Bedford Borough Council is responsible for the management and operation of two flood gates on the River Great Ouse in the centre of Bedford. As part of a local flood‑defence strategy, the reliable and continuous operation of these gates is critical to protecting key infrastructure and property within the town centre.
The River Great Ouse is the longest of several rivers in the United Kingdom bearing the name “Ouse”. Rising near Syresham in central England, it flows approximately 143 miles (230 km) north and east through East Anglia before entering The Wash, a bay of the North Sea. Due to its length and catchment, effective water‑level management along the river is essential for flood risk reduction.
Following a successful tender process, OTT Hydrometry was commissioned to design and install a monitoring and control solution capable of automatically triggering the opening and closing of the existing flood gates at predefined river levels. In addition to flood‑gate control, the system provides continuous transmission of water level and gate status data to the HydroMet Cloud online platform.
An OTT Pressure Level Sensor (PLS) was installed inside an observation well to deliver accurate and reliable water‑level measurements. The PLS is connected to a Ott netDL 1000 datalogger, housed within a robust GRP telemetry cabinet, which also interfaces directly with the flood‑gate actuator motors.
To ensure full operational visibility, HydroMet Cloud was deployed as the online monitoring platform. This enables remote access to real‑time water‑level data and gate status information, as well as automated email alerts notifying the client of critical events, such as gate opening or closing actions. Together, the system provides a robust, reliable solution that supports effective flood‑defence management for Bedford town centre.