Web-based Knowledge Management Systems

Web-based Knowledge Management Systems
ntroduction
As public water and wastewater utilities move into the 21 st century, the pressure for more efficient operations, enabled by immediate access to supporting information, grows ever greater. Fortunately, the explosion of technologies related to the Internet and World Wide Web have provided us with the capability to access and retrieve information in new and exciting ways. One way to refer to the systems and technologies that exploit this information is to speak of “knowledge management systems”. This paper will attempt to explain the development, application, and use of web-based knowledge management system in public utilities such as the City of Phoenix Water and Wastewater Department.

Overview of Knowledge Management Systems
Knowledge management systems cover a wide range of information gathering and presentation purposes. They can also provide information to the greatest cross-section of an organization, from operations and maintenance staff to the utility director or manager. In all cases, they provide a point of integration for many seemingly disparate information systems and applications.

Some of the systems that are candidates for integration with a knowledge management system include SCADA control systems, computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS), geographic information systems (GIS), electronic document management systems (EDMS), operations and maintenance manuals, and many others. The vision of this integrated knowledge management system, one access point to enterprise-wide information, is presented in the graphic below.


SCADA systems can be integrated with web technology in a couple different ways. One configuration is to customize dynamic links to the SCADA historical and alarm database to view, monitor, and report on specific data. This data can be presented in table, graph, or other customizable views. Other solutions can also be developed, such as an on-line operations log that shows the most current system alarms and allows operator entry of responses. Another, simpler configuration is to use the web-enabled software provided by most control system interfaces and embedding it within a customized web site shell. This typically offers the quickest solution but, often, it is also less flexible for integration with other system data. The same two configuration options, customized versus packaged web solutions, are available for most major information systems used in utilities. For example, most computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) are moving towards web-based interfaces and standard relational database back-ends such as Oracle or Microsoft SQL Server. This allows both the packaged web interface solution to be used as well as customized links and reports directly to the CMMS database.

Web-based solutions are ideal for operations and maintenance manuals that once were reserved for 3-inch thick binders sitting on the shelves of many treatment plants. Moving the O&M manual standard procedures, troubleshooting, theory, alarms, and equipment descriptions to an electronic, web-based solution offers many benefits. For one, the information can be updated and kept current much more effectively because it can be changed in one place and instantly updated at all access points.

Geographic information systems have also been moving rapidly to web-based technology. Integrating software web solutions such as ESRI’s ArcIMS and MapObjects provides instant access to all GIS coverage data and permits easy-to-use spatial location of information. By selecting a single point on a map, all data and information associated with the point can be displayed. This might include electronic documents, CAD drawings, operations procedures, actual SCADA data, or water quality data from a LIMS. Without the cost of implementing a full GIS web solution, a simpler graphical location screen can be used to select a plant or area of interest. This link can then be used to access a more detailed map location or detailed information The graphic below shows an example of this approach for access to specific water and wastewater treatment plant information for the City of Phoenix.


Ultimately, the power of the technology lends itself to integrate all of these different capabilities into one single, one-stop access point, for all information. The combination of customized and packaged software solutions can all be integrated in a seamless interface such as the one shown below for the City of Glendale Information Management System (GLIMS). This particular system integrated the following systems under one interface: operations and maintenance manual, on-line operations log with alarms from the SCADA historical database, web-based monitoring of the SCADA system using Intellution’s iFIX web server package, Assetworks CMMS work order and customer requests, and a document management system for scanned files of all vendor manuals. The web page shown allows easy access to any of these systems for two water reclamation facilities, two water treatment plants, and the collections/distribution system. This is only one example of the power of this type of integrated solutions for public utilities or organizations.