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IN THIS ISSUE:INNOVATIONCUSTOMER COMMUNICATIONWALKER REVIEW

SPRING2011ISSUE169

INSTITUTE OF WATER JOURNAL

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CONTENTS

instituteofwater.org.uk 3

IntroductionI’m very pleased to introduce this edition of the Journal. My year as National Chair is rapidly coming to an end and I have enjoyed the experience immensely. I have met so many people and have been fortunate to be involved in so many Area activities.

I’ve visited six Areas to date (including my own) and hopefully by the time you read this I will have managed to visit the other two. The Areas visited include Scotland and their Autumn Seminar held in the wonderful setting of Tulliallan Police College in Clackmannanshire. The speakers were excellent and it was great to see so many delegates in attendance.

The Northern Ireland Autumn Seminar ‘Reducing Energy Costs in the Water Industry’ was also a brilliant event with great presentations. ‘Innovation for the Future’ was the theme of the South West Weekend School which was again a fabulous couple of days that closed with a fi rework display! You can read all about these and other Area Events in the Area News section of the Journal.

The fi rst Journal of 2011 brings another interesting read. There is a comprehensive feature on the recent Walker Review and in an article on communicating with customers,

Anglian Water’s Head of Media, Ciaran Nelson, looks at how the company is leading the way in raising awareness about the value of water and is campaigning to change fundamentally how we all engage with and use it.

We have a great section on Innovation looking at some of the awards and events that have taken place across the Areas. We have been running the Annual Innovation Awards in Wales for the last 5 years and it has become extremely successful. I am very pleased to report that this has now spilled over into other Areas and as a result we are able to hold a National Award. The Institute’s fi rst National Innovation Award will be awarded to the winning team or individual at this year’s National Conference President’s Dinner.

I can also reveal that I have been asked to present the fi rst ever Chair’s Award, again at the President’s Dinner. This will be awarded to a member who has displayed exceptional commitment or made an outstanding contribution to the Institute. This will be a nice way to end my year.

I hope to see many of you at the National Conference this year in my home town of Swansea. You can read the preview inside of this Journal. It will be held at the Liberty Stadium from 12 – 14 May, and promises a superb line up of speakers and exciting social programme.

Maureen Taylor Institute of Water Chair

Features 08-09 IWEX Preview

16-17 Featured Member

20-21 Innovation

30-33 Customer Communication

54-55 Conference Preview

58-61 The Walker Review

64-65 Have Your Say

Regulars 4-5 News in Brief

6 Members Update

10-11 SocEnv News

12-13 Engineering News

69-79 Area News

Next IssueRegulationConference Review

17

30

20

70

Institute of Water HQ: 4 Carlton Court, Team Valley, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear NE11 0AZ Website: www.instituteofwater.org.uk

President: Sam Phillips Chairperson: Maureen Taylor Chief Executive: Lynn Cooper

Editorial, Marketing & Events Manager: Lyndsey Gilmartin Tel: 0191 422 0088 Fax: 0191 422 0087 Email: [email protected]

Advertising: John Neilson Tel: 0191 478 83 00 Email: [email protected]

Designed and produced by: Distinctive Publishing Tel: 0191 478 83 00 Email: [email protected]

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instituteofwater.org.uk4

NEW COMPANY NAME AND LOGO

The company, which provides water to about half a million people, has changed its name to Sembcorp Bournemouth Water with immediate effect.

The name change follows last year’s acquisition by Sembcorp Industries Ltd, a Singapore-based water, energy and marine group.

Sembcorp Bournemouth Water (SBW) stresses that there will be no change to the high standards of services provided. The company will continue to be locally managed by the same people in the same teams from its Bournemouth headquarters and no jobs will be affected.

The rebranding will also have no impact on bills with the cost of implementing the change picked up by the parent group. Water charges were set by the industry regulator in November 2009 for the period from 2010 until 2015.

Roger Harrington, Managing Director, said: “It is very much business as usual. The only change customers will notice is our appearance and that our new name will be on any correspondence and the bill.”

Sembcorp Bournemouth Water was previously owned by international water operator Cascal, a Dutch registered company. Cascal was acquired by Sembcorp Industries Ltd in July 2010.

Sembcorp is listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange and operates in 19 countries across six continents worldwide. The group employs more than 8,500 people and has assets worth about S$10 billion (just under £5 billion).

It has operated in the UK since 2003 supplying essential utilities, such as steam and power, at Wilton International in Middlesborough - one of the UK’s largest and most important manufacturing sites.

The Offi ce of Fair Trading have announced a market study, supported by Ofwat, looking at the market for treatment of organic waste. The study will look at whether the market is working effectively to deliver the best outcomes for customers.

Organic waste has three mains sources: sewage, food scraps discarded as part of household rubbish and waste products from the food and farming industries. There are new opportunities to use advanced technologies for producing energy from this waste. These include techniques like ‘anaerobic digestion’ which ferment organic waste and produce clean energy. The study will examine whether there are appropriate incentives in place for the effi cient use of these technologies.

The OFT decided to launch this study after considering a proposal and request from Ofwat. The OFT will lead on the study and utilise its experience in conducting market studies and of the municipal, commercial and industrial organic waste sectors. It will be closely supported by a team from Ofwat who will provide expertise of the sewerage sector.

The study will examine a number of themes, including:

■ Whether price regulation of sewage-sludge treatment, recycling and disposal services remains appropriate, what scope there is to encourage greater competition, and what implications this may have for economic regulation .

■ Whether there are any barriers specifi c to effi cient investment in and use of ‘co-treatment’ where waste from a variety of different sources is treated at a single facility.

■ What might be done to encourage effi cient investment in advanced treatment techniques across the economy more widely.

Heather Clayton, OFT Senior Director of Infrastructure, said: ‘Advanced organic waste treatment techniques like anaerobic digestion offer tremendous opportunities to produce clean energy and reduce unnecessary waste.

‘We need to make sure that the conditions are right to maximize the potential for these technologies to benefi t the UK.’

Cathryn Ross, Ofwat Director of Markets and Economics said: ‘The water and sewerage sectors have an important role because they treat sewage sludge – one of the key sources of

organic waste. 20 years ago sludge was a major environmental problem. Now it gives companies the opportunity to engage in new markets. But these opportunities bring challenges in ensuring fairness for water customers and competition across the organic waste sector.

‘Looking carefully at how we regulate sludge, is part of our much wider review of how we regulate to deliver a sustainable water and waste water sector that can deliver for customers for decades to come. By sharing best practice and tapping into the OFT’s expertise, we will make better informed decisions about how - or even if - we regulate organic waste in the sewerage sector.’

The OFT expects to conclude the study in July 2011 in time for any recommendations to feed into Ofwat’s wider review of economic regulation in the water and sewerage sector.

Key parties who wish to comment or make a submission should write to:

Organic Waste Market Study, Offi ce of Fair Trading, Level 2, Fleetbank House, 2-6 Salisbury Square, London EC4Y 8JX or

Email [email protected]

Bournemouth & West Hampshire Water has a new name and logo.

Roger Harrington

OFT to examine advanced treatment of organic waste

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NEWSINBRIEF


ACRONYMZ 2 Coming soon

Five years after “Acronymz” - the A-Z booklet of over one thousand water industry abbreviations in the water industry was launched, a second volume is due for publication. Acronymz2 will be available through regional WaterAid reps, the Institute of Water HQ, the WRc book shop or direct from the ‘author’, Lewis Jones, at South West Water, e-mail: [email protected]

Priced at just £2, all proceeds will once again go to WaterAid. Lewis has already gathered a further 120 entries for a possible future Volume 3 so if you think there are any missing, please let him know. Lewis also has spare copies of Volume 1 if you missed this.

Another A to Z of Acronyms & Abbreviations

in the Water Industry

This book changes lives£2

Lewis Jones

Interim results announced by United Utilities reveal a successful start to the company’s fi ve-year £3.6 billion programme, which began in April 2010.

The fi rst six months of the programme saw more than £300 million invested to kick start a raft of new initiatives across the region, designed to improve water and sewerage services, and protect the environment.

The report also reveals that satisfaction among United Utilities’ customers is at its highest recorded level, that annual leakage targets are on course to be met and operating profi ts for the period were slightly ahead of management expectations.

Philip Green, CEO of United Utilities said: “We have made a good start to the new investment

programme, launching a diverse range of projects which are delivering major benefi ts to householders and the environment, while supporting thousands of local jobs.

“Earlier this year, United Utilities completed its transformation from a business with water, electricity and gas interests into a streamlined company focused exclusively on providing water and wastewater services. Going forward, this narrower focus will allow the company to continue to deliver an even better service to its seven million customers across the region.”

The fi ve year investment programme is expected to generate a total of £7billion for the regional economy, and support more than 9,000 jobs through a network of suppliers and contractors.

Preferred contractors and consultants have been selected by Northumbrian Water Limited to carry out its huge future investment programme over ten years.

It is anticipated that the nineteen contractors and consultants to be appointed to the water company’s ‘framework agreement’ list will have the opportunity to win work to an estimated total value of £1.5 billion.

They will bid to win contracts for all major future work planned and required to upgrade and maintain the drinking water and sewerage networks throughout the North East and in Essex and Suffolk.

Dr Colin Price, Northumbrian Water Limited’s Technical Director said: “This is great news for the companies chosen and the people who work for them and their sub contractors. It will be particularly welcome in these challenging economic times.

“Selecting a special group of companies to help us deliver our investment programme allows

us to guarantee work and quality standards at competitive prices and means we can develop mutually benefi cial relationships.

“Although the work is of a specialised nature, many of the selected companies have a strong presence in the regions we operate in and, in turn, their success will also have a positive impact on a diverse and wide group of businesses regions-wide.”

The new framework agreements will come into effect from 1st April, 2011 and last for up to ten years. It will cover work in the following areas: technical and commercial services, infrastructure and non infrastructure construction, design and construction and sewerage maintenance.

Suppliers named on the new framework list are: BAM Nutttall, Barhale, Byzak, Carillion, Costain, Entec, Faithful & Gould, Graham Construction, Grontmij, Interserve, J N Bentley, Lumsden & Carroll, May Gurney, Mott MacDonald, MWH, MWHC, Owen Pugh, Seymour and Turner & Townsend.

3.6 BILLION WATER SCHEME MAKES EARLY WAVES IN NORTH WEST

WINNING THE RIGHT TO BID FOR £1.5 BILLION WORTH OF WORK

Cleaner rivers, a more reliable water service and fewer homes at risk of fl ooding are among the achievements of a record-breaking water investment programme for the north west.

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MEMBERSUPDATE

Stephen Devitt: 1958-2010It is with great sadness that we report the death of Steve Devitt, who passed away on Tuesday 28 September last year, following an illness. Steve worked for Northumbrian Water as Tees Distribution Controller and had worked for the company since 1976 in various roles within Distribution. He joined the Institute at a Northern Area Weekend School in 2005 and will be sadly missed by friends and colleagues.

As one member said “It was very sad, as genuinely he was one of the really nice guys who would do absolutely anything for anyone.”

Our sympathy and thoughts are with Steve’s family, friends and colleagues.

OBITUARIES

CONGRATULATIONSCONGRATULATIONS to Mike Webb, Eastern Area Forum Representative and former Area Chair, and Hoda El-Gelalati on their marriage on Saturday 23 October last year. Mike wrote:

We got married on the Golden Hinde, Clink Street London and were overwhelmed by the number of people who attended. Following the wedding we had drinks in the Old Thameside Inn opposite followed by a private celebration in Langans Brassiere with the evening ending in our hotel the Churchill. We then travelled to Beirut, Lebanon for the wedding party hosted by Hoda’s family in Lebanon as they could not travel to London for the wedding. We had a fantastic time in Lebanon and the party was full of ritual and tradition.

By way of background, Hoda and I met some 14 years ago when she started to work in the UK after a period of work in the Gulf. We just seem to work and Hoda’s a lovely person and that’s that.

CASH REWARD FOR RECRUITING MEMBERSTo encourage Institute of Water members to sign up friends and colleagues so they too can enjoy the benefi ts that the Institute offers, cash rewards of £75, £50 and £25 are given out four times each year.

Winners of the Spring prizes are:

£75 Frank Van Der Kleij for introducing Akua Adu-Gyamfi (Bristol Water)

£50 Maureen Taylor for introducing Bernard Monks (Dwr Cymru Welsh Water)

£25 Mike Webb for introducing Richard Bench (Veolia Water)

Don’t miss your chance to win! Each time you recruit a new member they will enter your name onto the membership application form which asks which member introduced them to the Institute of Water. These contact names are recorded and four times during the year, three names will be chosen at random to receive £75, £50 and £25. The more new members you introduce the more times your name will be entered in the quarterly draw. Winners’ names are printed quarterly in this Journal.

Founder Member Allen Bolton celebrated his 100th Birthday on Christmas Day.

For anyone who isn’t aware, Allen set up the ‘Association of Water Distribution Offi cers’ in 1945. Our history is recalled in a book written by Allen in 1995 to commemorate our 50th Anniversary. In his Introduction he wrote:

“I have always maintained great faith in this organisation and in its members. I have always known that we had the resilience and the ability to continue to progress in the cause we serve, namely, water and all that that implies.....I am always deeply concerned with everything the Institution is doing. I am concerned with what it has done in the past and am justly proud of all its achievements. I am anxious and thoughtful about what it is doing and what it may be about to do; its many ideas for the future.”

Allen retained his keen interest well into retirement and attended every Conference and AGM until Nottingham in 2007 when he was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by newly-installed Chairman, Neil Morton. Allen did

manage the AGM in Cambridge the following year but didn’t stay for the Conference.

Anyone who is a member is indebted to Allen Bolton and we must also acknowledge the support he received from Jean Turner, particularly accompanying him to the Conference on countless occasions. We will drink a special toast to Allen at this year’s President’s Dinner.

100 AND NOT OUT

The sixty-sixth Annual General Meeting of the Institute of Water will be held at the Liberty Stadium, Swansea, on Thursday 12 May 2011 at 10am.

Agenda: ■ Welcome and apologies for absence

■ Minutes of the sixty-fi fth AGM held in the Waterfront Hall, Belfast, on 13 May 2010

■ Annual Report of the Board

■ Presentation of Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2010

■ Fixing of Annual Subscriptions for 2012

■ Appointment of Auditors

■ Resolution to increase the maximum number of Directors from 12 to 15

■ Appointment of Directors

■ Any other business

■ Installation of Offi cers and Votes of Thanks

The accounts will be approved by the Board on 23 March and will be available on the website or from HQ from 4 April, together with the names of those recommended by the Directors to be appointed or reappointed as a Director at the AGM.

Any Corporate Member wishing to stand for election must submit a nomination signed by themselves, a proposer, a seconder and six assentors (all Corporate Members) at least 28 days before the AGM.

Lynn Cooper Company Secretary

AGM

Neil Morton and Allen Bolton.

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IWEXPREVIEW

In recent years the UK alone has experienced extreme weather events ranging from water shortages to storm water and fl ash fl oods. The causes range from global warming and disrupted weather patterns, to increased human activity and spreading urban areas. Organisations are responding to these changes by reviewing the likely impact on their operations, including their vulnerability to fl ooding, and their overall dependency on water – particularly in areas such as manufacturing.

All this provides a compelling backdrop to the International Water and Effl uent Exhibition (IWEX) 2011, which will celebrate both its 25th anniversary, and its position as the UK’s premier water industry event when it returns to the NEC Birmingham from 24 - 26 May 2011.

IWEX has become one of the most accredited and largest forums in the country for water organisations and utilities companies. It attracts buyers, specifi ers and decision-makers from across the water and effl uent industry who come to see the very latest advances in water technologies and innovative solutions to sustainable water practices.

IWEX forms part of Sustainabilitylive! which brings together the National Energy Management Exhibition (NEMEX), Brownfi eld Expo (BEX), Environmental Technology (ET), and Sustainable Business (SB) - The Event.

Who will be there?As one of the largest accredited forums in the country for water organisations and utilities companies, IWEX already has more than 70 companies signed up for the 2011 exhibition. Visitors to IWEX will have the opportunity to speak to representatives from companies such as Schneider Electric, Technolog Ltd, Utilitec Services Ltd, WEG Electric Motors and SEBA KMT UK.

Sustainabilitylive! attracted just under 9,000 visitors in 2010, with numbers expected to rise in 2011. Popular draws are likely to include water treatment technology, rainwater harvesting, anaerobic digestion, latest developments in water research and innovation and smart metering.

Seminar programmeThe busy three-day seminar programme at this year’s event will discuss key issues that are currently affecting the water sector.

On Day One, sessions will include asset and storm water management and the latest legislation updates. Delegates can attend presentations on SUDS and fl ood management by both Dr Rachel Dearden, a hydrogeologist from the British Geological Survey and Terry Nash, director of the UK Rainwater Harvesting Association.

Day Two, will address issues such as FOG (fat, oil and grease) solutions and smart metering. Phil Mills, director of the Policy Consulting Network, will also be presenting his paper on private sewers.

On the fi nal day of the seminar programme, Duncan Wildgoose, the business development manager at Imtech Process, will discuss the carbon and energy challenge, and Dr Alan Fletcher, head of waste assurance at Speedy, will address providing energy through anaerobic digestion from sewerage.

Delegates will also have the opportunity to see two project presentations from the joint winners of the Society of British Water and Wastewater Industries’ (SBWWI) Water Dragon

2010 Innovation Award. The fi rst project will be presented by Mr Paul Dommett and Mr Arthur Arscott from RPS Consultants (UK) Ltd, and the second will be delivered by Roger Tucker from Viking Johnson and Mark Oliver from Balfour Beatty Utility Solutions.

IWEX University ChallengeFollowing its success last year, IWEX will again present its own University Challenge which highlights the best research carried out in the water sector. This year, the focus will be on effi ciencies and cost savings for procedures and technologies, new innovations, increases in energy savings, sustainable water management and more effective water fi ltration treatments. Members of the judging panel will include Paul Horton from CIWEM, Steve Kaye from Anglian Water and Ken Gedman from engineering consultancy, Grontmij.

Entries will be judged on innovation, technical content and commercial potential. Last year’s winners were The University of Sheffi eld with their research project on Data Driven Leak Detection. The presentations will be held and judged on Thursday 26 May in the Water Theatre.

Recognising excellence and innovation – the Environment and Energy AwardsThe Environment and Energy Awards recognise excellence and innovation in sustainable business practices across the environment, land, energy, water and sustainable business sectors, and has attracted a record number of entries for 2011.

This year, the awards will have 13 categories including two new awards: Best Energy-Effi cient Refurbishment Award and Best Energy Supplier Customer Service Award. Results will be announced at a gala dinner at the National Motorcycle Museum on Tuesday, 24 May 2011.

