BIM and AM to manage

critical and relevant water

& wastewater utilities assets

Wagner Oliveira de Carvalho

Aegea Sanitation, São Paulo, BR
Zigurat Global Institute of Technology, Barcelona, ES
Universitat de Barcelona, ES
Table of contents

Abstract 3

About the Author 4

1 Introduction 5

2 Objectives 7

3 Water and Wastewater Utility Study Case 8

4 Methods 10

4.1 Asset Management Guidelines 10

4.2 Asset Identification 11

4.3 Tag representation by Aegea’s asset tree model 12

4.4 Criticality, relevance and risk classification 13

4.5 CMMS tool implementation 14

4.6 Critical and relevant asset digitalization 14

4.7 BIM Execution Plan implementation 15

4.8 Cost, performance and risk analyses 16

5 Main findings and contributions 17

References 19
Abstract
Global Water and Sewage Utili-
ties must manage a wide varie-
ty of essential infrastructure
assets while meeting complex
social and environmental cha-
llenges, and this is especially
true in Brazil, where according
to SNIS Institute only 53% of
the population has sewerage
coverage and 17% still does
not have access to treated
water [16].
The Brazilian government´s
new regulatory sanitation fra-
mework [3] was approved in
December 2019, establishing
goals to accelerate water and
sewerage coverage, stimula-
ting private investors either
to build new or to operate
existing plants.
However, the asset inventory
handover process from the
public to the private sector is
unstructured, causing nume-
rous operational and main-
tenance challenges to new
operators and investors.
disciplines. Aegea’s integrated
approach, “Infra Inteligente”
(Infra), introduces intelligent
3D models of Water and Sani-
tation business.
The 3D business representa-
tions trigger the Digital Twin
in unrivaled data and analytics
visualization within a virtual
reality environment suppor-
ting the organization to take
strategic and tactical decisions
to do the maintenance and
operations of the inherited
plants. By switching from reac-
tive to proactive maintenance
it will save millions of Brazi-
lian Reais, extending the life
of critical system assets and
prevent the operation team
from dealing with frequent
and unpredictable equipment
breakdowns.
Keywords
BIM, AM, SLO, Digital Twin.

This paper presents the digital

transformation framework
applied in Aegea, a private
group of water and sewage
utilities in Brazil, aiming to
meet in a sustainable way
a social, environmental and
financial value (SLO- Social
License to Operate) [15] by
combining Building Informa-
tion Modelling (BIM) [17] and
Asset Management (AM) [8]
About the Author

