There is one clear reason to complete a water infrastructure assessment. 

You cannot manage what you cannot see.

Many networks operate with gaps in condition data, uncertain risk and assets that only draw attention once they fail. 

An assessment gives you real visibility so you can prioritise work, plan renewals and support future growth with confidence. 

This guide explains how the process works and the value it brings to utilities and councils.

Table of Contents

How a Water Infrastructure Assessment Works

A water infrastructure assessment is a structured review of the condition and performance of your water assets.

The goal is to understand how well each asset is operating, how likely it is to fail, and what impact that failure would have on customers, operations, and long-term plans.

An assessment looks at three core elements. These elements form the base for all decisions that follow.

Condition

Condition indicates the asset’s physical state. It is based on age, wear, corrosion, deterioration, structural issues and test results. Condition data helps confirm whether an asset is healthy, at risk or nearing the end of its useful life.

Performance

Performance shows how the asset behaves under normal operating conditions. This includes flow, pressure, reliability, energy use and the ability to meet current or future demand. Performance data is important for both day-to-day operations and long-term planning.

Criticality

Criticality shows how important the asset is to service delivery. A highly critical asset will cause a large impact if it fails. This includes customer outages, water quality issues, safety concerns and cost impacts. Low criticality assets have smaller consequences and lower risk.

Bringing Condition, Performance and Criticality Together

A clear picture of risk emerges when these three elements are combined.

  • Condition helps identify the likelihood of failure.
  • Criticality shows the consequence of failure.
  • Performance links the asset to daily service and future growth.

This gives asset managers, regional councils and planning teams a realistic understanding of where to focus resources and what actions will produce the greatest value. 

It also creates evidence that supports decisions during planning cycles or funding requests.

Why Water Infrastructure Assessments Are Important

Water networks face pressure from ageing assets, rising demand, weather impacts and limited budgets. 

A water infrastructure assessment helps you understand where your network is most vulnerable and where investment will deliver the greatest benefit. 

It replaces assumptions with evidence so teams can plan with confidence.

  • Supports better risk management: An assessment identifies assets with a high likelihood of failure and highlights the consequences if they fail. This helps you reduce service interruptions, customer complaints and emergency repairs.
  • Improves renewal and upgrade planning: Many networks rely on age or break history to prioritise renewals. These methods are not always accurate. Condition and performance data give a clearer view of which assets need attention now, which assets can stay in service and which assets require further testing.
  • Strengthens long-term asset management plans: Assessment results feed into long-term financial plans, renewal forecasts and service level strategies. This creates a stronger foundation for decision-making during budget cycles or regulatory reviews.
  • Increases confidence in hydraulic modelling and growth plans:Planners need to know whether existing assets can support future demand. Assessment data helps refine modelling assumptions and upgrade staging so growth plans are more reliable.
  • Reduces operational uncertainty:Understanding condition and performance helps operations teams reduce unplanned outages, improve shutdown planning and make better use of limited maintenance budgets.
  • Supports funding and business case development:Assessment findings give councils and utilities defensible evidence that supports grant applications, capital bids and internal governance processes. This is especially important for regional councils with small teams and limited data.
  • Improves safety and compliance: Assessments identify assets that create safety risks or compliance issues. This allows teams to address problems early and avoid penalties or service disruptions.

Types of Water Infrastructure Assessments

Water networks contain many different assets, and each asset type needs a specific approach. 

A strong assessment program uses the right method for the right asset so you get reliable information that supports planning and risk decisions.

Below is an overview of the main assessment types used across pipelines, reservoirs, pump stations and critical fittings.

Pipeline and Water Main Assessments

Pipeline assessments help you understand the condition, performance and remaining life of both distribution mains and trunk mains. Methods include:

  • Acoustic leak detection to identify active leaks.
  • Pressure and flow testing to check performance and confirm suspected issues.
  • CCTV inspection for sewer rising mains or pipes with accessible entry points.
  • External or internal wall thickness testing to measure deterioration.
  • Targeted sampling to provide physical evidence of pipe condition.
  • NDT methods that confirm the state of the pipe without cutting it open.

These assessments help you confirm whether a pipe section is healthy, at risk or due for renewal. They also support hydraulic modelling and network planning.

Reservoir Assessments

Reservoirs are critical to supply security. A reservoir assessment reviews:

  • Structural condition of walls, roof and access points.
  • Roof condition and safety.
  • Internal linings.
  • Outlet and inlet structures.
  • Water quality risks linked to ageing or damage.
  • Compliance with safety and operational requirements.

These inspections help utilities and councils plan maintenance and identify risks that impact water quality or storage reliability.

Pump Station Assessments

Pump stations support distribution, trunk systems and growth planning. A pump station assessment covers:

  • Pump performance under normal load.
  • Capacity to meet current and future demand.
  • Electrical and mechanical condition.
  • Reliability and energy use.
  • Issues that may affect water quality or service continuity.

These assessments help confirm whether the station can support growth, maintain pressure and operate safely.

Valve and Critical Fitting Assessments

Valves and fittings affect shutdown planning and isolation capability. An assessment checks:

  • Whether valves operate as expected.
  • Issues that limit shutdown options.
  • Condition or performance problems that increase risk during maintenance or emergencies.
  • Clustered fitting issues that increase the cost or impact of a major repair.

These insights help teams manage active risks and reduce the impact of outages.

Levels of Assessment

Water infrastructure assessments can be scaled to suit your budget, asset risk and planning needs. 

Most programs fall into three levels. Each level builds on the last so you can start small and increase detail where needed.

