Category: Monitoring

New Scatter Graph Features!

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FlowWorks is happy to publish an update to our already great mapping tools with some frequently requested features from out users. This update includes some great new features, updates, and tools in our Graphing tools set.
New improvements to the Scatter Graph feature:

  • Scatter plots now support 3  data channels:  one on x-axis, two on y-axis.
  • Users can add manual field measurements to scatter graphs.
  • A scatterplot of a time series can now automatically be opened in a separate browser window. This works really well when users have two monitors.
  • A scatter plot now supports the assigning of data channels to either axis in scatter plot under “Appearance –> axis and scaling dialog”
  • Support  has been added for customizing the axis scales in scatter plot mode.
  • User now can select a data point in the scatter graph and the date and time me of a selected data point is displayed. This feature supports multiple values that could occurred at the selected point.
  • Editable Curve fits and Manning’s Curve – users can now easily modify  an existing curve fit
  • We have provided a library of typically used Manning’s Coefficient so  when a user is creating/modifying a Manning’s curve, the user can select coefficients from a  a drop down menu  or enter a user defined value as before.
  • Allowed Custom axis labeling – Under Axis Options, a new option called Axis Labels with text boxes for each axis
  • Improved zooming functions on both scatter and times series modes

We have also implemented the new tree organizer in graphing – so what you see in the map view for stations is now carried over into the graphing view. This brings about a much greater consistency in working with sites in large numbers.

Some of these features were requested via the FlowWorks Community Forums and User Group and FlowWorks is proud to implement user ideas whenever possible. The forums are open to any FlowWorks user, and you can use them to ask questions, start general discussions, requests features, or browse through our ongoing knowledge base articles that are constantly being updated and added to.
This update is just one more way that FlowWorks helps you understand your data, by making it easier, faster, and less complicated to get to the information that you want to know.

Boston Water and Sewer Commission Now a FlowWorks User

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Boston Water and Sewer Commission (BWSC, the Commission) has selected FlowWorks to help pull their data together across different management platforms and to better understand stormwater and flood events.  The FlowWorks platform allows BWSC to investigate the dynamics of rainfall, trunk flow and level, and pressure fluctuations in real time to better understand the causes of basin flooding.

In addition, FlowWorks is also pleased to be working with Flow Assessment Services out of Bedford, NH.  Flow Assessment provides flow-monitoring services to BWSC under contract, and will be performing all data acquisition field services and QA/QC for the project.

FlowWorks is working with Paul Keohan, Project Manager at the Commission, to improve access to data being collected around Boston.  Recently, the Commission expanded the collection of rainfall data to better understand the distribution of rain across the city.  Under a separate project, the Commission is measuring water depths and velocities.  FlowWorks makes it possible to integrate the data from both of these projects into one platform that the Commission can access outside of the normal working hours.

According to Paul Keohan, being able to access rainfall and depths during a large storm, rather than using rainfall forecasts, will improve the Commission’s ability to monitor the collection system and determine if corrective measures are needed to prevent flooding

FlowWorks Featured in Municipal Sewer & Water Magazine

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FlowWorks is making waves once again. This time by being featured in the February/March 2012 issue of Municipal Sewer & Water. Ted J. Rulseh writes in the Technology Test Drive column about FlowWorks in an article titled, “All Flowing Together”. The article describes how FlowWorks can save both time and money by cutting down the tedium and unnecessary steps involved in data monitoring.

On page 58, Ted summarizes his observations by saying “It was easy to see how the graphic, reporting and calculation capabilities in FlowWorks could save engineers from significant amounts of tedious work. The various reporting and calculation functions appeared to be intuitive, at least for an engineer or other professional experienced in sewer system operations and planning”. Tim Hicks, president of FlowWorks, is also quoted in the article, saying of FlowWorks’ abilities, “Turn weeks of spreadsheet work into a couple of hours of FlowWorks work”.

An online version of the Technology Test Drive article featuring FlowWorks can be found here!

FlowWorks Welcomes Cincinnati

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The city of Cincinnati is the latest municipality to join FlowWorks. The city is beginning the process of moving all environmental monitoring data to the FlowWorks web platform where it will be securely stored, edited, analyzed and turned into actionable information.

