Transcend has launched a major upgrade to its Drinking Water platform, introducing surface-water treatment design capabilities and new digital Design Standards intended to support utilities facing growing regulatory, operational and planning pressures.
The company, known for its generative engineering tools for critical infrastructure, says the expanded functionality will allow utilities and engineering teams to produce complete, regulator-ready surface-water treatment plant concepts in minutes. The release aims to improve early-stage project decision-making at a time when utilities are addressing increasingly complex source-water challenges and managing ageing assets.
New capability supports surface-water treatment design
The latest update to the Transcend Design Generator (TDG) enables users to model full surface-water treatment processes including pH adjustment, coagulation, flocculation and granular media filtration. The platform incorporates engineering rules, cost visibility and treatment performance indicators, reducing the need for extended feasibility assessments.
According to Transcend, the approach helps utilities and consultants gain early insights into options, constraints and footprints for new or upgraded treatment facilities.
Antony Rhine, Chief Operating Officer at Transcend, said: “Utilities can’t afford to lose months to rework and uncertainty. Our Surface Water Treatment capability empowers them to deliver safe, compliant designs faster — grounded in standards that are governed, not spreadsheets.”
Design Standards: consistent and transparent engineering criteria
The release also introduces Design Standards, a feature allowing utilities to codify their own engineering expectations directly into TDG. Each utility’s standardised rules, defaults and preferences can be applied at the outset of a project, aligning early-stage design work with internal specifications and capital planning requirements.
The company says this supports clearer communication between utilities, consultants and suppliers, helping to streamline review processes and ensure conceptual designs reflect real-world conditions.
Ari Raivetz, CEO of Transcend, commented: “We’re digitising the DNA of critical infrastructure. Each new utility that joins strengthens the ecosystem — creating a network effect of speed, quality, and ultimately better infrastructure for all.”
Developed with industry input
Transcend reports that both features were developed in collaboration with industry practitioners to ensure design outputs reflect the engineering criteria, assumptions and regulatory expectations used in traditional drinking water design processes.
The company says the expansion strengthens its aim to offer credible, standards-driven digital design tools that support the way engineers make decisions in practice.
