PepsiCo has started to integrate WINT’s water management and leak detection systemin dozens of its factories around the globe. This step is part of the American food and beverage giant to cut expenses of water consumption. PepsiCo has set an initial goal of reducing water consumption by 15% until 2025, as part of a wider perennial program aimed to save resources and reduce environmental damage caused by the company’s activity.

WINT’s platform interfaces with the factory’s existing water systems, and is capable of identifying – using AI algorithms – water consumption anomalies at the production line, whether it is a technical issues like faulty engine/valve or merely water waste.

Yaron Dycian, WINT’s Chief Product and Strategy Officer, says to Techtime he experiences a change in industries’ attitudes towards water usage. “The industrial sector is responsible for fifth of the global water consumption. As water are considered a cheap resourse, saving water was not the primary concern of the industrial companies. Today, with the arousal of environmental consciousness, and since water waste increase carbon footprint, we witness a change and desire to use water effectively. Our cooperation with PepsiCo is strategic and sustained, and our intent is to extend our technology integration to more PepsiCo factories”.

Identifying a leaking toilet at the 20th floor

Together with the industrial sector, the main target market for WINT is the residential and office buildings, which suffer from a chronic water waste problem. For example: there are estimates that water damage in facilities is a major source of insurance claims, with over $13 billion in annual payouts.  At the UK, this amount is estimated at £1 billion.

WINT’s platform is an analytic one, based on detection of water leaks and waste using AI to identify anomalies in the facility’s water consumption graph. In order to gather the required data, unique devices are installed on the water meters at a various strategic points across the building. Using machine learning algorithms, the system learns site’s usage patterns, and alerts the maintenance managers on any anomaly that may indicate a leak. According to the company, the solution may save 20%-25% of water expenses.

Dycian: “People are unaware of the amount of water wasted in their building. Current estimates are that around 25% of the amount of water entering a building – is wasted. Main issue is that leaks are detected in late stages, for example – when a pipe is exploded. Our system can detect a leaking toilet in a skyscraper”. Currently, WINT has around 400 clients in Israel and around the globe, to include the real estate company TIDHAR, Mellanox, several Israeli insurance companies as well as financial worldwide institutes such as Bank of America and Citibank. Together with its offices in Rosh-HaAyin, the company holds offices in the UK and the USA and employs a total of 50 employees.

Meanwhile, WINT announced it had completed a $15 million Series B funding round. The round was led by New York-based global private equity and venture capital firm Insight Partners and with participation from existing investors which include Marius Nacht, one of Israel’s leading serial entrepreneurs, founders, and investors. The round also included numerous global construction and real-estate companies, who are keenly looking to solve the challenges posed by water sustainability and damage in their facilities and construction sites. These include Suffolk Construction, a national technology-driven general contractor, the Consensus Business Group, the UK’s largest owner and manager of residential and commercial property, Tidhar, Electra, Ashtrom, Rogovin, and the Israel-Canada group.