IWEX will be held in Halls 3 and 3a at the NEC from 24 – 26 May 2011. For up-to-date exhibitor news, seminar programmes, information on how to exhibit or how to register for free attendance visit www.iwex.co.uk or call +44 (0)20 8651 7120.

continues on page 10

INTERNATIONAL WATER AND EFFLUENT EXHIBITION (IWEX) CELEBRATES 25 YEARS OF WATER INNOVATIONSustainable water management is now accepted as one of the most pressing environmental concerns facing governments across the world.

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“IWEX 2010 was the fi rst event I attended since joining the Utility Industry. I really enjoyed the free seminars. The event was worth all expenses I made in order to attend and I will surely attend future events.” Bamiji Olagoke, Process Technologist,Veolia Water Outsourcing Ltd

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Jim Marshall agreed to represent the Institute of Water at this event and here is what he thought.

You are always guaranteed a good brain stretching session when Jonathon Porritt takes to the fl oor and his speech at this year’s Burntwood Lecture was no exception.

Under the title of “The Growth Fetish and the Death of Environmentalism” Mr Porritt explored the economics of global accelerated growth and how society is failing to balance the benefi ts of economic growth with its environmental obligations. Raising questions such as how can developed society deny the developing world the right to the same standards of living as the developed world and how proper economic values can be put on environmental assets, Mr Porritt challenged the audience to review their own ideas and preconceptions. He focussed on what he saw as the greatest taboo of the environmental

debate - unchecked population growth. With world populations set to reach a staggering 9 billion this century he highlighted the lack of capacity of the world to cope with such numbers if consumption and economic growth continues as forecast. Unchecked population growth can not fi t comfortably with any concept of sustainability.

So what does this mean for water?

As water professionals we need to consider water as a global resource. The importance of clean drinking water and effective sanitation provision in protecting public health will increase globally as population increases. Resources will be challenged more and more as pressure to produce food, energy and lifestyles increase to match the increasing expectations and demands of society. Countries reliant on imported water, either

directly or indirectly, will fi nd other countries less willing to export this precious resource to them. This will have knock on impacts in food provision.

Water will become the limiting factor to economic growth unless society learns to revalue the water that it uses and modifi es behaviour patterns to refl ect the challenges we face.

In the best case scenario, as an island we will need to become self-suffi cient, properly valuing the water that we use and its place in society and the environment. In the worst case we could be facing water shortages, being unable to provide not just environmental water but drinking and agricultural water too.

Have a look at the presentation, it certainly got me thinking and I’m sure it will make you think too.

2010 BURNTWOOD LECTUREReport by Jim Marshall, Policy and Business Advisor at Water UK and member of South East Area Committee

Jonathan Porritt used the platform provided by the Burntwood Lecture to launch a scathing criticism of the growth fetish of society and slammed government, NGOs and professional bodies for their response to the looming environmental crisis.

IWEX highlights will also include the 23rd Institute of Water National Drilling and Tapping Championship. This is traditionally a hotly contested event where the best practitioners from the water companies test their skills in drilling and tapping a high pressure water main, each hoping to be crowned champion.

This prestigious event involves teams of two battling against the clock to drill and tap a 150mm diameter ductile iron main under pressure at 70-100 psi and installing a simulated service connection. Last year’s winners were Balfour Beatty’s Jason Barrett and Lee Maddock with a winning time of 2mins 24secs.

“The Institute of Water National Drilling and Tapping Championship attracts people to IWEX who might not normally attend an industry exhibition,” said the Institute of Water’s chief executive, Lynn Cooper.

“It’s a fun way to focus attention on some of the key skills that are necessary within the industry, while enabling teams to meet their peers from other water companies and contractors.

“Spectators also love watching the teams drilling into the water main in the middle of the NEC – it’s not the kind of thing that they naturally expect to fi nd in the exhibition.”

If you would like to enter a team into the competition and need any advice on how best to do this, competition organiser Barrie Light would be happy to help. Please contact Head Offi ce to arrange this or to enter a team. Tel: (0191) 422 0088; e-mail: [email protected] or visit www.drillingandtapping.co.uk for more information about the competition.

continued from page 8

INSTITUTE OF WATER DRILLING AND TAPPING CHAMPIONSHIPS

You can download Jonathon Porritt’s presentation from the IES web site at: http://www.ies-uk.org.uk/resources/eventresources/burntwood2010/burntwood2010.php

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SOCENVNEWS

When I fi rst started working in the water industry I hoped to achieve Chartered status. When I found out that I had a choice of following either an engineering or an environmental route to Chartership I knew straight away that the latter would suit me more. It complemented my degree in Environmental Protection and refl ected my professional and personal interests.

For me, Chartered status gives an employer an indication of my knowledge and experience within the environmental fi eld. I hope it will support my development as an environmental engineer as well as aid my career path.

I joined the Institute of Water to guide me through my application process. As soon as I completed my required minimum of four years’ vocational experience, I fi led my application for CEnv.

Throughout the whole application process I have received a lot of encouragement and advice from my colleagues at Bristol Water who were already Chartered. I found everyone at the IoW head offi ce was very understanding and fl exible especially when it came to enabling me to meet the deadlines for the submission date.

The whole process ended with an interview which, thanks to my assessors, was a very pleasant experience - I almost forgot that I was being assessed!

Although the professional review process requires commitment I must say that it was a worthwhile experience and I would defi nitely recommend it to anyone who is thinking about it!

RECENT CHARTERED ENVIRONMENTALISTS

Why I applied

I started working in the Environmental / Water Industry over 6 years ago and right from the start I was interested in gaining Chartership with a professional body. To me this qualifi cation would illustrate that I had met a professional standard within my area of work and that I had gained competence in a wide range of skill sets. With a Degree and a Masters under my belt I was keen to prove my abilities vocationally and this fi tted the bill. I made myself aware of the competencies required for Chartership early-on and did my best to target my roles and activities on developing these areas of learning, even if they were out of my comfort zone.

What this means to me

For me Chartership is recognition that I am a competent professional within the Water Industry - that I have achieved a professional standard. I feel that this will stand me in good stead when developing through my career in the Water Industry. It gives future managers a good idea of what I am capable of from the word go and also illustrates my commitment to learning and development.

I feel incredibly proud to have achieved this and would recommend the Chartership journey to anyone wishing to qualify their vocational experience in the Industry.

Maja Nowak, CEnvDevelopment Engineer, Bristol Water

Kath Ayres, CEnvNetwork Transformation Manager, United Utilities

If you are interested in becoming a Chartered Environmentalist why not apply today? You can download an application form and applicants short guide from the Institute of Water website. Full advice and support is available throughout the application process for members.

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More Members gain Professional Registration


Robert Wilson IEng, MIWater

“I am an Electrical Authorising Engineer (EAE) for Northumbrian Water Ltd and responsible for the Southern Region with the trading name Essex & Suffolk Water. I started in 1988 as an electrician coming from a contracting background. Working in Production, my company allowed me to further my education to fi nally achieve my HND and later the opportunity arose to move to Investment Delivery as a Project Engineer, then promoted to Project Manager. In the late 1990’s an audit showed the Electrical Safety Rules & Procedures were not suffi cient and robust and in 2000 I moved back to Production as an EAE where I am pleased that I feel I have made a difference to improving safety to our staff and improving our assets.

I am pleased to say the Institute of Water team were helpful and the process had been very carefully thought out and easy to follow; all it needed was my time and commitment which was worthwhile. I am very pleased to have received my certifi cation and now proud to be recognised as an Incorporated Engineer and registered to carry IEng MIWater after my name.”

Nik McAndrew

EngTech, MIWater

“I am a relative newcomer to the water industry, with only 5 Years experience, following 14 years of employment in manufacturing. I am currently employed by Bristol Water as a Technical Assistant, working on projects such as Mains Cleansing, Streetworks and Water Effi ciency. I was introduced to the Institute of Water and subsequently became aware of Professional Registration for Engineers. Although I have a BSc (Hons) Technology Degree from the Open University, I felt that professional review and registration would prove that my experience and skills are to a professional standard.

The process provided me with some time to refl ect on what I have gained in terms of knowledge and skills and build my CPD (Continuing Professional Development) plan. I did fi nd that although I have relatively limited experience within the industry compared to most of my peers, I was able to successfully prove my competence against the UK-SPEC for Eng Tech status. I will follow up on this success by following and developing my CPD plan. My aim is to work towards IEng, and possibly CEnv status in coming Years. I urge Institute members, employed at any level in the Water Industry, to do the same. “

Neil Shaftain CEng, MIWater

Neil is a Project Engineer with Atkins and is currently Construction NEC3 Supervisor for New Utilities at the London 2012 Olympic Park.

“I am extremely proud to have achieved Chartered Engineer status through the Institute of Water and Engineering Council. As with many of my colleagues, I had thought about the application process for many years, but I lacked the confi dence, determination and time necessary to undertake the task. However, this all changed last year through the combination of my own level of training and experience becoming suffi cient and the Institute’s initiative to boost applications from their members. With the full support of the Institute and my mentors, I was able to complete the process and be awarded the title of Chartered Engineer.

CEng has raised my professional profi le within my project team and my company and has instilled me with the confi dence to push myself into more challenging roles and responsibilities within the Water Industry.”

The Members who applied for Engineering Registration during our promotional offer are continuing to reach the fi nal assessment stage of Professional Review. This time we are pleased to acknowledge new Registrants in each section of the Register of Engineers and Technicians.

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ENGINEERINGNEWS

I work in the water industry because the previous organisation I worked for (GWINTO) was asked to take over the responsibility for skills in the water industry and it seemed too good an opportunity to turn down.

The best part of my job is working with so many people I have the greatest respect for.

I joined the Institute of Water because it's a fantastic organisation with a very big heart. It brings together people across all levels of the industry in a way that no one else can.

I’ve learned the hard way that if you don't like yourself you can't expect anybody else to.

I do my bit for the planet by getting my kids to turn their lights off. Let's be honest, I think

there are very few people who take this as seriously as they should!

If I could be anyone for a day it would be the Dalai Lama.

The best advice I have ever been given is to take opportunities when you can; they don't come up every day.

The car I drive is a Mercedes c class.

My guilty pleasure is listening to music.

My favourite holiday destination is...I don't have one! Given a choice I prefer to see new places, both good and bad.

The last CD I bought was Bruno Mars and Cee-Lo Green.

I believe the biggest challenge for the water industry is in relation to people. The industry has to address its ageing workforce and at the same time embrace new technologies and working practices so that it is seen as a leader in decarbonising UK industry.

One good reason to attend the Conference in Swansea is the opportunity that it provides to engage with the widest network of water company personnel and industry suppliers. In my opinion there is no better opportunity to keep up to date with the industry and enhance career prospects than by attending this event.

Each issue we feature a 60 second interview with a well known fi gure from the Water Industry. In this issue, Institute of Water Past President (2007 – 2008) Tim Balcon takes the hot seat. Tim has been the Chief Executive of Energy & Utility Skills since 2003, and remains a Director of the Institute. Tim will be presenting a paper looking at skills for the future at this year’s Conference.

60 SECOND INTERVIEW

Annual Survey of Registered EngineersIf you aren’t yet convinced of the benefi ts of Registration, here are a few fi ndings from the 2010 survey of registered engineers, conducted by Electoral Reform Services:

Median annual total earnings were £55k CEng; £43.3k IEng; £37k EngTech

The qualifi cations are valued by 87% of registered engineers including 41% who rate them very highly

The proportion of registered engineers who have their subscription and registration fees paid by their employer has increased from 47% in 2003 to 57% in 2010

The most signifi cant factor in the decision to seek registration is the perception that it will help with career development

There has been an increase in the proportion of employees receiving fi nancial support from their employer for professional development; those who receive such support show more positive attitudes to registration and feel more valued by employers and colleagues

Attitudes to registration and the engineering profession are generally positive; nearly all registrants say they would recommend other engineers to become registered

Most registrants had found it easy to register, with Engineering Technicians most positive about ease of registration

So go on: what’s stopping you?

Me£4

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JO PARKER

Jo is a Chartered Civil Engineer who has worked in the utility industry for 35 years with a number of different operating companies, the most recent being the Veolia Water Group. There she held a variety of roles including Head of Network Asset Management for Veolia Water Partnership and Operations Director with North Surrey Water. Jo now works as an independent consultant specialising in technical and management advice and support for utilities.

Jo has been a member for 23 years and has been both National Chair and Eastern Area President. Jo is a Fellow Member and has served on our Engineering Board since it was established in 1999.

During her career Jo spent a year in the heart of war-torn Afghanistan, followed by three months working in Bosnia, restoring vital water supplies to the besieged city of Sarajevo and was awarded an MBE for services to the water industry in 1995. Some 15 years later Jo continues to seek to make a difference to the health of other nations as the following story shows.

Until July 2008 my knowledge of Madagascar did not extend much further than the cartoon of that name. However, after making a presentation at a course for water utility managers on how reducing leakage can help provide additional water for the poorer communities, I was approached by a charity, Water and Sanitation for the Urban Poor. I met up with some of their UK staff plus some of the managers from the water utility in Madagascar, JIRAMA, one evening and they explained how only 10% of the population in the capital was connected to the piped water supply, but there were no more resources available. It was agreed I would fl y out to carry out an initial investigation and I arrived there just before Christmas 2008.

Madagascar is a fascinating country and its capital Antananarivo (Tana) is equally fascinating. Built on the sides of a steep mountain, with ancient narrow twisty cobbled streets, congested with traffi c, it is a distribution engineer’s nightmare. The network was largely installed by French engineers and one challenge I had to face was that I had to work largely in French. I also discovered that there was a company holiday on my last day in the country so I had to compress my programme from 4 days to 3.

I collected a huge amount of information and it was clear that JIRAMA did indeed have a leakage problem. Their estimate was around 40% physical

leakage but as they were unclear about billing errors and losses, this could not be stated with a high level of accuracy. They had no DMAs and limited leakage location equipment. What they had was largely inoperable due to lack of software, batteries and other maintenance. The largest problem was their isolation from general developments in distribution knowledge, as they were a long way from the rest of francophone Africa. The technical staff were well trained in theory but thirsty for practical knowledge. I recommended that they set up one or two trial DMAs, with some pressure control in at least one of them.

I went out again in May the following year and found a huge change. In the interval there had been a coup and the old president was now ousted and the mayor of Tana had taken over as president. This meant that much of the aid which had been coming to Tana was no longer available. Thankfully our project was funded by the Bill Gates Foundation and was not affected.

We started setting up 2 trial DMAs, as well as collecting data to install their fi rst PRVs. We identifi ed 2 possible locations which I visited and directed where fl ow and pressure logging should be carried out. I delivered some initial training on leakage management techniques and the work was progressing well when disaster struck: I fell down a pot hole in the dark and broke my

Madagasgar – not just a cartoon1

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FEATUREDMEMBER


leg! Thankfully the Madagascan medics were very effi cient and I was equipped with a hefty bandage using a piece of angle iron as a frame and a pair of crutches. The local project manager moved our activities from the fi rst fl oor JIRAMA offi ce to the ground fl oor meeting room of her offi ce. Luckily all the fi eld work had been completed and I managed to analyse the data on my lap top lying on my hotel bed with my leg propped up on a pillow and to explain the results to the JIRAMA team, working on a fl ip chart whilst propped up on my crutches.

The outcome was that we agreed that the technical team would set up two DMAs while I would set about procuring a PRV for one of them. Back in the UK I set about looking for the best PRV, not only thinking about the technical spec, but also the future maintenance of the PRV. I also started tracking down some of the software upgrades and batteries which would restore some of the equipment to operation. The charity agreed to the PRV costs and JIRAMA designed the chamber and pipework modifi cations. Trying to amend this remotely was also a challenge, particularly as I didn’t know the French for ‘fl exible coupling’ or ‘fl ange adaptor’! Eventually I heard that the PRV would be delivered in November and I arranged a further trip to coincide with this.

The fi nal trip promised to be just as hectic: I had to collect and analyse data from the 2 trial DMAs and identify whether there appeared to be leaks. I bought some listening sticks from a UK supplier as the staff in JIRAMA had not come across these and at least they had no batteries to run out or software which could become obsolete! I would have to teach the staff how to use the sticks and

hopefully fi nd some leaks. In addition, a door-to-door survey which I had designed to identify commercial losses as well as patterns of water use to help identify likely levels of legitimate night use was being carried out before I arrived and there would be the results of this to analyse.

It was as I expected: this third trip proved to be two of the most exhausting weeks I have ever been through, working during the day with the technical staff then going out in the evening to look for leaks. The PRV was delayed in customs and we ended up installing it on the last day, carrying out a training session in the WSUP offi ces in the morning to show how it worked in reality and could be adjusted and then taking it out to site and installing it, fi nally commissioning it late at night. During our fi eld visits we found numerous leaks and restored the 2 trial zones to 24-hour supply. However we didn’t get 24-hour fl ow logging installed – there appeared to be some problems with the logger software and the manufacturers promised to investigate this if I brought one of the fl ow loggers back with me. In addition I did notice a lot of visible leaks in the city centre and the utility staff were convinced that they could not control leakage in the centre as the pipes were too old and too traffi c congested – where have I heard that before?

Since then I have been in regular touch with the project offi ce and the JIRAMA staff themselves and have made 2 further visits. The staff have had a further training course in fi eld techniques and more leaks have been found. The PRV is operating but now due to leaks in the zones feeding the DMA there is only an intermittent supply. Nevertheless, the staff are starting to believe there are leaks in the system and a new leakage team is in the

process of being established. A further 7 DMAs are being set up with the charity supplying the meters and the water utility funding the pipework and chambers. Sadly the political situation has not improved and the water utility is not allowed to charge an economic rate for water.

There is still work to do: improve how JIRAMA manages visible leaks, get fl ow logging implemented more widely, set up further DMAs and consider other locations for pressure control and no doubt repeat the training as with such new approaches to them, they need to be reminded. I hope to return in 2011, although due to the political situation the funding is less certain. Meanwhile I keep looking for French speaking distribution engineers to go out for a longer period and anyone with any old leakage equipment let me know – it will go to a good home.

Many thanks to the staff at Halma and Bermad for all their help and assistance.

A typical street scene in ‘Tana’ showing the very steep streets

Delivering a training session on pressure management

Trying out listening sticks

Fitting a logger at an outside tap

Setting up the PRV at Sabotsy

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CROSS MANUFACTURING

Case Study

Case Study

Cross fi lters are the result of years of research and development into the manufacture of a coil which can fi lter solid particles effi ciently and minimise the use of liquid during backwashing.

The innovative design and manufacturing process produces a coil that has two distinct functions:

Precise fi ltrationRaised nodes on the surface of the coil ensure a precise fi ltration gap, allowing fl uid to pass through but trapping any particles above the specifi ed fi ltration rating.

