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PUMPCOM - Pump Combination-Simulation System

User's Manual
Camilo L.T. Andrade and Richard G. Allen

Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA-Brazil)

and

Utah State University (USA)

Version 1.1

October, 1997

Authors and Addresses for Contact:

 Dr. Camilo L.T. Andrade


 Irrigation Engineer
 EMBRAPA
 Caixa Postal 151
 35701-970
 Sete Lagoas, MG
 BRAZIL
 Camilo@cnpms.embrapa.br

 Dr. Richard G. Allen
 Professor
 Dept. Biological and Irrigation Engineering
 Utah State University
 Logan, UT 84322-4105
 USA
 allenric@cc.usu.edu

Copyright notice:
PUMPCOM© is owned and copyrighted by EMBRAPA and by Utah State University. All
rights are reserved. Permission is granted for unlimited use of the PUMPCOM software,
provided that recognition is given in any and all reports and publications to both
EMBRAPA and Utah State University, and provided that ownership by EMBRAPA and Utah
State University is indicated on all magnetic and paper copies of the software and
manuals, and provided that no profit is made by reproduction or distribution of the
software any parties other than EMBRAPA and Utah State University.
Availability of PUMPCOM Software:
PUMPCOM© is free to download from the USU Software Home page located at
http://www.engineering.usu.edu/bie/software.html, provided that the user agrees to
give recognition in any and all reports and publications that utilize results from the
PUMPCOM program to both EMBRAPA and Utah State University, and provided
that ownership by EMBRAPA and Utah State University is indicated on all
magnetic and paper copies of the software and manuals, and provided that no profit
is made by reproduction or distribution of the software any parties other than
EMBRAPA and Utah State University.

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Table of Contents
Availability of PUMPCOM Software
Introduction
Units
The Opening Dialog Box
Entering New Pump Curve Data
Saving New Pump Data
Viewing a Graph of Pump Curve Data and Polynomial Equations
Editing an Existing Pump Data File
Pump Data Units Conversion
Pumps in Parallel and/or in Series
Pump Station Data
Selecting Pump Files to Be Combined
Pump Station Layout
Deleting Elements
Minor Losses
Combination of Pump Curves
Pump Station Graph
Saving Newly Created Station Data
Analyzing Individual Pump Operation
Editing Pump Station Layouts
Printing Out Pump Station Data
Pump Station Data and Charts
Printing Out Dialog Boxes and Layout Sketch
Installing PUMPCOM
Registering as a User of PUMPCOM

PUMPCOM - Pump Combination-


Simulation System
User's Manual
Camilo Andrade and Richard G. Allen

PUMPCOM© is a WINDOWS® based program for determining head-discharge curves


for pumping stations by combining the head-discharge curves for individual pumps in
series, parallel, or both. PUMPCOM is also a part of the larger software package
SPRINKSIM© distributed by EMBRAPA (Brazil) and by Utah State University (Logan,
Utah, USA). The SPRINKSIM software simulates pressures and discharges throughout
pressurized sprinkler irrigation systems, both existing or newly designed, and determines
operating points and performance characteristics for the systems. One of the options that
SPRINKSIM includes is to combine pump head-discharge curves of individual pumps to
create integrated pump curves representing total pumping stations. This pump
combination option is presented here as a stand alone program named PUMPCOM. This
manual describes how to use the PUMPCOM software. Page 20 of this manual provides
instructions on installing PUMPCOM on your computer.

When PUMPCOM is launched from WINDOWS®, the main screen for PUMPCOM is
displayed. The main screen contains a menu bar and a toolbox (Figure 1) across the top,
and, when first launched, the screen contains an opening dialog/command box (Figure 1).
From the main screen, the user can change the data units to work with, and can open
dialog boxes to create or edit individual pump curves and to create or edit pumping
station data.
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Units
The user can choose to work with Metric (SI) or English systems of units. For the Metric
system, the flow rate, pressure head, distance, and pipe diameter are, respectively, in
liters per second, meters, meters and millimeters. For the English system, the units are,
respectively, gallons per minute, feet, feet and inches. The user can select the system of
units to work with from the opening dialog box (Fig. 1). Alternatively, the user can, at a
later time, select the Units menu item from the menu bar, and select English or Metric.
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The Opening Dialog Box

When PUMPCOM© is started, an opening dialog box is presented as shown in Figure 1.


