Safe testing of new AI-based control strategies for critical infrastructure

The University of Stuttgart is developing digital twins to unlock energy flexibility in the waterworks facility in Oberwart.

By intelligently scheduling pumping operations, water reservoir levels can be used as a form of energy storage, shifting electricity consumption to periods when renewable energy is abundant while maintaining a reliable water supply.

Since it would be unsafe to test these strategies on live critical infrastructure, the University of Stuttgart has built a physical testbed that replicates the pumping station. Rather than relying on synthetic data, the testbed is driven by real operational data, allowing the digital twin to be validated against real physical behavior.

This approach enables us to:

• Test new control strategies before deployment on critical infrastructure
• Provide water utility operators with a tangible demonstration of how the system works, helping build trust in AI-assisted control.

Combining digital twins with a physical testbed. Innovation can now be validated safely before being deployed in the field.