New skills in the time of hydroinformatics

Transcription

1 1 New skills in the time of hydroinformatics drinking water quality conference 2018

2 KWR invests in strong links with valuable partners, in order to build a solid knowledge base realise high quality reference projects create marketable products Building the knowledge base needed to provide drinking water of world class quality. 40 years of collective research covering source to tap, institutional memory for the drinking water sector KWR Watercycle Research Institute Knowledge institute of and for Dutch & Flemish drinking water companies

3 3 Hydroinformatics Hydroinformatics ( ) concentrates on the application of ICTs in addressing the increasingly serious problems of the equitable and efficient use of water for many different purposes. (Wikipedia) More data More information More knowledge (?)

4 4 New skills Computer skills? Genetic algorithms Artificial intelligence Datamining Human skills? Problem definition System understanding

5 5 Some examples in drinking water distribution OPTIMAL NETWORK DESIGN SENSORED NETWORK + REAL TIME MODELLING Janke, R., Uber, J., Hattchett, S., A. Gibbons, D. and Y. Wang, H. (2015). "Enhancements to the EPANET-RTX (Real-Time Analytics) Software Libraries "

6 6 Optimal network design van Thienen, P., Vertommen, I. and van Laarhoven, K. (2018). "Practical application of optimization techniques to drinking water distribution problems." Hydroinformatics International Conference, Palermo, Italy. Computer skills Hydraulic model (EPANET) + genetic algorithms + code optimization + generic approach Any objective, any scenario Optimal network design Human skills System understanding: formulation of the optimization problem network model (all links, skeletonized, pressures correct) additional data: continuity of supply (valves and actions) Added features (pressure control on reservoirs, limitations on inflow/outflow of WTP, failure scenarios) Gathering all required data at required quality level was time consuming

7 7 What we tried to bridge the gap 3 parallel paths Gondwana workshop Applying lessons learnt Hydroinformatics platform BTO experiences, current state of affairs, lessons learnt & outlook, Gondwana 101, practical exercises management of expectations and perception more attention to project boundary conditions adequate two-way communication really understanding what utilities need really understand what optimizing researchers are doing (not technically but conceptually) new application models knowledge exchange platform in the framework of the Joint Research Program of 9 Dutch and 1 Flemish water utilities; data quality and validation issues discussed and made more explicit; keep putting data quality, availability, accessibility, etc. on the agenda!

8 8 Sensored network + real time modelling Computer skills New sensors + ICT + hydraulic models + analysis techniques (outlier detection) + Sensored network + RTM As soon as there is a pipe break or a contamination I would like to know this, and be able to fix the problem quickly and prevent customers from being bothered or infected Human skills Be prepared: train many scenarios Act proactively: trust the model and if needed improve the real system Communication: explain to stakeholders how the system and experts strengthen each other

9 9 Some projects related to this Serious game: how beneficial would an online E.coli sensor in the distribution network be? Future of hydraulic modelling: what will the job description of a hydraulic network modeller be in 2025? Climate change impact: how to communicate with stakeholders about urgent solutions

10 10 Discussion It is always easiest to point at someone else, so please let me know which new skills researchers need to develop.

11 11 New skills in the time of hydroinformatics drinking water quality conference 2018