Severn WLD™ 2nd Generation: Digging In To The Detail

We’re really excited to announce the launch of Severn WLD™ 2nd generation - the latest version of our early water leak detection device.

It’s been less than 18 months since we launched the first generation of Severn WLD, and we’ve learned a lot in this interim period. As a company, we’re driven to constantly invest in R&D and innovation in order to deliver truly best-in-class products - so we’re always working on what we can add or improve. 

And thanks to the generosity of customers, partners, and people in the ecosystem, we’ve also had a steady stream of feedback to help us better understand how to solve the very real, very expensive problem of water leaks in commercial buildings.

While our press release explains the key features and benefits, we’re taking this opportunity to talk about the enhancements and new features we’ve made in more depth.

The enclosure

Color
Perhaps the most visible change we’ve made is the color of the enclosure. We’d previously chosen black, but customers told us that they’d like something that’s a little more discreet when the devices aren’t concealed.

We’ve chosen a pale gray, which is a little more discreet but also helps to hide some of the dust and dirt often present where the devices are installed.

Anti-tamper mechanism
When the devices are visible, some customers have expressed concern about them being tampered with, so we’ve added an optional anti-tamper mechanism that locks the enclosure when it’s closed, but is easy to open with the right tools.

Latch location
If you’ve installed a 1st generation Severn WLD, you know it’s pretty quick, and doesn’t require any tools. But we found that if you need to install devices in less accessible locations, it could be a little tricky to do this one-handed. So we’ve moved the latch to make trickier installs just that bit easier.

IP65 rating
The majority of our devices are deployed in areas where there’s a low tolerance for water leaks, so there’s little chance of flooding. But in order to ensure the enclosure is as robust as possible - and to meet the needs of future customers who may have a significantly higher tolerance for leaks - we’ve added a seal, and now the 2nd generation is IP65-rated.

This means your Severn WLD has the highest protection against dust, and should continue to operate even if subjected to low-pressure water jets.

The sensor

When you’re setting up and installing tens or hundreds of devices, it’s important that everything is as quick and easy as possible. Correctly loading the printed electronics sensor into the enclosure was a little trickier than we liked, so we’ve added some “ears” to it that makes it fast and easy to load and line everything up correctly.

The firmware

Performance in low RSSI areas
We’ve improved the communication of the devices that affected some of our US customers due to low RSSI. We’ve also made changes that improve connection attempts overall, which has had a positive impact on the battery life of the device.

Providing additional data points in messages
Customers asked us to add 2 things to the standard status update messages: battery voltage, and a status on whether the sensor was connected. We were able to add these to both status update and emergency alert messages, while still keeping the message packets small.

Changing the start-up routine
We’ve streamlined the start-up routine so it’s quicker to execute, even though we’ve made new additions like improving signal strength indication to help you more quickly know if a chosen location is suitable; and resolving a battery issue that was sometimes found at start-up.

Preserving battery life
We are very pleased to share that the expected average battery life of a Severn WLD is now 6 years - double what we initially achieved when we launched the 1st generation!

To achieve this, we’ve also made some changes to how the device is powered when it sleeps between taking measurements.

We’re celebrating - but we’re not standing still

While we’re really pleased to have launched Severn WLD 2nd generation, there’s no time to waste: commercial water leaks cost over US$2.5B a year in insurance claims in the US alone (and that’s just the leaks that are claimed on insurance).

We’re committed to continuing to enhance Severn WLD, as well as working on a selection of other exciting initiatives we’re not quite ready to talk about yet.

Have feedback on Severn WLD? We’d love to hear it - let us know!