Wagner Oliveira de Carvalho Resulting from his commit-

is a determined civil engineer ment and outstanding perfor-
with almost two decades of ex- mance, after his graduation,
perience in sanitary enginee- Wagner joined Zigurat’s faculty
ring and water management, board as the professor of the
who has come to specialize in Master Internacional em BIM
digital asset transformation Management para Infraestru-
and its benefits for infrastruc- turas, Engenharia Civil e GIS, a
ture projects. As the senior new similar curriculum pro-
project manager at Aegea, gram of Zigurat Global Institu-
a private group of water and te of Technology designed for
sewer utilities, Wagner has the Brazilian market.
won twice one of the most
prestigious awards for hydrau- The current paper discussing
lic modeling: Bentley’s Be Ins- the work done at Aegea’s
pired Award with Aegea Water virtual reality laboratory was
Master Plan in London 2015 selected among many submis-
and Aegea the Sewer Master sions from around the world
Plan in Singapore 2017. for the world’s largest Civil
and Computer Engineering
In 2018, in quest of further Congress that will take place
developing his expertise in in Brazil on June 20th, and will
digital and new technologies in soon be launched by Springer.
construction and asset ma-
nagement, Wagner enrolled
in the Master’s in Global BIM
Management for Infrastructu-
re Projects of Zigurat Global
Institute of Technology. The
experience in the collaborati-
ve BIM environment that he
gathered throughout the year
in the program gave him the
underlying foundations of his
new project of integrating BIM
tools to the asset management
approach to build a shared
knowledge resource. Conse-
quently, Wagner also started
exploring the potential of
digital twins and virtual reality
in water asset management.
1 Introduction
According to the United
Nations World Urbanization
Prospects [14], the global pers-
pectives on population living in
urban areas indicate a steady
increase from 55% to 68% by
2050, driving more than 2.5
billion people to the cities.
Based on these statics, urban
areas are expected to be more
resilient and this will be even
more challenging in develo-
ping countries. Thus, in order
to take a step forward toward
smart cities, asset managers
need to have structured pro-
cesses in place to build and
manage water and sewerage
infrastructure.
Taking into account that sani-
tation is essential for human
health, the digital asset trans-
formation can bring practical
benefits for citizens’ life by
increasing the availability and
quality of services.
The Brazilian sanitation cove-
rage gap added to the environ-
mental resource’s limitation
turn imperative the improve-
ment of water infrastructure
projects to meet the citizens’
demand in a more effective
way, balancing cost, perfor-
mance and risks over asset’s
lifecycle.
Today, more and more orga-
nizations are challenged to
share structured and unstruc-
tured data and information
collected during the entire life
of physical assets (revenue
generators), including: cons-
truction projects, geospatial
information (G.I.S), opera-
tion, maintenance, condition
monitoring among others,
according to BuildingSMART
International (2019) [13].
Likewise, the BuildingSMART
indicates that there is a long
run to evolve in BIM standards
for the different Infrastructure
types. The first Industry Foun-
dation Class (IFC = “Operating
system” for open digital data
exchanges) specific for infras-
tructure was launched in 2014,
and the steering committee
was established to combine,
enhance and develop open
standards for intelligent data.
Building Information Modeling
(BIM) methodology is sprea-
ding rapidly in infrastructure
management providing a sim-
ple and friendly integration of
3D objects (digital twin) [21].
Although many companies are
adopting BIM when contrac-
ting their projects, and even
digitizing some operational
structures, there is still a lack
of comprehensive studies pro-
ving the effectiveness of digital
management over the entire
life cycle of sanitation assets.
A great success example in
BIM implementation for the
architecture, engineering, and
construction (AEC) industry is
the CCC (Consolidated Con-
tractors Company), which is
today the major construction
company in the Middle East.
The Zigurat´s master program
is a source of knowledge about
the CCC BIM story since the
first project in Doha in 1997,
passing through the CCC BIM
Centers until the mega infras-
tructure projects such as the
Midfield Terminal Abu Dhabi
Airport in the United Arab
Emirates [22].
Responsible for providing the
commodity to life, Water and
Sewage Utilities play a vital
role on cities’ development.
Operators thus need to effec-
tively reduce risk and asso-
ciated costs going beyond the
business-oriented perspecti-
ves to obtain the social license
to operate (SLO).
In this context, BIM can serve
as a shared knowledge resour-
ce for information if unified
with AM (Asset management)
over the asset life cycle, hel-
ping drive compliance with
the international management
standard ISO 26000 (guideline
