InfoWorks™ WS Pro – leading platform for hydraulic modelling of water supply systems

InfoWorks™ WS Pro is a powerful multi-user software platform for comprehensive hydraulic modelling of water supply systems. With more than 15 years on the international market, it quickly became a standard among hundreds of enterprises – designers, consultants and utility operators around the globe.

Integrating a powerful multi-user RDBS, proprietary stand-alone GIS-based modelling environment and state-of-the-art simulation engine, InfoWorks™ WS Pro has been used to create the largest and most complex hydraulic models in the world such as Shanghai water supply system (China, 400 000 links) и Miami – Dade (USA, 250 000 links), as well as in many real-time modelling, forecasting and operations management systems (IWLive).

InfoWorks™ WS Pro - productivity without competition

InfoWorks™ WS Pro brings out-of-the-box a complete tool set for executing the whole range of engineering tasks in the field of water supply hydraulic modelling – from simple model building to complex analyses of both geospatial data sets and all simulation results – hydrological, hydraulic and water quality. Just a glimpse on the functionality:

• Digitizing, editing, validating and real-time querying data in shared geospatial databases by unlimited number of users simultaneously;
• Model building using intelligent SNAP regimes (including snapping to external GIS layers) along with automatic topology maintenance;
• Digitizing with shared user-defined digitization templates;
• Automatic real-time geometry (coordinates, lengths, areas) when building / editing the geospatial models as well as user-defined geometry values;
• Simplified affine transformations (translating and scaling) over any of the coordinate axis for selections of objects or for the whole models;
• Automated model import from other modelling systems such as WESNET, EPANET, WATNET, Synergi, WATSYS, AQUIS, Stoner and more;
• Powerful topological analysis toolbox – connectivity analysis, upstream / downstream tracing, proximity tracing, selection refinements based on connectivity and proximity, automated topology building;
• Carrying out engineering validation using built-in and user-defined rules and data origin / quality control based on user defined flag system;

• Incorporating external GIS layers and creating layer lists with user defined visual settings (most widely used GIS formats are supported – both vectors and rasters – from ESRI, MapInfo, Autodesk, etc.).If available, an ArcObjects license can be used to establish direct connections with ArcSDE servers and ESRI GeoDatabases;
• Creating TIN or GRID terrain models using DTM, DEM, LiDAR data as well as vector GIS layers (ESRI SHP - point, pointz) and simple text files;
• Automated elevation data extraction for all modelled point objects using TIN or GRID models;Automated demand allocation using intelligent geospatial algorithms;
• Generating daily, weekly and monthly demand profiles with automated normalization. Generating demand scaling templates;
• Real-life modelling of pumps and hydraulic control structures (valves, PRVs, etc.). Setting up user libraries with pumps using manufacturers data or theoretical curves.
• Visual modelling of logical programmable controls for water supply networks (User Programmable Control);
• Setting up libraries with hydraulic and operations time series (flows, velocities, pressures, levels, pump states, etc.), which are used for model verification or for simulation inputs;

• Multiple interactive visualisations and interactive editing in geoplans, tables, long profiles, 3D views;
• Creating dynamic thematic maps using complex rules hierarchy and SQL queries;
• Printing / plotting of maps, long profiles, 3D views, graphs, etc. using comprehensive print layout editor;
• Generating various reports and data extracts using predefined editable templates and exporting to MS Office compatible formats;
• Completely automated version control and user access management system allowing for detailed version comparisons and tracking the commit history of every geospatial object in the models;
• Creating rich simulation results visualisations in synchronized geoplans, long profiles, tables, graphs, 3D views, etc.;
• Running various analyses over simulation results using built-in and user editable tools such as statistics, Service Levels, System Summary, etc.;
• Exporting simulation results using automated functionality and user defined templates to GIS, RDBMS, raster, text, video and MS Office compatible formats;
• and much more ...

Along with its comprehensive toolset, which covers all standard workflows, InfoWorks™ WS Pro provides unparalleled freedom for creating additional functionality using SQL. The engineers can benefit from a special SQL implementation that has been dramatically enhanced with a number of additional functions, ready to use topological relations, procedural elements (variables, loops, conditions, etc.), reading and writing external files and ability to prompt for user interaction during statements execution.

From standard model building, through complex analyses to massive data exports for generating technical documentation – InfoWorks™ WS Pro offers unparalleled proportion between price and built-in functionality.

InfoWorks™ WS Pro - a unique, state of the art, simulation engine

InfoWorks™ WS Pro uses a state of the art simulation engine, which inherits from and dramatically enhances the WESNET system – the first in the world software tool that has been purposely developed for modelling of water supply networks. In contrast, most competitive products on the market are based on adapted computational cores originally designed for other industries, such as oil and gas pipelines, or on generic network optimisation algorithms. Several characteristics, among many, of the InfoWorks™ WS Pro’s simulation engine justify its leading market position:

• Unparalleled speed, computational stability, and accuracy – multiple independent benchmark studies over the years show that InfoWorks™ WS Pro is significantly faster (up to 10 times!) in comparison with most of its market competitors. The unprecedented speed is a result of a number of unique features in the simulation process. Before running the actual simulation the modelled network undergoes a special pre-processing optimization routine thus reducing dramatically the mathematical problem to be solved. Critical or very complex hydraulic event do not stop the simulation or slow it down. The engine automatically inserts intermediate timesteps to achieve an unambiguous solution. All errors (deviations from the user-defined computational accuracy) are reported as exceptions through a detailed output allowing for comprehensive analyses and quick solutions to the simulation problems;
• Accurate “real world” modelling – InfoWorks™ WS Pro offers a truly realistic modelling of pumps and hydraulic control structures (valves, PRVs, inlets, etc.) instead of simplified algorithms to determine indirectly downstream hydraulic conditions as in most other modelling packages. Intelligent algorithms for continuous metrics and logic monitoring allow for the modelled structures to respond to rapid changes in network conditions as closer to the reality as possible;
• Proven in thousands of projects – since its original development as WESNET computational core, the concept of the InfoWorks™ WS Pro simulation engine has been proved in thousands of international projects over the years. The latest achievements in mathematics and hydraulics, as well as the cutting-edge software techniques, are implemented in every new version of the platform thus keeping it always at the top position on the international market.

Along with the standard hydrodynamic simulations, the InfoWorks™ WS Pro computational engine provides a wide range of special simulation types, such as fire flow, critical links analysis, shutdown impact analysis, pipe flushing, leakage detection, transient flow analysis over thousands of objects simultaneously (requires InfoWorks® TS license) and more – almost all without the need of editing the geospatial model itself. These simulation types allow for dramatic savings of work time, often by an order of magnitudes – from days to just minutes, especially when large models (tens of thousands of objects) are to be analysed, thus justifying once again the industry-leading position of InfoWorks™ WS Pro on the international market.