In the fall of 2010, when ADS Environmental Services was bidding flow monitoring services to Cincinnati they asked FlowWorks to team with them for data management. ADS knew from their successful partnership for Seattle that FlowWorks would help them deliver superior quality data and save time and money in the process.

ADS was successful and Cincinnati awarded contracts to provide flow services for capital improvement and other modeling projects. At present, this includes flow servicing, data management and QA/QC for over 200 monitoring stations. The data is being uploaded directly to FlowWorks, where it will be combined with other Cincinnati environmental data including historic flow metering stations, rain gauges, SCADA pump stations, and CSO/SSO sites.

Check back soon for more information including how FlowWorks is helping Cincinnati and other municipalities worldwide achieve the most efficient and comprehensive flow monitoring possible.

FlowWorks Creates Big Buzz at WEFTEC 2011

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WEFTEC 2011, Los Angeles

Attendees at the 2011 Water Environment Federation’s Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference, WEFTEC, repeatedly asked a key question as they stopped by the FlowWorks booth: How do I sign up?

“Hundreds of people stopped by the booth,” said FlowWorks President Timothy Hicks. “People are definitely getting the message that FlowWorks is the better way to manage data.”

Held October 15-19 at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California, WEFTEC is the largest meeting of its kind in North America, bringing together thousands of water quality professionals from around the world to share and explore the best water quality education and training available.

FlowWorks booth was a highlight. Representatives from the nation’s biggest engineering companies, a dozen major west cost municipalities, most of the world’s flow metering firms, as well as the members of the media and investment bankers, were among those who crowded around the booth’s two demonstration screens.

“FACE and the new graphic editor were extremely well received,” Hicks noted. “I think folks were so receptive because they’re starting to understand that a platform like FlowWorks can truly bring data and people together.  After two years of speaking and educating, they are seeing a way to keep their data secure, and access and work with it at the same time.  Fortunately, they’re thinking of us.”

In other words, people are finally understanding how to deal with the vast amount of environmental monitoring data that’s piling up, and that FlowWorks offers a management approach that is far more cost-effective, efficient, and comprehensive than traditional SCADA.

The new tools have been a smash hit so far:

  • Graphic Editing QA/QC Tools—Users can now edit any and all data, on a single, secure web platform, from anywhere.
  • FlowWorks Advanced Calculation Engine (FACE)—A major upgrade to the FlowWorks data platform places Excel-quality calculation tools for real-time data directly into user’s hands.

The updates vastly expand FlowWorks data management, analysis and reporting capabilities.

The message for flow monitoring professionals of the world: FlowWorks has arrived—and 2012 looks like it is going to be a very busy year.

For more information on FlowWorks, including the new Graphic Editing QA/QC Tools or FACE, please click the links.

FlowWorks Graphic Editing QA/QC Tools

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FlowWorks graphic data editing and QA/QC tools make it possible to edit any and all data, on a single secure web platform, from anywhere. Designed by power users from the FlowWorks community, the editing tools combine the game-changing FACE (FlowWorks Advanced Calculation Engine) with an intuitive interface designed to make short work of data editing. Using the tools, analysts and data managers can select data directly on graphs and tables to delete or modify it including applying offsets, interpolation and much more. A complete history of all edits is stored in the permanent record so reviewing data across multiple hardware platforms has never been easier.

The new FlowWorks Graphic Editing QA/QC tools make it easy to:

  • Quickly select data channels to edit
  • Select data points directly by drawing boxes on time-series graphs or scatter-graphs, using date range selection tools, or through direct entry of dates and times
  • Raw data is always protected from editing – editing tools make it easy to save edited data to new records
  • Find and replace missing data
  • Apply corrections to ranges of data, or to individual data points
  • Make quick work of simple operations such as nulling invalid data, applying constants and linearly varying ramps, and data substitution.
  • Automatically create and edit QA/QC flags
  • View and make direct edits in the tabular data display
  • Add notes to document your edits, which can be displayed on the graphical interface

One-stop data editing – all part of the power of FlowWorks.