for social responsibility) [6].
The construction industry can
better support sanitation from
understanding its needs in a
more structured way covering
not only the constructed facili-
ties but also the natural world
including our interaction with
the environment we inhabit.
In addition, the water asset
manager along with the design
and construction phase has
a vital interest in receiving
complete, accurate and vali-
dated infrastructure informa-
tion, and with the BIM projec
completion, the handover will
include the facility’s digital
representation including phy-
sical and functional characte-
ristics to the operation team in
a structured manner.
This global water context is
even more challenging in
some Brazilian regions, where
the private owner-operators
are assuming long term con-
tracts, 30 years on average,
with regulatory commitment
to increase water and sewage
coverage while enhancing ope-
ration performance, increasing
the availability and quality of
services.
Brazil, having 50% sewage co-
verage and estimated demand
for investments around USD
100 billion by 2033 (according
to the Brazilian governmental
agency - PLANSAB) [1] sets the
scene to the challenges ahead.
That’s why, there are countless
places in Brazil to be recove-
red and with today’s technolo-
gy and a sustainable approach,
there are smart ways to do
this (see Fig. 1).
In face of global sanitation
challenge, BIM and AM could
be the game-changer having
the potential to deploy opti-
mized infrastructure faster
and cheaper than any other
method.
The private operators are
taking considerable risks, as
they usually start the bid with
inconsistent asset inventory
from public sector. The tech-
nical information collection
is spread in different files
formats, split into thousands
of 2D drawings, specs, prin-
ted documents, and normally
without standard for asset
nomenclature.
Consequently, assuming the
operation of these systems in
Brazil means to deal with a lot
of water outages, often caused
by unknown assets, having to
face all the impacts of their fai-
lures on safety, environment,
reputation, legal, contractual
and quality of services, as well
as the financial consequences
of the unpredictable events.
The transition from reactive
to proactive approach is a
complex issue and requires
the organization to raise asset
management maturity index,
which includes the implemen-
tation of an AM methodology
and a computerized mainte-
nance management system
(CMMS).
The integrated approach to
face the challenges was na-
med “Infra Inteligente” (Infra),
and applying this concept
to water utilities produces
intelligent 3D models based on
physical and functional assets
characteristics of its digital
representation. It means a
considerable shift in the tra-
ditional way to deal with the
information until today, from
electronic documents and 2D
drawings to 3D model asset
data-oriented over the entire
concession lifecycle.
To water owner-operators, the
Infra benefits is even more
significant, considering that
they have the decision power
through conception, design,
construction, operation, and
maintenance to turn the
business steadier and more
profitable.
Making use of the intelligent
and friendly 3D BIM models
integrating hydraulic models
and AM across the business-li-
fe, enables water managers
to create faster and reliable
what-if scenarios simulation to
support better decisions.
Therefore, the investors must
pursue a joined-up view of
funding streams related to
Total Expenditure (TOTEX),
which can leverage better deci-
sions over the asset through
time, taking into account not
only the Capital Expenditure
(CAPEX) but also as the asset
continues its lifespan during
the operation (OPEX).
The three main research
questions of this study were
to first, assess if the Building
Information Modeling (BIM)
and Asset Management (AM)
methodologies applied to
other sectors (gas, telecom
and energy) would be as effec-
tive as at the Brazilian water
sector? Secondly, what would
be the transformative impact
of BIM and AM on a private-
ly- owned utility in Brazil and
thirdly, what would be the key
lessons for other water utilities
to learn from?
Fig. 1. Sewage Cover Index (Source: Aegea SWAN presentation,
Miami 2019) [18].
2 Objectives
This real case study aims to
demonstrate the BIM tools in-
tegration to AM approach can
deliver reliable water asset life-
cycle information into friendly
3D models, incorporating
specs, documents, attributes
and operational real time data
of virtual assets (digital twin).
The general objectives are
the evaluation of applying a
powerful set of technologies
and processes in the sanita-
tion sector, in order to lead the
organization to make better,
faster and more accurate de-
cisions over the whole phases
of the concession contract
in compliance with the SLO
principles.
In order to achieve and de-
monstrate this case study
objectives the analysis was
divided into following steps:
• Brief history report of how
the need emerged for struc-
turing asset management
processes within the organi-
zation;
• Technology selection of
a computerized manage-
ment maintenance system
