I am a practising Professional Egineer who does A LOT of data collection applications, both for my clients as well as for the 150 or so employee needs within my own firm. When someone asks me what kind of data logger they should use, I always start by asking them where the data logger will be located, and what it will be used for. There are plenty of choices! Here’s a few of the systems and applications that are currently connected to FlowWorks.
Telog
We have some small water and sewer treatment plants that talk to FlowWorks using Telog’s wireless 1XRTT modem. We like the Telog products (particularly the 3307 and 3314), as these units are very reliable and they have some very flexible telemetry options (including dialup phone, wireless, and direct Ethernet connections).
ISCO
ISCO 2150 area-velocity meters in sanitary sewers come in via ISCO’s wireless 1XRTT system. The ISCO’s are purpose-built and hence not as flexible as the Telog wireless system, but the ISCO’s are compact units that generally get the job done well enough.
Marsh McBirney
There are a few Marsh McBirney FloDar’s connected to FlowWorks. These units were plugged into the Telog RU33 product, which acts as a data recording and telemetry module for the FloDar.
ADS
There is an ADS FlowShark connected to FlowWorks. We don’t have a lot of experience with these yet, but our client out East seems to be happy enough with the unit. It uses wireless 1XRTT just like the Telog and ISCO systems.
Satellite Stations
We have remote stations that use satellite because there is no other option where these sites are located. Right now we have Campbell Scientific and Unidata Neon systems connected. We know that Campbell Scientific systems have been around for a long time and have a proven track record. The Neons also seem to be holding up well.
The bottom line is that there are several ways you can do any particular data collection application. We are always doing new applications, and we keep on top of what’s out there on the market, what works well and what doesn’t. Feel free to ask us for a bit of advice the next time you are looking to do a new data collection application! We work with an expanding list of logger manufacturers, and we provide unbiased advice.