This dialog box allows the user to select the type of units for the pump data (English or
Metric) and requests the user to select one of four options: i) Enter head-discharge data
for a new pump, ii) Open a previously created pump data file (individual pump) for
editing; iii) Create a new pumping "station" by combing various individual pumps; or iv)
Open a previously created pump station file for editing or modification. These four
options are shown in the dialog box (Figure 1). These options mimic and duplicate the
same options that can be initiated by selecting the "OK" button on the dialog box and
selecting the "Pump or "Station" commands from the menu bar. A third way to initiate
the commands is to select one of the four command icons from the tool box (i.e., for
creating a new pump file (i above); for opening an old pump file (ii above); for
creating a new pump station file (iii above); or for opening an old station file (iv
above). The opening dialog box can be ignored by pressing the "OK" button before
clicking on any other options.

It is important to note that that user must enter data for at least one pump (option i above)
before he can create a station file. The station file utilizes head-discharge information that
has been previously entered into the individual pump file(s).
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Entering New Pump Curve Data
Data for an individual pump are entered into PUMPCOM by a) selecting the "New Pump
File" option in the opening dialog box, or b) by selecting "Pump" and "New File" from
the main menu bar, or c) by clicking on the icon from the tool bar. When the "New
Pump File" option is slected, the pump data entry dilog box (Figure 2) is shown.
The pumpd data entry dialog box has its own menu bar and table where the user can
enter, for a series of flow rate values, the corresponding pump head, efficiency and the
net positive suction head requirement (NPSHr) for an individual pump. At least six data
points must be entered so that a polynomial with degree of up to five can be fitted to the
data. A maximum of 20 data points can be entered. The user should select the appropriate
number of data points to sufficiently describe the shape of manufacturer's pump curve
and to improve the fit by the polynomial equation(s).
Data must be entered into the table in order of increasing Q (and increasing NPSHr) as
shown in Figure 3. As recommended in Figures 2 and 3, the users should enter a large
enough range of data from the manufacturer's pump curve (i.e., from very small Q to
large Q) to adequately cover the full range that the pump may operate over as part of the
pumping station system and to permit PUMPCOM to later create a broad station head-
discharge curve. When entering data for Q~0.0, a nonzero efficiency should be entered,
for example 10%.
Rows can be added to or deleted from the bottom of the table by clicking on the "spin"
button located in the right upper part of the box (Figure 3). Inserting or deleting rows into
and from the middle of the table is not directly possible. However, a new line of data can
be added to the middle of a table by first adding a blank row to the table bottom (using
the "spin" button) and then copying the group of rows that lie below the desired position
for the new data point to the Clipboard, and then pasting this group of rows to a position
that is one line below their previous position. The new line of data can then be entered
(overwritten) onto the single, line of older data that appears twice. This same approach is
used to delete a row from the table.
To select a row or group of rows, click over the row number in the left-most column and
drag the cursor to highlight the desired rows. Only a whole row can be selected. From the
Edit menu item, the user can select Copy, Paste and Clear. Up and down arrow keys on
the keyboard are used to move vertically over the table. Tab and Shift Tab keys allow
horizontal movement.
When entering data into the table, all characters other than positive numbers are trapped
by the program and are not permitted. The exception is for the decimal point, which can
be keyed in only once.
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Saving New Pump Data
The user must save any entered data to disk by clicking the File and Save As menu items
from the dialog box menu bar. These commands will display a standard WINDOWS®
dialog box (Figure 4).
The user is required to enter a file name that contains the appropriate last two characters
and extension that are required by PUMPCOM (and SPRINKMOD). For the Metric
system of units, the last two characters of the file name have to be "ps" and for the
English the last two characters have to be "pe". The extension must always be "sim".
An example of a pump data file name would be "Aur14pe.sim". This type of file naming
convention is necessary for proper data file recognition by PUMPCOM and by
SPRINKMOD (if used later), and is enforced by the program.