(CMMS);
• Present the planning, ben-
chmarking, classification
methodology and implemen-
tation of an AM system;
• Advanced data acquisition
technologies for digitizing
assets in 3D;
• Introduce the BIM execution
plan;
• Practical demonstration of a
decision process on a critical
and relevant asset, balancing
cost, risk and performan-
ce using reliable data and
analytics in a virtual reality
environment.
3 Water and
Wastewater Utility
Study Case
The innovative initiative known
as “Infra” was introduced at
Aegea corporate environment
and it has been revolutionizing
the sanitation sector in Brazil.
It was a long history of suc-
cessful experiences in some
Units (cities with Aegea sanita-
tion concessions), diagnosis of
problems in other Units and,
the vision to improve overall
business management.
Aegea inspiration relates to
2014 during the development
of the Water Master Plan 2041
study for the Unit of Prolagos,
which is one of the major
Aegea concessions located
in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
The challenge was to deliver
a long-term contract study in
order to improve the overall
system performance, and the
final result presented was
remarkable: increase revenue
by 30%, save 55% energy con-
sumption, reduce maintenan-
ce costs and enhance system
security.
At that time Aegea realized the
need to possess reliable asset
information in order to combi-
ne the hydraulic powerful mo-
deling tool used with friendly gement, held several strategic sector in different regions of maintenance work;
visualization for each “what-if meetings during 2015 repor- the country, different organi- • Difficulty in measuring inhe-
scenarios” and alternatives ting the main problems that zational cultures, old infras- rent and residual risks;
proposed. were impacting the business: tructures and little informa-
tion available; • Difficulty in finding better
The application of Bentley • Difficulty in standardizing engineering solutions (de-
WaterGEMS hydraulic mode- operation and maintenance • Difficulty in meeting Capex sign) to meet the coverage
ling tool took the project to be of Water and Wastewater and Opex planned budget; and efficiency contractual
presented at Bentley´s 2015 Systems; targets;
Symposium in London, ranked • Excessive water supply and
among the world’s best win- • 48 Water and Sewage Units sewage system interrup-
ning the BIM Advancements in inherited from the public tions. Plenty of overtime in
Water Networks category by
Bentley Systems [2].
The Prolagos master plan a
robust and multidisciplinary
study taking into account the
scope and contract to detail,
identifying the improvements
and investments envisioned
along the entire concession life
cycle. Aegea’s award-winning
master plans have delivered
significant ROI benefits by
optimizing water and sewage
infrastructure through scena-
rio selection and alternatives
generated within hydraulic
modeling tools (WaterGEMS)
(see Fig. 2).
Aegea board, realizing the
opportunities to improve asset
Fig. 2. Aegea Water Architecture – Prolagos Master
(revenue generators) mana- Plan 2041 (Source: SWAN Forum) [20]
Aegea board´s decision was
to evaluate the asset manage-
ment maturity level of one of
its Units.
By March 2015, work was ca-
rried out to identify the matu-
rity stage of processes related
to asset management in one
of Aegea’s most significant
Water and Wastewater Utility,
Águas Guariroba, located at
Mato Grosso do Sul state. This
Unit serves more than one
million customers and it is a
representative sample of the
other units.
In 2017, a survey and mapping
of operating costs were publi-
shed in the - Costs OpEx Curve
ABC - 2017 (Águas Guariroba)
document, identifying oppor-
tunities for cost optimization.
In this survey, a structured
evaluation methodology was
used in line to ABNT NBR ISO
55001: 2014 requirements and
the 39 principles of GFMAM
(Global Forum Maintenance
and Asset Management), ca-
pable of providing an accurate
maturity diagnosis in asset
management system [9,10,11].
The methodology applied
compares the Águas Guariro-
ba Unit routines and proces-
ses to a global Asset Manage-
ment best practices generating
an array of considerations:
• The absence of a structured
policy, strategy, and CMMS
(Computerized Maintenan-
ce Management System)
system.
• Activities related to assets
occurred reactively or in iso-
lation, without any organiza-
tional or operational context;
• Physical assets life cycle
assessment was still a topic
little known by managers,
but intuitively used to justify
some specific investment
projects;
• Absence of warehouses with
spare parts and defined
processes;
• No specific criteria for defi-
ning an inventory item, nor
its maximum and minimum
levels required;
• Tagging (functional identifi-
cation) of assets was incon-
sistent. Their movement, or
any type of important infor-
mation, wasn´t managed/
administered;
• Absence of a formal system
to manage requests for tac-
tical and non-tactical mainte-
nance;
• Documents inconsistency
allocated to technical library;
• Absence of a formal process
for identifying, resolving
