Perbadanan Air Selangor Sdn. Bhd. (PASSB) employed Online Aquis Hydraulic Modeling System as the analysis and monitoring tool as part of the modernization efforts to transform the Operation Command Centre (OCC) into Intelligent Command Centre (ICC). The project included upgrading the existing SCADA systems into AVEVA Wonderware System Platform (WSP) - an extended and more comprehensive SCADA platform. This upgrade allows seamless integration of WSP and Online Aquis Hydraulic Modeling System.

ONWater together with Niras developed the Online Aquis Hydraulic Models in the ICC. Three main transmission lines covering the Sungai Semenyih, Sungai Selangor and Sungai Langat supply lines were developed from offline to online hydraulic models. The online models work by integrating Aquis hydraulic models with the WSP which collects live data from various remote transmission units (RTU) installed in the distribution networks. With the live data integrated into the online hydraulic model, a more comprehensive and accurate simulation can be generated by the software.

For online hydraulic models to work, live measurements of flow, level, and pressure from the WSP were configured as boundary conditions in the models. The live measurements were also being used to calibrate the models, increasing the models’ accuracies.

Hydraulic simulation with a live data feed from the network provides the operators with a consistent current view of the network in places where it was not possible to do so before. This allows the operators to a faster reaction to what is happening throughout the network. As more live data being fed into the hydraulic modeling system, higher accuracy can be achieved. With the increasing accuracy, higher confidence can be generated towards the forecasted results of the model. Once this is achieved, the reactive nature of the operation will change into proactive actions.

The project was implemented in two separate packages. The first package included online model building and integration for the Sungai Semenyih transmission line. The second package included online models’ building and integration for Sungai Selangor and Sungai Langat transmission lines. Additional scopes of integrating PASSB's existing NRW system, Netbase into the online Aquis hydraulic model ecosystem as well as the development of Aquis hydraulic model workflow for analyzing upcoming development water demands, Request for Water were also included in the latter package.

The implementation of the Online Aquis Hydraulic Modeling System in the ICC has definitely jump-started the PASSB effort in the modernization of distribution network operation. It provided the ICC operators with a tool for network hydraulic analysis by utilizing the collected data from WSP, which previously might be underused. Further improvements on the workflow and data quality have also been identified which will enhance further the functionality of the overall system in ICC.

Service provided :

• Reconfiguration of PASSB’s Aquis offline transmission models.
• Integration between WSP and Aquis hydraulic modeling system.
• Configuration of three online hydraulic models covering three transmission lines.
• Validation and calibration of online hydraulic models against operational data.
• Integration of Netbase system into Aquis hydraulic modeling system
• Development of standardized workflow and system for future water demands using Aquis hydraulic model.
• Extensive training for PASSB staff on newly configured systems.

Eastern Water Resource Development and Management Public Company Limited or East Water operate to manage raw water transmission system through a large water pipe to feed industrial sectors and for consumption to support the plan for developing eastern coastal area into the main industrial zone in Thailand. In 2020, East Water embarked on a full-scale implementation of a state-of-the-art integrated solution for Command Control Centre (CCC) including SCADA upgrade, Asset Management System, Power Management System and Online Modeling System including Network Optimization and Leak Detection. The project implementation is expected to be completed by 2022.

ONWater together with Niras is part of the implementation team as the system integrator for Aquis Online Hydraulic Modeling System (HMS). The implementation of a full online HMS at East Water including leak detection and optimization modules is implemented in three phases where the completion of each phase is a natural technical milestone where an evaluation process is interlocked in-between the phases where corrections, adjustments, and improvements can be defined and implemented for the following phase(s) based on the lessons learned from the previous phase(s). This will ensure that East Water achieved the maximum benefit of the system without having to specify the exact details of every part of the system before starting the implementation.

Phase 1 of the implementation focused on the development of Aquis hydraulic model for East Water network. East Water transmission network covers approximately 490 KM of transmission pipes connecting water sources to industrial areas and local water operators. Information of the network was collected from various existing information such as GIS, Epanet model, network’s drawings and schematics, operational records, and many others. From the collected information, East Water’s Aquis hydraulic model was developed and training was provided to the internal team.

Phase 2 will be a continuation of Phase 1 where the developed Aquis hydraulic model will be configured as online Aquis model. This stage can be achieved by integrating Aquis hydraulic model with the upgraded SCADA system implemented in East Water OCC. With the development of the online Aquis hydraulic model, East Water will have an analytical engine in the OCC to process the collected data in their SCADA system. This process will generate valuable output for the operators to be considered in their day-to-day workflow on top of the SCADA information.

Upon completion of Phase 2, Aquis HMS implementation will move into the third phase which focuses on optimization and leak detection. Aquis can provide additional value to the user through its extended modules such as network optimization and leak detection module. In network optimization, Aquis is utilizing hydraulic configuration in the hydraulic model to generate an optimum setting for pumps operation and pressure controls. As an output, East Water can expect savings in electricity usage due to optimized pumping and lesser leakage in the network from optimized pressure distribution. The second module will be focusing on using configured online Aquis hydraulic model with the live data feed to identify leakage in the system. The output of the hydraulic model will be returned to the SACADA system in a form of alarm notification for leak detection.

By implementing the HMS as outlined in the three phases, East Water will add more tools and functionality to their OCC. Phase 1 and 2 will add supporting tools and functionalities to the daily operation through intelligent data management and display of the state of the network, allowing the operators to move from reactive to proactive operation. The operators will have a complete overview of the hydraulic state of the network and will be able to simulate and visualize the effects of planned operational changes before they are applied. Additionally, Aquis provides a complete overview of water quality conditions in the network which will aid and guide the operators in the event of having pollution in the system. Phase 3 of the implementation will add advanced dynamic modeling tools for demand forecasting, pressure management, and pump/reservoir optimization that will operate in a closed-loop with the SCADA system to provide optimized set-points for flow and/or pressure at pumping stations and valve control stations.

Note :

• The project implementation of the East Water Aquis Hydraulic Modeling System started in 2020 and expected to be completed in early 2022. At the time of writing of this article (February 2021), the project is currently ongoing.