A new development in Walkerton will help municipalities find water main leaks before they become a bigger problem.
Toronto-based Echologics has officially opened its Innovation Site, a replication of a municipal water system featuring over 2,000 ft of underground water pipe adjacent to the Walkerton Clean Water Centre.
Vice President and General Manager Marc Bracken says they will use the site for research and development of technology focused on water main leak detection and assessing pipe conditions.
He says it's research aimed at preventing water main breaks before they occur.
"What we're able to do with the technologies we're testing is give them to municipalities and once they come out of this, they can go on fire hydrants literally across the street and instantly alert utilities to when they have a water leak before it blows up in their face," says Bracken.
The addition to the water industry is something Brockton council has been looking at for some time, as Mayor David Inglis says this is the start of establishing the community as the hub of the water industry in Ontario.
"[Council] looked at the water cluster opportunity a couple of years ago and this is the start of that, so we will continue with that. It's a natural fit for this to be in Brockton right beside the [Walkerton Clean Water Centre]. It will bring a lot of people in for training, to this facility as well as the water centre, so they can work together well," says Inglis.
Echologics employs about 100 people worldwide and Bracken says they have a long-term plan to have a permanent presence in Walkerton, which includes full-time employment opportunities.
