Plutocalc Designer MCP Server

MCP server for the Plutocalc Designer REST API, providing access to water and wastewater treatment system design tools through the Model Context Protocol.

Registry Name: io.github.danpeig/plutocalcdesigner-mcp
Version: 2.1.0
Server URL: https://www.plutocalc.com/designer/mcp

About Plutocalc Designer

Plutocalc Designer is an online engineering tool for sizing water and wastewater treatment systems. Engineers select a design model, fill in a calculation template, and run the computation to receive a completed template with design results. Learn more at https://www.plutocalc.com/designer.

For End Users: Using Plutocalc Designer in Your AI Application

Quick Start

The easiest way to use Plutocalc Designer with your AI assistant is through the MCP Registry:

In Claude Desktop or your MCP-compatible client, search for:

plutocalcdesigner-mcp

io.github.danpeig/plutocalcdesigner-mcp

Click "Add" or "Install" - The server will be automatically configured.
Start using it! Ask your AI assistant:
- "List available wastewater treatment models"
- "Get the template for the stripping tower"
- "Help me design a biological treatment system"

Manual Configuration

If you need to configure manually, add this to your MCP client configuration:

For Claude Desktop (claude_desktop_config.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "plutocalcdesigner": {
      "url": "https://www.plutocalc.com/designer/mcp",
      "transport": "http"
    }
  }
}

For other MCP clients:

Server URL: https://www.plutocalc.com/designer/mcp
Transport Type: HTTP
Name: plutocalcdesigner (or any name you prefer)

Available Models

The server provides access to, at least, these water and wastewater treatment system design models:

cmasbod - Complete Mix Activated Sludge for BOD removal
cmasbodnh4 - Complete Mix Activated Sludge (CMAS) for BOD and NH4 removal
cmasbodno3 - Complete Mix Activated Sludge for BOD and NO3 removal
mbrbodnh4 - Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) for BOD and NH4 removal
mbrbodno3 - MBR for BOD and NO3 removal
stripping - Gas and VOC stripping tower
rocip - Reverse Osmosis CIP system (Clean-in-place)

What You Can Do

Once configured, ask your AI assistant to:

List models: "What treatment models are available?"
Get information: "Tell me about the CMAS BOD removal mode."
Get templates: "Show me the input template for MBR design"
Check license requirements: "Do I need a license to use these models?"
Access documentation: "Open the manual page for the stripping model"

For Developers: Installation & Testing

Local Development Setup

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/danpeig/plutocalcdesigner-mcp.git
cd plutocalcdesigner-mcp

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Start the server
npm start

The server will start on port 3003 by default (configurable via PORT environment variable).

Testing

Run Syntax Check

npm test

Test All Endpoints (Local)

Start the server first, then in another terminal:

npm run test:local

Test All Endpoints (Remote)

Test against the production deployment:

npm run test:remote

See TEST_CLIENT_README.md for detailed test information.

Configuration

Environment Variables

PORT - Server port (default: 3003)
BASE_PATH - Base URL path (default: /designer/mcp)
PLUTOCALC_API_BASE_URL - Override the Plutocalc Designer API base URL (default: https://www.plutocalc.com/designer/server)

API Endpoints

Health Check

GET /health

Returns server health status and information.

Server Info

GET /designer/mcp/info

Returns MCP server information including name, version, and available tools.

List Tools

GET /designer/mcp/tools

Returns a list of all available MCP tools with their descriptions and input schemas.

Call Tool

POST /designer/mcp/tools/:toolName
Content-Type: application/json

{
  // Tool-specific arguments
}

Executes a specific tool and returns the result.

Available Tools

server_version - Get Plutocalc Designer server version string
server_status - Get Plutocalc Designer server status
license_status - Check license credits balance (requires licenseKey)
list_models - List available calculation models
get_model - Get model name and version (requires model)
get_model_information - Get detailed model information (requires model)
get_model_template - Get calculation input template (requires model)
get_model_referencedb - Get reference database entries (requires model)
get_model_unitslist - Get supported units list (requires model)
compute_model - Run model calculation (requires model and input)
model_manual - Get URL to the model help/manual page (requires model)
license_help - Get information about license key requirements

Example Usage

List Models

curl -X POST http://localhost:3003/designer/mcp/tools/list_models \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{}'

Get Model Template

curl -X POST http://localhost:3003/designer/mcp/tools/get_model_template \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"model": "cmasbod"}'

Get Model Manual

curl -X POST http://localhost:3003/designer/mcp/tools/model_manual \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"model": "cmasbod"}'

Get License Help

curl -X POST http://localhost:3003/designer/mcp/tools/license_help \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{}'

Run Calculation

curl -X POST http://localhost:3003/designer/mcp/tools/compute_model \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "cmasbod",
    "input": {
      "license_key": "your-license-key",
      "parameters": {
        // ... calculation parameters
      }
    }
  }'

Response Format

All tool responses follow the MCP content format:

{
  "content": [
    {
      "type": "text",
      "text": "Response content as text or JSON string"
    }
  ]
}

Features

CORS Enabled: Allows cross-origin requests from web applications
MCP Client Identification: All POST requests to the Plutocalc API automatically include "client": "MCP" in the request body
RESTful HTTP Interface: Standard HTTP/JSON interface for easy integration

Production Deployment

For production deployment on https://www.plutocalc.com:

Set the PORT environment variable to the desired port
Configure reverse proxy (nginx/Apache) to route /designer/mcp to this service
Use a process manager like PM2 to keep the service running:
```
pm2 start index.js --name plutocalc-mcp
```

Architecture

The web service acts as a bridge between HTTP clients and the Plutocalc Designer REST API:

Client → HTTP Request → MCP Web Server → Plutocalc Designer API
                                      ← JSON Response ←

Each tool call:

Receives HTTP POST with tool arguments
Transforms arguments to Plutocalc API format
Injects "client": "MCP" for tracking
Makes request to Plutocalc Designer API
Returns response in MCP format

MCP Registry

This server is published in the official MCP Registry:

Registry Name: io.github.danpeig/plutocalcdesigner-mcp
Version: 2.1.0
Browse: https://registry.modelcontextprotocol.io

For Publishers: Updating the Registry

This package is published manually using mcp-publisher with GitHub authentication.

Steps to Publish Updates:

Install mcp-publisher (if not already installed):

npm install -g @modelcontextprotocol/mcp-publisher

Update version in both package.json and server.json
Authenticate with GitHub:
```
mcp-publisher login github
```
Follow the browser prompts to authorize.
Publish to MCP Registry:
```
mcp-publisher publish
```

The server.json file contains the registry configuration.

Contact

Author: Daniel BP
Email: contact@plutocalc.com
Website: https://www.plutocalc.com
Repository: https://github.com/danpeig/plutocalcdesigner-mcp
MCP Registry: https://registry.modelcontextprotocol.io (search for "plutocalcdesigner")

plutocalcdesigner-mcp

Documentation