Water Sensitive Cities

What Water Sensitive Cities does

Water Sensitive Cities is the umbrella brand for what was the Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cities (CRCWSC), an Australian non-profit research entity established in 2012 with AUD 120 million in Australian Government CRC Programme and industry partner funding over a nine-year term that concluded on 30 June 2021, and its successor Water Sensitive Cities Australia (WSCA) launched 1 July 2021. The organisation builds and maintains a suite of interconnected urban water management tools — the WSC Index Tool (benchmarking against 34 indicators, deployed in over 50 countries), the Transition Dynamics Framework, the SUWMBA mass-balance tool, INFFEWS Value and Benefit:Cost Analysis Tools, the Management Actions Database, the WSC Scenario Tool, and the Infill Performance Evaluation Framework — all delivered through a free Knowledge Platform at watersensitivecities.org.au. Its customers are cities and towns, water utilities, academic researchers, and government policy makers in Australia and internationally, with secondary engagement with property developers and consultants applying water sensitive urban design frameworks to real developments. The business model is hybrid: original CRC funding came from government and industry partner contributions, while the WSCA successor operates through formal foundation partnerships (Monash University, Melbourne Water, South East Water, DELWP in Victoria; Water Corporation and three WA government departments in Western Australia) and partner subscriptions, with a small team of 11-50 employees headquartered in Melbourne.

Name

Water Sensitive Cities

Legal name

Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cities Ltd.

Website

https://watersensitivecities.org.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Water Sensitive Cities is an Australian research-driven organisation that builds and disseminates open benchmarking, transition, and economic valuation tools — including the WSC Index Tool deployed in 50+ countries — to help cities, water utilities, researchers, and government agencies adopt water sensitive urban design practices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban water management research and water sensitive cities tools

NAICS

Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131), Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Environmental Consulting Services (541620), Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Administration of Air and Water Resource and Solid Waste Management Programs (92411)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Electric, Gas & Sanitary Services (4900), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPADALAH

Water Resources, WASH & Integrated Water Management

Business & Public Services/International Organizations & Development/Climate, Environment & Sustainable Development Programs

SECONDARYBPABAJAK

Monitoring & Control (Dosing Systems, Remote Monitoring, Sensors)

Business & Public Services/Facilities Management & Building Services/Water Treatment & Building Water Hygiene (Legionella)

SECONDARYBPAHAIAD

Water, Wastewater & Hydraulics Engineering Consulting

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Engineering & Technical Consulting

SECONDARYEUAHAKAF

Water Quality & Watershed/Hydrologic Modeling (SWMM/HEC-RAS, Flood/Runoff/Nutrient)

Energy, Utilities & Environment/Environmental Compliance, Monitoring & Consulting/Environmental Data Management, Modeling & GIS/Remote Sensing

Keywords

• Urban water management
• Water sensitive urban design
• Stormwater management solutions
• Integrated water planning tools
• Urban water benchmarking

Headquarters

HQ city

Clayton

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Research Funding: The CRC for Water Sensitive Cities was funded through the Australian Government's Cooperative Research Centres Programme. The organization operated as a non-profit research entity from 2012-2021 with $120 million in funding over 9 years.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Water Sensitive Cities operates a research-backed Knowledge Platform and suite of interconnected decision-support tools that help cities benchmark current urban water management performance, plan and progress through water sensitive city transitions, evaluate water sensitive urban design outcomes, and conduct economic valuation of integrated food-energy-water systems. The organization delivers these tools (WSC Index Tool, Transition Dynamics Framework, SUWMBA Tool, INFFEWS Tools, Management Actions Database, WSC Scenario Tool, Infill Performance Evaluation Framework) primarily to Australian local and state governments, water utilities, and academic researchers, with international deployment in over 50 countries.

