In the pursuit of optimising infrastructure management and ensuring the reliability of its water supply network, a leading water utility in Australia had initiated a comprehensive pipeline rehabilitation and replacement project on what it described as “one of the most critical assets in its entire water network.” This approach, while straightforward, often leads to unnecessary expenditures and disruptions, as entire pipeline segments are replaced regardless of their actual co

In the water industry, the underground network is often a realm of the unknown. For decades, utilities worldwide have relied on age-based models to determine when to replace critical infrastructure. The logic was simple: if a pipe is old, it must be deteriorating. However, this approach is both capital-inefficient and risky. It often leads to the premature disposal of assets that still have decades of useful life, or conversely, misses newer assets that are failing rapidly du

The National Park Service (NPS), in its continued efforts to preserve vital infrastructure within Big Bend National Park, Texas, recently commissioned a condition assessment of the Chisos Basin water supply system. Central to this project was a 4.8km (3-mile), 90mm (3.5-inch) galvanized steel pipeline—installed in1955—that delivers water from Oak Spring Pump Station to the Chisos Basin Water Plant. To inform future rehabilitation plans and provide a clear understanding of ass