AVEVA SCADA System Migration in the Water and Wastewater Industry. Improve Stability Without Rebuilding the System From Scratch

At a water and wastewater facility, the SCADA system provides real-time monitoring and control of processes that operate virtually without interruption. When the environment starts aging and slowing down, visualization errors appear, and reports begin to require manual updates, SCADA system migration becomes more than just a matter of day-to-day convenience.

In this project, we carried out a SCADA system migration of the AVEVA environment for a company specializing in wastewater treatment as well as water treatment and purification. Instead of rebuilding the solution from scratch, we moved the existing system to a newer version and new hardware, streamlined reporting, and implemented the necessary changes in the controllers.

The client was using an older version of Plant SCADA, which had essentially supported visualization of the water treatment and purification process from the beginning. Over time, however, the computers could no longer keep up, visualization errors started appearing, and individual reports gradually stopped working. Data including flow rates and meter readings, which the system should have recorded automatically, had to be written down manually every day at the same time.

Another challenge in this project was the inability to maintain the environment in-house. The company responsible for the previous implementation no longer provided services to the client, while the client lacked the necessary technical resources and personnel internally. The system was still running, but operating it involved an increasing amount of manual work, and responding to new errors was becoming more difficult.

At the same time, the sewer network had expanded significantly, with additional households connected to it. As wastewater volumes increased, stable control of the treatment plant became even more important. The client had already experienced situations where a power outage caused the SCADA system to shut down and control had to be switched to manual mode. With higher wastewater inflows, this type of situation could become much more difficult to manage, so system stability became one of the main reasons for starting the SCADA system migration.

The first stage of our collaboration involved discussions with the client and a detailed assessment of the system’s current condition. The company’s team identified which elements were not working properly, what users were missing, and which changes had become necessary after years of working with the existing environment.

The client provided hardware that had already been purchased, allowing us to carry out the initial configuration at our office. This made it possible to test communication across the distributed system in advance, identify potential issues, and prepare more effectively for the actual deployment. Preparatory work took about a month, after which we moved on to the on-site installation, carried out together with a member of the client’s technical team.

This approach reduced the number of unknowns during commissioning. In a system operating at a wastewater treatment plant, there is little room for extended downtime or for testing solutions only after the old environment has been disconnected. That is why we wanted to resolve as many potential issues as possible before the final stages of the SCADA system migration.

After installing the new hardware, we began testing individual visualizations. The existing environment remained operational, allowing us to compare data and verify whether the new system accurately reflected the process. The old system was disconnected only after testing had been completed and the correct operation of the new environment had been confirmed.

At the same time, we also made changes to controllers the client had previously been unable to access. After years of operation, some settings no longer reflected the facility’s current needs, so the SCADA system migration was a good opportunity to address this area as well.

One of the more time-consuming parts of the project was reporting. The reports not only had to be transferred to the new version of the system but also properly adapted and standardized, because some of them were no longer working correctly in the previous environment. After the SCADA system migration, reporting is handled digitally and automatically, so employees no longer have to perform daily manual readings, while subsequent data analysis is easier.

After the new system went live, both the hardware and software began operating significantly faster and more efficiently. Employees gained access to the information they needed at the workstations where they actually use it, and the computers could be placed in the appropriate rooms.

The approach to future development also changed. The system can now scale with the company’s needs by adding more screens or workstations without rebuilding the entire environment from scratch. As a result, the solution can grow together with the client’s infrastructure.

Cost was another important factor. Because the existing system was suitable for a SCADA system migration, there was no need to rebuild everything from the ground up. This made it possible to retain the components that were still serving their purpose while modernizing the areas that genuinely required improvement.

After the project was completed, we stayed in contact with the client through warranty and support services. As a result, the company has access to a team that knows the environment and can continue supporting it as further changes are introduced.

Although this project was completed in the water and wastewater industry, similar problems can arise at other facilities using SCADA systems. This is particularly true in process industries and continuous manufacturing, where system availability, real-time process visualization, and reliable reporting have a direct impact on daily operations.

Older software, underperforming hardware, lack of technical support, reporting problems, and limited expansion capabilities are all signs that should not be ignored. Importantly, they do not always mean that an entirely new environment needs to be built. A SCADA system migration or modernization can make it possible to continue using the existing solution while preparing it for years of further operation.

The best place to start is with a SCADA system audit. It will allow you to assess the condition of your current environment, identify the biggest risks, and determine whether your facility needs a full SCADA system migration, a partial modernization, or changes only in selected areas. The sooner you make that decision, the easier it will be to plan the scope of work, testing, and costs without the pressure of an unexpected failure. And our team will be happy to support you at every stage.