Product overview

Water Sensitive Cities (formerly CRC for Water Sensitive Cities) operates as a knowledge platform and research organization offering a suite of interconnected urban water management tools. The core portfolio includes the Water Sensitive Cities Index Tool (benchmarking against 34 indicators), Transition Dynamics Framework (strategic planning and monitoring), SUWMBA Tool (water mass balance assessment), INFFEWS Tools (Value Tool and Benefit:Cost Analysis Tool), Management Actions Database, WSC Scenario Tool, and Infill Performance Evaluation Framework. These tools work together to support cities through the complete transition lifecycle from benchmarking and visioning through to implementation and evaluation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Water Sensitive Cities Index Tool Benchmarking tool that maps a city's current urban water management performance against 34 indicators characterising a water sensitive city. Used by cities, utilities, and researchers worldwide to establish a baseline and compare against peer benchmarks.
• Transition Dynamics Framework (TDF) Framework that helps cities understand their current position in transitioning to a water sensitive future, identify priority strategies, and provide the basis for monitoring progress over time across six phases of change. Used by city and utility planners to design and track transition strategies.
• Site-scale Urban Water Mass Balance Assessment (SUWMBA) Tool Site-scale urban water mass balance assessment tool that performs daily urban water mass balance calculations, providing a comprehensive account of all water flows in natural and anthropogenic water cycles including rainfall, evapotranspiration, stormwater runoff, imported water, decentralised water, and wastewater. Used to quantify water performance of urban design configurations.
• INFFEWS Value Tool Guideline tool for integrated food, energy and water systems valuation, supporting water sensitive city projects and programmes in valuing cross-sector synergies. Used by city planners, utilities and researchers.
• INFFEWS Benefit:Cost Analysis (BCA) Tool Tool that supports cost-benefit analysis for water sensitive city projects and programmes by allocating non-monetary values to a range of benefits. Applied to projects such as Knutsford Development for medium density infill evaluation.
• Management Actions Database and Tool Repository for water sensitive city management actions and strategies, populated by cities that have used the WSC Index Tool and Transition Dynamics Framework. Used by practitioners to develop transition strategies and benchmark actions.
• WSC Scenario Tool Scenario planning tool consisting of a TARGET Module and an Urban Water Cycle module, used for modelling and evaluating alternative water management scenarios at city and precinct scales. Used by city planners and researchers to assess intervention options.
• Infill Performance Evaluation Framework Framework to assess and guide the design of water sensitive cities, evaluating performance of urban entities (including components) defined within three-dimensional physically bounded systems. Used in urban design assessments for medium density infill developments.
• Knowledge Platform (watersensitivecities.org.au) Online Knowledge Platform hosting tools, resources, case studies, projects and research outputs for water sensitive city transitions, accessible globally as a self-service resource hub for cities, utilities, developers, consultants and researchers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Water sensitive tools deployed in over 50 countries internationally
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Monash UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation partner in Victoria for Water Sensitive Cities Australia, providing academic research expertise and hosting WSCA CEO Ben Furmage.
• Melbourne WatercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation partner in Victoria for Water Sensitive Cities Australia, contributing industry expertise in urban water management.
• South East WatercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation partner in Victoria for Water Sensitive Cities Australia, providing water utility perspective and industry engagement.
• Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (Victoria)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation partner in Victoria for Water Sensitive Cities Australia, providing government policy perspective and regulatory support.
• Water Corporation (Western Australia)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTier 1 partner in Western Australia for Water Sensitive Cities Australia, providing water utility expertise and regional implementation.
• Department of Communities (Western Australia)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTier 1 partner in Western Australia for Water Sensitive Cities Australia (joining as one entity with Water Corporation).
• Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (Western Australia)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTier 1 partner in Western Australia for Water Sensitive Cities Australia, providing environmental perspective.
• Department of Water and Environment Regulation (Western Australia)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTier 1 partner in Western Australia for Water Sensitive Cities Australia, providing regulatory and policy expertise.
• Griffith UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner in Project B1.2 on catchment scale landscape planning, led by Prof. Darryl Low Choy.
• The University of QueenslandmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner in Project B1.2 and urban metabolism research, with researchers including Dr. Marguerite Renouf and Dr. Steven Kenway.
• The University of Western AustraliamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner in Project B1.2 on catchment scale landscape planning with Prof. Peter Davies.
• Yarra Valley WatermajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerContributed to urban metabolism research through Francis Pamminger, Manager Research and Innovation.
• Alluvium InternationalminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSupporting application of WSC Index Tool in India under Australian Government DFAT Australia Alumni Grant Scheme.
• Morphum EnvironmentalminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWorking with MSDI Water and Auckland Council to benchmark Auckland using WSC Index Tool in New Zealand.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Arup: Global engineering and design consultancy with significant sustainable cities, water and resilience practices. Comparable because it competes for the same city and utility consulting budgets with broader portfolios, and could replicate WSCA-style water sensitive advisory services.
• GHD: Large Australian-headquartered engineering, environmental and advisory firm with deep water and urban development practices. Comparable because it serves the same Australian and Asia-Pacific municipal and utility clients with overlapping WSUD and integrated water management services.
• Aurecon: Asia-Pacific engineering and infrastructure advisory firm with water, urban planning and resilience practices. Comparable because it competes for the same Australian/state government and utility engagements and offers overlapping integrated urban water consulting.

Emerging players

• WaterAid: International NGO focused on water, sanitation and hygiene in developing countries. Partial overlap because it addresses urban water challenges through a different lens (WASH access) and works with city governments on integrated water management in Asia-Pacific.

Direct peers

• Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA): Australian water utility industry association representing most urban water utilities. Comparable because it is the collective vehicle through which WSCA's foundation partners (Melbourne Water, South East Water, Water Corporation) collaborate on research and standards.
• Morphum Environmental: New Zealand environmental engineering consultancy that is a documented WSCA channel partner deploying the WSC Index Tool with Auckland Council. Directly comparable as a regional consultancy applying the same water sensitive benchmarking methodology.
• Alluvium International: Australian water and environmental consulting firm that already partners with WSCA to deploy the WSC Index Tool internationally (e.g., India). Comparable because it applies the same WSUD/water sensitive city frameworks to city and utility clients.
• Water Research Australia: Australian cooperative water research centre funded by utilities and government. Comparable as a directly analogous research-to-industry model that develops shared research outputs and tools for Australian water utilities and cities.
• ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability: Global network of local and regional governments working on sustainability, including integrated urban water and climate resilience. Comparable because it serves the same city-government customer base with frameworks, tools and peer-learning networks for sustainable urban transitions.
• Resilient Cities Network (formerly 100 Resilient Cities): City-led network helping urban governments build resilience to climate, water and infrastructure shocks. Comparable because it targets the same municipal buyer with city-level assessment tools and transition strategies — overlapping WSCA's water sensitive city scope.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/crcwsc
• Facebookfacebook.com/CRCWSC
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/water-sensitive-cities
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCzPDelPvVICzfGLb8xwVv1A

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Water Sensitive Cities