and measuring gains from
operational improvements
in physical assets (revenue
generators).
In this scenario of uncertain-
ty of uncertainty there was a
need to start looking for better
decision-making and prioritize
investments in order to impro-
ve performance, availability
and quality of services?
Then in 2018, given the busi-
ness needs and operational
opportunities, the company
launched the “Infra Inteligente”
(Infra). The program started
with an intense planning
phase, mobilizing a multidis-
ciplinary team, asset manage-
ment specialists’ partners and
Aegea´s key areas represen-
tatives.
The program’s core team in
search of AM benchmarking
looked into a successful case
at the energy operation of Ep-
cor Utility in Canada. In 2019,
a technical visit was made to
Edmonton City to validate in
practice how they were able to
digitize assets, enabling them
to quantify asset health and
realize a 15% improvement in
reliability. In the same year,
this Canadian Utility company
won Bentley´s global infras-
tructure award competition in
Singapore [4].
Aegea Infra Inteligente pro-
gram aims to:
• Implement BIM (Building
Information Modeling) me-
thodology, supported by an
asset management system
using interoperable digital
tools covering the stages of
planning, design, analysis,
documentation, construc-
tion, monitoring, commis-
sioning, operation, mainte-
nance and decommissioning
physical assets under the
responsibility of Aegea’s exis-
ting and future concessions.
• Establish process and stan-
dards for contracting design,
construction and operation;
• Establish a process to mana-
ge the life cycle of physical
assets;
• Initially establish control
and subsequently, optimize
maintenance and operation
physical assets costs with
an estimated reduction in
Aegea´s OpEx:
- Energy (Efficiency): reduc-
tion up to 18%;
- Maintenance (OpEx): reduc-
tion up to 24%;
- People involved in mainte-
nance activities (Productivi-
ty): increase up to 20%.
• Establish control and miti-
gation of risks associated to
assets (physical, human and
informational), considering
the areas:
- Water Intake, Treatment,
Storage and Distribution
(Water System);
- Sewage Collection and
Treatment (Wastewater
System);
- Various services including
partners, third parties, de-
signs, engineering (Services
and Support).
4 Methods
As Aegea manages a large
number of Units and a variety
of sizes, populations ranging
from 13 thousand to 1 million
inhabitants, and thus the
implementation strategy was
based on a selection of 4 pilot
Units set for proof of concept,
classified according to their
demographic population as
well as one small, two medium
and one large pilot Unit.
The application of AM and BIM
methodologies at pilot Units
guided the entire planning
and development of Aegea’s
program.
Concluded the experimen-
tation (diagnostic phase) the
activities followed the Aegea
guideline to consolidation
which involved: survey and
asset analyses; criticality, rele-
vance and risk identification;
CMMS tool parameterization
and practical application of
new decision-making process
on a critical and relevant asset
(see Fig. 3).
4.1 Asset Management
Guidelines
The first focus was to develop-
ment Aegea´s AM Manual [5],
aimed to establish the require-
ments, standards, norms and ahead.
technical references to asset
managers, through standards To answer the basic informa-
and procedures including, but tion was necessary to develop
not limited to: a strategic plan including a
business mindset change from
• Definition and Application a water and sewage operator
of Aegea Asset Management in to an intensive asset mana-
recommendation based on gement organization (EAM -
ABNT NBR ISO 55.001: 2014; Enterprise Asset Management)
[12].
• Definition and Application
of Structural Standards and An effective physical asset ma-
Procedures to the correct nagement is the new core of
implementation of Aegea the business, in other words,
Asset Management; the reliance on machinery,
equipment and infrastructure
• Definition and Application would deliver real value for all
of Structural Standards and the stakeholders – business
Procedures to the correct health and depends on physi- Fig. 4. Asset Management Mandala, Infra Inteli-
parameterization of the cal assets health (see Fig. 4). gente Program – Adapted from PAS 55
CMMS Asset Management
system.
To begin the implementation
phase, it was necessary to
answer three questions about
physical assets: What are they?
Where are they? What condi-
tions are they?
Considering Aegea size in
Brazil managing more than 49
large, medium and small water
and sewage Units spread from
north to south and estima-
ted 30 thousand equipment
(revenue generators) the team
had a tremendous challenge Fig. 3. Methodology flowchart
Thus, at the edge of the man-
dala seats the business stra-
tegy translating the sharehol-
ders’ expectation, at the center
seats the physical assets
responsible to materialize the
shareholders expectation, and
rotating the mandala clockwi-
se is possible to understand
the complexity and responsibi-
lity of a modern asset manage-
ment philosophy:

