Singapore – May 2026 – Singapore Public Utilities Board (PUB), the national water agency, has announced a 90% reduction in regulatory non-compliance incidents and 30% faster process adjustments after deploying the ABB CMA120 controller panel unit at its Jurong Island Water Reclamation Plant. The upgrade, completed in Q2 2026, addressed critical monitoring gaps in the plant’s legacy control system—where outdated panels lacked accurate data logging and real-time process visibility, risking €450,000 in annual fines under Singapore’s Environmental Public Health Act.
The Challenge: Compliance Risks and Slow Process Control in Water Treatment
Prior to adopting the ABB CMA120, Jurong Island Water Reclamation Plant faced three pressing operational issues:
- Inaccurate Compliance Data Logging: Legacy panels required manual recording of water quality parameters (pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity) in paper logs. This led to 12–15 data entry errors per month, resulting in 3–4 non-compliance notices annually.
- Delayed Process Adjustments: Operators had to manually calibrate chemical dosing pumps based on hourly lab test results, leading to 1–2 hour lags in responding to water quality changes. This caused 5% of treated water to exceed turbidity limits (5 NTU) temporarily.
- Poor Durability in Wet Environments: Humidity and chemical exposure caused legacy panels to malfunction 8–10 times per year, requiring costly replacements and 40 hours of annual downtime.
- No Remote Troubleshooting: Technicians had to be on-site to adjust settings or fix panel issues, delaying response to critical events (e.g., sudden pH spikes) by up to 2 hours.
“Water treatment is a compliance-driven industry—our old panels were putting us at risk of fines and compromising water quality,” said Tan Wei Ming, PUB’s Plant Manager for Jurong Island. “We needed a panel that could log data accurately, adjust processes in real time, and survive our plant’s harsh environment.”
ABB CMA120: The Rugged Controller for Water Treatment Facilities
After testing competitors from Endress+Hauser and Yokogawa, PUB selected the ABB CMA120 controller panel unit for its compliance features, durability, and integration with ABB’s AquaMaster water treatment DCS:
- Automated Compliance Logging: Captures water quality data (pH, DO, turbidity) every 10 seconds, with tamper-proof time stamps and digital signatures. Generates pre-formatted reports for Singapore’s National Environment Agency (NEA), eliminating manual logging errors.
- Real-Time Process Control: Integrates with online water quality sensors, allowing operators to adjust chemical dosing pumps directly from the 7-inch touchscreen. Response time to parameter deviations dropped from 2 hours to 5 minutes.
- Harsh Environment Design: IP67-rated housing (waterproof and dustproof) and corrosion-resistant materials withstand humidity (95% non-condensing) and chemical exposure (chlorine, ozone). MTBF of 180,000 hours reduces panel failures by 90%.
- Remote Monitoring & Control: Connects to PUB’s central control center via 4G/LTE and ABB Ability™ Water Analytics, enabling technicians to adjust settings or troubleshoot remotely—critical for 24/7 water treatment operations.
- Safety Interlocks: Built-in logic shuts down chemical dosing systems if water quality parameters exceed safe limits (e.g., pH <6.5 or >8.5), preventing environmental damage and ensuring worker safety.