Opening for cleaningA conventional coil opens with uneven gaps along its length, presenting unequal openings to the fl ow during backwashing.

The patented ‘Zero Gravity’ coil opens evenly along its length during the backwash process. The result is complete and thorough cleaning with the minimum use of liquid.

100% cleaning with every backwashThe ‘Zero Gravity’ coil design enables fi lter elements to be completely cleaned with every backwash, minimising backwash frequency and liquid use.

The aircraft quality stainless steel coil is assembled into a cage to produce the fi lter element that is integral to all of the Cross fi lter range.

Filtration ratingsFiltration elements are available in many different sizes between 10 and 400 micron and are completely interchangeable.

In heavily contaminated systems, it may be advantageous to install a set of coarse or ‘commissioning’ elements in the early stages of the fi lter operation and replace them with fi ner elements after the backwash frequency has stabilised.

Cross Filtration is a part of the Cross Manufacturing Company, a world-leading designer and manufacturer of precision, high technology components for critical applications in the aerospace, power generation, automobile and associated industries.

Cross fi lters are born out of this technology.Our dedicated team is at your service to deliver a successful solution to liquid fi ltration problems of any size and complexity. We serve a wide range of industries and can draw on over twenty-fi ve years of practical experience and product development.

Clever FiltrationCross Filters embody years of engineering skill and experience to provide effi cient, economical and proven solutions for applications including:

■ Recycling

■ Industrial water fi ltration

■ Effl uent water treatment

■ Cooling towers and building services

■ Machine shops and factories

■ Seawater

In addition to facilitating recycling and enabling effl uents to be used as an alternative to expensive mains water in many industrial water fi ltration applications, Cross fi lters also contribute signifi cantly to the reduction of huge costs incurred by the maintenance and repair of fouled circuits.

This is because virtually any problem involving industrial water fi ltration and effl uent water treatment can be successfully overcome by the unique Cross ‘Zero Gravity’ fi ltration technology.

Our customers and end-users include:

■ ABB

■ Bank of England

■ Cadbury

■ GlaxoSmithKline

■ Severn Trent Water

■ Stormsaver

■ Thames Water

■ The Royal Mint

■ Wessex Water

For more information visit www.crossfi lters.com

Site: Northumbrian Water, Birch Tree

Application: Automatic fi ltration of inlet water to prevent excess backwashing of membrane plant and interruptions to supply.

Solution: Cross Phoenix fi lters, rated at 50 microns

Flow rate: 20 litres/second

“The introduction of the Cross fi lters has improved the situation…saving us the inconvenience and expense of responding to alarm signals by enabling the plant to run more effectively and economically.”

Site: Thames Water, Shalford WTW

Application: Automatic fi ltration to remove residual carbon carried over from GAC plant that could adversely affect fi nal disinfectant processes.

Solution: Cross System 2000 fi lter, rated at 125 microns

Flow rate: 350 litres/second

“The Cross fi lter has eliminated the requirement for an additional redundant system, providing considerable capital and installation savings.”

CROSS 'ZERO GRAVITY' FILTRATION TECHNOLOGY

Intelligent fi ltration

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National Innovation AwardsOur fi rst National Innovation Awards will be presented at the President’s Dinner in Swansea.

Safety Coaches (Morgan Sindall) The appointment of dedicated safety coaches working together with the supply chain has demonstrated that a health and safety culture can be improved given suffi cient leadership, effort and focus.

The Awards began in Wales fi ve years ago and were available only to companies working with Dwr Cymru Welsh Water. Inspired by Professor Martin Cave’s Review of Competition and Innovation in the Water Markets we agreed this was something which should be encouraged in the water sector throughout the UK.

This year Wales has been joined by two other Areas, Midlands and Northern, both adopting different means of identifying winners to

be short-listed for the National Award.

Wales continued with their successful formula of inviting applications in different categories. Midlands applied a ‘Dragon’s Den’ approach at their Innovations Showcase where the audience was given the responsibility of selecting the winners. Northern Area organised an Innovation Day at Esholt WWTW near Bradford to promote Area President Mark Penny’s

theme of Innovation. This day provided a platform to showcase innovation at work across the water sector in a number of ways and the Area Committee is still at work selecting who should go forward for the National Award.

When we approached Professor Cave last year he was delighted to support this initiative and we have asked him to present the winners with their Awards in Swansea on 13 May.

The regional winners will all be invited to attend the dinner; here is an overview of the winners so far.

Professor Cave

True Grit (Dwr Cymru Welsh Water Waste Services Department)A new innovative method of dealing with the grit produced as part of the waste water treatment process enables the grit to be used as base material for soil manufacture, rather than going to landfi ll. This is expected to save the company over £380,000 over the fi ve year AMP5 period, as well as improving the company’s sustainability status within Wales and the UK.

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The awards will be presented at the President’s Dinner which will take place at the Brangwyn Hall in Swansea. To book a place or a table please contact HQ, tel: 0191 4220088 or e-mail: [email protected]


FEATURE:INNOVATION

Brook Street, Porth (Morgan Sindall) An additional capacity pipeline, together with a pumping station to replace a combined sewer overfl ow, will help resolve the current intermittent discharges into the River Rhondda. Benefi ts will include improvements to water quality, ecology and the environment.

Auto Tool Hire Unit (Ashtead Plant Hire Co. Ltd) This unmanned, fully-automated unit, designed to be located at customers’ sites, has the potential to radically change the way in which plant is ordered and managed on site. It offers both the customer and the supplier an opportunity to dramatically reduce their costs, as well as their carbon footprint.

AGA2 Portal Application (AGA2 Project Team)This innovative approach to solving IT challenges is well-liked by the business community and has been adopted wholeheartedly by Welsh Water, something that could be described as novel in the world of IT change!

MeterLogiK (Mouchel)A portable handheld device that indicates in real-time the condition of in-situ water meters. Key benefi ts are: accuracy; cost-effi cient replacement; lower carbon footprint; infantile damage; and accounting for non-revenue water.

Elimbac (CM Ventures) A low carbon disinfectant system which enables water utilities to achieve improved water quality in compliance with legislation, at lower cost and with substantially lower greenhouse gas emissions than current market-leading solutions. The proprietary electrolysis system uses only electricity, salt and water and creates no harmful by products; the anti-microbial disinfectant kills all types of pathogen.

Therm Liner (Uhrig) A heat recovery system for sewer networks. To Uhrig, ‘Waste Water’ doesn’t mean that the water fl owing in the city sewers is a waste product, it is for them a source of unused raw energy. Therm Liner is a method to harness and recycle this energy to heat or to cool buildings.

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24/7emergency

same dayleak repair clamp service

for water mains

0800 202 8228

www.avkuk.co.uk

for more information on this service and the full range of

AVK products contact+44 (0) 1604 601188

orvisit our website

www.avkuk.co.uk

Our vision is your advantage

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AVK UK


The water industry has become intensely competitive in recent years for suppliers as their customers have felt the pressure of two imperatives that, although admirable in themselves, could lead to unintended and disastrous consequences.

OFWAT (quite rightly) wants water utilities to keep consumers’ water bills low and therefore applies pressure on the utility companies to reduce their costs. At the same time, EU legislation on tendering requires purchasers to apply objective criteria when selecting suppliers - with the sanction of draconian fi nes if they fail to do so. There is nothing more objective (or easier) than comparing one price simply with another.

It is no surprise that water companies have given such high weighting to price in their selection of suppliers to achieve early results that will show OFWAT and the EU alike that they are responding appropriately. But as a result, I feel, engineering and technical considerations are not being given the attention they warrant.

Suppliers have responded in different ways to this price pressure, all too often unfortunately by resorting to manufacturing in low cost countries at bargain basement rates, and compromising quality, environmental considerations and standards in order to do so.

From the start, AVK has been adamant that it will not fall into this trap. It’s true that in some cases we do source outside of Europe, but normally this will be in our own factories where our quality control and manufacturing processes are fi rmly in place.

This has not been an easy road, but there is increasing evidence that we are more in tune with the industry’s expectations than at fi rst appeared. In talking to customers at a senior level I have

discovered that most aren’t just looking for the lowest possible cost. Yes, they want suppliers to be effi cient and provide value for money, but they appreciate that there’s more to value for money than just price.

They need products that are going to last, because short-term decisions based on price alone often entail greater costs in the long term. Digging the hole is the biggest single cost of installing a valve, so it’s not something you want to incur again in a few years’ time when the cheaper alternative that saved you money today lets you down. In fact we have heard that a large proportion of Opex today has actually been due to poor procurement decisions taken in Capex procurement in the past. Buying from a quality manufacturer who gives good service is a better investment when you factor in the costs of settling for lower standards in return for a lower price.

Although these messages come across loud and clear from water companies they are not always refl ected in their tender process for the reasons I have explained above; so at AVK we decided that the onus was on us to spell out our values to customers so they can see how they complement their own thinking.

We have done that through our Vision 4 programme – so called because we believe there are four key features of the AVK ethos vital to the industry’s needs: quality of product, reliable service, product innovation and environmental responsibility – concepts that we are fl agging up with a set of four images in all of our advertising.

We also wanted to convey transparently how we put all of this into practice - hence the introduction of our Customer Service Charter, which you can see in full on our website – www.avkuk.co.uk.

As well as enabling customers to measure the performance that we promise them, it helps those who have not bought from us before to make the informed and objective purchasing decisions that the EU requires of them.

That way, we believe, the future prosperity of the industry lies – for supplier and utility alike.

AVK UK: +44 (0) 01604 601188


Paul Jennings, managing director of valves and fi ttings manufacturer AVK UK, explains why the company’s reluctance to sell on price alone is in the long-term interest of the whole industry.


Customer Service Charter

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URS/SCOTT WILSON

The coming together of the two companies marks the start of an exciting chapter as a combined consultancy, ranking URS/Scott Wilson among the top ten engineering fi rms by revenue within the UK. A key attribute of the company continues to be its global reach, supported by the transportable skills of locally based staff, in providing expert services covering the full life cycle of its client’s projects. One of its key sectors is the Water industry, in which both URS and Scott Wilson have been actively employed for decades, providing integrated solutions to complex and often environmentally sensitive projects.

As a combined company, URS/Scott Wilson offers multi-disciplinary professional services in all aspects of water engineering, from an initial concept to fi nal completion and its activities encompass the complete water cycle across a broad spectrum of industries. Its ability to offer an integrated approach provides clients with tailored and holistic services that recognise and respond to the growing importance of global environmental issues.

The scale of URS/Scott Wilson’s projects range from specifi c water projects such as fl ood risk assessments or individual treatment works,

through to planning for large developments and preparation of long term water strategies on a regional basis. The consultancy has a considerable track record in water supply and treatment projects, wastewater facilities and studying water resources for future demand. URS/Scott Wilson is also a leading provider of Panel Engineering services for reservoirs and dams. Its specialist consultants, made up of a range of environmental scientists and design engineers, have expertise in water sustainability, water compliance and permitting regulations and are at the forefront of developing a robust water footprinting methodology.

Sam Phillips, Water Engineering Director with URS/Scott Wilson and the current President of the Institute of Water comments, “We work in all areas of the water industry, seeking to improve the quality of water and wastewater infrastructure, while considering both the public and environmental needs of these developments. We work with a wide range of clients including water companies, developers, contractors, private companies, industry regulators and agencies.”

“URS/Scott Wilson offers a comprehensive range of additional in-house services which

compliments our water consultants including ecologists, planners, architects and geotechnical specialists. Our aim is to provide long term, economical and sustainable solutions for future generations as a ‘one-stop-shop’ consultancy and the recent acquisition has only strengthened our position to do so. Increasingly we provide solutions which not only reduce cost, but also minimise energy usage and reduce carbon footprint. We also work closely as part of design and construct consortiums to provide a comprehensive service.”

URS/Scott Wilson has provided consultancy services on major projects including the Drain London Tier 1 and 2 Surface Water Management Plan, Thames Tideway Tunnel, the Loch Ryan Wastewater Treatment Works and inspection of all reservoirs and dams in Northern Ireland. It is also involved in the Water Footprinting studies for several industrial clients across numerous countries, including SAB Miller.

For further information regarding the services provided by URS/Scott Wilson, please contactSam Phillips at [email protected].

Scott Wilson is now part of URS Corporation. With its headquarters in San Francisco, URS is a leading provider of engineering, construction and technical services for public agencies and private sector companies around the world. URS/Scott Wilson offers an expanded portfolio of consultancy services, access to increased professional and technical resources and a broader network of offi ces throughout the world.

URS/Scott Wilson– combining forces


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PANTON MCLEOD


A specialist in water quality engineering, the fi rm provides an extensive package of refurbishment and remedial services tailored to the needs of potable water storage and distribution assets.These include reservoirs, contact tanks, towers and pipelines of all construction materials and methods. The fi rm also offers a full range of inspection, cleaning & disinfection and onsite waste treatment services.

Currently, Panton McLeod enjoys framework agreements with Scottish Water and Severn Trent Water to inspect, clean and carry out ongoing maintenance repairs to water storage facilities across two of the biggest regions in Britain. These deals have included projects using traditional drain down methods of cleaning and disinfection,the specialist use of proprietary cleaning chemicals capable of removing cryptosporidium, iron and manganese and hydrocarbon contamination, and even innovative underwater robots designed to perform the work while the structures are still in service.

In recent years, the company’s expertise has also been used in some of the biggest and highest profi le projects to take place in the UK water industry. During the multi-million pound creation of a new Granular Activated Carbon plant at Severn Trent Water’s Frankley Water Works, Panton McLeod worked closely with main contractor Morgan Sindall during key connections into the existing pipework network. Prior to fi nal commissioning, the fi rm disinfected the entire new GAC plant including a wide range of storage tanks and an extensive network of pipework.

Panton McLeod‘s experience was called upon during Scottish Water’s £120 million Loch Katrine scheme – the biggest water project ever completed in Scotland, which saw engineers clean and disinfect a series of new key large pipelines

and service reservoirs, in addition to connections into the Glasgow supply network. The fi rms ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) pilots were also used to carry out path-fi nding inspection works at the site’s open reservoirs. During a 4 month commissioning process Panton McLeod also provided automated dechlorination equipment with 24 hour maintenance cover to ensure the water treatment works outfl ow did not impact the environment.

Elsewhere across the UK, Panton McLeod continues to perform both routine and unusual work for major utility fi rms on a monthly basis. Recently this has included cleaning and inspecting service reservoirs while they remained live and “online” in Wales and across the Hebridean islands, commissioning pipework 6 miles from Lands End, tackling an underground tank more than twice the size of a football stadium for United Utilities and clearing tonnes of freshwater mussel shells from a Water Treatment Works. The company even helped save the lives of sharks and other sea-life after their unique mix of skills was requested as a one off project by a leading UK aquarium.

Panton McLeod’s repairs division has also grown from strength to strength, with engineers now providing expertise in water proofi ng, concrete repairs, protective coating, access and ventilation, valve replacement and servicing, drainage, ground works and excavations. In the past year the division has carried out refurbishments on series of service reservoirs across the UK including a series of works for Severn Trent Water, and some major water structures in Argyll & Bute for Scottish Water, it is already taking repair orders for 2011 and beyond.

While the water industry continues to face challenging times, Panton McLeod is committed to adapting its expertise and offering the most comprehensive, cost-effective solutions for any project. Its team of engineers have the knowledge and experience from more than 16 years at the cutting edge of the UK water industry and can tailor a made to measure project for every scenario.

Whether it is using robotic technology to provide environmentally-friendly cleaning and inspection services – or responding to emergencies caused by contamination or damage – Panton McLeod is on call 24/7 from its bases in the Scottish Borders and Nottingham to service your needs across the UK.

For more information call: 01835 822 835, email: [email protected] or visit: www.pantonmcleod.co.uk

EXPERTS IN SERVICING THE WATER INDUSTRY

For the past 16 years, Panton McLeod has been one of the leading experts in the UK water sector, providing advice and expertise to some of the country’s biggest utility companies.

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SERVICE RESERVOIRS

WATER TOWERS

WWTWINSPECTION,CLEANING &

CHLORINATING

CORROSIONPROTECTION

STONBURY 27 YEARS AS MARKET LEADERS IN THE REFURBISHMENT OF WATER RETAINING STRUCTURES & ASSOCIATED ASSETS

RESERVOIR REPAIR & REFURBISHMENT - STEEL TANK REPAIRS & COATINGS - WATER TOWER REFURBISHMENT SEWAGE TANK REFURBISHMENT - CONCRETE REPAIR - CLEANING & CHLORINATION - CORROSION PROTECTION

SECURITY WORKS INC ACCESS COVERS - DESIGN & INSTALLATION OF LADDERS, HANDRAILS & WALKWAYS - EU HYGIENE TRAINING

Northern Office: Unit 4, Phoenix Enterprise Park, Grovehill Road, Beverley, E.Yorkshire, HU17 0JG t 01482 881198 e [email protected] Office: 187c High Street, Cranfield, Bedfordshire, MK43 0JB t 01234 750924 e [email protected]

www.stonbury.com

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Stonbury have taken very seriously the challenge facing the UK water companies with regards to their carbon footprint. We are working with several water companies at present looking at ways to reduce the embodied carbon in our refurbishment schemes. Whilst refurbishment is a very environmentally friendly alternative to new build it can be further improved by reducing the embodied carbon further through innovation. We are now able to measure the carbon footprint of our proposals for our clients which enables clients to compare the environmental impact of different refurbishment and new build options.

SERVICE RESERVOIR REFURBISHMENT Service reservoirs are vital to the distribution networks, storing millions of litres of potable water, before fl owing down the mains to tap. Regular cyclic cleaning of the internal surfaces of these reservoirs is carried out, to ensure that the quality of the stored potable water is not compromised. This also affords the water company engineers the opportunity to carry out internal inspections of the structures to identify any possible damage through structural movement, ingress of ground water through the roofs, or egress of the stored water via joints or cracks.

Stonbury very often attend these inspections to assist in identifying problems, and to formulate refurbishment proposals for their clients, based on their 28 years of experience.

Typical Service Reservoir refurbishment schemes can include:-

• Installation of waterproof roof membranes, ie removal and storage of roof overburden-topsoil or gravel. Preparation and cleaning of concrete roof surfaces, Concrete repairs, joint repairs and joint overbanding to expansion and construction joints, application of waterproof membranes, enlarging access openings and fi tting new security covers, re-instatement of topsoil or gravel, kerbing and drainage.

• Internal repairs to service reservoirs can include:-

• Preparation and installation of sealants and overbanding systems to expansion and construction joints,

• Preparation and application of cementitious, polyurethane and epoxy coatings to walls, fl oors and columns,

• Concrete repairs, leak sealing and grouting,

• Painting, adaption or replacement of internal pipework and valves.

