Skeletonize the model by trimming dead-end pipes

Step-by-step guide

InfoWater Pro’s Skeletonizer app can reduce the number of elements and the complexity of a model while maintaining its hydraulic equivalency. The Skeletonizer offers fully customizable trimming, reduction, merging, and network skeletonization, based on user-specified criteria.

This example uses network trimming to identify and trim out dead-end pipe segments meeting specific criteria, such as hydrant branches and pipes that are smaller than a diameter deemed useful for the model. If nodes at the end of dead-end pipes have demands assigned to them, the Skeletonizer reallocates that demand to the next upstream node, so that no demands are lost during the Network Trimming operation.

To begin Network Trimming:

1. From the InfoWater Pro ribbon, Project panel, click Apps.
2. From the App Manager, select Skeletonizer.
3. Click Run.

When using the Skeletonizer, it is usually best practice to create a domain of a smaller portion of the model to which the network trimming operation will be applied.

4. In the Skeletonizer app, click Edit Domain.

5. Use the Domain Manager tools to add model elements to a desired domain.
6. Close the Domain Manager.
7. In the Skeletonizer, click Options.

8. In the Network Skeletonization Options dialog box, choose from four available Dead-End Trim Options and specify the desired criteria:

• • Trim Diameter Smaller Than and Trim Length Shorter Than are self-explanatory.
  • Apply Maximum Trim Levels refers to the number of iterations to be performed on pipes in series meeting the other specified criteria.
  • Apply Elevation Difference prevents trimming of pipes between dead-end nodes and those immediately upstream whose elevation differences are greater than the specified criteria.

9. Under Common Options, it is typical to enable Confirm between Segmentation Levels and Exclude Pipes with Controls.

This ensures continuity and reduces the risk of deleting pipes with either simple or logical controls.

10. Click OK to close the Network Skeletonization Options.
11. Back in the Skeletonizer, click Trim.
12. In the confirmation popup, click Yes to proceed.

13. Close the Skeletonizer when the operation is complete.
14. Spot check to verify that the desired dead-end pipes were trimmed, and that demands were automatically transferred from trimmed nodes to the main line node to which the dead-end pipe originally connected.