Impact Studies

Revolutionizing Pipeline Rehabilitation with Autonomous Robotics

Aerial view of a suburban neighborhood with a truck driving down the street. The image features logos: BrightAI and Azuria Water Solutions with a plus symbol between them.

Industry

Tech Enabled Solutions for the Water Industry

Market Leadership

Leading provider of water and sewer rehabilitation services

Global Reach

Over 2,000 employees globally

The Challenge

Azuria Water Solutions faced several critical challenges in maintaining and upgrading aging water and sewer pipes:

Workforce Constraints: Recruiting and retaining skilled personnel for the labor-intensive tasks involved in sewer rehabilitation is difficult.

Market Competition: In a highly competitive bidding environment, Azuria must differentiate itself with superior products and services while also maintaining highly competitive pricing to win contracts.

Subjectivity in Assessments: Traditional methods rely heavily on manual labor and subjective assessments, leading to inconsistencies and errors.

Pipe Dimension, Diameter, and Sag Points Unknown: Crews previously relied on manual measurements at the pipe entrance, leading to inaccuracies along the full pipe length.

Laterals Are Difficult: After the pipe re-lining process, operators must guide the robot remotely through pipes, relying on obstructed video feedback to locate and cut lateral connections. Errors such as missing, overcutting, or cutting in the wrong location can result in costly repairs, delays, and potential property damage.

The Solution

BrightAI developed an AI-powered platform for Azuria, automating pipeline inspection and rehabilitation to improve crew productivity, enhance precision, and reduce costly rework.

What our partners are saying:

BrightAI’s Augmented Cut technology ensures precise lateral reinstatements without damaging the host pipe or liner. This game-changing reliability helps us get the job done right every time.

Jim O’Brien, Senior Equipment Manager, Azuria

Real-time intelligence

Stateful AI Hub:
Automates complex tasks like identifying pipe geometry and PACP codes, reducing the skill requirements and enabling efficient, precise relocation.

From reactive to proactive

24/7 “AI Master Tech” Monitoring:
AI-powered automation supports human reviewers by increasing accuracy in defect recognition and maintaining continuous oversight, helping to speed up the process.

Infrastructure AI Foundation Model:
Real-time pattern detection, issue prediction, and problem diagnosis with PACP-certified* accuracy.

*PACP = Pipeline Assessment Certification Program. This is a standardized system designed for consistent coding of sewer pipe inspection footage.

Automating operations

Autonomous Inspection Portal:
A cloud-based portal where clients can review project data, access reports, and approve work remotely, streamlining processes.

Stateful Multimodal Robot Head Unit:
Enhances visibility and data collection while guiding the robot down the pipe for pre-inspection and relining.

Truck App:
Field engineers can monitor the robot's activity in real-time. Cleaning crews can swiftly identify and address red flags before liner installation.

Augmented Cut:
Infrared and camera technology assists operators in precisely locating and cutting laterals after relining pipes and ensuring accuracy.

Truck App

Video feed with AI automatically identifying a lateral connection.

A circular image showing infrared data with location details, speed (12.5 in/min), and distance (12 feet). Hardware status includes LIDAR, IMU Body, IMU Camera, and Robot (CAN).

Portal

Displaying the digital twin of the scanned pipeline alongside PACP code listings from the inspection. Highlighted red codes signal issues requiring attention from the project manager or field engineer before lining can proceed.

A digital interface displaying a list of inspection details, including time, distance, and condition codes. A small video preview shows a pipe interior with the label Post-Clean 08/14/23. Theres a highlighted entry indicating a TB - Break In.

Digital Twin

A real-time graphical representation of the pipe, creating new segments whenever the pipe diameter changes. PACP codes appear as colored dots, allowing users to click and instantly view specific points. This feature saves time by identifying issues before repairs begin.

A circular infographic displaying various data points on a scale. It features measurements like lateral diameter, distance, and clock at angle, with visual markers in yellow, green, and blue. A close-up circle highlights specific data on the scale.

What our partners are saying:

BrightAI has got a unique combination of both the dreamy side of it - and then the ability to actually engineer it and bring it to life.

Rob Tullman, CEO, Azuria

Benefits:

Operational Efficiency

Reduced Time Per Job: Automated data collection and coding reduce the time required to complete each job. Crews show up ready to line because site prep work is complete.

Improved Staff Retention: The integration of cutting-edge AI and robotics makes the job easier and less stressful for teams. There is also a sense of excitement and pride in working with the latest tech, contributing to higher retention of skilled staff.

Quality Improvements

Enhanced Accuracy: AI-driven precision minimizes errors in measurements, cutting, and coding, elevating project quality. Better telemetry drives value.

Automation of Cutting: Automated cutting improves consistency and enables more crew members to perform successful cuts with minimal training.

Market Growth

Reduced Days Sales Outstanding (DSO): Faster report generation and customer deliverables accelerate payment cycles.

Market Differentiation: BrightAI's innovations allow Azuria to stand out in competitive bids while maintaining competitive pricing.

Scaling for the future

BrightAI’s partnership with Azuria Water Solutions is setting a new standard in water and sewer infrastructure rehabilitation—efficient, accurate, and AI-driven. This collaboration reinforces BrightAI’s leadership in AI for critical infrastructure. BrightAI’s hands-on support, including full-time tech support in the field, demonstrates the company’s unwavering commitment to ensuring the success of its customers. By closely collaborating with Azuria, BrightAI continues to refine and enhance its solutions, ensuring they deliver measurable value in the field and supporting Azuria’s expansion.