, as well as Internet of Things (IoT) and data center services. Services are provided to media companies, consumers, mobile operators, industry, infrastructure companies and property owners. Digita employs 180 experts nationwide.