• Human assets: interacts

directly or indirectly with
physical assets, demanding-
defined roles and responsi-
bilities, among other things
like motivation, knowledge,
experience, leadership;
• Information assets: a single
source of truth (data + in-
formation) about condition,
performance, activities, costs
and opportunities;
• Intangible assets: reputation,
image, moral, complian-
ce, restrictions and social
impact;
• Financial assets: consequen-
ce of good pillars manage-
ment, translating in the life
cycle costing, capital invest-
ment criteria and operation
cost;
All the AM dimensions and
BIM standards (ISO 19650) [7]
inspired Aegea to create the
streamline business vision
also presented at the SWAN
World Conference in Miami on
May 2019, showing the water
utility lifecycle representation
integrating: main business
phases and operation phases
usually lasting 30 years in
average from assumption to
end of concession´s contract
(see Fig. 5).
The divisions created and re-
presented at the figure 5, was
named: “the Virtual Phase”
and “Digital Phase”, correspon-
ding to the investment stage
(Capex) and operational stage
(Opex).
The virtual stage involves the
challenge of designing and
implementing new infrastruc-
tures or renovating existing
ones. The macro phases were
split in conception and design
studies proceeding to exe-
cution ending with the new
infrastructure handover and
marking the beginning of ope-
rational cycle.
Succeeding that, we embra-
ced the physical asset digital
phase encompassing cycles of
operation and maintenance.
This last phase is the longest
and where the business re-
sults coming through revenues
of water supply and sewage
collection, creating a great
potential for improvements by
digitalizing the critical and rele-
vant assets and creating the
respective digital twins.
4.2 Asset Identification
As asset management com-
prises decision making throu-
ghout its life cycle, standards
Fig. 5. Water Concession Lifecycle (Source:
Aegea SWAN presentation, Miami 2019)
and record structure are a
fundamental part of any ma-
nagement system that aims to
manage relevant information.
The Logical Aegea Assets Tree
(how the assets are linked to-
gether) allows to centralize the
entire management process
in a single functionality, giving
an overview of organizational
structure, the interaction and
locations of related assets
enabling a holistic view of the
entire system or process.
For the successful implanta-
tion of a structured asset tree
is necessary to carry out the
first phase, tagging (TAG) and
the definition of organizational
structure and processes that
will be understood/represen-
ted by different levels, such as
“Installation Sites”.
The definition of a structural
equipment tree model de-
pends on the exposure form
selected meaning the assem-
bly option would be the best
way to visualize the process at
managers mind, maintainers
and those involved in the asset
management process.
The Logical asset Tree, through
its database and relationships,
expands the management
potential in the maintenance
area, concentrates the execu-
tion of operational routines,
such as corrective and preven-
tive work orders, reports and
indicators, maximizing produc-
tivity without burdening the
day to day users.
4.3 Tag representation by
Aegea’s asset tree model

The Infra Inteligente labels

characteristics for each level in
Aegea asset tree hierarchy was
developed in order to establi-
sh a corporate standard (see
Fig. 6).

To implement a sustainable
asset management program
Fig. 6. Aegea asset tree (Source: Infra
or system is necessary the
Inteligente Program)
knowledge/recognition of
existing Aegea’s assets and for
this purpose a procedure was
created to raise the following
data: technical, characteristics,
attributes, conditions of exis-
ting assets in the field.
4.4 Criticality, relevance
and risk classification
Criticality is the attribute that
expresses the importance of a
machine or equipment
within a production process,
classifying how important and
indispensable a certain
piece of equipment is within
the operational context.
Relevance is the attribute rela-
ted to replacement cost/value,
which can cause downtime
and therefore high maintenan-
ce costs.
Aegea’s Infra program pilot
implementation was conduc-
ted at Holambra, Matão and
Piracicaba Units, cities located
in São Paulo state. The first
consolidated information of
critical and relevant assets was
reached at Holambra Unit (see
Fig. 7).
The assets risk analysis is ca-
rried out through the proce-
dures: “Aegea Risk Analysis”,
taking into account the weigh
criteria of the Aegea Risk Ma-
trix spreadsheet which covers
the impact in: maintenance;
operation; environment, heal-
th and safety; legal and regu-
latory compliance; reputation
and cost of substitution.
Once the risks are identified,
they must be classified ac-
cording to the probability of
occurrence, and the severity of
the consequences (see Fig. 8).
Fig. 7. Criticality and Relevance
Classification – Holambra Water
and Wastewater Utility

The attributes are stratified

according to Aegea technical
criteria level A, B and C. The
“A” represents the most critical
assets which will be subject to
risk analysis.

