Yesterday, we had the opportunity to have a guided tour of Joburg Water’s real-time monitoring centre at its head offices in the city centre.

At a glance, the technology used inside doesn’t look very sophisticated as all there is inside are a handful of TV screens displaying live information, graphs, tables, images and alarms.

However, the systems used to display this information are high-tech and commonly used in other parts of the world. They help Joburg Water track water usage across the city, the levels of water in tanks and reservoirs, problems that arise and other important monitoring information.

Perhaps the most crucial source of information is the alarm system which immediately sets off a siren should any issue arise, no matter what time of day or night it is, bringing it to the attention of the official/s inside the centre.

Watch below as Joburg Water’s Edward Livesey explains how everything works.