SWAN Forum–WaterLinks Webinar: Wastewater Digitalization in Action

The SWAN Forum and WaterLinks co-hosted the second webinar in their series, “Wastewater Digitalization: From Regional Lessons to Plant-Level Impact,” bringing together 105 participants from across Asia-Pacific, Europe, and Africa.

The webinar opened with Dorai Narayana, former Head of Planning and Engineering at Indah Water Konsortium, Malaysia and Board Member of WaterLinks, Philippines, who set the regional context for digitalization in the Asia-Pacific region. He highlighted why transformation is increasingly urgent for water and sanitation utilities and shared Malaysia’s 30-year journey from fragmented, manual operations to fully data-driven systems with predictive maintenance, remote monitoring, and real-life network performance tracking today.

Building on this perspective, Rahul Chhillar of Hunter Water, Australia showcased how digital optimization at their Belmont wastewater treatment plant increased clarifier capacity by 23%, achieved significant energy savings, and deferred a USD 20 million capital upgrade.

Daniel Novarino of Società Metropolitana Acque Torino, S.p.A. shared Italy’s approach, combining energy monitoring, advanced biological control, and modernized machinery to reduce energy use while meeting EU nutrient removal requirements.

The webinar highlighted that digitalization is more than technology; it enables utilities to turn data into actionable insights, optimize processes, enhance resilience, reduce costs, and support sustainable service delivery. When combined with strong process knowledge and engaged staff, wastewater digitalization delivers measurable, plant-level impact while shaping the future of utility operations across regions. Speakers encouraged participants to start their digitalization journey now taking into account specific objectives they want to achieve.

You can access the webinar recording and presentations here: https://swan-forum.com/publications/swan-waterlinks-webinar-wastewater-digitalisation/