Raminta Rudzeviciute has spent nearly two decades designing water systems for some of the UK’s most complex infrastructure, from Heathrow Airport to the HS2 tunnels. She’s worked across Lithuania, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, and the UK, advised the European Commission on drinking water quality, and recently joined Wint as a Solutions Engineer for MEP. We sat down with her to talk about what traditional engineering misses, why AI-powered water monitoring is a credible tool (and what convinced her of it), and what she thinks the next generation of engineers needs to understand.
Career Journey
You’ve spent nearly two decades designing some of the UK’s most complex water systems. What drew you to water engineering in the first place, and was there a project that really cemented your passion for it?
Engineering runs in my family, passed down through generations, so it felt like a natural path. As a woman in what has traditionally been a male-dominated profession, I’m also encouraged to see more women choosing careers in engineering today.
My career has taken me through hundreds of projects, which makes singling one out nearly impossible. Early on, I focused on large-scale infrastructure: water treatment plants, airports, and rail developments, where I built my expertise in complex water systems. Later, I pursued a second master’s degree in drinking water quality and the protection of water sources worldwide. That work eventually led me to an advisory role with the European Commission, where I witnessed firsthand both the challenges and the enormous potential for innovation in water treatment, with some of the most promising solutions driven by AI.
Watching the full journey of water, from source through treatment to delivery through engineered systems, reinforced my belief in water conservation and efficient water use. That path ultimately brought me to Wint.
What was it about Wint specifically that made you want to move into water intelligence technology?
What I find most rewarding is the ability to see the immediate impact of my work: saving water, and hearing from clients that our solutions have helped prevent property damage while reducing consumption and costs. In traditional engineering roles, the process from concept to delivery can take years. With Wint, the impact is nearly instant.
One of the main challenges I faced in traditional roles was securing funding for sustainable measures. It was often difficult to justify investments in water-saving solutions despite their long-term benefits. Today, new regulations and sustainability requirements are changing that, placing engineers in a much stronger position to design and implement innovative solutions. Rather than being brought in after water-related problems occur, we’re increasingly involved at the design stage, helping clients prevent them in the first place.
What makes Wint particularly unique is our ability to measure and demonstrate impact. As the saying goes, “what gets measured, gets managed.” With Wint, we can show clients exactly how much water and money our solutions save.
Lessons from the Field
Having designed domestic water, drainage, and fire systems for major infrastructure projects, what are the biggest blind spots in how buildings manage water once they’re handed over to operators?
Hidden issues are the most common problem. A continuously running toilet, for example, creates a small but constant flow that often goes unnoticed by occupants. Over time, even minor inefficiencies like that lead to significant water waste and unnecessary costs.
In more severe cases, hidden leaks can cause substantial property damage. I recently encountered a timber-framed building where an undetected leak led to prolonged moisture exposure that compromised the structural elements and ultimately rendered the building unsafe for occupancy.
Your career spans multiple countries: Lithuania, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, and the UK. How has working across different regulatory and design environments shaped the way you approach water challenges?
Working across countries has helped me understand how priorities in the water sector vary depending on local conditions. In regions with abundant groundwater resources, the focus tends to be on water treatment, particularly the removal of disinfection by-products, some of which have been linked to an increased risk of bladder cancer.
In countries with limited freshwater resources, including the UK, the priority shifts to conservation and reuse. Strategies like monitoring consumption, recycling water, and improving efficiency become essential for sustainable water management.
You’ve worked on hospitals, nuclear power training facilities, sports arenas, and major transport infrastructure. Which project type taught you the most about the consequences of water system failure?
The most severe incidents I’ve seen occur in buildings with critical infrastructure: data centres, hospitals, historic buildings, and airports, where a single leak or pipe burst can have significant operational and financial consequences.
Major water-related failures are also common on construction sites. If a pipe is accidentally damaged on a Friday evening, the resulting leak may continue undetected until Monday morning. By then, substantial damage may already have occurred.
A significant proportion of insurance claims arise during the construction phase. In occupied residential buildings, leaks can affect multiple floors and cause considerable damage to both property and residents. Many of our clients are referred to us by insurance companies, which recognise the value of proactive water management. By implementing systems like Wint, clients can significantly reduce their risk exposure and, in many cases, benefit from lower insurance premiums.
AI in Water Mitigation
MEP engineers are trained to design systems that work reliably from day one. How does the idea of an AI that continuously learns a building’s water flow patterns sit with you as an engineer, and what convinced you it was credible?
I was impressed by the algorithms developed by our R&D team at Wint and by what the technology can achieve. The system learns normal water consumption patterns over time and can detect even the slightest abnormal usage, triggering an alert when unusual activity occurs. It can also automatically shut off the water supply based on AI-driven decisions, helping to prevent leaks from escalating into major incidents.
Hearing directly from clients about high detection accuracy and real-world impact was particularly convincing. The ability to quantify savings in both water consumption and financial costs is powerful evidence. These results show that AI-driven solutions are practical, reliable, and highly effective tools for modern water management.
ESG Initiatives
You’ve worked on projects targeting WELL Platinum, BREEAM, and LEED certification. How significant is water waste in the overall sustainability picture of a building, and does it get the attention it deserves?
Awareness of water scarcity has grown significantly in recent years, bringing real momentum to water management in buildings. A wide range of measures are now being implemented: rainwater harvesting, water reuse for toilet flushing, low-flow fixtures, and sensors to detect leaks, among others.
In the UK, these measures contribute directly to BREEAM credits, where water efficiency is a key category. Water management has become an integral part of building design.
More complex solutions like greywater recycling systems are sometimes cut due to budget constraints, but cost-effective measures have become standard. Installing water meters and sub-meters, detecting abnormal consumption patterns, implementing automatic leak detection, and using flow-control devices that can shut off water during major leaks are now common practice. Water monitoring, leak detection, and prevention contribute directly to both BREEAM and LEED certification and are becoming standard features in modern buildings.
Looking Ahead
Given everything you’ve seen on the design side and now on the technology side, what do you think water systems in buildings will look like in 20 years?
In 20 years, I hope every building will be equipped with smart systems that enable users to manage water in the most efficient way possible. Achieving that will require greater reliance on AI-driven technologies to monitor water flows, detect leaks, and control temperatures, particularly in environments vulnerable to Legionella, such as hospitals.
Water reuse, quality, and management are under increasing scrutiny at every level. It’s encouraging to see coordinated efforts at both the national level and within individual buildings. Policymakers are updating regulations to support smarter, more sustainable buildings, shaping new ways of thinking and setting new boundaries for future engineers.