The graphic above shows 7%

of the total physical assets in
Holambra were classified as
the most critical and relevant
“A”, meaning that sixteen as-
sets are really significant and
important to the operation
system, and according to the
proposal of Infra Inteligente
Program they will be digitized
(Digital Twin). Fig. 8. Asset Risk Analyses – Holambra
Water and Wastewater Utility
4.5 CMMS tool
implementation
The Infra Program required
the adoption of a powerful
CMMS toll to integrate de in-
formation created by BIM acti-
vities as well as to capture and
recognize the existing physical
assets reality at the filed.
An CMMS shall provide few
basic important features that
serves as basis to control the
different water and sewage
units. The Infra established
the following conditions to be
met by the CMMS in order to
integrate and support the field
activities:
Provide structure and process
to optimize maintenance work
planning and control (effective
utilization of trades people).
Provide information to ena-
ble intelligent management
decisions.
A tool that can help to im-
plement the optimum mix of
maintenance work (break-
down versus scheduled). A
system to record and tracks
maintenance cost (material,
labor and contractors) over
the asset life cycle.
The computerized maintenan-
ce management system (Prag-
ma On Key) was implemented
to manage the physical assets,
bringing valued asset infor-
mation at the hand of the
decision makers allowing them
to take responsibility with
accountability for their units
(see Fig. 9):
• Failures per location;
• Failures per asset;
• Failures per asset type;
• Failures per component;
• Failures per root cause;
• Failures per failure type;
• Failures per repair type;
The valuable and dynamic
information CMMS system is
promoting a cultural trans-
formation in the organization
and its processes, reaching the
initial Infra Intelligent Program
targets.
Fig. 7. Criticality and Relevance Classification –
Holambra Water and Wastewater Utility
4.6 Critical and relevant
asset digitalization
Once the critical and relevant
asset were identified the
field surveying to digitization
process began, involving the
combination of advanced
acquisition technologies such
as drones, GPS antenna, laser
scanner, high-resolution came-
ras, and other equipment (see
Fig. 10).
Fig. 8. Asset Risk Analyses – Holambra Water
and Wastewater Utility
Fig. 11. Mental Map – BEP Aegea
4.7 BIM Execution Plan
implementation
Initially, the Aegea BEP (BIM
Execution Plan) was set to
orient new projects and also
to guide the use of the digital
twin in retrofit cases.
The Infra Inteligente program
also created a virtual reality
laboratory to promote colla-
borative discussions with main
designers and operational
stakeholders using the 3D mo-
del, in other words, this space
integrates technology, proces-
ses and people to figure out
the best engineering solutions
for the projects.
The lab also aimed to break
the current silos along the
project evolution, applying
Aegea BEP over design review
sections every 15 days. At each
stage of evolution geometric
information is shared, structu-
red data and documentation
linked following the BIM Levels
of Development (LoD).
The Aegea BEP is underway by
the Infra Intelligent Program
and the key pillars are displa-
yed on a mental map (see Fig.
11).
The asset registration cata-
log was set in BIM platform
(OpenPlant Bentley). The
outsourced designers worked
within the configurated work
set to follow classification ru- Fig. 12. Asset registration cata-
les and attributes required for log inside Open Plant BIM tool
each asset type (see Fig. 12). – Infra Inteligente Program
4.8 Cost, performance and
risk analyses
The last Infra Inteligente stage
methodology aimed to pro-
vide accurate information to
different strategic, tactical
and operational decision-ma-
king teams providing Key
Performance Indicators (KPI)
balancing cost, risk and asset
performance.

Making the cross-platform

data integration combining
physical assets, digital twin
and a virtual environment the
complex decision over the cri-
Fig. 13. SWAN Digital Twin Architecture Model [19]
tical asset proved to be much
more effective.

