Key insights from Previsico & UDlive's water event

On Wednesday 8th May, teams from major insurance and water companies across the UK gathered at the Lloyd’s building in London for an afternoon of collaboration.

Previsico & UDlive co-hosted this event to help facilitate knowledge exchange on water sensor network development, data optimisation, and the utilisation of flood forecasting and sensor technologies for effective flood risk management.

Despite the national rail strikes, we were thrilled to have full attendance in the room with people ready to listen to a variety of flood mitigation strategies.

We were extremely proud to officially announce our partnership with UDlive at this joint event. This strategic alliance combines both companies’ capabilities, offering unparalleled solutions for managing and mitigating flood risks globally.

We were also honoured to have Rt Hon Philip Dunne MP provide our keynote speech, which offered an insight into his work as the Chairman of the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee. He also provided an overview of the environmental legislation work he has been involved with. This included the Sewage (Inland Waters) Bill, the Environment Act 2021, and his focus on water quality issues since introducing a Private Member’s Bill in January 2020.

Our Head of IoT Systems, Dr Andrew Pledger and Philip Bennett, Managing Director of UDlive, covered how we will work together to address challenges in the wastewater sector, for example collaborating with NI Water and SBRI, which aims to provide a proactive and predictive approach to managing wastewater networks.

Southern Water’s Daniel McElhinney excellently explained how they have managed to proactively clear 2,800 blockages and avoid more than 500 floods since 2021 by working with UDlive to deploy sensors throughout their network.

Stephen Davies, Senior Accounts Consultant from AXA XL, also provided a new perspective on the value of flood risk monitoring through the lens of business continuity.

Keith Scott then discussed Northern Ireland Water’s holistic approach to flood risk management, which includes the use of Previsico’s sensors across 35 of their assets to improve risk management. They also provided an insight into how they utilise flood parametric solutions to bolster their flood mitigation strategies.

Afterwards, Anglian Water’s Matthew Moore took us through a journey of natural flood management, which has helped them to reduce their insurance premium by a significant amount by deploying multiple mitigation measures, inclusive of the memorable beaver strategy. Who would have guessed it?

Ola Jacob, UK and Ireland’s Business Development Director at Descartes Underwriting then expanded the discussion further by providing more details on how they pioneer parametric insurance solutions for water companies, like the ones present at the event.

Engaging panel discussion ensued, delving into pressing topics like fostering innovation to combat flooding and exploring the financial incentives for robust risk management practices.

We are enormously grateful to have received very positive feedback following the event, being told that the presentations were engaging and informative, and that it met the objective of sharing knowledge between the two sectors to encourage collaboration and communication.

As we reflect on the event’s success, we look forward to seeing further collaboration between these sectors in the future, as there are huge benefits on offer for everyone. Keep your eyes peeled for future events like this, as there will be more to follow.