International Workshop on Flash Flood Forecasting 13-17 March 2006, Costa Rica Integrated Hydro-Meteorological Observation Solutions

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International Workshopon Flash Flood Forecasting
13-17 March 2006, Costa
RicaIntegrated Hydro-Meteorological Observation
Solutions

• Irma Ylikangas
• Business Development Manager
• Vaisala Oyj
• 15.3.2006

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Vaisala in brief

• We develop, manufacture and market products and
  services for environmental and industrial
  measurement.
• The Vaisala Group founded 1936
• Employs over 1,000 professionals
• Has 22 own offices in 11 countries
• Achieved net sales of EUR 197.9 million in 2005
• Investments to R D about 20 M in 2005
• Exports outside Finland accounted for 96 of net
  sales in 2005
• A-series shares are quoted on the Helsinki
  Exchanges
• Offices and business operations in Finland, the
  USA, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany,
  Sweden, Malaysia, China, Japan and Australia.

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Vaisala locations (11 countries, 22 offices)
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NEWS - Vaisala Sigmet Product line

• Vaisala weather radar Offering
• Vaisala offers complete weather radars in the
  near future
• Vasiala Sigment offers Weather radar upgrades of
  signal processors
• Sigmet track record covers over 25 years of
  weather radar upgrades of signal processors,
  controllers and software called IRIS
• Since beginning of January 2006 Sigmet is Vaisala
  company called Vaisala Sigmet Product line
• Almost any weather radar operating on any band
  (S, C or X) can be modernized by Vaisala Sigmet
  Product line products
• Upgrades being done to weather radars originally
  delivered by EEC, Gematronik, Mitsubishi, Baron,
  Radtec, JRC, Telvent ..
• Any upgrade is different. Please consult Vaisala
  Sigmet Product line
• For references and product details please visit
  web
• http\\www.sigmet.com

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Position in value chain
Two different strategic positions in our
business models
From customer need e.g. flooding application to
solutions Needs-based position
From phenomena to data Variety-based position
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The challenges with weather and flooding

• 7 out of 20 worst catastrophes in terms of
  victims in 2004 were caused by floods by Swiss
  Re, one of the worlds leading reinsurer.
• Weather impacts
• How to predict severe weather and floods?
• How to improve severe weather and flood control
  decision making?
• Observation and weather products infrastructure
  How to manage and integrate weather observations
  and create efficient meteorological and
  hydrological infrastructure?

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Hydro/Met observation - Solution Steps
Customer need from the meteorological,
hydrological and emergency (e.g.
flooding,multihazard) operations
1 Planning of Hydro/Met observation solution-
Feasibility Study- Solution planning and
specifications- Pilot installations
2 Implementation - Instrument and system
deliveries - Solution installations- Solution
set-up and start-up- Site testing
3 Operations and Lifetime productivity -
Training of the operators- Operation support-
Solution maintenance and upgrades- Lifetime
reliability and productivity
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1 Planning of observation system - Feasibility
study

• Evaluation of needs for meteorological and
  hydrological infrastructure and processes
• Facts finding assessment (Analysis of the
  current status of the infrastructure)
• Identification of critical points and gap
  analysis
• Capacity building needs
• Initial project planning
• Project formulation
• Budgeting
• Scheduling
• Initial infrastructure planning based on gap
  analysis
• Required observations
• Database, SW tools, models etc..
• Prepared and completed together with customer

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1 Planning - System planning specifications

• Hydrology
• Model planning
• Data collection conversion
• Preliminary conceptual models
• Meteorology
• Evaluation and determination of NWP models
• Evaluation and determination of meteorological
  workstations
• Determination of needed hydrological and
  meteorological products
• Public products for warning purposes
• Data distribution
• Data end-products dissemination to users

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Planning phase - System planning specifications

• Technical planning
• Measurements required
• Observation system requirements
• Site surveys
• Data transmission and communication
• Data collection and management
• Maintenance calibration planning
• Database observation sites maintenance
• Calibration procedures
• Project planning
• Detailed project formulation
• Project phases
• Budgeting
• Scheduling

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Planning - Pilot System

• The purpose of the pilot system delivery is
• Pilot system in the prototype delivery of the
  requested solution for certain specific area or
  region, such as one basin
• To ensure the correct system specifications have
  been made during the project planning and
  spesification generation phase
• To test the equipment and observation systems in
  local and real operational environment and
  conditions
• To test the performance and the operative usage
  of the forecast models (e.g. hydrologic model)
  in the pilot area

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2 Implementation - Instrument system deliveries

• Manufacturing of observation stations according
  to customer requirements
• Specified sensors, calculations reports
• Specified data format data transmission
  equipment
• Factory acceptance tests
• Delivery of required HW and SW
• Observation stations
• Database HW and SW
• Application tools for hydrology and meteorology

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Implementation - Installations

• Installation of observation stations
• Civil works (foundations, powering, communication
  etc...)
• Installation of stations with communication
  equipment
• This is done together with local partner
• Installation of meteorological and hydrological
  information platforms
• Communication
• Databases HW
• Data analysis and forecasting models systems
• Meteorologist/hydrologist workstations

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Implementation - System set-up and start-up

• Hydrological and meteorological informations
  systems
• Tools and systems to produce
• Hydrological information
• Meteorological information
• Data visualization editing tools
• Meteorological NWP models
• Hydrological models with calibrations
• Setting up central data collection center
• Meteorological hydrological databases
• Communication systems
• Observation system integration with databases
• Meteorological messages and data formats

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Implementation - Testing

• Testing of individual elements
• Site acceptance tests for observation stations
• Testing of the whole chain from observations to
  products
• Data transmission to database
• Data quality
• Calibration of the hydrological model and further
  development
• NWP models
• End-user products e.g. warnings
• Time used to the operational test phase varies
  according to solution complexity.

