India’s First Cloud Based Automatic Irrigation System Takes off at GMR Hyderabad International Airport

iving a robust technology boost to its ongoing environment sustainability measures, GMR led Hyderabad International Airport became India’s first airport to induct a cloud based Central Irrigation Control System using an “IMMS online” (Irrigation Management and Monitoring Software) mechanism to control the intricate Automatic Irrigation System across the 80 acres of landscape spread along the 8.4 km stretch of the airport spine road.

A first of its kind technology to be introduced in India, the control of irrigation system is precise and timely, enabling the airport to save water up to 35% over the conventional mode of irrigation system.

Speaking on this achievement, Mr. SGK Kishore, CEO, GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd., said, “As an environmentally conscious organization, it has been our continuous endeavour to leverage new technologies to optimize and conserve natural resources. While the airport is striving towards becoming water neutral, the implementation of a cloud based technology for our automatic irrigation system is a strategic move to further conserve water. The new system empowers us to effectively control the usage of water, while also making it effortless to use for our workforce as it can be controlled through any internet enabled data device.”

How the system works:

In January 2018, GHIAL had commissioned an Automatic Irrigation System along the 8.4km stretch of the airport spine road with three sections having two Site Controllers each at every 2.8 km stretch. During this phase, monitoring and controlling of the automatic irrigation schedule, seasonal adjustments etc. were done only through the individual Site Controllers. The upgraded system has created a Cloud based Central Irrigation Control System which controls all these Site Controllers with online irrigation commands. The Site Controllers are equipped with communication modules with inbuilt SIM cards, and communicate with the Central Irrigation Control System using an ‘IMMS online’ software in the real time, round the clock. The Central Irrigation Control System is accessible through any internet connected device like desktop, laptop, tablet and mobile phones at any point in time from any location in the world.

Benefits Galore:
Total peak (summer) irrigation water requirement for maintaining the landscaping along the spine road of the Hyderabad International Airport is 1684 KLD. With the help of cloud based Central Irrigation Control System, up to 35% of water saving can be achieved as compared to manual hose watering.

IMMS Online can track water usage and spot plumbing issues remotely. Managing the irrigation system schedule, seasonal adjustments and retrieval of metrics is now more easily accessible, which leads to the system efficiency and thereby water conservation. The system enables to view the list of stations which are currently active, elapsed time, balance time, next stations in queue etc.

The system helps to identify any leaks, breaks, and flooding. With this system in place, the irrigation manager is the first to know of any issues and in real time, thus empowering him to address the issues immediately minimize any wastage. IMMS Online also tracks the total water usage by site, controller, programme, and station. It keeps detailed historical records. It reports all alarms, including over-currents, flow violations, communication issues, and water window violations, with individual date and time-stamped messages.