Asahi/America opens new fabrication facility
Asahi/America opened its newly constructed Louisiana-based fabrication shop in Paulina with customers, partners, employees and local government officials in June. The new facility focuses on large-scale thermoplastic pre-fabrication and is known as Asahi/America — PPI, a division of Asahi/America. Construction of the 59,000-square-foot facility finished in late 2022 and will add over 36,000 additional square footage and will improve efficiencies of large-scale and complex prefabrication piping projects. Asahi/America initially expanded its fabrication capabilities and operational capacity during the acquisition of Performance Plastics in 2018.

State of Georgia selects 120Water PWS Portal
120Water has been selected to manage the data and submittal of Georgia’s lead service line inventories. The state’s procurement of 120Water’s software grants all Georgia water systems individual licenses to access the Public Water System Portal, which serves as a centralized database to store, format and submit LSL data in accordance with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Lead and Copper Rule Revisions and federal and state reporting requirements.

Plastics Pipe Institute presents Lifetime Achievement Award
Plastics Pipe Institute presented Donna Stoughton with its Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition for her many years and number of contributions to the industry. Stoughton, who recently retired from WL Plastics, was the first woman to chair the organization’s board of directors since it was founded in 1950. During her 20-year affiliation with PPI, Stoughton served and chaired numerous technical and other committees. PPI President David M. Fink presented the award during the group’s annual membership meeting held in Maui during May.

NTMWD recognized with Exemplary Source Water Protection Award
The North Texas Municipal Water District was recognized by the American Water Works Association as the recipient of its 2023 Exemplary Source Water Protection Award for Large Water Systems. This honor acknowledges organizations in North America that have successfully developed and are implementing exemplary source water protection programs. The award was presented during the AWWA Annual Conference and Exposition in Toronto, Canada, which took place in June.

CWA receives investment from Ohio
The Cleveland Water Alliance received a $4 million investment from the state of Ohio to build out the next phase of its test beds and further develop its water economy workforce. With this funding, CWA has secured over $10 million from state, local and federal partners to generate innovative answers to global freshwater issues and accelerate the Great Lakes region’s water economy. Over the last two years, funding from the State of Ohio, the U.S. Department of Commerce and Cuyahoga (Ohio) County supported the building of the physical infrastructure of CWA’s telecommunications network. 

Christine Kirby to chair committees for AWWA
Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam senior associate Christine Kirby has been chosen to lead two committees for the American Water Works Association. Kirby is the new chairperson for the committee on protective interior coatings for valves and hydrants within the AWWA Standards Council. She is also now leading the sustainable infrastructure committee within the organization’s Technical and Educational Council. As the chair of both committees, she will serve as an objective facilitator and collaborate with AWWA members and staff. She is a licensed PE in seven states: Texas, Nevada, Ohio, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Maryland and Utah. 

BlueConduit LSL free cost estimator
Water utilities nationwide are working to find and replace their lead service lines without knowing how many are in their system. To help utilities plan, water analytics pioneer BlueConduit launched a free LSL count and replacement cost estimator. The tool, part of BlueConduit Starter, combines machine learning with public records to estimate the number of unknown lead service lines at the water system level. It also provides an initial cost estimate so cities can plan ahead, meet the EPA’s LCRR requirements, and apply for funding. Google.org and The Rockefeller Foundation provided support so that BlueConduit Starter can be provided free of charge to utilities. The new water system-level tool is available to utilities and utility staff, and is a separate offering from BlueConduit’s subscription platform, which creates address-level predictions.

Franklin Electric names Greg Levine VP and president, global water
Franklin Electric announced that Donald Kenney, vice president and president, global water, will be retiring after nearly 32 years with the company. Kenney was a driving force behind Franklin Electric’s Global Water growth and strategy over the last decade. Greg Levine joined Franklin Electric in July from Nidec Corp., where he served as president of the motion control and drives business for the past six years. Before working at Nidec, Levine held senior engineering roles at Emerson for 15 years. In his new role, Levine will be responsible for Franklin Electric’s global water systems business.