Facilities and Services are doing their part for the drought with a new irrigation system designed to save water.
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Senior Grounds Officer Michael Kelly is responsible for managing the IMMS system.
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The ANU landscape has evolved over many decades in response to building development and the functional requirements of the campus. To sustain the landscape a complex series of irrigation systems has also evolved and currently there are 58 separate automatic irrigation systems used to water lawn and garden bed areas across campus.
In response to the ongoing drought conditions ANU has invested in a new computerized irrigation system that is intended to give the grounds department greater control and monitoring capabilities over existing irrigation systems. The new system known as the "Hunter IMMS II" uses a dedicated computer to control the functions of 20 of the major satellite irrigation controllers across campus. The IMMS system utilizes SIM card technology (the same as in a mobile phone) to communicate with individual field units.
The $50,000 system that has taken several months to install now promises to deliver substantial savings in labour and water consumption. The main advantage of the new system is that when there are changes in weather patterns such as rain or increased evaporation; individual irrigation programs can be decreased, increased or shut down completely from one location without the need to physically visit each site.
The new system is fitted with rain sensors which are capable of suspending irrigation programs when adequate rain is detected. The IMMS system can monitor flow rates (water consumption) from individual irrigation systems making fault finding more efficient so that action can be taken earlier before water is wasted through malfunction.
Stage two of the IMMS project will be to extend the current system to include other satellite irrigation systems which are currently operating independently without the benefits of the IMMS system. Not withstanding the current system does include the majority of large scale landscapes e.g. all four ovals, University House, University Avenue, the Coombs precinct and Mt Stromlo. We have never had such capabilities in the past so we are confident that the new system will result in significant savings.
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