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3 Operations - Training

• Operation of complete solution
• Operation, calibration maintenance of
  observation stations
• Managing and maintaining database
• Data editing visualization tools
• Hydrological model training
• Using meteorological and hydrological end products

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Operational support Lifetime management

• The lifetime management is the key issue to
  ensure the reliability and productivity of the
  hydro/met observation solution.
• Collaboration between End user and Vaisala is
  essential.
• Examples of Vaisala service
• Technical support
• HelpDesk
• Support for observation systems and application
  tools
• Preventive corrective maintenance of systems
• Functionality checks, fault tracing, replacement
  of fault and worn components
• Remote diagnostics maintenance
• Calibration service
• Operations of the networks and systems
• Service contracts
• From fast spare part delivery to comprehensive
  operation of network

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Solution - Observation Network
Automated Hydro and Met stations Network
Satellite data
Soundings
Data warehouse
Air quality
Weather radars
Individual sensors e.g. rain otherobservations
(i.e. seismological)
Wind profiling
Lightning network
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Data transmission
GSM / GPRS
Observation Network
Radio
Data warehouse
Satellite
Goes Meteosat Orbcomm VSAT
PSTN modems
TCP-IP
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Meteorological and Hydrological Data
Management, Analysis Processing

• Data warehouse
• data verification
• and quality control

Data editing Visualization
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Hydrological data visualization and editing

• Hydrological products
  and services
• Visualization of discharge and water level
  forecasts
• Real time monitoring and calculation of
  discharge in point of interest
• Flood warnings
• Flood impact scenario maps
• Water level and flood discharge data distribution
  for regulation, flood damage prevention and
  general information

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Evacuation alarm in a case of Flooding

• Example Evacuation analysis based on flood
  arrival times, population data, industrial plants
  data etc.
• Which towns and villages will be affected within
  e.g.2 to 24 hours?
• Are there any industrial sites where hazardous
  material are being processes in the area which
  will be affected?

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Meteorological Data Visualization Editing

• Meteorological workbench
• Tool for meteorologist to visualize, edit and
  adjust forecast data from models
• Time series editing
• Combination of data from different sources
• Integrated visualization and product generation
• Forecast text generation tool

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Hydro/meteorological observation solution
From observations to products
Met messages/message switching
Data visualization Editing
Observation network
Data transmission
Data management
Data Analysis Processing
End products
Warnings Flood prediction Severe weatherinfo Data
dissemination
Data editing tools Met. and hyd. data
Visualization Met. and hyd. workbench
AWS (meteo hydro) Radar Lightning Soundings Wind
profiling Air quality
GSM/GPRS Satellite Fixed/leased line TCP-IP
Database management Metadata management Data
quality control Data verification
Data assimilation NWP models Hydrological models
Meteorological hydrologicalresearch
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Bureau of Reclamation - reservoir, CA, USA

• System showing
• wind sensor
• solar radiation
• relative humidity/air temp
• net radiation
• precipitation
• barometric pressure
• water level (shaft encoder)
• satellite communication
• result
• evapotransporation

Water level
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Tide Station for Tsunami Monitoring - Example
Layout
WS425 ultrasonic wind sensor
lightning rod
UHF-antenna
mast
QHR102 sea-level radar
SOLAR50 solar panel
heavy-duty mast with extension arm
sat. comm (antenna transmitter)
QMH102 combined temp.-humidity sensor
MAWS Automatic Weather Station with PMT16A
barometer

(option pillar for GPS antenna)
Wave breaker Tide staff (scale)
Bench marks
PAA-36WT/H abs. pressure sea-temp sensor
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EMHI HYDROLOGICAL NETWORK - ESTONIA
23 x MAWS110 System with hydrological and water
quality sensors
GSM Network
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AUTOMATION OF SMHI HYDROLOGICAL NETWORK IN SWEDEN

• 90 MAWS301 STATIONS
• Water level
• absolute shaft encoder
• Optional sensors
• All weather precipitation
• Air temperature
• Relative humidity
• Climatological sensors
• Telemetry
• PSTN modem
• GSM modem
• Voice messages (PSTN)
• Turn-key solution with installation and training

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Some examples of HYDRO/MET SOLUTIONS WORLDWIDE
Mississippi-river, USA
Rio Bravo -river, Mexico
Lapusel, Romania
Viken, Sweden Swedish Met. Hydr. Institute
Samuel, Brazil
National Data Buoy Center Nova Orleans -
Mississippi
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Benefits of flood forecasting

• Benefits
• Sufficient flood warning time allows actions to
  be taken to prevent flood damage
• Minimization of human suffering and economic
  losses
• Conservative estimate for flood forecasting
  benefit 10 savings in flood damage
• UN ISDR estimate up to 35 reduction in damage
  as a result of improved hydrological forecast
  (global)

• Vaisala can offer
• Total Solution from sensors, single instrument,
  telemetry, radar upgrades, data collection to
  fully integrated hydro-meteorological
  observations solutions.
• Global reach support, training, service and
  maintenance - lifetime sustainability
• 70 Years at
  Customer
  interface

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Vaisala Integrated Hydro-Met Observation Solutions

• Vaisala is a comprehensive turn-key solution
  hydrological and meteorological solution provider
  ( e.g. flood forecasting).
• Vaisala is fully committed to serve and support
  Your Organization in all meteorological and
  hydrological observation needs.
• Vaisala takes full responsibility to ensure the
  highest operational efficiency and low operation
  and maintenance costs in all systems provided.

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Muchas Gracias - Thank you