Barwon Water
Geelong, VIC
Invite-only pilot
Solutions
Be.Utility
Barwon Water utilises GreenBe’s app suite to demonstrate the value of digital meter data to end-users.
Led by Iota, this strategic pilot deployed GreenBe’s end-user customer app suite for Barwon Water to trial with a cohort of 24 employee users. The six-month program sought to provide customers with near real-time data, making them more aware of their usage and encouraging them to actively manage their consumption and modify their behaviour. By integrating Iota’s Lentic IoT system with GreenBe’s turn-key SaaS platform, Barwon Water successfully displayed water usage in 30-minute, hourly, and daily intervals and delivered GreenBe’s proprietary gamified education and engagement features.
The solution provided an end-to-end digital engagement suite. The Barwon Water branded UX enabled users to seamlessly sign up and self-serve. Using the native iOS and Android apps, users could monitor household consumption in near real-time, set personalised reduction targets and view household comparisons. To maintain user engagement, the platform provided personalised updates via app notifications, SMS, and email.
A standout outcome was the clear evidence of customer demand for a Barwon Water app. Although the invite-only trial was restricted to a micro-cohort of internal users with no publicity or advertising, the app was organically discovered and downloaded by over 2,300 Barwon Water residential customers during the pilot period. This indicated a significant level of public interest in water utilities providing modern, digital-meter-enabled mobile apps through the app stores.
“The number of organic app downloads indicates an expectation that utilities should offer digital meter enabled native apps for their residential customers to self-manage.”
– Suzanna Kukulovski, GreenBe implementation lead
The pilot acted as a catalyst for critical infrastructure and security readiness. To meet Barwon Water’s strict Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) and Essential Eight (E8) audit requirements, GreenBe implemented robust security enhancements, including Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) and Single Sign-On (SSO). Highlighting the importance of security early in the process ensures the platform is enterprise-ready for future network-wide scaling.
Having previously collaborated with Iota on the successful Toowoomba Regional Council Water project (read customer story), this partnership further demonstrated the value of investing in proven, turn-key technology compared to the high cost and complexity of building in-house.
Key benefits and learnings include:
- Customer value: The pilot revealed a high level of public interest in a Barwon Water app, with over 2,300 organic downloads occurring despite no public marketing or promotion.
- Superior branded experience: GreenBe’s turn-key solution delivered an impressive level of brand configuration, providing a premium Barwon Water UX that felt bespoke while maintaining the speed and reliability of a proven platform.
- Behaviour change and water literacy: 83% of users engaged with GreenBe’s ‘WaterChallenge’ education modules, demonstrating the platform’s ability to efficiently deliver water conservation and literacy campaigns.
- Technical and security readiness: Successful integration of Lentic IoT data and the implementation of MFA and SSO demonstrated GreenBe meets stringent enterprise-level security and privacy standards.
- Strategic and back of house readiness: The pilot provided the data needed to refine future investment strategies and confirmed that robust utility CRM and billing systems are required to support network-wide scaling and customer service expectations.
About the project
Located in Geelong, Barwon Water is Victoria’s largest regional urban water corporation. Barwon Water utilised the Iota and GreenBe collaboration to define the complete digital Customer Experience (CX) roadmap and technical requirements for an enterprise-wide solution. GreenBe’s turn-key solution and integration with Iota’s Lentic IoT platform highlighted essential ‘back-of-house’ capabilities, such as CRM and billing integration readiness, required before the next phase of large-scale digital customer engagement.
GreenBe solution: Be.Utility WLS app suite (iOS iPhone and iPad app, Android app, desktop web and mobile responsive portal)
System integration: Lentic IoT Platform
Delivery partner: Iota
Learn more:
Contact Greenbe to request a demo or more information at hello@greenbe.com
Key outcomes
Over 2,000 residents organically downloaded the Barwon Water app despite being an invite-only internal trial – validating significant community appetite.
Users spent valuable time on the water usage screen, indicating deep engagement with near real-time data to actively track and manage household consumption.
Over 80% of users participated in a 'WaterChallenge' education module, demonstrating the power to drive water literacy through gamified features.