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Viewing a Graph of Pump Curve Data and Polynomial Equations
The user can view a plot of the data entered for a pump along with the fitted polynomial
equations by clicking the View, Graph menu items from the menu bar shown in Figures 2
and 3, or by clicking on the "radio" button in the same dialog box (Figures 2 and 3). An
X-Y type of chart is presented (Figure 5), as well as a table of polynomial regression
coefficients. The first, default plot displayed is for the pressure head versus flow rate, and
the default regression equation is a second degree polynomial. To view plots of efficiency
versus flow rate or NPSHr versus flow rate, the user can click on the radio buttons in the
lower right-hand position of the screen (Figure 5). Clicking on the spin buttons in the
lower right-hand position of the screen will change the degree of the polynomial
computed and graphed on the chart. This allows the user to visualize the effect of
polynomial degree in the fitting the data. The "Std." parameters in the table (Figure 5)
represent the standard errors of the estimates from the regression equation and have the
same units as the parameters estimated. The polynomical equations are of the form: Y =
C0 + C1 X + C2 X2 + C3 X3 + C4 X4 + C5 X5.
Some of the plotting options for the graphics screen can be modified by the user by
clicking on various icons in the tool bar at the top of the screen. For example, clicking on
the magnifying glass at the right-hand end of the tool bar presents a menu where the user
can change the label spacing. Title and font type can be modified by clicking on the "a,b"
button of the tool bar.
Printouts of the pump curves can be obtained by clicking on the print icon on the tool bar.
The printer that is currently "active" in the WINDOWS® printer setup menu is utilized.
The graph displayed can be exported to disk as a "*.chf" file (readable by a Chart2FX
program) by clicking on the first button of the tool bar. Conversely, a bitmap file (.BMP)
can be created by copying the image to the WINDOWS® clipboard and pasting it into the
WINDOWS® Paintbrush. Instructions for using the WINDOWS® clipboard are given
towards the end of this manual. The ".BMP" files created by Paintbrush can be pasted
into reports or printed at a later time.
It is important, when fitting polynomial equations to the pump data, that a degree for the
polynomial equation is selected such that predicted values of head by the resulting
equation monotonically decrease with increasing discharge. In other words, the predicted
head should not increase with increasing Q at low values for Q. This can sometimes
occur for some selected polynomial degrees, or when the Q-H data entered follow a
relatively "flat" shape for low Q. When this happens, PUMPCOM will display the error
message: "Pump head estimated with this polynomial is not always increasing with a
decrease in flow rate! This might cause problems later! It is your responsibility to avoid
this kind of behaviour." This situation can be avoided by modifying the Q or H data so
that all segments of the data are monotonically decreasing, or by changing the degree
selected for the polynomial regression equation of H vs. Q.

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Editing an Existing Pump Data File

Existing pump curve data files can be retrieved into the same dialog box used to enter
new data by selecting "Open Pump File" in the opening dialog box (Figure 1), or by
selecting Pump and Open File from the main menu bar. Alternatively, the icon can be
selected. A standard WINDOWS® dialog box for opening files is shown. The user can
enter the file path and name of the file, or highlight the file name in the list and click the
OK button, or double-click on the file name in the presented list. Bad file names or non-
existent files are rejected by the program. After the OK button is pressed, the data from
the file are loaded into the data table shown in Figures 2 and 3, and can be manipulated in
the same way as for a new set of data. Edited data can be saved as a new file (using "File
Save As") or can overwrite an existing file (using "File Save").

