Pulsar’s non-invasive flow monitor FlowPulse is aiding compliance and asset management throughout the region, monitoring flow rates within critical Sewage Pumping Stations (SPS). FlowPulse is installed at a fraction of the equivalent Magflow meter cost, without process interruption.
FlowPulse transmits ultrasound through the pipe wall, which is then refracted in all directions as the sound passes into the liquid. The ultrasound is reflected off particles in the flow and is then received by FlowPulse.
Measurement of flow within SPS provides vital information for both management and regulators. Total throughput can be monitored, but more importantly, flow can be compared with other data from the SPS control system to determine the relative performance of the pumps — so, for example, maintenance can be planned and efficiencies maximised. Pumped volumes also warn of upstream or downstream emergencies such as a blocked or burst main. In addition, important information can be provided to regulators, for example to confirm that pumps were performing during extreme storm conditions.
A UK water company, DCWW, identified the requirement for around 250 monitoring points across their network of SPS. 250 Magflow meters would have been extremely expensive to implement, taking into consideration the cost of the instruments, the tankering and logistics during the process interruption involved, and the direct cost of installation.
The DCWW Innovation Team approached Pulsar Process Measurement for a solution. Pulsar had been developing FlowPulse, a new concept that uses advanced digital Refracted Spread Spectrum Analysis (RSSA) within a clamp-on, non-invasive flow monitor. DCWW saw the potential of the technology and worked closely with Pulsar’s R&D team to provide trial sites along with invaluable detailed feedback and support that allowed Pulsar to complete product development quickly and effectively.
Pulsar’s FlowPulse has a minimal installation cost, only requiring a simple screwdriver to mount, with no interruption to the process. DCWW estimated a resulting saving compared to Magflow meters of AED 250k over the full project, an average of AED 34k per installation. FlowPulse has also found favour with other water companies, with over 1,000 units now installed in the UK.
FlowPulse was awarded Innovation of the Year in 2014 by the Institute of Water (UK). Pulsar continues to invest significantly in research and development to drive innovation in the water industry.
Why Non-Invasive Monitoring Matters for Sewage Pumping Stations
Instrumenting a network of SPS at scale runs into the same problem every time: a traditional magnetic flowmeter (Magflow) requires cutting into the pipe, taking the line out of service during installation, and a wetted sensor that sits permanently in a flow stream carrying solids and debris — exactly the conditions that cause fouling and maintenance issues over time. At the scale DCWW was working at (around 250 sites), the cumulative cost of process interruption and installation logistics for that many in-line meters becomes the dominant cost of the whole programme, not the instruments themselves.
A clamp-on ultrasonic monitor sidesteps both problems at once: it mounts externally with no process shutdown, and because nothing is in contact with the flow, there’s no wetted-sensor fouling to manage over the asset’s life. That combination is what made a 250-site rollout financially viable in a way a Magflow-based approach wasn’t.
Why This Matters Beyond Water Utilities
The same cost and installation logic applies anywhere flow monitoring needs to scale across many points without shutting down an active process — compliance monitoring across a distributed industrial site, asset performance tracking across multiple pump stations, or retrofit monitoring on pipework where cutting in a traditional meter isn’t practical. Daly Middle East supplies Pulsar Measurement’s full range of non-invasive flow monitoring instruments across the UAE and GCC, including the FlowPulse Handheld Controller for portable deployment.