In the intricate world of urban water management, the Queensland Water Directorate (qldwater) Statewide Water Information Management system has emerged as a beacon of efficiency and innovation.
Since its inception in 2006, Statewide Water Information Management (SWIM) has transformed from a compliance reporting tool aimed at easing the regulatory reporting burden of Water Service Providers (WSPs) into a comprehensive mechanism for monitoring and benchmarking business performance. Alongside its localised data management counterpart, swimlocal, it has further streamlined the data collection and reporting processes, delivering significant benefits across various local government services.
The genesis of SWIM
Originally, some larger Queensland WSPs faced the daunting task of collating and reporting data on over 900 indicators to multiple state and federal agencies at different times and formats. SWIM was developed to simplify this process. By 2008-09, more than 80 per cent of WSPs were using SWIM for their reporting requirements, which has since grown to encompass all of Queensland’s Council-operated WSPs, two bulk water authorities, two distribution retail entities and other subscribers.
Lalji Rathod recalls his early interactions with SWIM while working at Southern Downs Regional Council (SDRC), noting its ease of use and comprehensive functionality.
“When I first started at SDRC, I was playing around with SWIM to get a good feel for how the treatment plants are going and what may be happening at various sites. It fosters a culture where data becomes important, and capturing it also becomes very critical, which helps with future decision-making.”
SWIM’s success lies in its ability to coordinate data requests from various government departments into a single, streamlined process. Service providers submit their data annually, which is then distributed to the relevant agencies in the correct format. This reduces the time taken to collate data and improves the efficiency and timeliness of reporting.
The benefits of SWIM are manifold:
- Reduced data handling minimises the need for manual data entry and manipulation
- Improved data quality and regular access to quality assurance/control tools ensure high data accuracy
- Simplified operations and version control is streamlined, allowing multiple staff to access and modify data simultaneously
- Historical data access and data visualisation can help inform business management and planning
The advent of swimlocal
To further enhance the data reporting process, qldwater introduced swimlocal, a cloud-based data management system that allows for data synchronisation across multiple locations, significantly reducing the time and effort required for data collation.
“swimlocal opened up a really big space for me to run projects and improve the operational side of things,” said Lucy Davies, a swimlocal user at Cairns Regional Council. “I can move towards the analytical phase of the data rather than spending so much time in the data collation phase. It can potentially be a one-stop shop for all our regulatory reporting.”
swimlocal features include:
- Off-site data backup ensures data security and integrity
- Automatic data import streamlines data entry from lab and telemetry/SCADA systems and formatted Excel sheets
- Mobile data entry enables data collection via tablets and mobile phones, even offline
- Indicator alerting sends SMS or email alerts for indicators outside specified limits, including sewerage discharge licences
- Performs instantaneous and scheduled calculations with a range of functions
- Produces regular reports that include data, graphs and dashboards
Expanding applications beyond water reporting
While SWIM and swimlocal were initially designed for water and sewerage data reporting, their applications have broadened. For instance, Southern Downs Regional Council uses swimlocal to manage solid waste quality data, demonstrating its versatility.
Trevor Seth was around before SWIM/swimlocal and experienced the reporting pain during his long career with Goondiwindi Regional Council.
“We use swimlocal through the whole water and sewerage, plumbing and drainage area of our business, so it’s my one-stop shop for reporting,” Seth said. “I believe we are the second-highest data collection point in Queensland, running about 2.83 million data points. There’s nothing like having that data availability and setting up a report on 10 to 15 years of data within ten minutes.”
Seth believes continual improvement has benefitted the system, with qldwater staying abreast of the sector’s needs and adapting accordingly.
“For example, we use swimlocal for data collection at our pools and wanted to have a time date stamp on what time the data got entered because we had a few issues being able to tell who put it in. We found that the contractors weren’t actually doing all the proper tests at the right time. Under their rules of engagement, they’re supposed to test a minimum of three to four times a day and at a heavy loading. As we’re responsible for the health and safety of the patrons, we want to know that they were doing their testing morning, noon and night and not writing in three tests all in half an hour.”
How data supports better performance
Access to all the SWIM annual data allows qldwater to create an annual benchmarking report, enabling WSPs to compare their performance with similar service providers. For Seth, the comparative data allows for a deeper dive than just comparing the small, medium and large councils.
“For example, when looking at water consumption, you need to consider soil types and different scenarios,” said Seth. “More sandy, coastal areas will use smaller volumes but more often. Out in the black soil country, you’re better off giving it a heavy solid soak, and then you’ll get a couple of weeks between watering. That’s something I’ve been able to show because I’ve got access to the data. Our communities can trust that we are being waterwise through improved watering schedules.”
Ensuring compliance and improving transparency
SWIM facilitates compliance with legislative requirements and enhances transparency and public confidence in urban water services delivery. From July 2024, service providers with fewer than 10,000 connected properties have been included in the Bureau of Meteorology’s National Performance Report (NPR), ensuring a comprehensive performance dataset nationwide.
The SWIM system’s ability to manage NPR obligations efficiently is crucial. The NPR provides an independent benchmark of Australian urban water utilities’ pricing and service quality, supporting decision-making processes for both service providers and government entities.
Future prospects
Looking ahead, SWIM and swimlocal continue to evolve. This year’s upgrade will enable direct data transfer from swimlocal systems to the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation’s WaTERS database. In contrast, an upgrade to the WebReports Tool will allow maps (with sites), text and images to be included in dashboards that can be directly ‘published’ to WSP websites.
By reducing the burden of compliance, improving data quality, and expanding their applications beyond water services, these tools have become indispensable for local governments. As SWIM and swimlocal evolve, they promise to deliver even greater efficiencies and benefits, ensuring Queensland’s WSPs remain at the forefront of innovation and best water management practices.
For more information, visit www.qldwater.com.au/SWIM
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