Zednet is a web based software solution that aims to supply management information about both the water resource itself and the monitoring hardware installed in a water distribution system. Because the application is provided as a hosted service (SaaS), no software needs to be installed on site and the system can be fully managed on behalf of a client. Raw data is centrally stored and backed up - and can be queried from anywhere, via the web, using any recent internet browser. (Clients who prefer to manage the application in-house can however license Zednet for self hosted installation.)
A quick overview of the application:
Data aggregation
Zednet aggregates data from a range of logging devices, most often via GSM, and includes default support for measurements such as flows, pressures, reservoir levels, borehole depth, river gauging, rainfall and water quality. Data is typically updated four times a day, with more frequent updates where required, and configurable alarm regimes on each data channel. When it is aggregated, raw data can be adjusted to compensate for errors in calibration, or to apply analogue conversion tables to convert between metrics.
Query API
While Zednet provides an number of intuitive interfaces to interrogate the warehoused data, it also exposes a programming interface (API) that enables third party applications to query data. This allows engineers to export data automatically to existing or legacy systems. The same query module is used by the application to present management information from the data module.
Multiple views on data
On top of the data aggregation and query modules, Zednet builds a layer of interfaces or 'views' to provide management information. A high level map based view (optionally using Google or Open Streetmap) allows managers to get a quick overview of system status. The much more detailed 'live data' view allows power users to drill right down - charting multiple channels at once while filtering data for specific events or data intervals. The interface layer and overall modular design further allows the system to be customised to a new use case relatively quickly, for example recently to present a view of zone flow calculations tied to a schematic of the water distribution system.
Alarms and reporting
Users are able to configure their own custom alarms on data. Anything from high night flow, to low water level or e.g. the status of a pump could be configured to trigger an alarm email. The system also provides for customised PDF reports so that users receive scheduled data summaries and charts directly in email - no need to log in to the web platform unless you have the need to drill down into the detail.
Administration module
Zednet finally includes a module to manage the "domain" of a water distribution system. This can be used to capture data about installation sites and the hardware assets installed, arrange these into groups or geographic regions, and configure how resulting data streams are organised and displayed. At simplest, this information is vital to presenting and making sense of the raw data. With user friendly document management and basic GIS functionality, the module doubles as a lightweight asset management system where this is not already in place.
