Utilisation of water meter readings in hydraulic modelling of a large urban water supply system using EPANET

ABSTRACT Comprehensive hydraulic modelling of a large urban water supply system, based on GIS data, with actual spatial distribution of water demand achieved through georeferenced water metre data. Establishing a model for simulating a large urban water distribution system poses challenges from multiple perspectives. This paper presents an approach to modelling a complex network, demonstrated on the case of the regional distribution system of the city of Novi Sad. In the analysed study, an accurate model was developed using a comprehensive dataset encompassing all system components. A realistic spatial redistribution of demand within the network was achieved by including the complete set of water meters. This approach yielded straightforward calibration and high agreement between simulated and observed pressure and discharge values. The selected software package, EPANET-GISpipe, proved suitable for addressing such issues. The research has shown that a detailed analysis based on water meter readings enables reliable simulation of large-scale water distribution systems with complex operational dynamics.