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Pump Data Units Conversion
Data files generated using one system of measurement units can be converted into the
other unit system and retrieved into the dialog box. To do this, before opening the pump
data file, select the opposite system of units by pressing the or icons on the tool bar
or by selecting "Units" and "Metric" or "Engish" from the menubar (Figure 1). This must
be done before a pump data file is opened. Then, after the opposite units have been
selected, the user can open the file for any pump that has been stored with the opposite
units. The file names can be listed in the "File Open" dialog box by changing the "Type"
of file displayed (see Figure 4). A second file list containing names of files having the
opposite units is displayed from which the user can select the desired file. PUMPCOM
will ask if the user really wants to convert the data units. The data can later be saved
under a different name using the "File Save As" command.

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Pumps in Parallel and/or in Series
Pump station files can be created or edited by combining head-discharge curves of
individual pumps. In a pump station, individual pumps are assembled in parallel or in
series. Also, groups of pumps in series can be subsequently assembled in parallel, or vice
versa. PUMPCOM is capable of tracking intricate pump station layouts and of generating
a unique pump station curve. The location of pumps within a pump station relative to one
another is described graphically in PUMPCOM by using a simple grid of icons. The
icons describe the pump station layout and various types of fittings that are used to
connect various pumps.

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Pump Station Data
To create a pump station layout, from the Station menu item in the menu bar (Figure 1),
choose New File (for a new station) or Open File to open a previously created station
file. Alternatively one can select the or icons from the tool bar on the main screen
(Figure 1), or one can select "New Station File" or "Open Station File" from the opening
dialog box.
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Selecting Pump Files to Be Combined
A "station" file is created by first selecting the individual pumps (i.e., pump files) that are
to be included in the pumping station. When clicking Station and New File, a dialog box
is displayed such as that shown in Figure 6.

Individual pump data files, created previously, are listed in the left-hand side of the box.
The user can "browse" through different directories on the disk to find the relevant pump
file(s). Once the appropriate pump data files are located and listed, the user selects those
files that are to be included into the pump station that is to be created or modified. The
user can select as many files from the list as desired for use in the combined station. The
specific pump files are selected by transferring a copy of the file name over into the right
hand side of the dialog box (Figure 6). This is done by clicking on the name of the file in
the left hand box to highlight it and then pressing the "Add" button. Multiple selections
can be added to the station by clicking on each file name so that more than one name is
highlighted. To deselect a file name, click on it again. After selecting the files, click Add
to add the files selected to the right-hand side list. Double clicking a file from the left-
hand side list performs the same task, by transferring the file name directly to the bottom
of the right-hand side list. To insert a file (or group of files) into a particular position in
the right-hand side list, first select the files from the left-hand side list, and then select the
file name in the right-hand side list above which you want the files inserted, and then
click Add. This allows the user to create the right-hand side list in the order he/she wants.
Files can be selected from different drives and directories. To remove files from the right-
hand side list, select (highlight) the name and then click Remove. Note that only one type
of file name ("pe.sim" or "ps.sim") is shown according to the system of units the user is
working with. Unit conversion has to be done at the individual pump file level, as
explained previously. To change the units to be used within the pumping station, close
the station dialog box and select the or icons from the menu bar.
After selecting the appropriate pumps, the dialog box of Figure 6 will appear as it does in
Figure 7, where three pumps have been selected for combination in a new station. These
three files have been automatically assigned the labels "A", "B", and "C".

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Pump Station Layout
After selecting individual pump files, as indicated in Figure 7, the user needs to click on
the Next button, which will cause the "sketch" box for creating the pump station layout to
be displayed (Figure 8). The sketch box has its own menu bar, some command buttons, a
box for station identification, a drop-down type list for pump file names, a station
"fittings" tool box and a grid.
A pumping station "sketch" is assembled by "drawing" a plan view "picture" of what the
station looks like, in regard to the placement of pumps and types of fittings. This is done
by selecting an individual pump from the drop down dialog box as shown in Figure 8 and
clicking on a position on the screen. A pump can be placed in any number of positions.
After pumps are placed, the appropriate fitting or fittings are placed between pumps to
connect them together. The various fittings that can be accomodated are shown along the
right-hand sides of Figures 8 and 9.
The following steps must be followed to draw the pump station layout:
1. Select a pump from the drop-down list by clicking on any part of the list (note that
each pump type has been assigned an identification letter);
2. Click on the grid where you want to place the selected pump;
3. Select other pumps that you want and place them on the grid (this can be done at any
time);
4. Select the pipe fixture desired by clicking on one of the icons in the tool box;
5. Click on the grid cell where the fixture is to be placed, as for pumps.

