Water loss in the water distribution systems (WDS) is a challenge to many water authorities in the world but the problem is crucial in the less developed countries. The effect of water losses in the WDS includes the reduction in the revenue and availability of water, interruption in the quality of water, and inflation of the operation and maintenance cost of the water authorities. Using data from the Moshi Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Authority (MUWSA) Tanzania, an assessment of strategies used for water loss management (WLM) was carried out through an integrated model of Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) and Integer Linear Programming (ILP) which is an optimisation technique. The family of MCDM methods, Multi-Attribute Value Theory (MAVT), Simple Multi-Attribute Rating Technique Exploiting Ranks (SMARTER), and Simple Additive Weighting (SAW) were employed to assess and prioritise the strategies while the ILP was used to formulate a decision model. The model was used to select a portfolio of the best strategies. Sixteen strategies were identified. The results show that the comparison between the bulk meter and customers' meter on detecting the physical or apparent losses was ranked as the best strategy in managing the loss while the network zoning was ranked as the worst strategy. The model selected thirteen out of sixteen strategies to form the portfolio of the best strategies to be employed by the MUWSA for water loss management. Furthermore, the model was found to be robust as the selected portfolio of strategies remained the same even when the weights of the criteria were changed. The developed model in this study will assist the decision-makers to assess, prioritise and choose the best strategies for reducing or controlling water loss in the distribution system.
Water loss in water distribution systems (WDS) is a serious problem in Tanzania and the third world countries at large. A lot of water is lost on its way before reaching the consumers. This causes a shortage of water supply which leads to loss of revenues of the concerned water authorities. The control or reduction of water loss in the WDS is closely dependent on the commitment of the decision-makers and on the strategies and budget, they set for that purpose. This paper presents a combined model of Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) and Numerical optimization techniques which may help decision-makers to prioritize and select the best strategies to be used in the management of water loss in the WDS at Moshi Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Authority (MUWSA), Tanzania. The Multi-Criteria Decision Making family methods namely the Multi-Attribute Value Theory (MAVT), Simple Multi-Attribute Rating Technique Exploiting Ranks (SMARTER), and Complex Proportional Assessment (COPRAS) were used to evaluate and prioritize the strategies, whereas the Integer Linear Programming (ILP) technique a numerical optimization technique was used to select the best strategies or alternatives to be employed in water loss management. The results show that the most preferable alternative is replacement of dilapidated pipes while the least preferable alternative is network zoning. The model selects thirteen out of sixteen alternatives, which cost 97% (TZS 235.71 million) of the total budgets set by the water authority to form a portfolio of the best alternatives for water loss management. Furthermore, the model showed robustness as the selected portfolio of alternatives remained the same even when the weights of the evaluation criteria changed.
Water loss in water distribution systems (WDS) is a serious problem in developing countries. A lot of water is lost on its way from the sources before reaching the consumers due to leakage, illegal use, and theft of infrastructures among others. The effect of water loss in the WDS includes reduction of revenue, water shortage, disruption of water quality, and inflation of operation and maintenance cost of the water authorities. The control of water loss in the WDS is closely dependent on the commitment of the decision-makers, the strategies used and budget set for water loss management (WLM). This study presents a combined model of Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) and Integer Linear Programming (ILP) methods which may help decision-makers to prioritise and select the best strategies for WLM. The MCDM family methods; the MAVT, SMARTER, SAW, and COPRAS were used to evaluate and prioritize the strategies, while ILP was used to select the best strategies. Additionally, the study compared the SAW and COPRAS methods in prioritising and selecting the strategies. The data used were collected at MUWSA. The results show that the COPRAS and SAW methods rank the given alternatives differently while when integrated with the ILP technique, the formulated models select the same portfolios of alternatives. Thirteen alternatives which cost 97% of the total budgets set for WLM were selected. Furthermore, the ILP models showed robustness in selecting the portfolio of alternatives as they select the same alternatives despite the ranking of alternatives and change of weights of evaluation criteria. Finally, the study proposed the decision model framework which can be used by decisionmakers to evaluate and select the best strategies for WLM in WDS. URI
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