By Staff Writer
Reading Time: 2 minutes
At first glance, a service line inventory sounds simple: identify pipe materials and log them. In reality, utilities quickly discover layers of complexity:
- Records are scattered across decades of paper files and inventory systems
- Field verification must be captured consistently and defensibly
- Public transparency and reporting requirements are increasing
- Production and tracking of customer communications over a variety of interactions
Additionally, these inventories are not static. They must be continuously updated as new inspections occur, lines are replaced, or classifications change.
Utilities need systems that support evolving datasets, not one-time surveys.
Why Many Municipalities Turn to Locus Technologies
What makes Locus compelling in this space is not just that it can support service line inventory data and workflow, it’s how naturally the use case fits into the broader platform.
Built on a Foundation of Proven Water Applications
Locus already delivers mature capabilities across drinking water and wastewater compliance, including:
- Lead and Copper Rule sampling and results management, and LEADShield
- Automated sampling workflows and chain-of-custody tracking
- Water quality data management across lab and field sources
- Compliance reporting for SDWA and CWA programs
This foundation matters. Long-term service line inventory upkeep doesn’t exist in isolation and intersects directly with the broader compliance requirements of the LCRR and LCRI including routine LCR compliance sampling, service line replacements, customer outreach, school sampling, and more.
Turning Inventory Insights into Strategic Assets
With the right platform, a service line inventory can become more than a compliance obligation. They become decision engines.
Utilities can:
- Visualize risk concentrations across neighborhoods
- Prioritize replacements based on health and equity factors
- Track remediation progress transparently
- Align inventory insights with capital planning
- Provide clear, defensible reporting to regulators and the public
A Future-Proof Approach to a Growing Mandate
Service line inventory management requirements represent a broader shift toward deeper infrastructure transparency and data-driven water system management.
Utilities need platforms that offer:
- Proven compliance functionality out of the box
- The flexibility to support specialized and evolving programs
- Strong data lineage and auditability
- Integrated workflows across drinking water and wastewater domains
By combining mature water applications with a configurable, innovation-driven platform, Locus enables municipalities to manage their service line inventory data with confidence.
For utilities navigating this new era of lead and copper accountability, the question isn’t whether to modernize inventory management. It’s whether the chosen platform can support both current mandates and the next wave of water data challenges.
Locus is the only self-funded water, air, soil, biological, energy, and waste EHS software company that is still owned and managed by its founder. The brightest minds in environmental science, embodied carbon, CO2 emissions, refrigerants, and PFAS hang their hats at Locus, and they’ve helped us to become a market leader in EHS software. Every client-facing employee at Locus has an advanced degree in science or professional EHS experience, and they incubate new ideas every day – such as how machine learning, AI, blockchain, and the Internet of Things will up the ante for EHS software, ESG, and sustainability.