• Installation of new stainless steel ladders, landings and walkways.

STEEL WATER TANK REFURBISHMENTWater companies commonly store potable water within steel tanks, and these also come up for

periodical cleaning, again internal inspections are carried out, often highlighting the need for repairs or refurbishment. Many of the older steel tanks were protected internally with Bitumen coatings, these coatings can become embrittled and worn and total removal is now considered to be the only option.

Open grit blasting or dustless blasting are two of the techniques employed by Stonbury, to remove these and other coatings, leaving an ideal profi le for the subsequent application of new DWI approved solvent free polyurethane or epoxy protective coating systems.

Corrosion can also effect the external structural supporting steelwork, and again Stonbury can carry out the necessary refurbishment, to include:-

• Installation of scaffolding access, protective scaffold sheeting to include heat sealed shrink wrapped sheeting, open gritblasting, dustless blasting and high pressure water jetting.

• Application of high performance protective coatings

• Steelwork repairs, fabrication and strengthening

• Installation of new ladders, landings and walkways

www.stonbury.com

Stonbury Limited, specialist contractors to the water industry, currently hold 5 and 10 year framework contracts with 8 of the UK’s largest water companies. These contracts are for the repair, refurbishment and maintenance of those water companies service reservoirs, water towers and associated structures. Stonbury also carry out similar works for all the other UK water companies and their civil engineering partners.


STONBURY

Application of waterproof roof membrane to prepared reservoir roof.

Steel potable water tank before internal refurbishment.

Steel potable water tank after internal refurbishment.

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For all Technical and Sales Enquiriescontact Martin on Mobile 07885 222831

Yard Address for Deliveries and Collections4A Hale Fen, Littleport, Ely, Cambridgeshire CB6 1EN

Email: [email protected]

Fax: 08715 942311

Opening HoursMonday to Thursday 08:00 - 17.30

Friday 08:00 - 14.00 Closed Saturday

Appointments outside the above hours by prior arrangement only

For all Accounts Enquiriesplease contact Julie in our offi ce on

Phone/Fax 01353 778288

[email protected]

158 High Street, Sutton, Ely, Cambridgeshire CB6 2NR

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Leading water analysis specialist Palintest Ltd will be launching its new 9100 UV-Vis Spectrophotometer at the ARABLAB 2011 exhibition in Dubai. The company will be showcasing the product at stand 347 in the British Pavilion.

The new 9100 UV-Vis Spectrophotometer provides stand alone or dedicated PC operation using Palintest’s specially-designed software. The instrument extends the company’s existing product range, offering high-end analysis specifi cally designed for the lab environment. The 9100 UV-Vis Spectrophotometer is capable of full spectral analysis across the 190 -1100 nm wavelength range, as well as kinetic measurement and a photometric mode for simple sample assays. This spectrophotometer is also seamlessly compatible with the Palintest range of reagent systems, providing a user-friendly, high performance platform for laboratory analysis.

Other recent innovations featured on the stand will include new tests for Chlorine Dioxide and Manganese, as well as the company’s new improved photometer calibration technology. Highlights from the existing Palintest range of drinking water, wastewater and industrial water analysis products will also be available.

Palintest is proud as a leader in the fi eld of water analysis technology to attend and support ARABLAB 2011. The trade show is a premier analytical technology exhibition for the Middle-East, Africa and the Indian Sub-Continent, attracting visitors and exhibitors from over 75 countries. ARABLAB 2011 showcases the very latest lab equipment and instrumentation from the world’s leading manufacturers, featuring dedicated show sectors for the medical, biotech, nano, petrochemical and environmental industries. Over 9000 people are expected to attend this year’s event. Palintest look forward to meeting you at the show to discuss your requirements for the coming year.

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Love every drop!Anglian Water is leading the way in raising awareness about the value of water and is campaigning to change fundamentally how we all engage with and use it. Ciaran Nelson, Head of Media, Anglian Water explains:

The forecast for the future: more people and fewer raindrops…Working in the water industry, you quickly develop an appreciation for the true value of water. You know how much it means to customers, and you know the disruption that can be caused when treatment, delivery or wastewater processing doesn’t go to plan.

It’s not surprising really. If you think about it, water is at the heart of everything we do. Every cup of tea in the morning, bath before bed, or clean pair of socks that you pull on before a day’s work – you can see the water that goes into these things.

But there’s a lot of water that’s hidden in our lives. Not hidden in a way that means you can eventually fi nd it, but hidden in a way that means you’ll probably never know it was there.

Think about it. Apples do just grow on trees, but it takes an awful lot of water to help them grow, to create the packaging they come in, and to transport them to the shops we buy them from. Did you know it takes 70 litres of water to produce just one single apple?

Apples can be grown domestically, but many products are imported. 70 litres for an apple is nothing when you compare it to that needed for a pair of jeans. Almost 11,000 litres goes into every single pair.

Effectively, we’re taking that amount of water out of its country of origin with every piece of merchandise that we bring to these shores. We might think we only physically ‘use’ about 160 litres of water each day, but we’re all individually responsible for the consumption of 4,600 litres every single day. That’s water that we’re using, and that isn’t therefore available for the people

who live in the country that grew the fruit, or stitched the jeans.

And with more people coming to the East of England all the time – we remain the fastest growing part of the country – regional demand for both actual and embedded water consumption is only going to escalate.

This scenario is replicated in nations the world over, and it’s bringing the issue of water scarcity to the top of many political agendas. Here in the UK, the Government’s Chief Scientifi c Advisor, Professor Sir John Beddington, has forecast that we’re on track for a ‘perfect storm’. World-wide demand for food is set to rise 50% by 2030. Demand for energy will rise to the same level, in the same timeframe. And globally, the requirement for water will increase by 30%, within 20 years.

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We need to see beyond the symptom, identify the cause, and recognise that the bigger picture has greater signifi cance than any individual problem. All of us – from individual customers to corporate entities, water companies and all their suppliers – need to think about the resources we consume, and how to make better use of them.

Anglian Water believes that effecting these behavioural changes is what a 21st-Century water company needs to do, in order to meet the increasingly complex challenges of water provision and treatment. Where we might have traditionally engineered our way out of a problem, we need to look again. And that’s what our campaign, ‘Love Every Drop’, intends to achieve.

Take the issue of fats, oils and greases in our sewer network. We could simply invest in more jetting equipment, and deploy ever more people to unblock the sewers when fats, oils and greases congeal, bind with the things that shouldn’t be in our sewers in the fi rst place, and cause a blockage.

But surely a better, long-term and more sustainable solution would be to speak to our customers, and explain to them the problems that putting these things in the sewers causes. With some carefully planned research, we can uncover the precise origin of these problems, and specifi cally target the people who aren’t aware of the damage their actions are causing.

Ensuring consistency of water supply to our homes can be approached in a similar way. We could look for more sources of water to bring online, and increase the amount that we pump into the network. But along with that comes the increased cost of treating more water and pumping it around our region. Surely the better solution is to help our customers with water effi ciency measures, encouraging them to switch

to a metered supply, and not waste water in the fi rst place?

By doing this, a signifi cant amount of energy (and resulting carbon dioxide emissions), up-front cost, and the ongoing maintenance expense, can be avoided.

FEATURE:CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION


If we want to live in more sustainable way, we need to look closely at what behaviours we need to change, rather than what engineering solutions we need to build.

Working in the water industry, you quickly develop an appreciation for the true value of water. You know how much it means to customers, and you know the disruption that can be caused when treatment, delivery or wastewater processing doesn’t go to plan.

continues on page 32

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Climate change is likely to see increased coastal erosion, a rise in sea levels, and irreparable damage to the environment. It’s a genuine threat to many local communities. Our low-lying region is uniquely vulnerable to fl ooding. We have identifi ed around 150 major Anglian Water assets as ‘at risk’.

Naturally, there’s a degree of adaptation in our response. We could improve our fl ood defences, or relocate our assets. There are also steps that we can take to mitigate for any potential impact.

We’re also offi cially the driest part of the country, receiving just two-thirds of the rainfall that the rest of the country enjoys. At the moment, we supply the same amount of water today as we did twenty years ago – around 1.2 billion litres every single day. This is despite the 20% increase in the number of people that we serve. We can do this by being more effi cient with what we have – reducing leakage, and encouraging customers to use less.

But this trajectory is going to continue. Climate change will produce more extremes of weather, while growth in the region will further increase

the demand for water. There isn’t an engineering ‘fi x’ that can meet these challenges adequately. Instead, we all need to think differently about the water we have and how we use it. And that’s precisely what Love Every Drop is aiming to achieve.

What’s clear about this campaign, though, is that it can’t be delivered by Anglian Water alone. It requires a joint effort by individuals, businesses and communities. The message is clear. Recognise the value of water, celebrate it, conserve it, and help wake the world up to what water really means.

So if you love every wake up splash, every clean sock, and every cup of tea, why not join our campaign to put water at the heart of a whole new way of living?

We’re calling it Love Every Drop, and you can take part at a tap near you.

If you’d like to hear more about communicating your value to your customers and the community, Session 2 at this year’s Conference in Swansea provides the opportunity.

A unique perspectiveThe mention of carbon emissions clearly brings climate change into the equation. And it’s when climate change and population growth combine that we see the unique set of circumstances that Anglian Water faces. It highlights perfectly why we’re concerned enough to launch a campaign like this.

Time to think differently We mustn’t think that water shortages are only for far away places and desert countries, or that action we take here in the UK doesn’t have an impact globally. We’re far more connected to ‘world water’ than we think – and we’re putting far more pressure on that resource than we’re probably aware.

To imagine that we can engineer our way out of this problem is short-sighted. Historically, technology may have helped us overcome a lot of the problems of managing a water and wastewater network. Things like pesticide and nitrate removal, for instance, or the heavy-duty equipment needed to jet fats, oils and greases out of our sewers.

But to continue bolting solutions like this onto the water treatment process, or spending ever increasing amounts of time and money on fi xing the symptom rather than the cause, is simply not sustainable. The fi nancial and environmental cost of building, running and maintaining these ‘end of pipe’ solutions categorically isn’t the best answer to a lot of the problems we face.

And that’s why Anglian Water has embarked on a mission to get people to think differently about water.

continued from page 31

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FEATURE:CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION

Sharing Best PracticeBy Sue Pennison, Drinking Water Inspectorate

The research was carried out by Risk Solutions Ltd and Marquis and Lord, and the report entitled ‘Good Practice for Communicating about Drinking Water Quality’ is available on the Drinking Water Inspectorate’s website at www.dwi.gov.uk in the ‘Research’ section.

The research had the overall aim of identifying the current practice and policy of English and Welsh water companies when giving advice to customers

about discolouration, taste and odour or chemical contamination events.

All water companies in England and Wales agreed to participate in the research. As part of this work the researchers collected information and materials from the water companies. This was primarily information about standard telephone enquiries and complaints, however it also included website information, leafl ets, direct letters to customers and any special guidance. The researchers also examined how companies advise customers both for individual complaints and when events or incidents have been identifi ed and carried out a critical review of the information and materials produce. Consideration was given to accuracy, appropriateness, timeliness, ease of understanding and clarity of the material’s key messages and examined processes for communicating with customers about different levels of event.

Four key stages of the communication lifecycle were identifi ed;

■ Pre-event preparation

■ Event detection and escalation

■ Communication management

■ Review and testing.

The report concluded that, despite variation in the implementation of communication processes between companies, they follow a reasonably consistent life-cycle and there were general examples of good practice approaches for each stage of the life-cycle identifi ed.

Water companies generally appeared strong at receiving, understanding and classifying incoming customer complaints and were systematic at ensuring appropriate people diagnose problems and advise customers. Many companies have built strong positive relationships with external groups such as Local Authorities (LAs) and Consultants in Communicable Disease Control (CCDCs).

An area highlighted as showing a variety of approach between companies was the identifi cation of customers with particular secure water or communication needs. The report also identifi ed that processes and criteria for escalating consumer contacts about discolouration, taste and odour events vary widely across the industry.

The research went on to identify that companies could benefi t from sharing ideas on:

■ Identifying customers with particular secure water or communication needs,

■ Prioritising communications and communicating risk to customers ,

■ Incorporating Plain English principles into material preparation and

■ Testing communication materials for clarity before issue, and confi rming that key messages have been transmitted after receipt.

Another observation from the research highlighted the importance of ensuring clear communications where consumers are supplied by smaller organisations that are now entering the water industry in the form of inset appointments or new licensees. The report concluded that the Inspectorate could usefully provide guidance on how to encourage appropriate communication between the new entrants and establish water companies and with this in mind, the Inspectorate issued guidance, available on the Inspectorate’s website (Guidance on the Regulatory Responsibilities of New (Inset) Appointees in relation to Public Water Supplies).

The Inspectorate is grateful to those that participated in the research. The report was shared at a workshop in October 2010 entitled ‘Communications Challenges for the Water Industry’ which was widely attended by communications practitioners from the water sector.

The Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) was formed in 1990 to provide independent reassurance that public water supplies are safe and drinking water quality is acceptable to consumers. With consumers in mind, the Inspectorate commissions research aimed at identifying good practice in the areas of communication with consumers and shares this with water companies in order to provide insight and raise standards across the industry.

The research had the overall aim

of identifying the current practice and

policy of English and Welsh water companies when giving advice to customers about discolouration, taste and odour

or chemical contamination

events.

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Marlon Bowser


You can’t fail to have seen the recent news reports of disgruntled customers in Northern Ireland. Yet, despite the obvious problems that being without water was causing them, the one single thing that every person being interviewed complained about was lack of information; not knowing what was being done and how long it was likely to take to be sorted out were by far the biggest complaints. Customers can be remarkably forgiving when things go wrong, especially when it is caused by a natural disaster. What they won’t forgive is poor handling of the situation and, most of all, being left in the dark.

Of course, in an ideal world nothing would go wrong with the supply of water or handling

of waste, but most people accept that some problems are unavoidable and it is how they are dealt with that actually matters.

To increase customer satisfaction, meet customer service targets and ensure a high place in Ofwat’s league tables, water companies must focus on key aspects of their service – such as how they handle disruptions in supply. And certainly, timely and proactive customer communication by email, mobile text messaging, interactive voice calls and other channels would go a long way towards helping improve the customer experience.

Customers want to feel valued and cared for and when it comes to water companies and because

they can’t simply go elsewhere, customer frustrations will quickly build when they feel they are being taken for granted. They want to know that when a problem occurs it will be dealt with effi ciently; and this has to include keeping them regularly informed. It’s bad enough when the water stops fl owing, but when the customer can’t fi nd out exactly what has happened and whether or not it’s a temporary problem, it only makes matters worse. Northern Ireland certainly wasn’t the fi rst example of a news report where the biggest customer complaint is about not being kept informed. But it could be the last.

Keeping customer service fl owing

Marlon Bowser, CEO at HTK, examines how water companies can improve the way they communicate with customers, particularly when things go wrong

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Marlon Bowser, CEO HTK


HTK

How to communicate in a crisis

Implementing outbound messaging services and inbound information lines that can serve customers with localised, personalised and up-to-the minute news can go a long way towards the goal of keeping customers informed.

A fully automated and integrated customer service solution, such as the HTK Horizon platform, that uses a combination of email, text messaging and IVR can help organisations to serve their customers better, at a lower cost. For water companies, this not only provides the means to notify customers of all problems and issues, but in the case of an emergency such as contaminated water, it enables them to let customers know immediately. And, of course, also inform them immediately when the situation has been rectifi ed and give any measures that need to be taken before drinking the water.

It is essential that customers are able to opt-in to the service; usually from a website or using mobile SMS, with extensive options for personalisation. This ensures they only get the messages they want and in the format - text, voice or email, for example - that they prefer.

Outbound messages can be centrally managed or delegated to individual stations, whilst maintaining central reporting.

In addition, a single 0800 or shared-cost phone number can be used to provide localised supply and service information to callers. At peak times it may be a good idea for the calls to be handled using an intelligent call queue that will signifi cantly reduce caller frustration. For example, when there has been a major incident in the area that a person is calling from, then it is more than likely that their call is about this. Information and advice on the problem can therefore be given immediately; and if it is what they needed, it eliminates the need to wait in a long queue to speak to someone. Similarly, elderly and vulnerable groups in the affected area may be prioritised in the queue, to connect those callers to agents fi rst.

And remember, timely outbound communication can signifi cantly reduce the volume of inbound calls – saving the organisation money as well as providing customers with the great service experience that they deserve.

Like most organisations, a water company’s brand is far more than just its public face; it invokes a feeling, it’s what people think about the organisation and importantly it’s what they tell their friends. A brand and its strength are purely and simply the sum-total of every customer

experience the organisation has ever served-up. And as quick and easy as it is to get customer experiences wrong, the reputation of a brand is a phenomenally hard thing to restore once it has been damaged or destroyed. However, used properly, integrated multi-channel inbound and outbound communication tools will help water companies to capture service issues as they occur and deal with them promptly to help avoid customer dissatisfaction and negative word-of-mouth. Perhaps most importantly, it will also improve its brand reputation and that of the industry as a whole.

About HTK

UK-based HTK provides hosted solutions for interactive multi-channel marketing, automated customer service and intelligent customer contact, helping organisations to sell more and serve better, at lower cost.

Founded in 1996 and privately owned, HTK delivers solutions to SME and large enterprises, telecommunication service providers and the public sector. Customers include Cable & Wireless, BT, Specsavers and O2 as well as numerous local authorities. HTK software is used by more than 30 of the 43 UK Police Forces, and HTK developed the recently launched national myUKinfo.com web portal for migrant workers and employers.

How to do itCustomers of South Staffs Water benefi t from a high-tech communication system that enables timely and useful information to be sent by email, SMS text messages and interactive voice calls. By using the cost effective HTK Horizon platform for everything from appointment reminders and payment advice to emergency alerts and service notifi cations, South Staffs Water will build on its excellent customer service while keeping charges low.

HTK Horizon’s inbuilt CRM-integration and mapping capabilities allow for micro-targeted geographic communication across the South Staffs Water region, which services a population of nearly 1.29 million over an area of almost 1,500 square kilometres. Customers will soon be able to sign up to the new services on the web, by SMS or through the contact centre, choosing what information they want to receive, when and how. Customers will also benefi t from new and convenient ways to contact the water company; for example, to provide a meter reading by SMS.

South Staffs is recognised as one of the most effi cient companies in the water sector, where the need to ensure a continuous supply of clean water, coupled with excellent value and customer service, is of key importance. Adoption of the HTK Horizon platform is part of that ongoing commitment to provide the highest level of service and effi ciency, with low charges, and to meet customers’ rising service expectations now and in the future.

