What is Autodesk Innovyze Infoworks?
In February of 2021, Autodesk announced the acquisition of Innovyze, Inc for right around 1 BILLION dollars!!
Innovyze’s modeling, simulation, and predictive analyses solutions enable more cost-effective and sustainably designed water distribution networks, water collection systems, water and wastewater treatment plants, and flood protection systems.
These offerings can assist civil engineers, water utility companies, and water experts the ability to better respond to issues and to improve planning.
Innovyze’s is trusted by approximately 3,000 customers worldwide. Why 1 billion for 3000 customers you may ask? Well, the customers include public and private utility companies in many of the most populous cities across five continents. These include a majority of ENR’s top design firms, and leading environmental and engineering consultancies. These companies are typically large, so 3000 companies may be upwards of over a 30 million users, based on a stat I just made up!! But seriously, the user count is extremely large.
All the new Autodesk Info products support some level of import capabilities for Autodesk Civil 3D Storm, Sanitary, and Water Systems.
Let’s hope for once that Autodesk changes the name soon! Because Inf-O-works and Infr-A-works is a bit hard to differentiate.
This group of products is so robust that we could write a book on each of the individual products, but for now let’s take a quick look at the Innovyze offerings, and how they can help.
InfoWorks ICM
InfoWorks ICM is advanced integrated catchment modeling software created to model complex hydraulic and hydrologic network elements quickly, accurately, and collaboratively for stormwater and wastewater. This is used by small and large enterprises across the world to plan for capacity improvements, system expansions and emergency scenarios.
InfoWorks ICM has industry-leading capabilities such as:
- Fully integrated river, urban drainage, and overland flow modelling
- Conduct holistic hydrological and hydraulic assessments
- Facilitate project collaboration and team working
- Evolve to live modelling
The workgroup database in ICM allows users to maintain a complete history of their model, and along with an unlimited number of undo and redo actions hydraulic modelers will be able to quickly build a model, in-spite of errors that might occur during the process.
Data Inferencing
Survey data that is typically used to build hydraulic models may be missing certain elements that are necessary for the model to run accurately. This happens on almost all projects I’ve seen. Between GIS, as-builts, new survey data gathering and other sources or recreating the “As-Is” state of the system, data is often missing. However, Infoworks ICM has built-in inferencing tools to fill in these gaps for things such as missing shapes and sizes of pipes or ground and cover levels.
These tools can be used quickly and easily to fill in data gaps, most commonly, found in survey data but also necessary to run the model accurately and efficiently.
Get reliable results, fast outputs are generated faster, meeting commitments, promoting reputation and allowing for more competitive bidding. Hydraulic simulations, depending on their complexity, can take hours or even days to complete. In addition to InfoWorks ICM’s inherently fast and accurate simulation engine, simulations can be run on other servers or computers available in the network that are purpose built for running complex hydraulic models. Instead of relying on and consuming the hardware resources on a typical desktop computer, a high-powered server can be used by an entire organization to provide much faster simulations.
Simulate Flooding with Confidence
- Adapt 2D mesh to ground surface and surrounding GIS data
- Directly apply radar rainfall over catchments and 2D surface
- Detailed and efficient 1D-2D integration at points and banks
- Derive statistical flood damage over multiple recurrence intervals
Rainfall Generator
There is also a new Rainfall Generator that I thought was slick! The new NOAA ATLAS 14 Rainfall Generator can be used to download data from the NOAA's Precipitation Frequency Data Server (PFDS) to generate NOAA Atlas 14 precipitation frequency estimates for specified locations within the United States.
InfoDrainage
InfoDrainage is a full design and analysis solution used by designers, developers, engineers, consultants and approving authorities all around the world to design and audit drainage systems.
Data Formats
There are wide range of different data formats that can be imported to help create and update designs more quickly and efficiently.
This allows the user to better utilize existing data available for a site and remove some manual workload and potential double handling of data. Being able to easily make use of existing data helps support a more streamlined design process, making the most of previous work completed in CAD or existing survey data for example.
Streamline Workflows to support your design process
You can create reusable template for structures across all object types, for example a Manhole or a Swale. Within the template you can specify everything from the basic dimensions of the structure to the definition of around the inlet and outlet conditions. Templates helps in removing some of the more labor-intensive tasks involved in the creation of standardized designs.
Having created a structure, you want to template you can quickly add it to your template library for reuse. Once added you can then drag a template directly onto the plan, while preserving any pre-set dimensions allowing for the rapid digitization of your design.
And, built in validation is easy to run and identifies anomalies in your design, directing the user to potential problems and offering the user fixes which can be applied and updated at the click of the button.
Create and Modify Designs Directly on the Plan
Quick graphical network creation helps to provide improved efficiency but also helps to ensure design suitability with other engineering disciplines, as our design can be true to site on plan.
All structures can be created graphically and by interacting directly with the plan.
Editing can be done in the same way as you work through your design, as you adjust your design, you will see just how easy it is to make changes and see results in real time.
Phase Management Capabilities - Optioning and pre/post development comparison
Using the Phase Management capabilities, you can quickly replicate a base plan and then design and edit different approaches in parallel. This is great for giving engineers a tool that helps to support design creativity and an iterative design approach.
Pre v. Post development comparisons can also be quickly made using different design phases, allowing max inflow and outflow’s to be identified and compared for instance.
Once you define a pre v. post site design and run an analysis on both, the results can be reviewed in detail in tabular form, with the ability to quickly pick out the key critical events.
You are then able to utilize the comparison report builder to create customized reports for easy reuse, the report builder allows you to define the report specifics and layout.
