Water district SCADA alarms: a US case study for Canadian utilities
A small water district in the western US sent its SCADA alarms to carrier email-to-text addresses for years. When those texts started arriving hours late, it pointed the same alarm emails at Welco. Today every alarm lands on the duty operator's phone as a single, short text. Canadian towns that texted through Bell addresses face the same move, as our SMS alert case studies show.
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- No change to PLCs, screens or alarm limits
- One address replaced the gateway list
- Every alarm still arrives by email
Works by email with
- Tank & well levels
- Pump & lift stations
Replaces email-to-text from
- Verizon
Published:
What changed for the operator on duty
One short text per alarm
A high tank or a booster that won't start reaches the on-call operator as one line, from a number used only for alerts.
No more checking email in bed
The crew stopped reading the alarm inbox at night in case a carrier text had gone missing.
A failed text explains itself
When a text doesn't land, the delivery report says why in plain English, such as a phone that was switched off.
The email record stays whole
Every alarm still goes out by email, so the district's record is complete. The text is simply the faster path to a person.
About the district and its night shift
The district runs a treatment plant, a few storage tanks and a handful of pump stations. A small crew of operators shares nights and weekends. Outside the day shift, nobody sits in front of the SCADA screens (the software that runs and watches the plant).
So the alarm email is the night shift. When a tank runs high or a booster pump fails to start, that email is how a sleeping operator finds out. Many small Canadian towns run their water systems the same way.
Night alarms before and after the switch
The district changed where its alarm emails go. Nothing on the SCADA side was rebuilt. In Canada, the gateway to leave would be Bell's, retired at the end of 2025, or a Rogers one that users reported dead since 2023.
Carrier gateway addresses
- Years ago, someone set SCADA to email each operator's gateway address, like
5551234567@vtext.com. It cost nothing and worked for a long time. - Then the texts got slow, as the carrier gateways began winding down. Some alarms showed up hours after the email was sent.
- Others never arrived, and nothing bounced to say so.
- Verizon expects its vtext.com shutdown to be complete by March 31, 2027 (read October 5, 2026). The old path was going to fail for good.
One Welco address
- One address sits on the SCADA alarm list, and the SCADA mail account is an approved sender.
- Nights and weekends text the operator on call. Daytime alarms go to the lead operator at the plant.
- Clears and acknowledgments stay in email, so a phone only buzzes for problems.
- When the crew changes cover, the lead operator edits the phone on the rule.
What a SCADA tank alarm looks like as a text
Here is the kind of email the SCADA system sends. It is accurate but long, and it repeats for every change of state.
Alert email from scada-alarms@district.example.gov, subject “SCADA Alarm: North Reservoir”. Welco trims it to one text of 99 characters: “Welco: [North Reservoir] High tank level alarm, unacknowledged at 3:14 AM. Reply STOP to opt out.”
Text received: Welco: [North Reservoir] High tank level alarm, unacknowledged at 3:14 AM. Reply STOP to opt out.
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The text keeps the site, the alarm and the time. Everything else stays in the email, which still arrives as before.
Move your SCADA alarms off carrier gateways
Replace the gateway addresses with one Welco address and keep your SCADA setup as it is.
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How the district moved its SCADA alarms to Welco
The district didn't touch its PLCs, its screens or its alarm limits. The work was all on the email side.
One address instead of many
They removed the operators' gateway addresses from the SCADA alarm list and added their Welco address. They approved the SCADA mail account as a sender.
Phones confirmed, then a test
Each operator joined with their own phone and replied YES to the confirmation text. A test alarm checked the whole path first. A no-send test mode shows that result in the feed without texting anyone.
Nights to the on-call operator
A time rule sends nights and weekends to the operator on call. Daytime alarms go to the lead operator, who is usually at the plant anyway.
Clears stay in email
The SCADA system emails again when an alarm clears or is acknowledged. A rule keeps those in email only, so a phone buzzes for problems, not for good news.
A limit for storm nights
Storms can trip many alarms at once. Flood limits for alarm storms cap the burst so the on-call phone isn't buried.
Where the district's alarms come from
The same setup fits other water and wastewater utilities with tanks, pumps and a small night crew, including Canadian municipalities.
Frequently asked questions
Did the US district have to change its SCADA to get alarm texts?
How did the district know its carrier texts were failing?
Can an operator acknowledge a SCADA alarm by replying to the text?
What would a setup like this cost a small Canadian water utility?
Give your night operator alarms they can trust
Point your SCADA alarm email at Welco and test it with the crew.
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