Note that the pump or fixture selected is "live" and can be placed into as many locations
as desired without having to reselect it. By following these steps, any layout can be
drawn. An example is shown in Figure 9.
Some restrictions apply, however, when assembling the layout:
1. Flow is required to go from left to right;
2. Pumps can not be placed in the right-most column, and pipe fixtures can not be placed
in the left-most column of the grid;
3. Only one pipe exit is allowed for the station, and must be placed in the right-most
column;
4. Except for the exit, pipe fixtures must be linked to either other pipe fixtures or to
pumps;
5. Pumps can have the left side free, which indicates that it is the suction side, linked
directly to the source of water;
6. No loops are allowed.

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Deleting Elements
Elements of the grid can be deleted or overwritten. To delete the contents of a grid cell,
deselect any pump or pipe fixture icon by clicking on it again, and click on the desired
grid cell, or simply double-click on the grid cell. To overwrite, select another pump or
pipe fixture and click over the desired cell in the grid. To clear the entire grid, click the
Edit, Clear menu item.
Incorrectly placed pumps or pipe fixtures will be trapped by the program and highlighted
so that the user can find and fix problems.
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Minor Losses
Minor loss coefficients (Kr) and associated device diameters for calculating V 2/2g can be
entered for every pump or bifurcation in the layout. Click on the Kr icon in the tool box
and then click on a pump or bifurcation on the grid. A small dialog box is shown (Figure
10) where the user can enter the pipe internal diameter and the respective average minor
loss coefficient, Kr. The Kr represents the total, summed Kr for all devices located
downstream of the pump or bifurcation and until the exit or the next downstream pump or
bifurcation is reached. The head loss due to the minor losses within the particular section
of the pumping station is computed as hf minor = Kr V2/(2g), where V is the velocity within
the pipe section downstream of the pump, and V is computed using the inner diameter
that is entered in association with Kr (Figure 10). The Kr should include effects of pipe
bends, expansions, contractions, constrictions, valves, check valves, or strainers.
Generally, minimum losses within the pump casing itself are included in the pump
manufacturer's head - discharge data, and therefore should not be be included in any Kr
on the grid, as this may cause "double counting" of effects of minor losses..

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Combination of Pump Curves
Combination calculations are triggered whenever the user requests to view the graph of
the H-Q data or to view data for an individual pump by clicking the right mouse button
over a pump icon. H-Q calculations are only performed over a specific range of valid
flow rates as described in the following.
The range of possible flow rates for each pump is subdivided to generate a set of discrete
data. The lower limit of the range is set to a zero flow rate and the upper limit set equal to
the largest flow rate entered by the user for a certain pump. The number of intervals is
currently fixed at 20 (21 points). For each flow rate entered, the corresponding head,
efficiency and NPSHr are determined for every pump by using its polynomial equation.

For pumps in series, the heads of individual pumps are added for a common flow rate,
while for pumps in parallel, the flow rates are added for a common head. If there is no
common flow rate for pumps in series or if there is no common head for pumps in
parallel, as occurs if the pumps are of different size or after upstream combination,
interpolation is used to find heads for the common flow rate and vice-versa. The program
uses a quadratic spline type of interpolation to accomplish this task.
Pump efficiencies are averaged by weighting according to head for pumps in series and
by weighting according to flow rate for pumps in parallel. This is done after minor losses
between the two pumps to be combined are subtracted from the pump heads accordingly.
The equation for efficiency for two pumps in series is:

