One of our ongoing commitments to customers is finding feasible to improve how reliably and efficiently we can deliver water across our network. A recent project on the Nambrok Denison channel is a good example of that commitment in action … and it's delivering real results.
The Challenge: balancing capacity with automation
The Nambrok channel was built before modernisation, in an era of manual delivery, and designed to carry up to 500 megalitres (ML) of water per day. However, when our Total Channel Control (TCC) automation system was introduced as part of our network modernisation program, the effective order capacity had to be reduced to 360 ML per day.
Why the reduction? TCC is a sophisticated system that continuously monitors and adjusts water flows across the network in real time, allowing customers to place orders online and receive confirmation of their delivery time and date. But to do its job effectively, the system needs freeboard – it must be able to manage fluctuations in flow, including surges of up to 40 percent above order capacity level. What’s freeboard we hear you say? It’s the vertical distance between the maximum designed water surface level and the top edge (crest) of a channel – i.e. the room left before overtopping.
Operating the channel at full capacity left no room for those adjustments, which at times caused water to overtop channel banks. Reducing the operating limit was necessary to keep the system working safely and reliably.
This ceiling, known internally as the "red line", represents the maximum capacity the channel could safely operate at, and one the maintenance team set out to increase.
The Solution: De-silting and Careful Investigation
Over time, the team noticed that the Nambrok channel was underperforming even within its reduced limits because water wasn't moving through the system as freely as it should.
Following a high-demand period that highlighted the problem, the network maintenance and performance team undertook de-silting works during winter 2024 to clear the channel and improve flow conditions.
The results were encouraging. With the channel in better condition, the team worked closely with planners to assess whether the operating limit could be safely lifted. That analysis paid off and the maximum order capacity was raised by 20 ML per day, bringing effective daily delivery capacity up to 380 ML and adding 140 ML of additional capacity across a week.
That's a meaningful improvement for customers who rely on timely, confirmed water deliveries during critical irrigation periods.
Part of a Broader Effort
The Nambrok channel is one of several across the supply distribution network where the team is actively looking for opportunities to improve delivery capacity. Similar cleaning and investigation works are planned for other channels, with the same goal.
Alongside this, our ongoing aquatic weed management program – using treatments we can use during the irrigation season and during the off-season – continues to play an important role in keeping water moving freely through the system. Keeping channels clear of submerged weed growth helps ensure that flow conditions remain consistent and that our planners can do their jobs effectively.
What This Means for You
Our Demand Management System (DMS) and Total Channel Control together give you the ability to order water online and receive a confirmed delivery time. The work being done behind the scenes such as channel cleaning, weed management, or careful analysis of where operating limits can be safely adjusted, is all aimed at making sure that when you place an order, we can meet it.
We'll continue to share updates as further improvements are made across the network.