ASSET MANAGEMENT

ASSET MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS & INSIGHTS FOR UTILITY MANAGERS

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  5 Reasons To Consider Decentralized Wastewater Treatment

  The economic and environmental costs of treating all wastewater at a centralized location can be a burden. At what point does decentralized treatment make more sense?

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  WWEMA Window: Deferred Maintenance — What Are We Really Saving?

  The United States continues to face water and wastewater funding issues. As the industry struggles, it consistently encounters the age-old problems of governance and funding, which has led to delays in accepting and implementing best practices for maintenance. By Michelle McNish, president, E & I Corporation

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  Consultant’s Corner: How To Create The Business Case For Effective Utility Management

  The use of business case evaluations (BCEs) to make choices between competing investment alternatives is one of the 14 leading asset management practices defined in the McGraw-Hill study of asset management practices. According to the study, only a small percentage of water utilities currently use BCEs to justify the need to adopt asset management as a way to more effectively manage operations and determine whether existing assets need repair/replacement, despite the fact that 90 percent of advanced practitioners of asset management utilize this practice. By Dan Pitzler and Nick Pealy, CH2M HILL

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  Consultant’s Corner: ISO 55000: Setting New Standards For Asset Management

  A new set of global asset management standards were recently released that will make it easier for water utilities and other organizations to improve the management of their assets, as well as the overall effectiveness of their daily operations.

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  NRW Change Management Index: An Innovative Approach For Non-Revenue Water Management

  In recent years, the reduction of water losses has become a burning issue within the water industry and utilities, either for financial or ecological reasons, are under increasing pressure to enhance resource efficiency. However, practitioners know that assessing and monitoring the performance of water loss reduction programs is a real challenge, and what at first may sound like a simple task, in practice turns out to be a rather complex undertaking. By Monika Konatar and Dr. Thomas Schiller

UTILITY MANAGEMENT PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

Aclara’s PLATINUM_services™

As part of its STAR_select™ solution for water utilities, Aclara Technologies LLC, a leading provider of intelligent infrastructure technologies for water, gas and electric utilities, announces platinum level services for its network and system that make it easier to implement a successful AMI strategy.

VTScada Historian

Standard VTScada Component - No other software does more to protect your historical data and put it to work across your organization.

Security Solutions For Water And Wastewater Operations

A secure facility ensures a secure community. Security solutions from Schneider Electric can help your plant comply with regulations, manage budget constraints, and eliminate the risk of contamination.  

Plantstruxure PES

PlantStruxure™ PES (Process Expert System) is the innovative process-automation system from Schneider Electric that provides the single global database design and diagnostic features of a Distributed Control System (DCS). The energy-aware architecture allows companies to rapidly design systems, reduce downtime, and increase process and energy efficiency.

N_SIGHT^™ Software Suite

System health. Customer service. Revenue enhancement. These days, utilities must go far beyond basic meter reading to achieve the intelligent functionality they require. Neptune’s N_SIGHT^™ software suite was designed to help get them there.

REGULATION UPDATES FOR UTILITY MANAGEMENT

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  12 Monitoring Applications That Will Keep A Finger On The Pulse Of Your Water Distribution System

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  Tips On Integrating Packaged Equipment Into Plant SCADA Systems

  Integrating controls from an equipment supplier successfully within a Plant SCADA or DCS system requires communication on multiple levels. These levels include process of design, mechanical fit up and installation, as well as the coordination to get the equipment to work in concert with the plant’s other control systems. Simply looking after mechanical/electrical details are not enough. To be successful, the plant’s System Integrator and the equipment supplier’s PLC programmer must work with each other throughout the entire project’s development. By Todd Nydam, JWC Environmental LLC & Graham Nasby, Eramosa Engineering Inc.

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  Internal Branding Key To Creating Water Utility Employee Ambassadors

  Internal branding can ignite employee performance, strengthen the profit potential of a water utility, and play a key role in helping utility executives and leaders inform staff of their external-facing expectations. To stimultate employee brand support and organizational change, internal communication and branding efforts should be a direct and constructive expression of the organization’s vision and strategic plan.

