HydroCAD is a computer-aided design (CAD) program used by

civil engineers This list of civil engineers is a list of notable people who have been trained in or have practiced civil engineering Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the desi ...

for modeling the

hydrology Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and drainage basin sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is called a hydro ...

and

hydraulics Hydraulics () is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counterpart of pneumatics, which concer ...

(H&H) of

stormwater runoff Surface runoff (also known as overland flow or terrestrial runoff) is the unconfined flow of water over the ground surface, in contrast to '' channel runoff'' (or ''stream flow''). It occurs when excess rainwater, stormwater, meltwater, or other ...

. Its use as a tool has grown in the U.S. as rules for managing stormwater have become more stringent. Specifically, the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), last updated in December 2016, regulates

point source pollution A point source of pollution is a single identifiable source of air, water, thermal, noise or light pollution. A point source has negligible extent, distinguishing it from other pollution source geometrics (such as nonpoint source or area source ...

by municipal governments, industrial facilities and agricultural facilities. The NPDES was introduced in 1972 as part of the

Clean Water Act The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Its objective is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters; recognizing the primary respo ...

, and is administered by the

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent agency of the United States government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it began operation on De ...

(EPA) in partnership with state environmental agencies. H&H software such as HydroCAD is important in the implementation of the Low-Impact Development approach to stormwater management that is gaining popularity throughout the U.S. and Canada.

History

The company was founded in 1977 as Applied Microcomputer Systems (AMS), initially developing custom software for technical and scientific applications. In the early years of personal computers, AMS produced various other programming tools for technical professionals. In 1985, AMS began development of the HydroCAD Stormwater Modeling System as a response to growing hydrology requirements facing civil engineers. The program, ultimately introduced in 1986 for HP workstations, made it possible to conduct complex calculations on desktop computers rather than only on mainframes. It also added new graphical interfaces to improve ease of use. In 2001, the HydroCAD software was re-written as a native Windows application, using Borland's Delphi programming environment, and released as HydroCAD 6.0. In 2004, the company officially changed its name to “HydroCAD Software Solutions LLC”. Its headquarters office is on Chocorua Mountain Highway (also known as Route 16) in the town of

Tamworth, New Hampshire Tamworth is a town in Carroll County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,812 at the 2020 census. Tamworth includes the villages of Chocorua, South Tamworth, Wonalancet, and Whittier. The White Mountain National Forest is to th ...

. The latest HydroCAD version 10.2 was released in May 2022. Future updates are expected approximately twice a year, allowing HydroCAD to stay current with the ever-expanding market of stormwater storage products (chambers) and flow control devices.

References

External links

* {{Official website, https://www.hydrocad.net/
CivilGEO - Engineering Software

Eng-Tips Forum

Training Videos
Hydrology models Hydraulics Computer-aided design software