Case Study | AI-Powered Water Utilities: KingWater + DeepSeek Drive Smart Upgrade at a Changde Water Plant

KingWater + DeepSeek Enables Smart Upgrade

A One-Stop Smart Water Solution: KingWater + DeepSeek

In recent years, rapid advancements in artificial intelligence have accelerated digital transformation across industries. The smart water sector is actively exploring AI-driven upgrades to address long-standing challenges—limited traditional operation models, heavy reliance on manual decision-making, complex system maintenance, and underutilized data value.

As a leading smart water solution provider, the company has integrated its self-developed KingWater Smart Water Production & Management Platform with the DeepSeek large AI model, creating a comprehensive, one-stop intelligent water solution.

This integrated system has been successfully deployed at a water plant in Changde, Hunan Province, serving hundreds of thousands of residents and establishing a replicable AI-driven water supply management model.

Project Background: The Path to Intelligent Transformation

Located in Changde, Hunan—within the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the Dongting Lake Ecological Economic Zone—the water plant benefits from abundant water resources such as the Yuan River and Li River.

The plant supplies approximately 200,000 residents and plays a key role in urban-rural integrated water supply.

To avoid the long development cycles, high maintenance complexity, and elevated costs associated with traditional customized systems, the project owner commissioned a nationally recognized design institute to conduct a competitive selection process.

After four months of rigorous evaluation, KingWater stood out for its rapid deployment, ease of maintenance, and cost efficiency, forming the foundation of a tailored intelligent management system.

AI Integration: Core Capabilities of KingWater + DeepSeek

In the Changde project, KingWater leverages its configuration-based, low-code strengths, while DeepSeek contributes advanced AI model capabilities. Together, they form an intelligent system covering production, management, and operations & maintenance (O&M).

The platform adopts a modular architecture with seven core modules, precisely addressing industry pain points while ensuring coordinated system-wide functionality.

1. AI Intelligent Assistant

DeepSeek, trained on equipment, process, and water quality data, delivers predictive analytics and decision support.

It enables second-level conversational responses, helping users analyze operational data efficiently and significantly reducing manual workload.

2. Visual Intelligent Dashboard

Built-in executive dashboard templates display real-time plant operations via web browser.

Dedicated dashboards for production, equipment, and energy consumption present data through values, trend curves, and bar charts—combined with AI-powered Q&A for instant operational insights.

3. AI Smart Alerts

The system tracks laboratory instruments and maintenance records with full traceability and exportable analytics.

Sampling and test results are entered online and visualized in charts, improving water quality control precision. AI-driven reminders ensure timely maintenance task completion.

4. Intelligent Health Analysis

An integrated asset management module performs equipment health assessments and builds a fault knowledge base.

Maintenance work orders are automatically linked, and inventory alerts are triggered when stock levels fall below thresholds—reducing O&M costs and minimizing downtime.

5. Carbon Footprint Tracking

Intelligent reporting tools automate work order allocation and report generation.

The system accurately calculates carbon emissions and logs operational data, improving sustainability management and operational transparency.

6. Digital Twin–Based Full-Scenario Management

The platform supports importing 3D models in formats such as OBJ, FBX, and GLTF, enabling rapid construction of a three-dimensional plant model.

It integrates 2D and 3D visualization, supports free roaming, guided navigation, and immersive inspection experiences—facilitating remote inspections and comprehensive scenario management.

7. GIS-Integrated Intelligent Services

Combining static and dynamic map rendering technologies, the platform provides low-code GIS tools.

It supports online map loading, offline tile imports, facility-level GIS visualization, dynamic route mapping, and distance/area measurement—enhancing spatial data management efficiency.

Implementation Results: Measurable Improvements

Since deployment, the Changde water plant has achieved significant improvements across three dimensions:

Efficiency Gains

• Remote decision-making enabled by visual dashboards improves response speed by over 50%.

• The AI assistant handles fault consultation and energy analysis in just 1–5 seconds, reducing repetitive manual tasks.

Cost Reduction

• Modular architecture eliminates extensive customization costs, reducing maintenance expenses by 40%.

• Equipment health alerts cut downtime by 30%, while precise energy monitoring lowers operational energy costs.

Improved Accuracy

• Electronic laboratory data entry eliminates manual recording errors and enhances water quality control accuracy.

• Dynamic risk monitoring and clearly defined access permissions strengthen water supply safety.

  
  

Looking Ahead: Toward Autonomous Water Management

The company will continue optimizing the synergy between KingWater and DeepSeek, driving deeper intelligence in water utility management.

Future developments will enable AI to autonomously learn process logic and equipment characteristics, delivering iterative upgrades, anomaly prediction, and intelligent emergency response—transitioning from automated to autonomous management.

The platform will also expand into wastewater treatment and industrial water supply, integrating full-chain data to build a unified smart water ecosystem that supports safe, efficient, and sustainable industry development.