K-water Focus ① : Water, Nature and Humankind

K-water Focus ①
Local Water Supply Evolves
into a Data-based SystemOpening of the Integrated Waterworks Situation Monitoring Center
The opening of the Integrated Situation Monitoring Center jointly run by the Ministry of Environment and K-water has enabled collecting and using nationwide waterworks operation data in real time. It also means that a data-based accident response system can be created. The opening ceremony also included a workshop where the Ministry of Environment and other local governments shared the progress and outcomes they had achieved so far.
Written by Choi Haeng-jwa Photos by K-water

Data of Local Governments to be Integrated

The Ministry of Environment and K-water held the opening ceremony of the Integrated Situation Monitoring Center at the Basin Waterworks Support Center on November 25, 2022. Attended by Yu Jae-cheol, Vice Minister of Environment, Park Jae-hyeon, CEO of K-water, industry representatives, and waterworks experts, the event consisted of the opening ceremony and the workshop to discuss the progress and success of the Basin Waterworks Support Center.
Following the red tap water incident that occurred in Incheon in 2019, the Basin Waterworks Support Center was opened in January 2020 at each of the four basins including Han River, Geumgang River, Yeongsan/Seomjingang River, and Nakdonggang River in order to respond to waterworks accidents in a more organized, professional manner and improve the operation of local waterworks. The center operated by K-water, a waterworks operator under the Ministry of Environment, deals with local waterworks accidents and provides technology support to local governments. A situation monitoring center for each of the four basins and the Integrated Situation Monitoring Center were opened this year, and K-water is expected to launch new services based on integrated data collected from 161 local waterworks by the end of the year.
K-water CEO Jae-hyeon Park said, “The Integrated Situation Monitoring Center is expected to enable providing data-based, systematic support to local waterworks. We at K-water will do our best to offer top-quality water welfare services in such a way that citizens can actually benefit.”

The Integrated Situation Monitoring Center is expected to enable providing data-based, systematic support to local waterworks. We at K-water will do our best to offer top-quality water welfare services in such a way that citizens can actually benefit.

Quick Responses to Water Supply Accidents

Last year, K-water started to establish a situation monitoring center at each basin as part of the project of establishing an ICT-based smart waterworks management system across the entire water supply system. This year, the Integrated Waterworks Situation Monitoring Center was opened at its head office. The integrated center enables collecting, integrating, and utilizing data from all waterworks across the country in real time, thereby laying the foundation for data-based, quick, and effective accident response.
Under the integrated monitoring system, water supply data are collected from across the country into the four basins for real-time monitoring, allowing waterworks to respond to crises collectively and come up with ways of improving operational efficiency for each of the four basins. K-water plans to establish standards on real-time water supply data integration and use and further expand the uses of collected data. Since its opening, the Basin Waterworks Support Center has responded to crises and offered technological support in some 4,500 cases including promptly dispatching experts in case of tap water leaks, supplying water, and supporting damage recovery in emergencies such as droughts, cold waves, and typhoons.

※ The interview was conducted in accordance with the COVID-19 safety rules.