Legionella Awareness: Protecting Building Water Systems

This summer marked 50 years since the Philadelphia Legionnaires’ disease outbreak, which claimed almost 30 lives and left around 150 people ill. Half a century later, Legionella remains a significant challenge in building water systems.

At Jaguar, effective water management is essential to keeping buildings and their occupants safe.

Where do the risks lie?

Our Water Treatment Consultant, Stuart Colvin, highlights several common areas that require attention:

➡️ Expansion vessels – poor setup and stagnant water.

➡️Thermostatic mixing valves (TMVs) – incorrect positioning and inadequate maintenance.

➡️Flexible hoses – ageing materials and deterioration.

➡️Deadlegs – redundant pipework where water can stagnate.

➡️Cooling tower systems – equipment that is not regularly operated.Warmer summers, rising incoming water temperatures and changes in building heating systems are creating new challenges for water hygiene management.

Legionella cannot be eradicated entirely from the environment, making proactive monitoring, regular maintenance and early intervention essential.
At Jaguar, we are also introducing training in 2027 on TMVs and expansion vessels to strengthen knowledge and maintenance practices across our sites.

The takeaway? Legionella risks often arise from familiar equipment and overlooked maintenance issues. Getting the basics right can make a real difference in protecting building occupants.

Thank you Stuart Colvin, for sharing your expertise and helping us keep water safety on the agenda.