PressureWatch V2.0 Heightens Usability and Performance Through Novel Adaptive Learning and Advanced Analytics

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PressureWatch V2.0 Heightens Usability and Performance Through Novel Adaptive Learning and Advanced Analytics

Completely Redesigned, New Release Combines Novel 24/7/365 Water Network Hydraulic Integrity Monitoring with Unprecedented Economic, Operational and Environmental Benefits

Broomfield, Colorado, USA, May 6, 2014 — Redefining the limits of smart water network innovation, Innovyze, a leading global innovator of business analytics software and technologies for smart wet infrastructure, today released the V2.0 Generation of its PressureWatch solution for drinking water distribution systems. This revolutionary real-time hydraulic integrity monitoring software extends the utility of smart network modeling to include SCADA data acquisition plus predictive forecasting, performance reporting statistics, and condition assessment capabilities. It will change the way water utilities around the world use pressure, flow and tank level data and network modeling to conduct zonal mass balance and water audits and obtain real-time warning of network performance problems, loss of system hydraulic integrity, and other operational inefficiencies. It also empowers users to foresee and pre-empt future network hydraulic integrity breaches. The distribution system is a critical component of every water utility, and maintaining its  hydraulic integrity is of paramount importance. Its primary function is to economically provide a safe, reliable water supply at an acceptable level of service, and its failure to do so is a serious system deficiency. Breaches in hydraulic integrity can lead to external contamination as well as degradation of water quality associated with increasing water age and loss of disinfectant residual, both compromising the water quality integrity of the system. Without standardized techniques for evaluating distribution systems and developing proactive procedures, water utilities can only manage their water networks in a reactive mode, largely responding to emergency breaks and water main leaks. PressureWatch enables water utilities to continuously monitor and assess network hydraulic dynamics as they occur, helping them identify breaches in hydraulic integrity and build the resiliency and agility to respond to protect public health with minimal disruption. It also empowers users to foresee and avert network failures before they occur, and prepare for and respond to emergencies effectively. The primary strength of PressureWatch is its ability to monitor real-time changes in network hydraulics (i.e., pressure, flow and tank water level) and identify potential anomalies fast enough to permit effective responses aimed at lessening or avoiding adverse public health and economic impacts. It makes the hydraulic integrity of the distribution system immediately visible through continuous monitoring and assessment of network hydraulic dynamics. PressureWatch enables water utility operators to compare hydraulic data against prescribed performance requirements (e.g., minimum and maximum pressures), either confirming normal system performance or identifying abrupt changes that fall outside normal operating ranges and the onset of anomalous hydraulic incidents they can evaluate and act on.  For example, objectionably low pressures, caused by failure of a pump or valve, may lead to inadequate supply and reduced fire suppression capability or, in extreme cases, intrusion of potentially contaminated water. Objectionably high pressures will intensify wear on valves and fittings, increasing leakage; they may also cause new leaks or breaks with subsequent repercussions on water quality. Similarly, changes in flow (magnitude and direction) within the water distribution system as a result of hydrant flushing and valve and pump operation can scour sediments, tubercles and scales off the interior pipe walls, degrading water quality. The ability to maintain flow, pressure and tank water level fluctuations within reasonable ranges enables proactive network management that ensures both a reliable water supply and safety and security for all consumers. Most water utilities collect hydraulic data from online sensors and field devices installed at different network locations and facilities using a SCADA system, storing data in a central database. PressureWatch can link directly to this database, analyzing and filtering the data in real time to remove extreme values, comparing data to expected values, recognizing abnormal changes and automatically computing the probability of an anomalous hydraulic event (potential breach in the hydraulic integrity of the network). PressureWatch can read data from any sensor manufacturer for the three main types of hydraulic measurements: pressure, flow and tank water level. Designed for online applications with existing SCADA systems and pressure and flow meters and sensors,PressureWatch represents a fundamental advance in how effectively water utilities operators monitor the operational efficiency and integrity of their networks. By enabling them to rapidly detect water usage deviations, sudden pressure, flow and tank level changes and anomalous hydraulic conditions, this state-of-the-art predictive technology puts them at a tremendous advantage both in managing their water supply and distribution systems more efficiently and taking rapid, informed actions to minimize water leakage, reduce pipe break frequency, save energy, lower operational and maintenance expenses, enhance water quality, optimize system performance and integrity, increase sustainability, improve service to customers, and ensure regulatory compliance. Easy to learn and use, PressureWatch is available as a stand-alone Windows program that runs on nearly any computer or as a complementary module of IWLive. Unlike complex “software as a service” (SaaS) solutions, it can be up and running in just a few minutes within the controlled security of the utility’s local computer. In addition, it does not require historical or secondary external data for comparison purposes. At the same time,PressureWatch’s unique integration with network modeling and GIS enables water operators to quickly identify viable solutions (e.g., locate the appropriate valve closures to isolate a main break and determine affected customers) and make decisions based on reliable predictive analytics and system dynamics, not intuition. These critical differences mean that for the first time, water utilities of all sizes can use geospatial network modeling to optimize network maintenance and management securely at very low cost. They also greatly enhance users’ ability to prepare for and respond to emergencies. Completely redesigned, version 2.0 delivers greater usability and performance through novel adaptive learning and advanced analytics. New adaptive learning technology eliminates the need for large training data sets, and the prediction model is now automatically updated as soon as real-time data measurements become available. This technology also exhibits fast convergence speed, considered to be optimal in practice. New advanced analytics, presented on a real-time intelligent dashboard, allow water utility operators to harness information, gain insight, automate daily activities, quickly perform statistical analyses on a wide range of network parameters like pressures and flows, and develop detailed network performance reports. This information can be shared immediately across the enterprise. Examples of automated reporting include minimum, maximum and average pressures and flows in the previous day, week, month, season or year for any single location or all sensors throughout the network. A mass balance for each pressure zone (or DMA) can be quickly developed to assist in determining unaccounted-for water. “Water utilities and engineering consulting firms around the world rely on Innovyze’s best-in-class smart water network solutions to optimize and sustain their wet infrastructures,” said Paul F. Boulos, Ph.D., BCEEM, NAE, Hon.D.WRE, Dist.D.NE, F.ASCE, President, COO and Chief Technical Officer of Innovyze. “In PressureWatch V2.0 we’ve built on our tradition of listening to our customers, quickly providing enhancements and functionality to help them manage and operate better, safer, more efficient and reliable systems. This milestone solution will strongly support water utilities worldwide in improving the efficiency and hydraulic integrity of their distribution systems and ensuring more reliable operations at maximum cost savings.”