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  Iced! Polar Vortex Lessons From An Ohio Water Utility

  In early January 2014, the polar vortex enveloped the Great Lakes region.  When the vortex passed over Lake Erie, a phenomenon called frazil ice sent an untold number of slender shards of ice directly into Avon Lake Regional Water’s intake crib. 

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  Tips For Training Today’s Operator — And Making It Stick

  Introducing three training trends that improve operators’ understanding and plant performance

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  Understanding Municipal Bonds And Their Benefits

  An analysis of tax-exempt bonds, the water/wastewater market, and infrastructure funding

ASSET MANAGEMENT NEWS

• Under Joint Venture CH2M HILL And VolkerStevin Awarded AMP6 Contract

  United Utilities has appointed C2V+, a CH2M HILL and VolkerStevin joint venture, as one of four Construction Delivery Partners (CDP) for Asset Management Programme 6 (AMP6).

• Consolidated Waterworks, LA Deploys Sedaru Software, Optimizes Its Water Network Operations

  IDModeling, Inc., a leading global provider of smart water network software and services, announced recently that Consolidated Waterworks District No. 1 of Terrebonne Parish, LA has deployed its flagship service, Sedaru to connect and optimize its water operations.

• ‘Making The Grade’ Group Calls For Six-Point Plan To Rebuild America’s Infrastructure And Revive The Country’s Competitiveness

  Recently at the National Press Club, a new report was released that outlines innovative new ways that the federal government, industry and other stakeholders can work together to solve the crisis of the failing state of U.S. infrastructure. Entitled "Making The Grade,” the report is the result of experts from 45 different organizations, including corporations, professional organizations, think tanks, financial advisors and academic institutions. It offers a six-point plan with fresh ideas to regain America's infrastructure leadership and revive the country’s global competitiveness.

• Innovyze Releases IWLive Generation V5.0, Extending Real-Time Modeling, Operation And Security Capabilities For Smart Water Networks

  Innovyze, a leading global innovator of business analytics software and technologies for smart wet infrastructure, recently announced the worldwide release of Generation V5.0 of IWLive, a major new version of its industry-leading real-time water network modeling solution.

• Mueller Co. Introduces Remote Pressure Monitoring System; Alerts Water Utilities Of Pressure Thresholds

  Mueller Co., North America's largest and only full-line supplier of potable water distribution products, has introduced a new remote pressure monitoring system for water distribution networks as part of its Intelligent Water Technology™ (IWT) portfolio of products and services that actively diagnose, monitor and control the delivery of safe, clean drinking water to consumers and businesses.

• Echologics Completes Pipe Condition Assessment Of Boston Transmission And Distribution Mains

  Echologics recently completed a condition assessment survey of several distribution and transmission mains owned by Boston Water and Sewer Commission (the "Commission") using ePULSE™, Echologics' non-invasive acoustic pipe condition assessment solution.

• Springfield, MA Engages Echologics To Benchmark Leak Detection Technologies

  Springfield Water and Sewer Commission (the "Commission") recently engaged Echologics to benchmark the capabilities of non-invasive acoustic technologies in isolating small leaks on a 59-inch steel water main.

• Latest Release Of Sedaru Software Simulates What-Ifs, Prepares Water Utilities For System Impacts

  IDModeling, Inc. (IDM), a leading global provider of smart water network software and services, announced recently the spring release of its flagship network management software, Sedaru.

• Schneider Electric Completes Energy Retrofits To City Facilities In Kirksville, Mo.

  Schneider Electric, a global specialist in energy management, recently announced the completion of a facility improvement project as part of an energy savings performance contract (ESPC) with the city of Kirksville, Mo.

• One Of Virginia's Largest Wastewater Treatment Facilities Installs An Easi-Span Building From Smith-Midland

  Recently, MEB General Contractors engaged Smith-Midland to install the tallest Easi-Span® precast concrete building the company has ever produced.