where Eps is the combined efficiency for pumps in series, Q is the discharge, K is a units
coefficient, hp1 and hp2 are the amount of head added by pumps 1 and 2 to the water
stream, and Bp1 and Bp2 are the input power for each pump. The input power for a pump is
computed as:

where H and Q are head and Q for an individual pump and Ep is the efficiency for the
individual pump. The efficiency term generally represents the ratio of water energy
imparted by the pump to the shaft energy that is input to the pump by the motor.
However, the above equations also apply for so-called "wire-to-water" efficiencies that
also include the losses within the power unit.
The combined efficiency for two pumps in parallel is computed as:

where Q1 and Q2 are the discharges for pumps 1 and 2. Other terms are as defined earlier.
Required NPSH for the pump station is found by selecting the highest NPSHr of
individual pumps for which the upstream intake is open. This is done for every value in
the range of flow rates for the station.
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Pump Station Graph
As for individual pumps, an X-Y type of chart can be drawn for the pump station flow
rate versus head (Figure 11), efficiency or NPSHr. Also, polynomial equations can be
fitted in the same way as for individual pump data. However, if different types or sizes of
pumps are combined in series and/or in parallel, the polynomial equations might not
describe the set of data as well as they do for individual pumps. An example graph
showing H-Q data for the combined pumping station of Fig. 9 is shown in Fig. 11.
Because the combination of pumps is processed immediately upon entering the graph
window, it is recommended that the user save the pumping station sketch (and layout)
(Fig. 9) as a "station" file (see next section) before requesting a graph of the H-Q curve.
This is a safety precaution and is practiced in case PUMPCOM should experience any
numerical errors during combination of the individual pumps and the program is aborted.
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Saving Newly Created Station Data
Pump station layout and the station flow rate versus head, efficiency and NPSHr curves
can be saved to a file for future use or for future editing. This is done by selecting File
and then Save As from the box menu bar of the grid (Fig. 9). The last two characters of
the file name must be "se"for the English system of units and "ss" for the Metric system.
The extension is always the same as for individual pump data files, "sim". For example, a
pump station name could be Allen1ss.sim.

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Analyzing Individual Pump Operation
In a pump station comprised of many pumps of different types and sizes, it is important to know
how well a certain pump is operating over the range of possible flow rates of the station. To view
how a certain pump is performing compared to the whole pump station, click with the right button
of the mouse on the desired pump in the layout. The pump clicked is highlighted and a table is
displayed (Fig. 12), where data for the station are shown along with the data for the pump clicked.
In this manner, the user can check efficiency (Ep), head upstream (Hpu), head downstream (Hpd)
of the pump, and NPSHr for a certain pump in the pump station and can also compare these data
against the pump station data (Qt is total pump station discharge and Et is total station efficiency).
Note that total pump station efficiency values, when Q for any individual pump (Qp) is 0, may not
be meaningful nor correct. This will be fixed in a future version of PUMPCOM.
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Editing Pump Station Layouts

Any pump station layout saved to a file can be later retrieved and edited. In the same
dialog box used to create new pump station layouts, click File and Open. Or, from the
main screen click Pump and Combine menu items, then select Open, or or press the
icon. The standard WINDOWS® dialog box will be displayed. Select a file name listed
and click OK to retrieve the station data into the same dialog box that was used to create
new station layouts. Note that data unit conversion is not allowed at this level. Only files
for which the data units are the same as the current selected unit can be retrieved.
Before the layout to be edited is displayed, the program displays the list of individual
pump files (Fig. 7). Those files that have already been included in the station are listed in
the right-hand side list. The user can add more pump files to be included but can not
leave files already in use out of the right-hand side list. If a file that has been previously
used in a pump station is not found, the user will receive a warning message with the
missing file (or files) listed. It is the user's responsibility to search for the missing files. If
not all files required by the station file are found, the user can not successfully close the
dialog box, except by clicking Cancel, which will cause the attempt to open the station
file to abort.

