AWWA JAW70990

Hydraulic models of water distribution systems are becoming increasingly complex and are being used for more applications. The cost of building and maintaining these models is also increasing. The trend in hydraulic modeling has been to integrate the vast amount of data contained in a utility's constantly changing geographic information system (GIS) with the less frequently modified hydraulic model. This article explains how thoughtful coordination of GIS data and hydraulic model data can minimize the future cost of hydraulic model development and maintenance. In the industry, very limited information exists on effective ways to coordinate these two data sets. The article describes tools within GIS and modeling software used to improve data accuracy as well as protocols that can be established to allow the transfer of data corrections or modifications between the model and the GIS. General recommendations are presented to help a utility more effectively manage data in order to successfully maintain a hydraulic model. Includes 4 references, tables, figures.