Colin Richardson, Customer Service Manager at South Staffs Water said: “As a provider of an essential service, South Staffs Water is constantly striving to improve our customer service. We are extremely pleased to have teamed up with HTK in order to offer our customers a service that means we can keep in touch with them much more easily along with instant information. For example, in the event of an unplanned interruption to water supplies which may be affecting a large number of customers.”

“As a recognised leader in the UK water market, I’m delighted to be working with South Staffs Water. Horizon fi ts incredibly well with their strategy to reduce operating costs and yet deliver an excellent customer experience, and I hope that

together we can set new benchmark standards for the industry.”

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First published in 1995, BS EN 545 for ductile iron pipeline systems is well established as a product specifi cation within the water industry. This standard has just been revised and published (31st October) following a 3 year work programme. The new standard includes the most radical change since the fi rst publication with the replacement of thickness (K) classes by the more logical and practical pressure (C) classifi cation. The task was carried out by a working group of European Technical Committee TC 203 made up of users and manufacturers from Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and UK. The fi nal draft was sent to all 31 member countries, obtaining an emphatic positive approval.

Pressure RatingsPreviously, pipes and fi ttings were classifi ed in K classes (e.g. K9), calculated from an empirical formula based mainly on manufacturing

constraints at the time of the fi rst publication in 1995. Especially in the smaller diameters, this resulted in pipes with pressure capabilities far in excess of their intended usage. For example a DN 150 fl exibly jointed pipe of K9 minimum thickness was rated at 79 bar working pressure which, with a safety factor of 3, means an actual failure pressure in the region of 235 bar – far in excess of normal network operating pressures! Even in the larger diameters, say DN 1200, the actual failure pressure was in excess of 110 bar.

With the advent of improved manufacturing techniques and substantial investment in

computer controlled technology, it is now possible to produce homogeneous ductile iron pipe consistently to more realistic thicknesses appropriate to their use. BS EN 545 now details preferred pressure classes:

DN 40 to 300 – Class 40 – 40 bar PFA (working pressure)

DN 350 to 600 – Class 30 – 30 bar PFA

DN 700 to 2000 – Class 25 – 25 bar PFA

These pressures still retain a safety factor of 3 (the highest of any pipe material) and the relationship with wall thickness can be easily calculated (see inset). Other pressure classes are available, with provision to tailor-make a pressure class to suit a specifi c project.

System PerformanceThe revision includes minimum performance requirements for couplings, fl ange adaptors and saddles manufactured for use with ductile iron pipes and fi ttings. In the case of couplings and fl ange adaptors, this means that the joints are subjected to the same demanding type tests that have been in force for fl exible socket and spigot joints since the fi rst publication: including elevated internal pressure and vacuum under extremes of tolerance and thickness, angular defl ection and shear.

The new standard also defi nes the need to ensure that components from different suppliers meet the performance requirements. All of which gives added assurance to the customer for leak free joint performance.

Enhanced CoatingsThe new BS EN 545 has increased the durability of ductile iron pipe systems by increasing the basic coating requirements to a minimum of 200g/m2 for pipe (increased from 130g/m2) and the addition of epoxy coating to BS EN 14901 for fi ttings. These are minimum level coatings and Annex D of the standard details enhanced coatings giving greater fi eld of use in relation to soil characteristics. Included in this is the well-proven zinc-aluminium alloy coating (400g/m2 zinc-aluminium). This coating can be used with the majority of soils in the UK with only a few exceptions, such as soils below the marine water table with a resistivity lower than 500 Ω.cm.

Quality AssuranceIn line with the latest CEN requirements, Evaluation of conformity (Quality assurance) is now a normative requirement included in the body of the standard (Clause 9). This clause details the requirements for performance testing and factory production control by the manufacturer, including product assessment. It also recommends that the manufacturer has a quality management system in compliance with ISO 9001. All these factors affording high quality certifi cation and proof of compliance.

ST GOBAIN

Goodbye K9, Hello Pressure Classes

Dr David Smoker

Dr David Smoker and David Fretwell (Saint-Gobain PAM UK) review the changes in BS EN 545: 2010

David Fretwell

The new EN 545: 2010 specifi es an enhanced long term solution for ductile iron water pipelines, whilst still providing the end user with the highest pressure related safety factor for any pipeline material on the market. All these enhancements result in savings on materials and energy, as well as long term reliability of water networks.

IOW 169.indd 36IOW 169.indd 36 14/2/11 12:48:5414/2/11 12:48:54

GPS PE PIPE SYSTEMS

Unique DesignA complete polyethylene (PE) pipe and fi ttings solution for potable water, grey water and sewage applications, Push-Fast is an integrated spigot and socket water jointing system. It has been expertly designed with a specially moulded socket that provides an excellent, leak-tight seal for a wide range of pressures.

The secret is in the way that the Push-Fast system has been engineered. Featuring an individual elastomeric seal and a tough thermoplastic grip ring, each located in a separate tapered groove, the seal’s leak-tight effectiveness actually increases as the system water pressure increases. That’s because the grip ring’s unique design features an external tapered section so, not only is the joint locked by pressurisation of the pipework contents, but - thanks to the tapered

design - increased line pressure also enhances the locking force of the Push-Fast joint, delivering an even more effective seal.

Indeed, Push-Fast offers all the advantages of PE, such as lightness, fl exibility and totally secure jointing methods, that allow considerably lower installation and whole life costs when compared to ductile and cast iron push-fi t systems.

Quick & ConvenientFor Steve Maffey of Clancy Docwra, who has worked on numerous Push-Fast installations, the advantages of the system are not just its leak-tight effectiveness but also the speed and convenience it offers on site.

“The Push-Fast system is faster and easier to install in any weather conditions,” comments Steve, “as it doesn’t require any welding so it avoids the need for an electricity supply and welding equipment. Consequently, using the system saves us about 20 minutes per joint and that adds up to a considerable reduction in installation time over a whole project.

“During cold and wet weather the benefi ts are even greater,” he continues, “as the effective, weld-free seals means that we don’t have to erect a welding shelter, which would normally be required for adverse conditions. This makes installation quicker and less logistically challenging during cold and wet weather.”

Advanced FunctionalityNot only is the Push-Fast system the quickest way to lay a water pipeline, combining all the benefi ts of polyethylene with the ease of conventional push-fi t joints and the design expertise of GPS PE Pipe Systems, the system also offers high performance and greater convenience. The joint’s unique design resists the end-thrust generated by internal pressure, avoiding the need for the anchors or thrust blocks commonly required for non-PE push-fi t systems. What’s more, once the joint has been made, the grip ring grasps the pipe, ensuring a high resistance to pull out.

Steve continues: “The ease of use makes Push-Fast ideal for bends and tight corners where erecting a welding tent would be impractical.”

Quality & ChoiceConstructed in black Excel (PE100) and offered in standard 6m lengths (bespoke lengths available to order), with a BS EN 12201 and WIS 4-32-17 compliant pipe, the Push-Fast system is available in seven sizes ranging from 90mm to 250mm and in pressure ratings of PN10 and PN16. The system includes a choice of plain, socket and fl anged ended fi ttings and can also be used with electrofusion fi ttings.

For more information visit www.gpsuk.com

Push-Fast proves ideal for cold snapThe icy chill that has gripped the UK once again this winter has highlighted the need for the water industry to fi nd pipe solutions that are fast, simple and convenient to install, even during the most adverse weather conditions. For water companies across continental Europe and in the UK, the Push-Fast system from GPS PE Pipe Systems provides just such a solution, which has proved its advantages time and again on cold and wet installation sites.


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PIPELINE SERVICES

Key budgetary decisions can only be taken by water companies when they know the current state of their pipeline infrastructure. While accurate data on pipe condition has always been needed across the industry, obtaining the data has usually involved an interruption to water services and signifi cant time and cost in conducting intrusive manual inspections.

Also, assessments of pipe condition have up to now been conducted in isolation, with little sharing of cumulative experience and evidence which could help in making more accurate predictions of pipeline life spans.

To answer both of these issues, Pipeline Services has developed an array of non-intrusive, cost-effective measurement and assessment techniques and has just launched a tool which taps into a huge database of past data. These services provide water companies with the knowledge required to make the best possible decisions on whether to renew sections of mains or to just rehabilitate them, knowing then with some accuracy their remaining lifespan. Clearly it is more economical to rehabilitate pipelines which have decades left of useful life, though conversely to rehabilitate when ongoing repairs are going to be required is a false economy.

For non-intrusive assessment the answer lies in using the latest ultrasonic, acoustic and CCTV techniques to obtain accurate data with no interruption to service: see a complete picture of the state of your mains by sitting in your offi ce watching a DVD, or studying data on your PC! To cover all assessment requirements, Pipeline Services offers a full suite of pipeline inspection services:

Structural Assessments■ Non-Destructive Inspection (NDT): Using ultrasonics, a section of

pipeline equivalent to a destructive pipe sample can be scanned to provide accurate internal and external corrosion measurements. From this data the remaining life expectancy can be assessed accurately.

■ Acoustic Condition Assessment Inspection (ACA): With no excavation necessary, existing apparatus is used to generate acoustic signals throughout a section of a pipeline, helping to calculate the remaining pipe wall thickness along the section. A leakage assessment can also be performed using the same equipment – even at the same time!

Internal Inspections ■ Under Pressure CCTV: Pipeline Services can insert a CCTV camera via under-

pressure drilling or virtually any type of apparatus. This can pin-point internal problems such as lining condition, bore-loss, bio-fi lm development or lost and defective valves, other fi ttings and connections etc. CCTV is generally used in conjunction with NDT to provide a survey of the internal

condition highlighting water quality, hydraulic grading and sediment build-up. We can even remove samples of sediment, bio-fi lm and water in supply through the camera insertion point.

■ Under Pressure Rodding and Crawler CCTV: Pipeline Services rodding cameras and crawler units can inspect aftermarket spray linings that are suspected of deterioration. They can pinpoint cross connections, service connections, hidden or buried apparatus and leakages.

■ Under Pressure CCTV via Hydrant: This requires no excavation and can provide information on bore-loss due to corrosion ‘tubercollation’ and lining condition. Excellent for use in a pre-design feasibility study to determine if a lining is present.

Additional Services■ Under Pressure Drilling – Sample Coupon removal: To see sediment and

tuberculation build-up, coupons are removed using an under-pressure drilling technique. This will also show how well lining or tuberculation is adhered.

■ Soil and Water Analysis: This can be used to assess the structural condition and in fracture risk analyses. We can remove water samples from any position within the pipeline for laboratory analysis.

■ ‘Legion’ Predictive Pipe Condition Assessment Tool: Utilising an extensive database of over 30,000 pipe sample analyses taken from across the UK and Ireland, this provides an accurate prediction for any given section of metal pipeline. Combined with client’s own leakage and mains pressure records and CCTV techniques requiring no excavation, Legion provides an excellent, no-dig procedure for assessing condition and predicting life expectancy.

So, by tapping into our wealth of past data and using the latest non-intrusive technology, Pipeline Services really can remove the guesswork involved in making that renew or rehabilitate decision.

Jason Smith, Pipeline Conditions Manager, Pipeline [email protected]

Renew or Rehabilitate:removing the guesswork…HELP IS AT HAND FROM PIPELINE SERVICES

IOW 169.indd 38IOW 169.indd 38 14/2/11 12:48:5714/2/11 12:48:57

Need accurate Pipeline infrastructure advice?

Call us today on 0121 521 2807 Email: [email protected]

Facsimile: 0121 521 2811 Web: www.pipeline-services.co.uk

Wouldn’t it be great to know the condition of pipes without interrupting supply?

Wouldn’t it be helpful to make renewal/rehabilitate decisions based on thousands of past cases?

Pipeline Services gives you both:

• A range of non-intrusive, cost-effective measurement and assessment techniques: these allow you to see a complete picture of the state of your mains, on DVD!

• The ‘Legion’ Predictive Pipe Condition Assessment Tool: Using over 30,000 pipe sample analyses, we provide an accurate prediction for any given section of metal pipeline.

We offer a complete range of services:

• Non-Destructive Inspection (NDT): Using ultrasonics, pipes can be scanned to provide accurate internal and external corrosion measurements.

• Under Pressure CCTV: This can pinpoint a whole range of internal pipe problems.

• Acoustic Condition Assessment Inspection (ACA): With no excavation necessary, we

can calculate pipe wall thickness + a leakage assessment at the same time!

• Under Pressure Rodding and Crawler CCTV: Ideal for inspecting linings suspected of deterioration + pinpointing connections, hidden or buried apparatus and leakages.

In addition, Pipeline Services can also conduct Under Pressure Drilling and Soil and Water Analysis.

So, don’t just try to divine the answer - let Pipeline Services remove the guesswork in that renew or rehabilitate decision.

• Under Pressure CCTV via Hydrant: Excellent for use in a pre-design feasibility study to determine if a lining is present.

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When it comes totrunk mains cleaning,there are plenty of fishin the sea. But arethey all swimmingin the rightdirection?At Fastflow, our innovative Europeanpatented system ensures that weare, because it

● Cleans up to 700m ofmain, requiring fewerexcavations and pipeinterventions

● Requires only a single pass,using just a fraction of the waterconsumed by conventional spray cleaningmethods

● Is non abrasive – maintaining the integrity of internallinings

● Achieves cleaning standards well within DWI values

● Combines with our highly efficient, large diameter spraychlorination process, which can deliver further, dramatic timeand water savings

In addition

● The system is tried and tested over 75 kilometres of12”-72” mains

● Our end to end service includes design,planning, civils, cleaning and restoration

All of which saves time and cost whilereducing risk and environmental impact.

For further proof that this is no fishy tale, visit

www.fastflow.co.ukor call us on

+44 (0) 191 415 7744

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Quite simply, we aim to Go Further

IOW 169.indd 41IOW 169.indd 41 14/2/11 12:49:0614/2/11 12:49:06

Forster Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS10 1PW, UKTel: +44 (0)113 2760 760 Fax: +44 (0)113 2760 700

Email: [email protected]

www.corrocoat.comof the Institute ofCorrosion

A complete Service for Pump Service Repair and Protection

Our dedicated Pump Division offers customers a comprehensive service covering refurbishment, re-manufacture, modifi cation and coating for corrosion protection of many types of pumps.

The bespoke nature of the service enables us to respond to individual customer requirements and our ability to provide equipment quickly and to budget are key elements in the service offered to customers.

Considered to be world class, Corrocoat Corrosioneering is based in the UK but has a network of over 30 facilities worldwide. Our

list of clients includes some of the world’s most respected companies operating in fi elds as diverse as: mining, oil & gas, chemicals, power generation, waste & water, pulp & paper and marine.

Providing excellent long term performance, Corrocoat Corrosioneering’s ability to combine mechanical engineering with advanced polymer technology allows even severely damaged pumps to be refurbished at a fraction of the replacement cost, often without expensive replacement parts.

The use of our advanced materials can

prevent the need for expensive metallurgical solutions on new pumps, and substantial effi ciency improvements can be achieved by utilising the Fluiglide range of materials.

All pumps & pump parts are repaired where possible in accordance with ISO standards or better, with upgrades in materials and tightening of tolerances to improve pump life, effi ciency and performance. Many of these pumps are protected against corrosion using Corrocoat’s tried and tested coatings – the selection of which is dependant on the service environment.

Established in 1975, Corrocoat Corrosioneering started specialist pump repairs shortly afterwards and since then it has grown in size and stature to its present day position as a world leader, with the skills and facilities to repair and corrosion protect the largest of pumps.

COMPLETION PACKEvery refurbished pump is returned to the customer with its own ‘Completion Pack’ giving assurance to the client that the work has been carried out to the highest standard. This pack contains: performance test data, an internal hydrostatic test certifi cate and mill certifi cates for material traceability (if required). Details of all work carried out with relevant photographs are also included.

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Instrumentation for water distribution management

technology for network management and leakage control

M O N I T O R I N G

A N A L Y S I S

D E T E C T I O N

L O C A T I O N

Local Data Acquisition

Flow Monitoring

Meter Reading

Remote Data Acquisition

Leak Detection

Leak Location

Trunk Main Leak Location

Leak Listening and Confirmation

Network System Monitoring

Leakage Control

Primayer LimitedPrimayer House, Parklands Business Park Denmead, Hampshire PO7 6XP, United Kingdom www.primayer.com

T +44 (0)2392 252228 F +44 (0)2392 252235E [email protected]

16074 PRIMAYER 180x115mm ad.indd 1 27/1/11 11:50:12


HWM LAUNCHES NEW TOUCHSCREEN WATER LEAKAGE CORRELATOR WITH CLASS-LEADING SENSOR

Halma Water Management (HWM) has developed a new water leak correlator that features a class-leading sensor, a large full-colour touch screen, and integrated noise fi ltering, analysis and management software. The company, which incorporates Palmer Environmental Ltd., developed the fi rst correlator over thirty years ago, and has been at the forefront of leak detection design and manufacture ever since. With signifi cant improvements to existing components and the addition of brand new features,

HWM believes the new MicroCorr Touch (TriCorr Touch in the USA) represents a real breakthrough in leak detection technology. The unit is operated by touchscreen, making it much easier to input data and maximising the visible screen area to display results more clearly than has ever been possible before.

Leak correlation is used to fi nd the exact location of a leak on a pipe. Highly-sensitive acoustic sensors are placed at intervals on the pipe, and listen to the sound made by the leak. The data is transmitted wirelessly to a handheld ‘base unit’, which processes the information to identify the leak sound, and then applies mathematical algorithms to to pinpoint the leak position.

The Touch features a newly-developed sensor designed to be at least twice as sensitive as anything else available on the market today. This enables it to perform well even in traditionally diffi cult conditions, such as on plastic and large

diameter pipes. It is also the fi rst standalone correlator to feature a high visibility full colour VGA touch screen to greatly improve data entry and the quality of data presentation. The intuitive user interface eases and simplifi es leak-fi nding without compromising on functionality or precision, and enables the unit to be operated with the minimum number of key presses. The large screen, with Tuffscreen anti-glare screen protection, clearly displays correlation results and supportive information even in bright sunshine, effectively combining outstanding performance with excellent ease of use.

The system is equipped with an innovative tri-fi lter correlation option which can simultaneously perform three correlations at different fi lter settings. This is particularly useful when the pipe material is uncertain. When the best fi lter is seen, the correlation switches to focus on this. The

outstation is compact with high quality long range radio transmission; it also features a magnet to secure onto metallic street furniture. The purpose designed robust case not only carries and protects all components but charges them via mains or vehicle supply. The charge level for all items can be shown at the touch of a button.

Using the company’s extensive experience of correlator technology, HWM believes that it has created an easy to use system that delivers the best all round performance available today at a highly competitive price.

