Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2010HI288B

A Decision Support Tool for Managing the Pipe Network of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply (Year 2)

Institute: Hawaii
Year Established: 2010 Start Date: 2010-03-01 End Date: 2011-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $21,487 Total Non-Federal Funds: $43,997

Principal Investigators: V. Singh, Chittaranjan Ray

Project Summary: The age of mains at the Honolulu Board of Water Supply (BWS) ranges from 0 to over 100 years. With the average age of water mains increasing, proactive measures are needed to replace mains before they cause problems. Currently, BWS uses a judgmental decision process to replace pipelines. Therefore, this study proposes to use Best Management Practices (BMP’s) for pipe utility management, because it will help BWS in their decision of when and which pipes to replace in a scientific manner. This will be done by analyzing historical records of main breaks and applying statistical models and quality control tools. Operating characteristic curves will be developed for a number of breaks per length in ground, average cost per break per length in ground, and average age of pipes. The reliability of the system for various pipe types, pipes of different diameters, and pipes of different ages will be calculated. Availability analysis will determine the probability the system will perform satisfactorily when called upon. From Bayesian analysis, the probability of failure given the pipe type, pipe diameter, pipe age, and soil type will be calculated. Regression analysis will be used to forecast the expected length of pipes to be replaced each year for planning purposes. Prioritization will give a prediction of which mains are likely to fail first, thereby giving BWS a warning system. A facility condition index will be developed to assess the pipe system. And finally, linear programming will be applied to optimize the locations of corporation yards.