When approaching sewer maintenance, inspection teams need to both see defects and determine what kind of defects they are. That might not be asking much of a NASSCO-certified engineer, but the simple task of seeing and identifying defects is a tall order for artificial intelligence (AI), which is only starting to scratch the surface of its true potential in the wastewater industry.

As technology continues to shoulder more and more of our inspection workloads, it’s easy to forget that having enough qualified people to operate equipment, code and convert data, manage deliverables and analyze sewer infrastructure is just as important as having the software and equipment itself. But even with the right team, workloads can spike when you least expect it, causing your team to take on more work and stress, with the ensuing risk of delays and mistakes. AI-enabled data services allow your team to leverage the power and efficiency of AI, hands-on verification from data professionals, and fully integrated cloud hosting without breaking the bank or your team’s backs.

WinCan has always evolved to meet the needs of the wastewater industry. Now, in a continued commitment to industry-leading sewer inspection solutions, WinCan is proud to introduce Sewermatics, a new collection of AI-powered services that help you get more out of your inspection data.

In 2018, WinCan partnered with Lucity to bring even more flexibility to the WinCan platform and enhance the asset management capabilities of wastewater professionals around the world. Lucity had been an industry leader in wastewater asset management for nearly 30 years when they partnered with WinCan. Just a year later, they were acquired by CentralSquare, a move that would build on that value with even more robust offerings.

In spite of advances in new sewer pipe material, the evolution of sewer inspection was relatively slow throughout most of the 20th century. Before the advent of camera technology and sewer inspection software, lamp-holes were used to gaze down into sewer mains to ensure water was flowing. If there was no water flowing or if the water was pooling, then the maintenance crews knew there was a problem. These wastewater professionals conducted most of their inspections and maintenance by entering the sewers and looking down main lines with nothing but their eyes and a bit of auxiliary light, but we’ve come a long way since then.

At Padre Dam Municipal Water District, Wastewater Collections Supervisor Rich Schultz and GIS Coordinator Jen Gordon have been working together on a program that utilizes technology to maximize efficiencies while maintaining reliable wastewater services in East San Diego County.

Sewer systems require regular inspections and maintenance to ensure they function at peak efficiency. But who is actually responsible for the labor involved in sewer upkeep?

Municipalities often have hundreds of thousands of assets to keep track of. Without an accurate record of each one, its location and its condition, it’s impossible for engineers and operators to properly plan maintenance and expansion. However, advances in inspection and analysis methods are changing the way we understand the infrastructure that is under our feet, giving us the ability to visualize collection system layout and capacity like never before.

Although artificial intelligence (AI) won’t replace wastewater professionals, the sewer industry is making great strides in developing AI algorithms that can monitor data, predict outcomes and complete tasks in the same way a human would. From using telemetry data to improve upon hydraulic modeling of sewers, to AI-powered applications that identify anomalies in effluent, machine learning has enabled sewer professionals to better see, understand and manage wastewater and the infrastructure that transports it. 

Legacy data provides wastewater professionals the opportunity to review the history of defects for a given section, monitor rates of deterioration, and make more informed decisions on when and how to repair infrastructure. However, the condition of legacy data makes a significant difference in the value that it provides to municipalities. In particular, data security, accessibility and quality are all crucial to successfully managing wastewater infrastructure and sustaining data hygiene.