After successfully retrieving the station data file, its layout can be fully edited by
including or removing pumps and pipe fixtures and by changing minor loss device
information. A new combination data set can then be generated and saved.
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Printing Out Pump Station Data
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Pump Station Data and Charts

The Head-Discharge graphs (charts) for pump stations (Fig. 11) can be printed to the
selected WINDOWS® printer or to a file from the graph window in the same way as for
individual pumps described earlier. Numerical head-discharge data can be printed to a
file or to the printer by selecting File Print while in the pump combination dialog box
(Figures 8 and 9). A small dialog box shown in Fig. 13 is displayed. Select Print to
Printer and click Print to send the pump station data and results to the printer. Select
Print to File and click Print to send the same data to a text file. After importing the text
file into a spreadsheet, data for the combined system can be formatted and printed from
the spreadsheet or can be saved (exported) into an ASCII data file for importing into a
word processor.

Only data and pump station results can be printed using the previously described
procedure. The grid showing the pump layout can not be printed this way. A procedure
based on WINDOWS® screen capture capabilities must be employed as described in the
next section.
Pump station data files of type *se.sim or *ss.sim can be imported into a spreadsheet as
'comma and " delimited data'. Several rows of data will appear into the spreadsheet from
the *.sim file. The first eleven rows contain coefficients for the head, efficiency and
NPSHr polynomial regression equations. The next 21 rows contain the head, efficiency,
and NPSHr data points for the combined pumping curves. The rest of the rows contain
individual pump flow rates and efficiencies, and information used by the SPRINKSIM
program, and can be ignored.
After importing, the isolated head-discharge data for the combined system can be
formatted and printed from the spreadsheet or can be saved (exported) into an ASCII data
file for importing into a word processor. Also, a spreadsheet graph can be created
showing together head, efficiency and NPSHr versus flow rate.

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Printing Out Dialog Boxes and Layout Sketch
An option to print graphs (for example, Fig. 11) from inside the program is to use the
WINDOWS® screen capture capabilities. In the WINDOWS® environment, a graphical
representation of any screen can be captured by pressing the Print Screen key on the
keyboard. Pressing the Print Screen while the Alt key is pressed will cause only the
active window to be sent to the clipboard. Otherwise, the entire screen is copied. After
pressing the Print Screen Key, the user can switch to a text editor (word processor) and
paste whatever is in the clipboard into the current document.
If the figure needs to be edited, the user can paste it into a WINDOWS® Paintbrush
program (for example, Paint for WINDOWS® 3.1 or WINDOWS® 95 ), then edit it and
save it as a "*.bmp" file. This kind of file can later be imported into many word
processors.
To avoid the figure being fragmented when copying, while in the Paintbrush program,
do the following(1):
1. Select Options/Image Attributes; (in Windows 95, select Image/Attributes)
2. Click on the Pels radio button in the Units box;
3. Make sure the Width is set at 640 and Height at 480 (if your screen resolution is
higher, then set it at the appropriate height and width (for example 800 x 600));
4. In Windows 3.1, select View/Zoom Out;
5. Select Edit/Paste;
6. In Windows 3.1, click on the gray area on the left side of the crosshatched rectangle;
7. In Windows 3.1, select View/Zoom In.
8. You can now print the entire graphic or a portion of it in the WINDOWS® printer or
you can save it as a *.bmp file.

