KUALA LUMPUR – Air Selangor has reassured that it is coming up with fresh solutions to contain and manage water supply disruptions in 2022 after a spate of water cuts elicited uproars from the public in recent times.
Its chief executive officer Suhaimi Kamaralzaman said that the company has been constantly extending efforts and making preparations to overcome this issue that has plagued Selangor’s residents.
Through certain measures that have already been implemented, he said, the frequency of water disruptions has significantly decreased, from seven incidents in 2020 to only two this year.
However, he said, it is impossible to have no water disruptions at all.
Suhaimi explained that water treatment plants must be shut every five years for maintenance and parts replacement.
“We cannot avoid shutting down the plants on a scheduled basis every five years,” he said at Air Selangor’s year-end media interview held virtually with reporters today.
“Zero-water disruption is impossible in our line of business because sometimes you will need to fix, replace, or upgrade equipment, as well as flush pipes,” he said.
“So you will have to inform your consumers that your pipes will be shut down for three hours and we have to flush the pipes.”
Nevertheless, Suhaimi stressed that scheduled shutdowns can be reduced if there are more plants.
“As we add more and more plants to the current water supply industry in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, and Putrajaya, you will see disruptions reduced because we will have more backup plants for support whenever we close a part of our systems.
“Three (or) four years from now, with more and more plants being added, we hope the number can then be reduced substantially,” he said.
On digitalisation, he said that Air Selangor has implemented a new feature on its app and website that gives consumers information on areas affected during plant shutdown.
He said the feature includes providing a map of Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, and Putrajaya with details on areas that are affected.
Once supply is restored, an area with a water cut, highlighted as a red zone, will be changed to yellow when supply there is partially restored and green when it is fully restored, he explained.
Suhaimi added that for scheduled shutdowns, customers will be informed at least two weeks in advance to prepare for the situation.
He said that Air Selangor also aims to minimise unscheduled disruptions, such as those caused due to pipe bursts.
With regards to pipe damage, he said the company has adopted various technologies and equipment in its system so that its workers can swiftly replace parts before they burst or leak.
“We have about 150 staff going around, over, and above the technological advancements we have deployed to detect leaks before it turns into a burst.”
He said that the current pipe burst index for 2021 is 6.73 cases for every 100km. – The Vibes, December 13, 2021
