Lillehammer Municipality Detects and Repairs Water Leaks Faster with Guard Cloud

”The new system from Guard Automation helps us detect leaks earlier and, just as importantly, narrow down where to look for them,” says Knut Andreas Myklebust-Vårvang.

Myklebust-Vårvang is an operations engineer responsible for water network zoning within Lillehammer Municipality's water distribution department. His responsibilities include the operation and maintenance of the pipelines supplying clean drinking water to the municipality.

260 Kilometres of Water Pipelines

”The drinking water network is extensive. We're talking about 260 kilometres of pipelines, equivalent to the straight-line distance between Lillehammer and Trondheim.”

Myklebust-Vårvang explains that the municipality has been working to identify and repair leaks for many years. Between 2013 and 2022, Lillehammer reduced its daily water consumption from 18,000–19,000 cubic metres to approximately 8,000–9,000 cubic metres.

Until recently, the municipality primarily relied on acoustic equipment to listen for leaks. However, it became clear that some faults could only be detected through additional measurement instruments and a system capable of collecting and analysing the data.

”We could spend weeks or even months between the first indication that something was wrong and actually locating the leak. The challenge was the sheer size of the network. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack.”

Finding and Repairing Leaks Faster

In autumn 2022, Lillehammer Municipality partnered with Guard Automation, a Norwegian company specialising in industrial automation and system integration.

Fifteen new electromagnetic water meters were installed throughout the municipality's distribution network. By dividing the network into smaller, measurable zones, the municipality could effectively make the haystack smaller — allowing leaks to be identified and repaired more quickly.

”We've already identified three water leaks using the new system. Two have been repaired, and the third is currently being addressed. That demonstrates that the system works,” says Myklebust-Vårvang.

The new battery-powered meters measure the volume of water flowing through individual pipelines every 15 minutes. The measurements are transmitted from underground to Guard Cloud, where the data is collected, consolidated and presented as actionable insight for the operations engineer and his team.

Water Leakage Remains a Major Challenge in Norway

Jon Egil Ek, Division Manager at Sandefjord-based Guard Automation, explains that the company supports nearly 40% of Norwegian municipalities with systems related to critical infrastructure. He has observed growing interest in water loss analysis.

”More and more municipalities are making this a priority. Yet many still lack the equipment and systems needed to locate leaks accurately. The key is to connect the right measurement instruments to a platform capable of collecting data from multiple sources and presenting the information in a way that makes it easier for municipalities to detect and repair leaks faster.”

Myklebust-Vårvang agrees.

”Through the Guard Cloud platform, we can monitor how much water flows through the pipelines. If unusually large volumes of water pass through a pipe at night, when consumption is typically at its lowest, that may indicate a leak. We can also configure alarms and receive notifications when the system detects potential faults. We check the system every day, and it has become an important tool in our daily operations,” he explains.

Significant Potential for Improvement

Lillehammer Municipality produces almost four million cubic metres of clean drinking water every year. Despite years of targeted efforts, substantial volumes of treated water are still lost before reaching consumers.

”In Norway, we waste enormous amounts of clean drinking water. Here in Lillehammer, we're losing between 20 and 30% of all the water we produce,” says Myklebust-Vårvang.

He has extensive knowledge of how leak detection is carried out across Norway and serves on the board and technical committees of Rørinspeksjon Norge, the Norwegian pipe inspection industry association.

”Much of the lost water ends up in the sewer system, where it has to be treated again. That requires significant resources. The potential for improvement is enormous, with substantial benefits from both an economic and environmental perspective,” he explains.

Myklebust-Vårvang estimates that water losses in Denmark are around 7–8% and believes that standards should be introduced to ensure better monitoring of drinking water distribution networks.

”Many municipalities aren't even actively addressing the issue. And when producing one cubic metre of clean drinking water costs approximately NOK 25, it's clear that there is considerable money to be saved.”

Lillehammer currently has two full-time employees dedicated to identifying leaks across its water distribution network. The infrastructure includes both new and ageing pipelines, with the oldest dating back more than 100 years.

The municipality is now preparing to expand its monitoring capabilities further.

”We plan to install another 15 meters across the water distribution network, and we're also exploring whether the same methodology could be applied to flood preparedness. The benefits of collecting and using data are enormous, and we look forward to continuing our collaboration with Guard,” Myklebust-Vårvang concludes.