Return to Contents
Installing PUMPCOM
The PUMPCOM software operates under both WINDOWS 3.1 and WINDOWS 95
environments. The software can be installed automatically using the SETUP.EXE
program that is included in the PUMPCOM.ZIP compressed file. This is done by
unzipping the PUMPCOM.ZIP into a temporary directory on your hard drive and then
running the SETUP.EXE program.
The Setup program will create a directory entitled "C:\PUMPCOM" or a different
directory on the same or different disk, if so instructed by the user during the setup
process. The Setup program will copy the PUMPCOM.EXE and SETDF.SIM files to the
PumpCom directory, copy "*.DLL" and "*.VBX" files to the C:WINDOWS\SYSTEM
subdirectory on your hard drive (except the CHART2FX.VBX file, which is copied to the
WINDOWS subdirectory).
A "shortcut" icon can be created and placed onto the WINDOWS screen by following
instructions given in WINDOWS 3.1 or for WINDOWS 95 help.
The PUMPCOM manual is included in the PUMPCOM.ZIP file as a WordPerfect
version 6.0 file named PUMAN5.WPD and can be printed from recent versions of
WordPerfect (v. 6, 7 or 8) and Word (97). It is recommended that WordPerfect vers. 7 be
used to print, as this will preserve the correct format of all graphics in the document. The
PUMPCOM manual is copyrighted by EMBRAPA and by Utah State University.
The VBX files are Visual Basic executable files purchased from outside commercial
vendors and must reside in the Windows/System directory. These files can be removed if
PUMPCO is to be uninstalled. The VBRUN300.DLL is a file supplied from MicroSoft
and is required to run Visual Basic programs.
To run PUMPCOM, activate the PUMPCOM.EXE file from the WINDOWS
environment or double click on a "shortcut" icon that can be created and placed onto the
WINDOWS screen.
Example Files
Example data files are included in the PUMPCOM.ZIP distribution file. These files
include files for individual pumps using English units (*pe.sim files) and for pump
stations in English units (*se.sim files). These files can be copied to any subdirectory on
the hard drive, for example, a subdirectory called PUMPDATA. However, when opening
a station file, PUMPCOM may expect to find the pump files in the default directory that
is specified in the disk file provided in PUMPCOM.ZIP. This default directory is "C:\
PumpComb\Examples\Pump\". If this directory is different than the one used on the
user's system, the user will need to change the directory in the station file dialog box
(Figures 6 and 7), and may need to reselect the pump file(s) utilized in the example pump
stations. For example, the C6ybSe.sim station contains the c6ybpe.sim pump (file), the
p25095Se.sim station contains the p25095pe.sim pump (file) (these are both single,
booster pump stations), and the CalRExSe.sim station contains four pump files (in the
following order): V12rmPe.sim, V14RmPe.sim, V12RhPe.sim, and V14RhPe.sim. This
is a large river pump station containing gangs of pumps in series that are then combined
in parallel. This example system is similar to the system shown in the figure on the cover
of the PUMPCOM manual.
HELP Files
Unfortunately, no help files have been developed yet for the software. Therefore, the help
"buttons" have no effect. Help files are planned for development in the near future. The
user is directed to the manuals for assistance in program operation.
Return to Contents
Registering as a User of PUMPCOM
PUMPCOM is distributed freely by Utah State University and by EMBRAPA. However,
we would like to keep a registry of all users of PUMPCOM for several reasons. One
reason is to be able to contact all users in the future to apprize them of any updates and
fixing of bugs or other problems in the software. Another reason is to provide us with an
idea of the relative usefulness of the software and to indicate the need to support and to
continue to evolve the software in the future.

Therefore, we request that ALL users of the PUMPCOM software (i.e., those who have
the software "loaded" on their computers, including students), please "register" the
software with Utah State University or EMBRAPA by sending a letter, fax, or Email to
one of the following addresses. Please include your Name, Employer, Mailing Address,
Email, Fax number, and Version number of the PUMPCOM software used. Thank you.
Please address any questions, comments or suggestions to:
Dr. Richard G. Allen
Professor
Dept. Biological and Irrigation Engineering
Utah State University
Logan, UT 84322-4105
USA
allenric@cc.usu.edu
fax (435) 797-1248
Dr. Camilo L.T. Andrade
Irrigation Engineer
EMBRAPA
Caixa Postal 151
35701-970
Sete Lagoas, MG
BRAZIL
Camilo@cnpms.embrapa.br
fax (031) 773 9252
PUMPCOM.EXE and SPRINKMOD are copyrighted programs and the names are
trademarks of EMBRAPA and Utah State University.
1. Windows Magazine, December, 1993.

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