HWM

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A new controller from Pi follows the maxim ‘everything you need – and nothing you don’t’ This provides a highly sophisticated, multi-lingual controller, both simple to use and low in cost. For water engineers many modern controllers and analyzers provide just too much in terms of standard features that need to be paid for. For this reason Pi has developed the CRONOS.

CRONOS has everything you need in an analyzer/controller. It has up to three universal inputs and up to three universal analogue outputs, up to four relays and options for Profi bus, Modbus, LAN and other comms protocols. The user interface is highly intuitive and comes equipped in multiple languages and a set up wizard for ease of use.

Each analyzer/controller is built to the customers’ specifi cation so the customer is only paying for the functionality they need and not for the functionality they don’t.

A multi-colour backlight means that alarm

conditions are clearly visible for up to 100m. The CRONOS is available in muliple languages and is already proving popular amongst customers.

The CRONOS is available as a residual chlorine analyzer, a swimming pool controller, DO meter, a pH meter, an ORP meter, a suspended solids meter, an ozone analyzer and chlorine dioxide analyzer.

Not only is the CRONOS an attractive, highly customizable, low cost analyzer, it can also come equipped with PID functionality to control chemical dosing in a variety of locations. CRONOS is the low cost analyzer/controller that has everything you need – and nothing you don’t.

Pi has been providing instrument solutions since 1998 and supplies through Distributors, under Private Label/OEM agreements and to End Users within the Water, Waste, Chemical, Paper, Pool and Leisure industries. With offi ces, a laboratory and new manufacturing facilities in Burnley, UK,

Pi operates globally with customers in more than 40 countries across the globe. More recently Pi has received awards for export and innovation and has quadrupled its turnover in three years.

For more information on the latest innovations in water instrumentation, please visit:www.processinstruments.net/products/cronos.php

Or contact: Mike RidingProcess Instruments (UK) LtdProcess House, Dominion Court, Billington RoadBurnley, Lancashire BB11 5UBTel: 01282 422 835Email: [email protected]

LOW COST, HIGHLY SOPHISTICATED ANALYZER/CONTROLLER FROM PI– ‘everything you need – and nothing you don’t’

PAM, WITH YOU, WITHOUT LIMIT

www.saint-gobain-pam.co.uk

Relying on its extensive knowledge in networks SAINT-GOBAIN PAM develops coherent and modular systems adapted to all job site confi gurations.

The PAM marking on its products, bears witness to experience and the search for innovative solutions. It signifi es the attention given to manufacturingof quality products that are reliable, ergonomic and easy-to-install.

Commited to continually explore ways to better account for water cycle requirements, theSAINT-GOBAIN PAM team is devoted to offeringits customers more than just products.

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Answers for the environment.

Siemens’ broad portfolio and technical expertise can help you to maintain, expand or upgrade your plant with the flexibility you need.

Whether your plant treats water or wastewater, your challenge is to ensure that quantity and quality goals are consistently met. This means making continuous improvements to your infrastructure to accommodate changing requirements. With our intelligent solutions, un-surpassed process expertise and expansive service network, we can help you optimise your plant – step by step – even if you‘re on a tight budget. www.siemens.co.uk/water

How can today’s water infrastructure keep pace with our growing needs?

IOW 169.indd 45IOW 169.indd 45 14/2/11 12:49:2114/2/11 12:49:21


Waste Water Experience & Innovation

Quality of waterQuality of processQuality of life

Hygienically clean water is the result of complex treatment processes. No matter which method is used. We are profi cient in all the relevant innovative technologies. We give you perfectly integrated system technology for water treatment and chemical handling – from one single source.

ProMinent Fluid Controls (UK) LtdResolution RoadAshby de la ZouchLeicestershireLE65 1DWPhone 01530 560555Email [email protected]

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Leading water and chemical analysis company Palintest Ltd. has developed a new high range test for Manganese in drinking water. The new Manganese HR test now offers a market-leading measurement range of 0.02 to 5 mg/l, without the need for pre-test sample dilution.

The test uses the approved standard Formaldoxime method (ISO 6333), and is supplied in packs containing two sets of tablets. One set of tablets is used to prepare the sample, correcting pH level, and the second tablet reacts with the Manganese. The resultant solution develops an orange/brown colour which indicates the concentration. This test is designed to be used with Palintest s 7100, 7500 and 8000 model Photometers for precise photometric measurement.

In 2004 the World Health Organisation (WHO) reviewed the health risks posed by Manganese in drinking water, and adopted a new Guideline value of 0.4 mg/l. Concentration levels down to 0.05 mg/l may still cause discolouration of water, leading to consumer dissatisfaction. Similarly, the US EPA recommends a limit of 0.05mg/l because of the staining caused, with some industrial applications requiring levels down to 0.02 mg/l. The new Manganese HR test from Palintest therefore allows a full range of concentration testing from trace to toxic, without extra cost or complexity.

NEW HIGH RANGE MANGANESE TEST FROM PALINTEST LTD

Power and productivityfor a better worldTM

Totally transforming...

Our latest drive is dedicated exclusively to water

and wastewater pumping. As such it has a host

of intelligent pump control functions including

anti-ragging which is helping companies like

Severn Trent and Anglian Water slash their

maintenance bills. The drive has also been voted Innovative

Industrial Product of the Year by Electrical Times magazine.

To discover all the intelligent pump functions within

our new drive call BrochureLine on 0800 783 7491

and ask for a brochure.

...All your pumping applications

IOW 169.indd 47IOW 169.indd 47 14/2/11 12:49:2314/2/11 12:49:23

GRUNDFOS DOSING AND DISINFECTION

SMART DigitalBreaking the barriers of dosing

GRUNDFOS ALLD

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DIG

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SIN

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DIGITAL DOSINGTM

DIGITAL

FROM THE INVENTOR OF

DOSINGTM

Grundfos Pumps LimitedBirmingham

www.grundfosalldos.co.uk

Tel. 0121 328 3336

IOW 169.indd 48IOW 169.indd 48 14/2/11 12:49:2514/2/11 12:49:25

GRUNDFOS


Intelligent dosing pumps with new drive and adjustment mechanisms represent the ideal solution for increasingly complex dosing applications with concentrated chemicals, some of them viscous, in water treatment and the process industry. They make life easier for users by keeping processes running precisely, reliably and cost-effectively.

SMART Digital dosing pumps meet these challenges by offering state-of-the-art drive technology, a whole new dimension in user-friendly operation and an intelligent FlowControl system. These properties ensure extremely precise, reliable and cost-effective processes combined with the best possible price-performance ratio.

In addition to the established benefi ts of Digital Dosing, the new SMART Digital offers:

Simplicity – simple handling and perfect overview and control even from the distanceThe system is extremely easy to use thanks to the new click wheel and straightforward, intuitive navigation via a graphic LC display in more than 25 languages. The required fl ow can be set directly on the display in ml/h, l/h or gph.

The large LC display, which is clearly visible from some distance, indicates the pump status. If the display is green, the pump is operating and everything is as it should be. In the event of a fault, such as an empty level signal, the display turns yellow (warning). A red background is used for an alarm situation, while white indicates that the pump has stopped.

Modularity – fl exible and suitable for any environment or situationThe new pump family has a turn-down ratio of up to 1:3000 / 1:1000. The fact that a single pump can cover dosing rates of 2.5 ml/h to 7.5 l/h signifi cantly reduces the number of different models required.

What’s more, this range of models has a universal mounting plate for all

popular mounting methods. The click function makes it quick and easy to remove the pump from the mounting plate if necessary.

Maximum fl exibility is ensured by a control cube that can be rotated, a wide range of adjustments and supply voltages (100-240V, 50/60 Hz), and a hydraulic connection kit.

The optional E-box enables SMART Digital pumps to be integrated – and even retrofi tted – in systems such as complex Profi bus networks.

Flow Intelligence – highest process reliabilityThe FlowControl system prevents unwanted stoppages, even with variable process parameters such as fl uctuations in system pressure.

Digital drive technology with precisely defi ned diaphragm positioning uses a pressure sensor in the dosing head to provide an accurate depiction and diagnosis of the pressure profi le and thus the dosing profi le. This enables reliable diagnosis of the most common causes of faults that occur during dosing with diaphragm pumps. These faults are displayed in plain text in the alarm menu. Depending on the fault, the pump either reacts with a warning or an alarm (= stop).

What’s more, the AutoFlowAdapt function ensures that the dosing process continues with the required fl ow, even when subject to external infl uences. When dosing outgassing media, for example, motor control is automatically adjusted as soon as air bubbles are detected so that they can escape out of the dosing head. Fluctuating system backpressures no longer impact on the required fl ow either – deviations are automatically corrected by the stepper motor’s speed regulation mechanism.

The integrated fl ow measurement function makes costly additional measuring equipment unnecessary. The current fl ow measurement is shown directly on the display and can also be integrated in the control room via the analog output or bus protocol if necessary.

Contact details: Heidi Berger, [email protected], Grundfos Pumps Ltd. 0121 328 3336, www.grundfosalldos.com

SMART DIGITAL > INTELLIGENT MODULAR DOSING PUMPS FROM GRUNDFOS THAT ARE EASY TO OPERATE

Grundfos is embarking on a new era in dosing technology with a brand new generation of pumps.

IOW 169.indd 49IOW 169.indd 49 14/2/11 12:49:3214/2/11 12:49:32

Unique waste water treatment solutions.

TM

IOW 169.indd 50IOW 169.indd 50 14/2/11 12:49:3714/2/11 12:49:37

Selwood provides the complete Pump Hire, Sales and Service package for all your requirements. Along with pumps ranging from 50mm to 300mm discharge, Selwood also offers you 1st class in-depth technical expertise.

● Surface Mounted Diesels incorporating Selwood’s unique

- Solids Handling - High Head - High Volume - Super Silent from 55db(A)● Submersibles - Drainage - Sewage - Sludge - Slurry● Hydraulic Submersible● Chopper Pumps● Site Surveys● Site Installations● Method Statements● Risk Assessments● Pumping Accessories● Remote Mobile Telemetry● Road Ramp

PumS

Local branches nationwide

08450 733835www.selwood.co.uk

24HrEmergency Callout

IOW 169.indd 51IOW 169.indd 51 14/2/11 12:50:0314/2/11 12:50:03

FASTFLOW

Utility company Fastfl ow is helping international charity WaterAid bring safe water and sanitation to thousands of people in some of Nepal’s poorest communities.

And owner, Neil Armstrong, hopes to head to the country soon to be part of the £68,000 water and sanitation project which his company is funding.

The donation to WaterAid is designed to cut alarming mortality rates – particularly among children. Every year in Nepal, nearly 8,000 under fi ves die from diarrhoea caused by unclean drinking water or poor sanitation. Worldwide, a child dies every 20 seconds because of unsafe water and sanitation.

The project in Biratnagar – Nepal’s second largest city - will involve the creation or rehabilitation of almost 400 wells which will bring safe water to 4,000 people. It will also create proper sanitation systems for 2,200 people and deliver hygiene initiatives designed to teach the local people how to reduce the incidence of disease and illness by maintaining basic hygiene.

Said Neil Armstrong, who took charge of Washington based Fastfl ow in a management buy-in in 2005: “We have been involved with WaterAid for many years and contribute regularly but this year felt we wanted to do something really signifi cant.

“So I contacted the charity and they provided me with several options. Reading the challenges these people face, just because they don’t have the clean water which we take for granted, was a

genuine struggle. It was a really tough decision to make but having two young children of my own, the shocking mortality rate among under fi ves in Biratnagar was what swayed me.

“Work is underway and I plan to travel out there in the next few weeks to see it all happening on the ground. Wherever possible, local people and companies will be involved in supplying materials and carrying out the work. This way they gain a greater understanding of the project and develop a true sense of ownership.”

Rebecca Lloyd, Head of Private Giving at WaterAid, added: “We are thrilled that Neil Armstrong and Fastfl ow have chosen to support WaterAid in Nepal. We have been working in the country since 1986 and have improved access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene for over 800,000 people but with three million still living without access to clean water, there is a great deal still to be done.

GIFT OF CLEAN WATER WILL SAVE LIVES

Manish Gurung, drinking water at the spring source, Mandikatar, Kathmandu, Nepal (courtesy of WaterAid and Marco Betti).

Fastfl ow owner, Neil Armstrong.


Fastfl ow Pipeline Services has started 2011 as it ended 2010 with another important contract win.

The deal, with Northumbrian Water, is worth an estimated £1.3million and will see the company’s award winning trunk mains cleaning system deployed around Ponteland and Gosforth near Tyneside.

The European-patented system is capable of operating over distances of up to a kilometre - resulting in fewer excavations and pipe interventions – saving substantial amounts of time and cost while improving safety and reducing environmental impact.

Cutting edge tools provide high quality images from deep within the pipeline, enabling the specially trained technicians to carry out a thorough assessment of the condition of the main and develop a detailed cleaning and repair plan.

The innovative, remote controlled spray head uses only a fraction of the water required by more traditional fl ushing methods, making it much more environmentally sustainable. Capable of cleaning 1.2 metres of pipe per minute it also scores very high water purity values in a single pass.

Over the past 12 months the company has won a series of contracts which will provide work for up to a decade and are worth an estimated £220 million. Following the wins the company is creating two new senior posts - a commercial manager and a project engineer.

Neil Armstrong, owner and chief executive offi cer of Fastfl ow, said: “I am delighted that we have won this contract. We spent a lot of time and money developing our unique trunk mains cleaning system and we are now starting to see the fruits of our labour. Last year was quite a year for us and to start 2011 with another contract win is excellent.”

For more information on Fastfl ow please visit www.fastflow.co.uk

The innovative Fastfl ow system in operation

New contract cleans up

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SEVERN TRENT SERVICES


Global perspective - local solution

Quite rightly, the industry is under pressure to respond to these increasing challenges, whilst recognising the cost demands facing both suppliers and end-users. Understanding they are a respected global player, Severn Trent Services’ customers can choose from an extensive range of water and wastewater solutions to meet their regulatory, environmental and fi nancial commitments.

Having a global perspective helps. Taking a world-view means we can use ideas and solutions that are proven to work in one part of the world and apply this expertise in another. Severn Trent Services have over 25 years of international experience and is able to draw on a signifi cant range of innovative solutions to meet the most diverse customer needs. Being part of a £2 billion FTSE 100 company, which also comprises one of the U.K’s leading suppliers of water and sewerage services, means we have extensive expertise on the complete water management cycle.

Having a complete water cycle viewpoint means we can develop innovative ideas based on best practices and tried and tested techniques. In fact, we have an extensive research and development capability that ensures our focus is maintained on developing the most effective and energy effi cient products, from conception to launch, and we have invested heavily in developmental activities. Several exciting projects have resulted from our new product development programme including:

■ The BALPURE® ballast water management system, an electrolytic disinfection ballast water treatment system

■ The innovative MicroDynamics® microwave UV system, a proprietary electrodeless UV disinfection solution offering operational, health, safety and cost advantages over other technologies

■ New environmental analysis techniques, including analysis to meet the latest UK Chemical Investigations Programme requirements and in-fi eld testing tools for contaminated land analysis

■ With a host of other proprietary ideas in the pipeline.

Of course, the enormity of meeting industry challenges should not detract from the equally important focus of meeting local promises and needs. We recognise that the best customer partnerships are those in which Severn Trent Services, as the service provider, are as committed to a customer’s project and objectives as the customers are themselves. As such, we are focused on supporting them to meet their own targets and adapt our ways of working accordingly. For example, Severn Trent Services recently opened offi ces in the Middle East and China to support local and global customers. Customers with international contracts fi nd our

global presence a vital component in meeting their own customer promises; however, all our customers, no matter how large or small, can be assured of a local service.

Severn Trent Services are respected worldwide for our knowledge and performance in operating water and wastewater assets for our customers. This is testament to the contracts and partnerships in which we are engaged. Yet, as our 3,000+ employees worldwide know, we are committed to developing new solutions and garnering global respect for our management of our world’s most precious resource. As the challenges faced by our industry continue, we will be working to infl uence all stakeholders, from local authorities and contractors to end-users, towards the sustainable use and management of water and wastewater.

For more information on our products and services visit www.severntrentservices.com

Climate change. Population growth. Water scarcity. Increasing regulatory requirements. These are all well-known issues facing our industry today. Delivering excellent water and wastewater service to end-users is the minimum that customers expect.

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Diane McCreaChair, Consumer Council for Water, Wales

Diane has run her own consultancy business since 1997 working on food and consumer affairs mainly on the policy and regulatory aspects of consumer food issues in the UK, EU and internationally. Before this she was Head of Food and Health Research at Consumers’ Association (now Which?). Diane was appointed Chair of CC Water, Wales, in October 2005 and was reappointed for four years in 2009.

John Mowbray Director of Corporate Affairs, Northumbrian Water

John’s responsibilities include all aspects of external and internal communications, marketing, media and public relations and corporate responsibility for Northumbrian Water, which includes an extensive community programme. He also chairs the Northumbrian WaterAid Fundraising Committee.

Claire RileyHead of Strategic Communications, NHS Strategic Health Authority

Claire works closely with local health organisations and the Department of Health to deliver strategic communication and social marketing to the north east, alongside managing the reputation of NHS North East.

Julian DennisDirector of Compliance and Sustainability, Wessex Water

Julian is a microbiologist and studied for his PhD while with the Public Health Laboratory Service at the Centre for Applied Microbiology and Research at Porton Down before joining Thames Water in 1988, where he was appointed chief scientist in 1999. Julian joined Wessex Water in 2003 where he was appointed Director of Environment, Science and Sustainability the following year.

Ian LimbHuman Resources Manager, Portsmouth Water

Ian started his career at Portsmouth Water as a 16-year-old accounts clerk responsible for opening the post! Now he works as the Human Resources Manager and has been in the fi eld of Personnel since 1997. Ian’s main interest and most rewarding part of his job is the development of individuals and the role Personnel can play in helping people maximise their potential. Ian is a member of the Institute of Water’s Engineering Board.

Professor Jeni Colbourne MBE Chief Inspector, Drinking Water Inspectorate

Jeni has over 35 years experience in the water industry and throughout her career the theme has been incorporating understanding of water quality and health into engineering standards and practice. As a Senior Operations Manager with Thames Water, Jeni was responsible for the supply of safe drinking water to a population of 5.5 million in SE England, including London. Jeni was appointed to her current role in 2003.

Ronnie MercerChair, Scottish Water

Ronnie’s experience includes Vice President for Operations at Scottish Power and, before that, Managing Director of Southern Water. Scottish Water describe Ronnie’s expertise and experience as ‘vital in helping us provide all our customers with the great, cost-effective service they currently enjoy’.