InfoDrainage – Direct Data Exchange with Civil 3D
The InfoDrainage integration with Civil 3D helps to streamline workflows and reduce manual data entry.
You can work directly within Civil 3D to create your design layout, which is typically where your data gathering, and design begins anyway. Utilizing the dedicated InfoDrainage Civil 3D ribbon you can initiate an export of your CAD data to InfoDrainage. The wizard guides the user through the simple export process.
From there, the design can be opened directly within InfoDrainage and the data can be reviewed in detail.
And now you can create catchments by exporting to InfoDrainage from Civil 3D, including the outline and properties of the catchment and connection to structures to minimize model setup time in InfoDrainage!
This data can then be brought back into Civil 3D via a similar import process. This round tripping of data gives you greater flexibility in terms of workflow and by using the parts mapping, this enables faster 3D object representation a key driver for BIM compliance.
InfoWater Pro - ArcGIS Pro-Based Water Distribution Modeling
Water distribution modeling enables engineers to represent their real water distribution network. With InfoWater you can:
- Plan for the short or long-term horizon, ensuring level services for growing population.
- Simulate the impact of any changes to the network (e.g., pipe break, new system extension (urban growth), different water demand (e.g., Covid impact on industries, businesses, and customers), etc.).
- Analyze water quality throughout the water system and ensure an optimum flushing strategy to remove debris and sediment and bring clean water to any customers no matter where on the network.
- Use a wide range of powerful analyses to minimize risks there is a burst, target and justify strategic and expensive mains rehabilitation schemes, overall aiding system resilience.
InfoWater Pro - A Brief Story
- InfoWater Pro is built in ArcGIS Pro, this means that those familiar with ArcGIS will be able to use the GIS tools to build and manage models easily, access various GIS-native layers, and visualize results and data in 2D and 3D for better understanding of the model. Finally, they can also easily share a view-only version of the model in ArcGIS Online.
- InfoWater Pro makes it easy to for modelers to understand system behavior and hydraulic performance, improving any recommendations made about designing or improving the water system.
- Modeling teams can trust InfoWater Pro results will represent the real water system, and quickly see where any calibration issues might be. It improves the quality of the model, so they can rely on it to base infrastructure decisions
- These decisions improvements will be observed across a wide range of water projects, from planning and design to operation and maintenance.
Ability to visualize 3D and network models together
It is also possible to view element properties (e.g., elevations) and hydraulic results (e.g., pressure, total demands) in 3D display, to improve the understanding of what you are reviewing, whether node and pipes properties or results. When mapping element properties, it is also an effective way to visualize where input errors or missing properties might be located within the network.
You can view existing and proposed pressure zones. You can also study each zone’s included hydraulic elements, for which you can review the minimum and maximum pressure, hydraulic grade line, water quality, flow, velocity, head loss, and hydraulic slope.
The schematic view of pressure zones enables users to quickly understand the interaction between different pressure zones.
And when you click a specific zone, you get the location of the zone on the network map, as well as a summary overview for the zone, so they can quickly see a performance overview of the zone.
InfoWater WS Pro - Comprehensive Water Distribution Modeling
Engineers use InfoWater Pro software to model water distribution systems in an easy-to-use GIS interface.
- Leverage spatial analysis tools available in ArcGIS Pro to help with model building and management
- Run countless scenarios to simulate a wide range of simulations
- Present results clearly that you can share in ArcGIS Online
Extensive GIS Connectivity
- Exchange of data between the model and external GIS in multiple formats
- Web Mapping Service (WMS) support in addition to built-in MapXtreme or ArcGIS desktop/engine support
- Geolocation tools using online maps (e.g. Google Maps and Google Street view)
Connect Directly to Telemetry
- Direct connection to many types of telemetry databases including SQL Server, Oracle, PI, ClearSCADA, Info360
- Update boundary conditions and allow comparison of actual vs predicted values
- Leverage connection to telemetry to perform demand area analysis, roughness calibration, and leakage locator simulations
Mimic Asset Operations
- Explicit modeling of network assets (e.g., hydrants, meters, customer connections)
- Real-world modeling of pumps and valves operations (e.g., variable speed pumps, pressure regulating valves, etc.)
- Program the operation of pumps and valves according to state of sensors or conditions in network
Realistic Demands and System Behavior
- Realistic demand modeling – including pressure-related demand, drain down and recharge
- Customer-centric: comprehensive service-level reporting at customer connection
The reason for building and updating a model is to reproduce what is happening in the real system. So, it is crucial to simulate complex system behavior as closely as possible, which includes realistic pump and valve operations, water demands, and other system behavior such as the drain down and recharge of a tank which is approximated in other water modeling products. Because operations can be simulated accurately, operation engineers can trust the model to guide their decisions.
Info360 Asset & Insight
Info360 Asset & Insight are cloud bases (Saas) solution from Innovyze. Here is just a little info about what each one does.
What is Info360 Insight?
Experience designed workflows that let you quickly identify incidents in your system, check multiple resolution scenarios, and apply recommended actions to rapidly resolve system failures.
What is Info360 Asset?
Info360 Asset is a cloud-based application that empowers asset practitioners at utilities and municipalities to centrally:
- Better manage costly inspection data and media
- Use historical and current condition data to monitor and assess condition and performance of their assets
- Build and use models of likelihood of failure (LoF) and consequence of failure (CoF) for renewal prioritization planning
Info360 Asset helps asset management practitioners review, store, and manage all inspection data effectively, assess condition conveniently, determine risks accurately, and guide renewal decisions–all from a single cloud-based platform. It also provides nontechnical stakeholders with an easy-to-understand web environment they can access, so they understand maintenance and renewal decisions.