Level 1: Desktop and Data Review

A Level 1 assessment provides a high-level view of network risk using existing information. It is often the first step for both large utilities and smaller councils.

It may include:

  • Asset age and material data.
  • Break and repair history.
  • SCADA, pressure and flow trends.
  • Customer complaints or service level issues.
  • Basic criticality scoring.
  • Historical design data.

This level helps identify high-risk zones, confirm data gaps and decide where field assessments will add the most value.

Level 2: Field Assessments

A Level 2 assessment provides hands-on information that confirms or challenges desktop assumptions. It is used when a higher level of confidence is needed.

It may include:

  • Leak detection.
  • CCTV inspection.
  • NDT testing for pipes or fittings.
  • Wall thickness measurements.
  • Visual inspections of reservoirs, pump stations and fittings.
  • Targeted sampling to understand remaining life.

This level is ideal for critical assets, renewal planning and networks with limited background data.

Level 3: Detailed Investigation

A Level 3 assessment provides the highest level of certainty. It supports major capital projects, business cases and long-term planning decisions.

It may include:

  • Detailed physical testing.
  • Pump performance testing under multiple conditions.
  • Structural reviews for reservoirs.
  • Detailed condition grading.
  • Modelling inputs to support upgrade staging.
  • Cost estimates for renewals or upgrades.

This level helps teams justify investment, confirm upgrade timing and support long-term strategies.

How These Levels Work Together

The three levels create a staged approach. 

You can start with Level 1 to prioritise assets, use Level 2 to collect reliable field data and use Level 3 where major investment decisions need a high level of confidence. 

This approach helps teams work within budget while still improving risk management and planning outcomes.

Triggers That Signal the Need for a Water Infrastructure Assessment

Many teams complete a water infrastructure assessment after a clear issue appears, but there are often earlier signals that show when the time is right. 

These triggers help you decide whether an assessment will add value now or if the work can be planned for a future cycle.

You may need an assessment when you notice:

  • Rising numbers of breaks or leaks in specific zones.
  • Operational staff reporting pressure or flow issues.
  • Ageing assets with limited condition data.
  • Customer complaints increasing over time.
  • A growing gap between planned service levels and actual performance.
  • Significant non-revenue water losses that are hard to explain.
  • Uncertainty about the remaining life of trunk mains or other critical assets.
  • Reservoirs showing visible deterioration or safety concerns.
  • Pump stations struggling to meet demand or showing energy inefficiency.
  • Compliance risks identified during audits or internal reviews.
  • New development or rezoning that places pressure on existing infrastructure.
  • Funding opportunities that require clear evidence of risk and need.
  • A major flood, drought or weather event that may have affected asset condition.
  • A new asset management plan or capital works program that needs reliable input data.

These triggers help asset managers, regional councils and planning teams understand when an assessment will produce real value. They also help justify the work to internal decision makers.

What a Good Assessment Should Deliver

A strong water infrastructure assessment gives you clear, defensible information that supports planning, risk reduction and investment decisions. 

The outcomes should be easy to understand and practical to use in asset management plans, operational planning and capital works programs.

A good assessment should deliver:

  • Clear condition findings for each asset reviewed.
  • Performance data that shows how assets behave during normal operations.
  • Criticality scores that highlight assets with the greatest impact on customers and operations.
  • A combined risk profile that shows the likelihood of failure and the consequence of failure.
  • A list of priority assets that need action now, soon or later.
  • Renewal and upgrade recommendations that support long-term financial plans.
  • Data that improves the accuracy of hydraulic modelling and growth planning.
  • Insights that guide shutdown planning and operational decisions.
  • Evidence that supports funding bids or business cases.
  • A clear explanation of methodology so findings can be presented to internal teams.
  • A structured report that can be used immediately by asset managers, operations staff and planning teams.

These deliverables help you move from uncertainty to clear and actionable decisions. They also ensure that investment is directed to the assets that provide the greatest value.

How Assessments Support Planning and Investment

Water infrastructure assessments provide the evidence needed to make confident planning and investment decisions. 

They help utilities and councils understand the true state of their networks so resources can be directed where they will have the greatest impact.

A good assessment strengthens planning and investment by:

  • Improving long-term asset management plans with accurate condition and risk data.
  • Supporting long-term financial plans with clear renewal and upgrade forecasts.
  • Giving planners reliable inputs for hydraulic modelling and capacity reviews.
  • Helping confirm whether existing assets can support new development areas.
  • Providing stronger business cases for upgrades, replacements or staged projects.
  • Reducing uncertainty when timing major capital works.
  • Helping teams sequence renewals in a way that manages risk and budget constraints.
  • Supporting resilience planning for drought, flood and climate events.
  • Reducing the risk of over investment or under investment by replacing assumptions with evidence.
  • Giving executives and councillors clear information they can use during approval processes.

How Aqua Analytics Can Turn Network Uncertainty Into Clear Action

Aqua Analytics helps bridge the gap between knowing there is a problem and knowing what action to take. 

Our team works with both large utilities and regional councils to uncover the true condition and performance of pipelines, reservoirs, pump stations and critical fittings. 

We use proven methods and data-driven processes that give you practical insights you can apply immediately.

Our assessments support long-term financial plans, asset management plans, business cases and growth strategies. 

They also help reduce operational risk and guide renewals so your investment delivers real value.

Each program is tailored to your network so you get the right level of detail for your budget and goals.

If you want clarity about your network or need evidence to support upcoming planning or investment decisions, our team can help. 

Contact us today to discuss an assessment approach that fits your network and priorities.