Managing Diverse Water Utility Infrastructure Through One Platform

Water networks today include a growing variety of operational assets. Utilities manage multi-vendor smart meters, legacy AMR devices, NB-IoT and LoRaWAN endpoints, district and DMA sensors, actuated valves, environmental monitors and field diagnostic equipment. These devices support different operational teams and depend on different communications technologies, data models and security requirements.

As estates expand and more stakeholders rely on consistent, high-quality operational data, utilities and their partners are seeking structured ways to bring these assets together within a single operational environment.

Altior was developed to support this need by providing a platform capable of managing heterogeneous, multi-technology estates at scale.

Managing DLMS/COSEM Across Multiple Vendors

DLMS/COSEM is widely adopted for smart metering, but large deployments often reveal subtle differences between manufacturers, models and firmware versions. These variations may include COSEM object mappings, OBIS structures, event log formats, push/pull scheduling behaviour and security suite handling. Managing these differences manually can become resource-intensive as estates grow.

Altior uses a digital twin model to standardise these behaviours. Each device type is represented through a consistent structure, and the platform manages COSEM mappings, event decoding, scheduling and security processes internally. This allows multiple meter vendors to operate reliably within the same environment and simplifies downstream integration.

A Unified Approach to a Wide Range of Devices

Altior supports a broad range of metering and non-metering devices, providing a consistent operational model for:

• DLMS/COSEM and OMS meters

• NB-IoT, LTE-M, LoRaWAN and w-M-Bus sensors

• DMA and district-level instrumentation

• Pressure, flow, leakage and environmental sensors

• AMR handhelds and diagnostic tools

• Actuated devices such as valves and switches

• Telemetry from pumping and operational equipment

All data is normalised and validated within the same platform. This provides a single structured dataset that can be used by operations, leakage, billing, asset management, IT, planning and ESG reporting teams.

Lifecycle Management for Large Estates

Large-scale smart water programmes depend on reliable device lifecycle management. Altior provides:

• Bulk onboarding via shipment files or configurable templates

• Automated validation and detailed failure reporting

• Replacement, scrapping and reassignment capabilities

• Firmware and parameter updates for targeted groups or DMAs

• Geographic and attribute-based grouping

• DMA-level actions and bulk operations

• Integration with AMR and field diagnostic processes

These capabilities create a consistent environment for managing assets throughout their lifecycle.

Dashboards and No-Code Logic for Operational Workflows

Altior includes tools that enable operational teams to interpret and act on network data without requiring specialist development.

Customisable Dashboards

Dashboards can be configured without coding, allowing teams to create views tailored to their roles. Panels may include meter reads, sensor values, network indicators, alarms, DMA behaviour or asset health metrics. Because dashboards are built on the digital twin model, they remain accurate as devices change or new technologies are introduced.

No-Code Business Logic

The platform also includes a no-code environment for defining operational rules and workflows. This supports threshold-based alerts, scheduled activities and event-driven responses. Where appropriate, parts of this logic can run at the network edge, reducing latency and supporting localised decision-making while maintaining alignment with central policies.

Performance at Network Scale

Altior maintains stable performance across large estates using asynchronous ingestion pipelines, lightweight multi-protocol adapters, persistent queues and distributed processing. This ensures predictable behaviour across NB-IoT, LoRaWAN, wireless M-Bus and mixed AMR/AMI deployments without requiring specialised hardware.

Security Architecture for Distributed Networks

Altior incorporates the Aegis security framework to support secure operation across distributed device fleets. Key capabilities include:

• End-to-end encryption

• Device identity, authentication and authorisation

• Role-based access controls and access lists

• Distributed key management

• Support for proprietary and regulated encryption

• Comprehensive audit trails

This establishes a consistent security model for both legacy and modern devices.

Hardware Efficiency in On-Premise Deployments

Many utilities operate their own datacentres or require sovereign-hosted environments. Altior is optimised for efficient on-premise operation using commodity hardware. Efficiency is achieved through:

• Lightweight protocol adapters

• Asynchronous message capture and processing

• Back-pressure controls and persistent queues

• Separation of hot and long-term storage paths

• Infrastructure-as-Code for predictable, resource-efficient deployment

This allows estates to scale from thousands to millions of devices while maintaining control over hardware resources and operating costs.

ESG-Ready Operational Data

Altior generates clean, well-structured data that supports ESG reporting, including:

• Leakage and non-revenue water metrics

• Energy consumption and carbon impact from pumping operations

• Pressure and flow optimisation

• Operational performance indicators

• Asset lifecycle and condition insights

These datasets help ensure that ESG reporting reflects operational reality and supports long-term planning.

Working Alongside Utilities and Their Partners

Inkwell Data works with utilities and their engineering, integration and field partners. The platform is designed to complement established systems and device ecosystems, supporting long-term operational continuity and providing room for future expansion.