I’ve probably never talked about our Case Studies section in this space. But I’ve talked about proactive system maintenance countless times.
It’s easy to talk about shifting from reactive to a proactive operating mindset in a broad sense. That doesn’t mean I can actually tell you how to do it. And to be fair, it’s different — at least in part — for every utility. It depends what you’ve been reacting to, first and foremost.
No two systems are the same. They’re as individual as the people who build, maintain and repair them. Naturally, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. You share many of the same challenges, but the specific problems in your system could be vastly different than the neighboring community.
When you’re buried in your own problems, you might look at success stories of operational improvements and dismiss them as solutions or approaches that won’t work for your utility, whether it’s due to cost, conditions or any number of other factors. In many cases, that may be true because systems are individual. But it’s that overall mindset that led to the solutions for those other utilities, and that’s what it can do for you.
Gainesville Regional Utilities’ sprawling collections system was suffering too many overflows because the traditional inspection schedule wasn’t sufficient to catch blockages before they caused problems. Rather than continuing to respond to overflows, they turned to a new assessment tool.
In Alexander City, Alabama, where overflows were also a problem, disorganized, inaccurate and incomplete data made it difficult to properly manage the collections system. In this case, a software solution transformed the city’s approach to system management and gave a significant boost to proactive maintenance capabilities.
Payson, Arizona, had been using a variety of methods to track down and eliminate massive surges in wet-weather flows to its wastewater treatment plant. When the utility finally turned to a new sensor system, they were able to pinpoint the primary sources of infiltration and inflow within only a few rain events. A longstanding problem was quickly eliminated simply by turning to a new approach.
Funding is a challenge for every utility. But responding to emergencies as a regular order of business will always be more costly over the long run. In the three examples above, investing in a different approach led to overall savings. It might not be easy to make the shift, but it can pay off in ways that extend far beyond the bottom line.
This industry is filled with impressive technology. There are new methods, approaches, tools and equipment that can help transform the portions of your utilities that are stuck in reactive mode. I hope these case studies and the rest of the stories we share can provide some new perspective or bit of insight that might make a difference in your own utilities.
Enjoy this month’s issue.
