From Risk Identification to Backflow Compliance with GeoViewer
The Challenge
Every customer connection represents more than a point on the distribution map. It connects the public water supply to a residence, school, hospital, commercial property, or industrial establishment—each with its own plumbing systems, equipment, and potential hazards.
A cross-connection is an actual or potential connection between drinking water and a non-potable source. When pressure changes, contaminated water or other substances may move backward through that connection and enter the potable system. This unwanted reverse flow is called backflow.
But when property records, assessments, device details, test results, and notices live across different systems, protecting the water supply becomes fragmented. Teams may know a property exists without knowing whether it was assessed, protected, or tested.
The Solution
Nobel Systems’ Hazard Assessment and Backflow Modules in GeoViewer solve this by connecting establishments, GIS locations, field assessments, backflow devices, inspections, notices, and analytics in one coordinated workflow.
The two modules are separate because they serve different functions. The Backflow Module manages existing establishments and backflow device records, providing the foundational information needed to plan and track a cross-connection control program. The Hazard Assessment Module evaluates each establishment, documents the degree of cross-connection hazard, and identifies whether approved backflow protection is present or required. When a device is required, the Backflow Module manages the device record and tracks ongoing testing, certification, notices, corrective actions, and its continuing compliance.
The result: a connected path from identifying a potential risk to documenting the assessment, managing the required protection, and tracking the next action—with greater visibility and fewer disconnected steps.
What is the Hazard Assessment Module?
A hazard assessment is a structured inspection of how water is used within an establishment and where cross-connections may exist. The goal is to understand what could contaminate the water supply, how serious the risk may be, and whether backflow protection is needed.
Depending on the site, the assessment may address irrigation systems, boilers, cooling towers, fire systems, pools, laboratories, medical equipment, and industrial processes. Because a school does not carry the same risks as a factory, hospital, or residence, the evaluation must reflect the property’s actual use.
From Property Record to Field Decision
GeoViewer brings the assessment into a mobile, map-based workflow. Staff select an establishment, review its service information, and complete a standardized field form. Questions about property use, irrigation, boilers, cooling towers, and other conditions help inspectors document each site consistently.
The completed assessment answers what matters: What hazard is present? Is a suitable device installed? If not, what protection is required?
Instead of returning to the office with paper forms, photos, and handwritten notes, the inspector saves the information to the same connected record. Managers can see commercial and residential assessment counts, search the list of establishments, locate records geographically, and plan routes for upcoming fieldwork.
What is the Backflow Module?
The Backflow Module manages the protective devices and compliance activities that follow the hazard-assessment decision. Once an establishment requires backflow protection, the district needs to know what device is installed, where it is located, when it must be tested, whether it passed, and what action is required if it failed.
Backflow can occur when public-system pressure drops during a main break, firefighting event, or shutdown. It can also happen when pressure inside a customer’s system exceeds the public supply. At an unprotected cross-connection, these conditions may draw or push non-potable substances toward the drinking water system.
Turn Device Record Into Compliance Action
GeoViewer keeps customers, devices, inspections, due dates, test results, notices, and follow-up actions in one operational view. The dashboard shows what is due this month, pending, under review, passed, failed, scheduled for repair or replacement, or marked inactive.
That visibility helps teams focus on what needs attention first. Staff document inspections and results, update device information, and generate standardized testing notices. Analytics then turn individual records into a broader view of program performance.
Across the service area, this means fewer spreadsheets to reconcile and a clearer picture of whether the backflow program is moving forward.
Two Modules. One Connected Protection Workflow.
The value is not one individual screen. It is the ability to connect the full process:
Establishment → Hazard Assessment → Risk Decision → Backflow Device → Testing → Notice → Compliance Record
Backflow records help identify and organize establishments that may require an assessment. The Hazard Assessment Module evaluates each property and determines whether backflow protection is present or needed. The Backflow Module then manages the required device, testing schedule, results, notices, repairs, replacements, and continuing compliance. If a property changes use or new information raises concern, the district can schedule another assessment and continue the cycle.
What This Means for Water Districts
The value reaches every level of the organization. General managers see risk, workload, and program status. Engineers and inspectors receive accurate location and property information. Administrative staff spend less time moving information between systems. Government personnel gain a traceable record of assessments, protection requirements, testing, and follow-up.
Most importantly, the district strengthens drinking water protection. A device cannot protect the system if the hazard was missed, the wrong protection was selected, or testing and corrective action were not completed. An assessment also has limited value when its findings remain disconnected from device management.
GeoViewer connects the two responsibilities. GIS provides the geographic foundation. Mobile forms bring the process into the field. Dashboards show what needs attention. Inspection records, notices, and analytics keep the work moving after the assessment is complete.
Turn Your GIS Map into Actionable Insights
Water districts need their technology to answer more than one question: Where is the establishment? They also need to know: Has it been assessed? What hazard was found? Is a backflow device required? Was it tested? Did it pass? What happens next?
Hazard Assessment and Backflow remain separate modules because they answer different operational questions. Together, they turn cross-connection control into one connected, visible, and actionable workflow.
Know the establishment. Understand the hazard. Manage the protection. Keep the water supply connected to the information needed to protect it.
Discover how GeoViewer’s Hazard Assessment and Backflow Modules can help your water district strengthen cross-connection control, simplify field and office coordination, and move from risk identification to continuing compliance.
Know What Happens Next
GeoViewer helps water districts move from reviewing past records to planning their next actions. By connecting hazard assessments, device records, inspection results, and testing schedules, teams can quickly see which properties need attention and which devices are due for testing, repair, or replacement.
Dashboards and map-based views help managers prioritize fieldwork, address compliance gaps, and plan resources before issues escalate.
About Nobel Systems
Nobel Systems, Inc. is a leader in Cloud GIS and Smart Utility Solutions, delivering innovative mapping technology, data services, and strategic consulting to support sustainable public service operations. Founded in 1992 and headquartered in Redlands, California, Nobel Systems, Inc. serves clients across the United States and internationally.
Learn more at www.nobel-systems.com