Nigel Annett Managing Director, Dwr Cymru Welsh Water

Nigel has been an Executive Director of Glas Cymru since April 2000 and of Dwr Cymru (Welsh Water) since May 2001. He was a Director of Welsh Water between 1992 and 2000, prior to which he held various investment banking positions.


lth Research at Consumers’ i t d Ch i f CC W t

with Thames Water, Jeni ki t t l ti

and most rewarding part of

May this year will be very special! It will see two bank holiday weekends; the FA Cup Final; Europeans dancing in garish costumes (the Eurovision Song Contest) and most importantly the Institute of Water Annual Conference and Exhibition!

‘FOR THE HEALTH OF THE NATION: SECURING, MAINTAINING AND COMMUNICATING THE VITAL WATER SERVICES THAT POWER OUR COMMUNITIES’

Our fl agship event will take place in the coastal City of Swansea from 12-14 May at the Liberty Stadium. Home of Swansea City FC and the Ospreys rugby team, this world-class multi-use stadium is the premier venue for conferences and events in South West Wales.

Our charismatic incoming President Nick Ellins has attracted high profi le industry and public

health speakers to discuss the key strategic, engineering and human resource challenges that we as an industry face, how we can maintain the achievements made to date and what must be done to successfully communicate the value of water and the companies that provide it to our communities.

WHY ATTEND?As an attendee at the Institute of Water Conference 2011 you will:

Hear from industry leaders the challenges that are facing the water sector and what changes will be needed to address them.

Learn more on how to be effective in communicating the vital public health role that the water sector delivers for society each day.

Better understand the scale of the sector you are part of and better appreciate the many roles and responsibilities within it.

Gain an understanding of how customers perceive the water industry and what is needed to develop their sense of value.

Build an awareness of the skill-sets and organisational capabilities that are now needed in water companies and the vital supply chain.

Have the opportunity to share knowledge by building and maintaining professional contacts.

See tangible examples of industry innovation, including the presentation of the National Innovation Awards.

Find a friendly introduction to the water industry, meeting the top people in a relaxed environment with support from local Institute of Water Committee members.

Be part of the 30th Anniversary of the industry’s charity WaterAid.

Have the most cost-effective personal development experience.

Who’s Who at the 2011 Conference?A Glance at Some of the Speakers

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2011 CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION PREVIEW

Young SpeakersThe professional speakers will be joined by Giles Booth (Hyder Consulting), Craig Murray (Scottish Water) and Lucy Johnson (Portsmouth Water). The Young Speakers’ slot is now a regular feature of our Conference, offering a different perspective to our chosen themes and demonstrating an invigorating passion for the industry they serve.

The ExhibitionThe exhibition is a great opportunity for delegates to discover the latest developments in the industry as they discuss with exhibitors how they can potentially help their business with their latest innovations. If you are exhibiting then it’s a great opportunity to increase your brand awareness to a wide range of water industry personnel and an excellent way to network and meet and get to know your potential customers.

For more information on the exciting exhibition and sponsorship opportunities please contact Clare Haddon on [email protected] or 0191 422 0088.

AwardsWinning an award can boost your profi le with customers and colleagues, so celebrate your excellence by entering for the 2011 Business Skills Awards. Now in their ninth year, the Business Skills Awards will be presented during the Conference at the President’s Dinner on Friday 13 May 2011.

All shortlisted entries will be invited to join Energy & Utility Skills at the Dinner at Brangwyn Hall, where the winners will be presented with their trophies in a prestigious ceremony, surrounded by senior fi gures from the water industry.

We also have the winners of our regional Innovation Awards striving to become the fi rst winner of our National Innovation Award.

We will also be presenting the much sought-after President’s Cup and the fi rst ever Chair’s Award!

SOCIAL PROGRAMMEIf you have never attended an Institute of Water Conference before you may be unaware of the

success of our partnered social programme. Here is a taster of what this year’s social programme will offer:

President’s DinnerThe 2011 President’s Dinner will be held at the impressive Brangwyn Hall, a venue no stranger to the spotlight having hosted the BBC’s Welsh National Orchestra and appearing in the popular television show ‘Doctor Who’.

In 2011 the Hall will host the Institute of Water President’s Dinner and if you are only going to attend one gala dinner this year let this be the one. The President’s Dinner is a lavish, black tie event which brings together a delicious local-based dinner with excellent live entertainment. The evening will commence with a drinks reception against the musical backdrop of the 32-piece Welsh group ‘The Phoenix Choir’ who will then treat us to their unique take on popular songs such as Take That’s ‘Rule the World’ and Frank Sinatra’s ‘Mack the Knife’ as well as more traditional Welsh songs . After a delicious dinner prepared by Midshire Caterers, (shortlisted in ‘Which Good Food Guide’ 2011), we celebrate the successes recognised by our Annual Awards. Once your stomach has settled, Funky Buddha’s specially designed set will get you dancing right from the fi rst song and probably right until the end when the lights come on.

Nick Ellins’ guests for this event include a range of high profi le fi gures from the water industry so if you want to rub shoulders with senior industry personnel then this is the event to attend!

Saint Gobain PAM EveningEveryone likes a bit of mystery and surprise and the Saint Gobain PAM Evening delivers just that. For an attendance fee of £10 (which is donated to WaterAid) attendees will be well fed, watered and provided with an evening of great entertainment. The catch is we don’t tell you any more details.

An evening too good to miss and always a sell-out!

Saturday TripThe Local Area Day showcases the beautiful landmarks of your hosting area. The destination for this year’s day is the popular St Fagan's, a late 16th-century manor house, perfect for learning

more about Welsh traditions and lifestyles.

Be part of all this and join us by registering your attendance today! Please contact Clare Haddon on [email protected] or 0191 422 0088 or alternatively access the event page on our website to learn more. Why not give us your feedback on the line-up for 2011 or refl ect on your favourite parts of past Conferences with other members? Log-in to the Water Network today!

EVENT HIGHLIGHTS

‘By attending the event I was able to gain knowledge and information that I would not normally be privy

to.’

‘The conference has given me a massive boost in my confi dence in pursuing professional registration as I now know that there is a great

support network within the Institute enabling me to do so.’

‘Great social and professional networking opportunities. It’s a

wonderful opportunity to meet the best in sector and learn from their

wealth of experience.’

‘Great range of speakers in tune with topical subjects helping provide

me with awareness on the latest developments in the industry.’

‘I had a brilliant time at the Conference and felt it well worth the

attendance fee.’

‘I now have a renewed enthusiasm for and understanding of the water

industry.’

What did delegates from our 2010 Conference say?

President’s Cup Winners 2010, South East Area. President’s Dinner 2010 Saint Gobain Night Venue 2009: St James' Park, Newcastle Upon Tyne

Saint Gobain Venue 2010: The Harland & Wolf Shipyard at the Thompson Dry Dock and Pumphouse where the most famous ship in the world Titanic was built.

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Cardonald College Glasgow has over 35 years experience in providing training to industry and individuals across the globe.

Since 1990, Cardonald College Glasgow has been the only UK provider of an accredited HNC Water Operations course. Previous contracts have included Anglian Water, Bristol Water, South West Water and Scottish Water with over 600 successful students to date and over 100 in the process of completing it.

HNC Water Operations is a two year course specifically designed for water industry and is delivered by the tutors at a convenient location of your choice.

The HNC Award consists of 12 credits:

Year 1 UnitsWater Resources Water Quality ManagementWater Industry Structure

Water Treatment Processes

Delivery The Outreach HNC is delivered over two years in the following format:

Year 1: Nine two day tutorials plus one induction day and one exam dayYear 2: Eight two day tutorials plus one exam day

Assessment is by project work on the Units with a single exam covering the Unit material

Next course commences in March 2011.

For further information contactDavid Holliday0141 272 [email protected]/ts

HNC WATER OPERATIONS

Year 2 UnitsEngineering Materials & ComponentsWater DistributionWaste Water TreatmentSupervision & ManagementGraded Unit – From Source to Sea

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The Walker Review was launched by Government in summer 2008 and reported in December 2009. Its terms of reference were to examine the current system of charging households for water and sewerage services in England and Wales, assess alternative means and recommend action that should lead to a sustainable and fair system of charging. The report runs to 240 pages and, with some exceptions, is a comprehensive account of the issues associated with charging for water - it is recommended as good introductory reading for anyone joining the industry or becoming interested in how its activities can and should be fi nanced by domestic customers.

The report’s length and detail refl ect the process of its production in which, very painstakingly, the Review team sought inputs from stakeholders by inviting comments, seeking meetings, organising workshops, sharing drafts, etc. Its length may be seen by many as the result of an unwritten objective for the Review, not only to provide a rounded review of water charging, but also to reach conclusions that would mean all things to all men and cause no diffi culties for Government.

While this objective weakens the Review, its strengths have saved it from becoming a pious and worthy report which gathers dust on everyone’s shelf. It has been effective and two provisions of the Flood and Water Management Act that received Royal Assent in April 2010 have begun to implement its conclusions. The Act was one of the last decisions of the previous Government and was urgently needed to deal with the UK’s shortcomings in its governance of fl ood management and control. The inclusion of two of the Walker Review recommendations, whether good or bad, is remarkable since:

the original Government intention in setting up the Walker Review in 2008, as well as a review of

competition, had indeed been to prepare for a new Water Act; and

all intentions in this regard were dropped in the interest of speed once it was clear that the two reviews would not report in time for a bill on anything other than fl ooding to be properly debated in advance of the general election.

The Walker Review includes a description of the water industry in England and Wales and covers a number of issues, such as:

Fairness in charging - with support for charging according to use together with the wish that water charges should be affordable for low income customers - two largely contradictory objectives

Metering - with the welcome recognition that the current dual system - where charges may be based on water use measured by meter, or on rateable value - is not fi t for purpose anymore; the country must move towards comprehensive metering decisively but at a measured pace that refl ects the cost of metering compared to the value of the water saved; there also is the logical and effi cient recommendation that meters should preferably be installed at the boundary of a property, where the owner’s responsibility for supply pipes and associated leakage begins

Tariffs - with interesting discussions of various forms of tariffs and the conclusions that forms of tariff that address affordability problems require information (household occupancy, income) that water companies do not have and, in any case, such tariffs would not reduce affordability problems suffi ciently

Water effi ciency - with recommendations for water effi ciency campaigns and, very usefully, for a change in the Ofwat regulatory regime so that operational expenditure by water companies to improve water effi ciency is rewarded as well

as capital expenditure; however, the Review is misguided in its belief that water effi ciency could signifi cantly reduce bills for low income customers

Water value - with the suggestion that it could often give raw water at the abstraction stage a higher value than that measured by the current Environment Agency abstraction fees; it is an interesting concept which has also been raised in the context of water competition but the Review does not attempt to defi ne or evaluate it; had the Review provided an analysis, it would not doubt have been interesting; the Review also omits to consider the implication for affordability of raising the cost of raw water

High bills in the South West region - with a welcome analysis of the extent of the problem and its causes, which the Review assigns squarely to the circumstances of privatisation, when the South West was left with a much greater proportion of its required investments still to be made; the Review also discusses solutions, which it thinks might require Government action and fi nancial transfers from the rest of the country

Highway drainage - with support in principle for an application of the polluter pays principle; it would give local highway authorities incentives to minimise the cost of highway drainage by making them responsible for its costs but, in fact, the Review gives muted support only to passing this responsibility to local highway authorities. The Review supports the transfer to local authorities of the cost and responsibility of any new connection to water companies’ sewers

Debt - The Review argues successfully that the debt burden in the water industry has become intolerable - water debt is three times more than energy debt but water bills are three times smaller. A welcome result of the Review is a clause in the new Flood and Water Management

By Jeanne Golay

The Independent Review of Charging for Household Water and Sewerage Services

Jeanne Golay was Economic Regulation Adviser at Water UK when the Walker Review took place. She led the water industry work of providing extensive assistance to the Review and responding to its various reports. She is now Head of Regulatory Policy at the Offi ce of Utility Regulation in Guernsey. The following comments express her personal views.

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FEATURE:THE WALKER REVIEW

Act giving landlords an obligation to advise water companies of their tenants so that water companies can charge them; if a landlord fails in this duty, he becomes responsible to pay his tenants’ water bills directly. This is an amendment for which the water industry fi rst campaigned during the passage of the previous water bill and it is a positive result that it achieved inclusion in the new Act.

On its core objective of recommending methods to improve the affordability of bills, the Review circles around the topic, provides analyses, suggests marginal improvements but, eventually, avoids the two main causes of the problem. The affordability of water and sewerage bills is an issue because:

(1) bills are too high, which is a direct result of an environmental policy in which water companies

are made to carry out improvements on behalf of many polluters other than water customers and;

(2) Britain has an uneven distribution of income.

These are matters for a Government to address but the Walker Review seems to be looking for solutions within the water industry only. As a consequence, and while the Review has usually consistently supported the principle that water charges should refl ect costs, its conclusions led to a provision in the new Act which allows Ofwat and water companies to take money from some customers in order to reduce the bills of others - an unfair ‘stealth tax’.

This may be a small price to pay. Faced with calls for further distancing water bills from the services customers receive - by equalising charges across the country - the Review takes a fi rm stance in favour of the continuation of regional charges,

different from one water company to the next. In so doing, it recognises features of the water industry that make it very dependent on the geographical environment in which it operates, with the result that the costs of providing water services genuinely differ across the UK.

The Review recognises the costs associated with the location of water industry customers, a factor of which other sectors, and society generally, are also becoming aware - be it the costs of locating sources of electricity away from where customers live, or the cost of ensuring the provision of postal services in rural communities. In its treatment of this issue, as with other ones, the Walker Review touches on topics that have a bearing not just for the water industry. For this reason, it is making an important contribution to our understanding of public policy and services.

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Well yes. But all around the world it seems somehow more diffi cult than that. Never mind water riots in Bolivia or the Philippines, we need look no further than Northern Ireland to see how charging for water can be a political trial. Securing a revenue base, by charging a fair amount for providing water services, is in many senses, the cornerstone of sustainability. We simply can’t have secure, reliable services without the money to invest and to pay operating costs. And ultimately we can’t sustain that fl ow of money without customers’ support. This is the social side of sustainability.

Water just isn’t any old commodity. The man on the Clapham omnibus, staring out of the window contemplating his water charges, wonders why he has to pay so much for water, when so much of it seems to fall involuntarily on his head (make that an open top bus…). And he wonders what on earth his water supply has to do with cleaning up beaches or rivers. Then there is the problem of choice – or rather the lack of it. Most of us can’t choose where to get our water services. Yet we can, and nearly everyone does, have an opinion about water.

On top of that there are the peculiarly British circumstances and compromises we have inherited – like the fact that in England and Wales we mostly pay for our water services according to rateable value - a tax rating instrument that was last properly updated in 1973. This is before many of today’s bill payers were even born!

Most developed countries take metering as the basis of water charging more or less for granted.

But not here in Britain, where consumers and politicians are hugely sensitive about privatised monopolies imposing meters.

And, of course, privatisation itself. In many ways we know it’s been a huge success, delivering

higher standards, and improved effi ciency. But that, seemingly, doesn’t guarantee approval in the popular mind. Consumers often have a natural scepticism about the water industry. The folk memory of 1990’s droughts, hosepipe bans and

utility pay scandals persists. And, if you listen at focus groups, this still affects the perceptions and politics of metering. Perhaps our political reluctance to force the pace of metering shouldn’t be surprising.

So enter Anna Walker in 2009, at the behest of the previous administration, to review water and sewerage charging for households. Her report did an excellent job in showing the importance of getting charging right and in comprehensively identifying the challenges. A central message was that, while we can claim many successes in the post-privatisation era, we cannot take consumers for granted. Yes, charging should encourage us all to use water effi ciently, particularly as our climate changes. But equally consumers need to feel that they are being treated fairly, and we need to do more to make water services affordable for some groups of customers.

The range of issues discussed in the report, from managing the burden of debt in the sector to high bills in the south west of England showed that we have no room for complacency. So while, superfi cially, we have a system of charging that is doing the basic job of recovering costs, change is needed to genuinely safeguard sustainability in all senses of the word. This means social sustainability in the sense of commanding the confi dence of consumers and being seen to be legitimate, as well as environmental and economic sustainability in terms of price signals.

For Ofwat the challenges that Anna Walker raised go to the heart of our duties to consumers. So in 2010 we kicked off a range of work under our

Charging towards sustainability?

By George Day, Director of Future Water Charging, Ofwat

ain, where consumers and ly sensitive about privatised g meters.

atisation itself In many ways

utility pay scandals persists. And, if you listen at focus groups, this still affects the perceptions and politics of metering. Perhaps our political reluctance to force the pace of metering shouldn’t b i i

THE WALKER REPORT AND FUTURE WATER CHARGING

Why is charging for water such a tricky issue? Shouldn’t it be straightforward? Simply tot up the costs of running a water utility and divide it fairly among your customers, n’est-ce pas?

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FEATURE:THE WALKER REVIEW

Future Water Charging project, to map out how regulation needs to change to deliver sustainable water charging.

A key example is the transition to metering. Walker challenged Ofwat to ‘assume proactive leadership in this transition’. We recognise how that challenge chimes with our duties to consumers, and to long term sustainability. So, for example, we’ve been working closely with Southern Water, the fi rst big company in England and Wales moving to near universal metering, to ensure that consumers are placed at the centre of how this transition is managed. This means properly understanding how different types of households are going to be affected, listening hard to customers’ concerns and being sensitive to them in designing all aspects of the programme’s ‘customer experience’. One key aspect of this work has been the design of tariffs for consumers who need help to manage the transition from rateable value charges onto metered charges.

Anna Walker also recommended that Ofwat could do more to build understanding of affordability issues, advise on measures to address it and ensure that companies are playing their part to help those who need it. Shortly we’ll be publishing analysis we have done over the past few months on the size and shape of the affordability challenge across England and Wales. We’ve used the Offi ce of National Statistics’ Family Resources Survey data to understand the impacts of water charges on different types of households across all companies. This kind of information should provide a better basis for making any new policy and designing social tariffs to help with affordability.

So the Walker report has changed things for Ofwat, and we recognise that as regulator we need to be more consumer-focused. And so, too, do water companies. The challenge is to deliver a modern sustainable (and more fully metered) service that encourages consumers to value water and charges them in a way that is not only fair but is seen to be fair. Companies will need to focus more fully on the needs and perceptions of the real, complicated and all-too-human consumers that they serve.

The range of issues discussed in the report, from managing the burden of debt in the sector to high bills in the south west of England showed

that we have no room for complacency. So while, superfi cially, we have a system of charging that is doing the basic job of recovering costs, change is needed to genuinely safeguard sustainability in all senses of the word.

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WEG


A specialist team from Drain Center, part of Wolseley UK, has helped Bartlett Contractors to successfully divert a section of a strategic iron water main for Southern Water nine days ahead of programme.

