Founded in 2019, IOTDC has already made its mark in the telecoms and mining sectors. Now, the company is turning its expertise toward South Africa’s water crisis, offering municipalities real-time visibility of their networks to curb losses and recover revenue.

“IOTDC was started to bring best-of-breed IoT solutions to the South African market,” says Tiaan Coetsee, CEO and co-founder of IOTDC. “We initially found success in the telco space, but soon expanded into mining and utilities. Entering the water sector was a natural step for us – the water sector is facing critical challenges that affects every citizen in the country.”

South Africa’s water scarcity, compounded by decades of under-investment in preventative maintenance, has left municipalities struggling with leaks, theft, inaccurate metering and outdated systems.

According to Coetsee, IOTDC saw the chance to apply its technology to make an impact. “We wanted to bring a solution that helps municipalities and metros gain visibility of their metering points, understand what is happening in real time, identify leaks or illegal connections, and act on them. Crucially, our solution enhances revenue recovery so municipalities can start investing in maintenance and infrastructure development. The system becomes self-funding over time – the more leaks are addressed, the more revenue can be collected and reinvested.”

Smart metering and integration

Non-revenue water (NRW) remains one of the biggest threats to water security. “A lack of centralised visibility plays a big role,” Coetsee says. “Although municipalities have systems in place to track supply, pressure, and metered consumption, these are often outdated and operate in silos. In some cases, they’re still using old mechanical meters, which are inaccurate and require manual reading. Often, municipalities rely on incoming complaints or calls from communities and then dispatch teams to fix the issue in that specific location. We believe in a much more proactive approach.”

IOTDC’s approach to NRW is multi-layered, covering smart metering, AI-driven leak detection and robust data management. The company partners with leading meter manufacturers rather than producing its own hardware.

Because different meter manufacturers use varying wireless communication technologies (such as LoRaWAN, NB-IoT, Sigfox, Wireless M-Bus) and protocols (such asMQTT, COAP and DLMS), it is crucial for clients to unify the data collected from their metering points.

“Our software platform is meter and protocol agnostic, which means we can integrate with any meter provider or backend system. We use Davra, a world-class IIoT enablement platform, which allows us to unify data from different devices and protocols. From there, we apply AI and analytics to deliver actionable insights,” states Coetsee.

Another breakthrough is AI-enabled acoustic leak detection. “Acoustic sensors listen for leaks at the meter point, helping utilities pinpoint problems between two points. It works particularly well in residential areas,” he notes.

Unlike traditional mechanical meters, new static smart meters use ultrasonic sensors and other detection technologies. This extends their lifespan from five to around 15 years while ensuring accuracy and reducing maintenance. “There’s also built-in protection—intelligent alarms flag tampering and theft attempts,” Coetsee adds.

Connectivity challenges in rural areas are also addressed with smart meters through IoT protocols such as LoRaWAN and Sigfox. “With LoRaWAN, for example, one base station can cover 15–30 km, making it affordable and easy to deploy in areas where cellular coverage is limited.”

Capacity building and change management

For municipalities, adopting new technology can be daunting – especially given limited skills. “We provide extensive training for users during the implementation phase of a project, with the goal of equipping them to operate the system effectively once deployment is complete,” Coetsee says. “Where resources are stretched, we also offer service level agreements. Ultimately, it’s their business; we just provide the technology to run it better.”

He cautions, however, that technology alone won’t solve systemic problems. “The best technology in the world cannot fix a broken business process. Implementing new technology – particularly at the scale required by public entities – inevitably comes with challenges. One of the most common pitfalls is failing to establish a clear, transparent business case with realistic and measurable return on investment. From the outset, it must be clear how much money the technology will save or generate, and which efficiency metrics it will improve. Both the client and the technology partner must remain accountable to these outcomes, with all stakeholders held to the same standard to secure and maintain buy-in. Unfortunately, South Africa has many examples where this critical step was overlooked.”

Equally important is robust change management and training, so users feel confident and supported in adopting new ways of working. Resistance from staff is inevitable when routines are disrupted, making it essential for senior management to frame innovation positively and secure buy-in. Ultimately, municipalities must equip their teams with the skills and resources needed to operate the technology effectively and sustainably.

The technology has already proven itself in Europe, with deployments in France, Denmark, Finland and Ireland. Locally, IOTDC is running Proof of Value projects in several South African municipalities as the first step toward full-scale rollouts.

Looking ahead

For Coetsee, what excites him most about IOTDC is the culture.

“We’re a young, vibrant and innovative business that is busy changing the game. With the right partners and skills, we are well positioned to deliver best-practice IoT solutions and make a tangible difference in the markets we serve—especially in water, where the need could not be greater.”