Case Study: Companhia Águas de Joinville secures clean water for 600,000 and saves BRL 4.5M with Bentley OpenFlows WaterGEMS

Companhia Águas de Joinville Keeps Clean Water Flowing for 600,000 Residents in South Brazil

Companhia Águas de Joinville (CAJ), the water and sanitation utility serving about 600,000 residents in Joinville, Brazil, faced the worst drought in 30 years in 2020 that severely reduced the Piraí source and threatened supply. To optimize investments and operations and develop a drought contingency plan, CAJ selected Bentley’s OpenFlows WaterGEMS to create a digital twin and perform advanced hydraulic modeling of its macro distribution network.

Using Bentley’s WaterGEMS, CAJ discovered that its original interconnection and booster plan was ineffective and instead designed a near-zero‑cost contingency that leveraged existing mains, avoiding costly construction and saving BRL 4.5 million. The solution reduced production needs by 30% (about 170 L/s), cut water loss in a critical district by 40,000 m3/month, lowered annual pumping costs by BRL 360,000, reduced reported shortages by 90% on the critical sector, saved 574 megawatts of power, and cut the utility’s carbon footprint by 169 tons per year while securing supply for residents.

Companhia Águas de Joinville

Lucas Emanuel Martins

Engineer