The main difference perceived

between the traditional me-
thod and the new model, besi-
des the availability of reliable
and accurate information, was
the new way of discussing and
presenting technical alternati-
ves to all stakeholders.
The new dialogue experience
increases understanding, even
for those not having technical
background, thus strengthe-
ning the relationship with local
communities in accordance
with the principles of the SLO.
Everything is attractive and
friendly as there is the integra-
tion of non-graphic informa-
tion and graphic information
(3D model) within a virtual
environment (see Fig. 13).
The following practical appli-
cation demonstration and
analysis relates to a critical
and relevant asset - decan-
ter centrifuge - at Piracicaba
Sewage Utility.
This equipment is considered
by many specialists to be the
heart of the sewage treatment
plant, as it is responsible for
the final processing of solid
phase contained in the sewage
for dewatering in preparation
to the final disposal at sanitary
landfill.
Hence, the equipment opera-
tional failure can mean subs-
tantial impact on the environ-
ment and consequently to
the community, affecting the
financial asset with a high cost
in corrective repair and some-
times generating substantial
operator´s liabilities.
Following this chapter, the pre-
ventive actions Business Case
generated by the AM and BIM
methodologies is presented,
which will increase the useful
life of this equipment avoiding/
preventing operational dama-
ges (Fig. 14). Fig. 14. Critical and relevant asset – Infra Inteligen-
te Program
As highlighted at the CMMS
platform, this equipment has
a total estimated risk over 740
thousand Brazilian reais (see
Fig. 15).
Fig. 15. The On Key CMMS tool highlighting the critical
and relevant asset – Infra Inteligente Program
The following figure 13, shows
the conflicting balancing
factors of cost, risk and per-
formance in relation to invest-
ments in preventive actions
(see Fig. 16).

Bringing this case to the triple

bottom line (SLO), it means
lower environmental risk,
higher quality of services for
society, and economic benefit
for all stakeholders, represen-
ted by a fairer tariff to the end
user.

By looking and interpreting the

available information gene-
rated by Infra, the impacts Fig. 16. Balancing conflicts analyses – Infra Inteligente Program
avoidances in addition to all in-
tangible benefits for society is
quite remarkable (see Fig. 17).

The BIM collaboration analy-

ses and decision happens at
the virtual reality lab which is
equipped with advanced hard-
ware, specific application, and
VR glasses.

Inside this immersive environ-

ment, the specialists have a
better comprehension of the
critical and relevant assets
represented in detail by its
digital twin (Fig. 18).

The physical replica of the faci-

lity is hosted on the digital twin
cloud platform for collabo-
rative analysis and comment
among the various experts
(Fig. 19).
Fig. 17. Preventive tasks on decanter
centrifuge – Infra Inteligente Program

Fig. 18. Infra virtual reality lab -
“Imersão Visual” technology
Fig. 19. 3D BIM model inside the Bentley iTwin
5 Main findings
and contributions
The first pilot case study at
Aegea Utilities proved the
applicability and effectiveness
of Infra Inteligente methodo-
logy in sanitation to ensure
compliance and adherence to
the global good practices of
the Social License to Operate
(SLO).
Concerning the BIM and AM
transforming impact for pri-
vate sanitation utility in Brazil,
the methodologies combina-
tion proved to be very effecti-
ve, mainly by bringing reliable
information about assets in
friendly 3D graphic models
that facilitates decisionmaking
at all levels of the organization.
This experience, developed
and applied in practice, can be
taken to other water utilities
with some key lessons for
attention:
• It is worth demanding the
application of BIM for win-
ning design contractors;
• Establish partnership with
experienced consulting com-
panies in AM and BIM;
• Selecting good technological
partners that provide advan-
ced, interoperable and open
BIM platforms, as well as
provide support for integra-
tion;
• Studying and engagement
with BIM, AM and digital
twins research groups to be
updated on the latest trends
and protocols.
However, it is important to
highlight that as the sanitation
sector in the country lacks
structured processes, the gra-
dual evolution in good AM and
BIM practices will have as main
challenge the need to change
the organizational culture.
Other possibilities for future
works are the Infra Inteligente
to support the project’s execu-
tion phase (4D and 5D) inclu-
ding physical asset handover
in a continues update of the
digital twin models.
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Master’s in Global BIM Management
for Infrastructure Projects
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