The construction of a new relief road to bypass the busy A299 in Kent meant that Southern Water needed to divert one of its 500mm diameter ductile iron water mains. Bartlett Contractors was chosen to manage and implement all aspects of the pipe line construction and installation from initial land consultation through to supply and the delivery of the commissioned pipe line.

As part of the Southern Water Framework Agreement, Drain Center’s specialist utility team provided ductile iron pipe, fi ttings and sluice valves to Bartlett. As part of the Wolseley Group, as well as supplying the materials, Drain Center was able to provide equipment hire and training, offering a complete single source supply.

Neil Elliott, project manager for Bartlett Contractors, comments: “The option to hire the McElroy 630 track star welding machine was an

added advantage as Drain Center was able to offer on-site training and back up from a dedicated team of technicians.

“The team at Drain Center was able to offer a very high standard of technical support and back up, as well as being able to supply the specially fabricated pipes and fi ttings at short notice without causing delay to our programme. In fact, with their assistance, we were able to programme and complete an important section of the diversion of the water main nine days earlier, which meant that the main contractor was able to access the underpass construction ahead of programme.”

Ben Dudley from Drain Center adds: “I’m proud that the expertise of our specialist team helped Bartlett and the main contactor to get ahead of programme on a particularly diffi cult section of the scheme where timing was of paramount importance. At Drain Center, we understand the specialist nature of utilities and civil engineering projects and develop bespoke solutions to meet our customers’ needs.”

Drain Center has 80 branches across the UK, 15 of which are specialist utility branches. For more information visit www.draincenter.co.uk/civil-engineering-utilities.aspx

Bartlett Contractors has over 35 years of practical experience of delivering cost effective contracts varying from small civils projects to large pipe lines, coupled with soil rehabilitation to offer the complete package.

PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION FINISHED AHEAD OF SCHEDULE

Vergas Limited specialises in the design, manufacture, installation and commissioning of high-quality double-membrane fl exible gasholders, both as ground installations and digester roofs. The company uses the highest quality ‘precontraint’ materials available anywhere, and has proven expertise on over 100 installations worldwide.

The Vergas gasholder has been designed with the operator in mind, and has full manway access for inspection without de-commissioning. An operator with BA equipment can inspect all parts of the structure from our ‘safe zone separation chamber’, created between the membranes by our double foundation design.

The crucial inner membrane is constructed and tested in one piece in the factory, without the need for vulnerable site-sealing of any part of the gas containing envelope. The gas containing inner membrane is separated from the outer foundation ring, and is safely secured separately within our system.

Very accurate level readings and signal outputs over the entire range of gas contents is enabled by our level-stabilization system. Made in the UK, using UK analysis and modelling software, and with full control over all quality-assurance processes, this product is considered by many to be second to none.

Vergas Limited also offers a full gasholder and biogas system inspection, maintenance and service, on any type of membrane gasholder.

Vergas Limited. The Buckman Bldg, 43 Southampton Rd. Ringwood. Hants. BH24 1HE.

United Kingdom Holland U.S.A. Abu Dhabi Turkey

Call Richard Cherry or Nigel Townley-Berry +44 (0) 1425 463203 email: [email protected] www.vergas.co.uk

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UV disinfection specialist Berson has helped the town of Carnation in Washington State, USA create an innovative, environmentally conscientious way of dealing with wastewater, using Berson’s InLine 7500+ UV systems.

Carnation, a community of about 1,900 residents, has never used a central sewage system, relying instead upon individual septic tanks and drainage fi elds to handle its wastewater disposal needs. However, soil surveys conducted in 1987 revealed that the city’s current wastewater disposal method had become insuffi cient for the growing population’s needs and continued usage of the current system posed a contamination threat to the local unprotected aquifer. Carnation anticipated its future growth and recognised the associated health and environment problems that could come without a more developed wastewater system.

To deal with this issue, Carnation worked with offi cials from King County to develop plans for a new sewage system and wastewater treatment facility. Offi cials chose to integrate a Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) system with UV disinfection technology to ensure that the treated water would be clean and environmentally safe. Reclaimed water would then be discharged to the nearby 24 hectare Chinook Bend Natural Area to foster growth of wildlife and restore the wetlands. The resulting facility was awarded the “Small Project of the Year Award” at the 2008 WateReuse Symposium in Dallas, Texas.

To fi nd UV disinfection equipment suitable for this application, King County turned to Berson (through its US sister company). Berson provided two parallel InLine 7500+ UV units installed in-series after the MBR system. The units are closed vessel, which allows them to fl ange directly to the piping from the MBR. Each UV unit is capable of treating large volumes of water, with one unit

treating up to 5.3 million litres per day, with the second unit providing back-up treatment. The system utilises Berson’s medium pressure, high intensity lamps to provide a compact footprint for disinfection. The InLine systems are low maintenance, with automatic mechanical cleaning to keep quartz sleeves surrounding each UV lamp deposit free.

The Carnation wastewater plant’s discharge is Class A, the highest quality level of reclaimed water recognised by the state of Washington. Water is released into Chinook Bend Natural Area throughout the year, except during maintenance periods when output can be switched to the nearby Snoqualmie River.

According to Carnation wastewater plant supervisor, Dan Zimmer, the UV equipment’s performance has met expectations producing reclaimed water for the facility without any permit violations. In May 2010, after two successful years of operation, the automatic cleaning system had worked fl awlessly and the UV lamps only required a single change. “The UV equipment at the Carnation site has performed well, requiring minimal maintenance. I would recommend Berson’s closed vessel UV systems to another plant,” said Zimmer.

* DVGW (German Technical and Scientifi c Association for Gas and Water) is the body responsible for industry self-regulation in the German water and gas and water supply industry and its technical rules are the basis for safety and reliability.

** USEPA UV Disinfection Guidance Manual (UVDGM). The validation certifi es the use of the systems for the Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2ESWTR).

*** National Water Research Institute (www.nwri-usa.org) / American Water Works Research Foundation (www.waterresearchfoundation.org).


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Despite what may have been a rushed pre-election launch by the then government and the promise to “look again at the route”, the change in administration brought no change in route (other than its optimisation). Following public consultation, to begin in February, the route - if chosen - would eventually be approved by a Hybrid Bill which the government is aiming to enact during this parliament.

The concerns outlined here are limited to the design and pre-consultation period. By examining HS2’s approach to groundwater resources during this crucial period, can improvements be made to protect this resource in the light of the new challenges facing the water industry?

Potential Damage to the AquiferHS2 has recently been described as having done “an astonishing amount of work, to a very high quality, to an incredibly tight timescale” in an article which, in fact, is otherwise critical of the scheme (Chris Stokes, Modern Railways, October 2010). Transport Secretary Philip Hammond has described the route as “practical”. Others have referred to it as a “pencil-line” between West London and Birmingham: the shortest route has been put forward in the belief that it is the most sustainable and least costly. In following a NW/SE orientation it travels through the Chilterns in a river valley – the Misbourne - which lies in the same orientation.

If the proposed route goes ahead, a 9.6km twin-bore tunnel would be excavated through types of chalk (Seaford Chalk and Lewes Nodular Chalk) that are the principal aquifer formations of the area and produce water for public supply to a large area of the northwest Home Counties. The tunnel will be well within the water table. In a recent appraisal* chalk geologist Dr Hayden Bailey states “the potential for damage to the aquifer and pollution of the water system cannot be underestimated or ignored”. Vertical joints and fractures within the chalk “are highly unpredictable meaning that tunnelling operations could easily breach the aquifer causing long term damage.” He explains that water-related concerns over the high-speed line are: potential damage to the aquifer system; pollution of the main supply system to northwest Home Counties area; potential for long-term damage to part of London’s supply; the total loss of surface water fl ow in the river Misbourne.

The Developer’s ReportHS2’s own report runs to some 247 pages. Despite HS2 recognising its proposed route presents “major risks” to groundwater, such scant reference that there is, is effectively “buried”:

■ Rather than describing the nature of the major risks to groundwater their existence is simply mentioned.

■ The existence of major risks is referred to in the body of the 247-page text but omitted from

HS2’s Executive Summary - precisely that part of a report to which a busy Minister might be expected to turn.

■ Rather than risks to groundwater being located where they might be expected - the Environmental and Sustainability Impacts in HS2’s Report – they are found in “Quality of Life” in the Business Case chapter.

■ In a one-page discussion on “The Effects of Tunnelling” there is no reference to the potential effects on groundwater.

■ In a colour-coded map of the “Key Sustainability Features” impacted along the proposed route, HS2’s map omits the UK’s principal aquifers.

HS2’s Appraisal of Sustainability Design Guidance HS2’s Sustainability Design Guidance - produced by independent consultants - directed its engineers on environmental features to take into account during route design. As the Department for Transport states, it is the DfT’s WebTAG which is the guidance which “should be seen as a requirement for all projects/studies that require government approval”. Predictably, WebTAG recognises that an aquifer providing potable water to a large population is an attribute of the highest possible importance when designing a transport route.

HS2’s Approach: Does it Protect Groundwater Resources?By Marilyn Fletcher B.Sc. Ph.D.

High Speed Two Ltd (HS2) was set up by the previous government in January 2009 to develop proposals for a high-speed rail line between London and Birmingham. HS2’s Report was published two months before the general election and its preferred route became the Labour government’s proposed route.

Eurostar in Kent picture Chilterns Conservation Board

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FEATURE:HAVE YOUR SAY

Bailey states that residents “need approximately 30Ml/d of water to satisfy current requirements and it is up to water companies to meet this demand….. Already half of the water needs of the area have to be derived from outside the Misbourne catchment area. Any damage to the aquifer will impact directly and immediately onto the water supply which is already under pressure.”

“Should public supplies to the Misbourne catchment be compromised by HS2 construction, then the loss would have to be made good by imports of water from beyond the Colne catchment. It is diffi cult to imagine over what distance water would have to be transported or piped in, but places like Rutland water or even Wales might have to be considered,” Bailey noted.

High Speed Rail - Command PaperThe Command Paper – the previous government’s response to HS2’s Report - states that HS2 carried out a careful analysis of the sustainability impacts of the proposed route. It lists and describes each concern: noise, air quality, landscape and townscape, heritage, wildlife and biodiversity, soil and land resources (such as farmland), regeneration.

Water resources were omitted: why?

Was it:

a) An oversight because water resources had been marginalised in HS2’s 247-page Report; or

b) Because inclusion in the Command Paper would have necessitated admitting that the proposed route presented major risks to water resources?

Was this omission picked up by the new government?Two years following the formation of HS2 Ltd, nine months after the proposed route was

launched in March 2010 and further optimisation undertaken, the public consultation has been announced. HS2 is currently spending £360,000 each working day. As more money is spent, the proposed route becomes more established.

Worryingly, there is no evidence that the Environment Agency was involved in pre-consultation discussions regarding the proposed route: why?

The Coalition plans to be “the greenest government ever” and appears to place a high value on natural resources. Despite this, at a press conference it apparently stated its commitment to the proposed route before the consultation had begun, thus further increasing the entrenchment of a route that potentially seriously impacts on water resources.

It may be that risks can be limited to an acceptable level, but as Dr Bailey said in a press statement, it is most unlikely HS2 adequately probed the potential impacts when making its recommendations. Should the plans go ahead, there is, at the least, considerable potential for delay and disruption with resultant signifi cant cost implications for a project that relies almost totally on public sector investment.

ConclusionsHS2 tells us it “harnessed the principles of sustainable development” in route design in what is one of the largest UK infrastructure projects ever conceived. However the developer seems to have overemphasised minimising journey times at the potential expense of the immediate determining sustainability factor in southeast England: water.

In the light of HS2, developers’ methods of working can potentially lead to the establishment of a route which threatens assets critical to sustainability. Such methods involve:

■ Adopting an isolated approach during the design stage so that important decisions may be made in the absence of relevant information and experience from organisations such as the Environment Agency. Is it cynical to suggest that it actually benefi ts developers’ plans to have input from the EA only when proposals become more diffi cult to change at the formal consultation stage?

■ Not using required DfT WebTAG guidance in route design can result in omitting important parameters that protect valuable water resources.

■ “Burying” crucial information and omitting it - in reports and the Executive Summary - can obstruct decision-makers’ access to crucial information.

The government has recently cited Victorian railway development as an example to emulate in the drive for the new rail-line. However, sustainability was not an issue in the 19th century. The September 2010 Sub-Committee on Adaptation to Climate Change Report states that decisions on land-use could result in developments that potentially lock future generations into a path that increases their vulnerability to climate change.

The July 2010 Government Economic Service Review of the Economics of Sustainable Development recommends an asset check is undertaken of UK environmental capitals essential to economic and social activity. It warns that impacts on natural resources are potentially large and irreversible. Such assets are deemed “critical”. The review states that the full implications of potentially serious long term impacts of damage and depletion must be made in policy making. A strong sustainability approach is recommended for water resources to ensure suffi cient future stocks.

Defra’s Evidence to the Environmental Audit Committee (21 October 2010) shows that more work is required to embed sustainable development in reporting, governance and decision-making. In what is effectively a major state enterprise, the development of the proposed high-speed railway appears to show Defra’s concerns are valid. If a developer – such as HS2 - utilises all the practices outlined here the compound effect is an increased potential for serious unsustainable outcomes.

* Bailey, H. (2010) Concerns arising from the Geology and Hydrology of the ground underlying the High Speed (HS2) routes through the Chilterns http://www.chilternsociety.org.uk/hs2/paper02.php

Public consultation on HS2 opens in February: should you wish to respond, HS2 Ltd says details will be available on the following websites in due course:

[email protected] and www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/highspeedrail/

About the AuthorRetired member Marilyn Fletcher is a biologist. She was a lecturer at the University of London for 15 years. She is a conservationist and she has been researching the environmental impact of the proposed high speed rail project for one year.

She has recently submitted evidence to the Water White Paper and the Natural Environment White Paper.

Marilyn has a B.Sc. from the University of Sheffi eld and a Ph.D. from the University of London.

HS2’s Design Guidance on groundwater is limited. It omits relevant WebTAG parameters including, crucially, magnitude of impact and attribute quality, scale, rarity and substitutability. These are relevant to the serious, growing challenge to the water industry of population increase and climate change - particularly in southeast England - which are major factors underpinning the 2009 Cave Report.

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SOUTHEASTAREANEWS


The event was organised and chaired by Paul Holton (Committee Member and South East Water Hydrogeologist / Water Resource Planner). Attendees were treated to a very interesting and detailed account of the ‘in’s and out’s’ of borehole drilling by Trevor Muten (Trapajos, Hydrogeology & Water Resources Management Consultancy). It was apparent from Trevor’s talk that there was very little Trevor did not know about boreholes, water resources, and hydrogeology and his presentation gave everyone an excellent grounding in borehole knowledge.

Samantha Ostridge (Senior Environmental Engineer, South East Water) followed Trevor, detailing in depth the environmental work that takes place before, during and after constructing a borehole (and associated works).

After a formal discussion and question period, attendees were given the opportunity to network and ask any further questions whilst going outside to see South East Water’s newest borehole site at Bewl.

Much thanks to Trevor and Samantha for their excellent presentations and ability to answer all of the questions put to them. Feedback following the event has been very positive and all those who were present commented on how knowledgeable Trevor and Samantha were.

Planning and Drilling a BoreholeMembers from all backgrounds of the Industry came to South East Water’s Bewl Water Treatment Works to learn what a borehole is; why we use boreholes and how we drill a borehole.

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SOUTHWESTAREANEWS

By Ian Walker

The Weekend School was held at the beautiful Dartington Hall, near Totnes, whose founders aim to “provide support and inspiration for people and organisations to engage in creative practice and make innovative work that will go on to have a wider infl uence on the world”. Those who attended would probably agree that the Institute of Water successfully took up the challenge.

The technical sessions began with an encouraging message. Ofwat’s Derek Parsons outlined how the regulator has put innovation high up the agenda and is seeking to defi ne ways of incentivising companies to invest more. Consultant Martin Griffi ths reported that the case for a Government funded Water Innovation platform was developing well and Steve Kaye (Innovation Manager for Anglian Water), showed that utilities are already increasing their investment in research and focusing on future needs.

Ted Twell’s (Balfour Beatty Utility Solutions) entertaining video of how repairs to water mains could be done in the future, using remote monitoring and robots, was backed up by current developments in cleaning and inspection technologies. Jon Parr (Sensus Metering) provided “the future is here now” view of Sensus’ iPerl water meters that have no moving parts, linked together with telemetry to provide water suppliers with unparalleled levels of information on their network. Dean Hansford (i2O Water) outlined a sophisticated, and effective, means for automatically reducing pressure (and thereby leakage) with an innovative system that has been taken up in Europe and is now available for the UK. Staying underground, Joe Quarini and Nick Haskins provided further entertainment on ice pigging, a system for cleaning water mains that came from

Bristol University and is now being applied across the UK.

Son Le, MBE (United Utilities) introduced a new European Project, End-o-sludg, that will integrate a range of innovative technologies and systems to convert sludge waste to high quality products for farmers. David Butler (The Centre for Water Systems at the University of Exeter) described another acronym UWOT, a system to optimise sustainable water management solutions, including rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling.

South West Water’s Martin Ross showed how the application of “upstream thinking” and innovative ways of working with farmers and other stakeholders on Exmoor is preventing problems from getting to the treatment works or fl ooding drains. Martin’s commitment to the environment and to developing sustainable solutions was inspirational and showed that innovation is as dependent on people as much as technology. Duarte Tito showed how costs at treatment works can be reduced by application of Aguacure’s innovative Electro Coagulation system whereby coagulant can be delivered to the works as blocks of metal.

Leo Carswell, WRc’s expert in sensors and monitoring, showed how much (and how little) sensor technology has moved in the past 30 years, and challenged us to think what the next 30 years could bring. The Technical sessions were rounded off on Saturday lunchtime by Chris Rockey who took us from Elizabethan water suppliers through to 21st century advanced oxidation and on-line monitoring.

More than 60 delegates and partners enjoyed networking in a social environment, thanks largely to the efforts of committee members Richard

Barton, Frank van der Kleij, Mark Hitchmough and Kevin North and the generosity of sponsors, in particular Bournemouth and West Hampshire Water and South West Water.

The gala dinner included a magician and mind reader that had diners both unable to rise from their seats and falling off in laughter; a combination that will be remembered for many years to come. Kevin North’s wrist watch was fi nally returned to him, but seemed to be permanently fi xed at fi ve minutes past three (he was reminded of this at least twice a day). A raffl e raised £385 for WaterAid and networking continued into the early hours.

The afternoon of the fi nal day brought a leisurely trip down the beautiful river Dart in perfect sunshine and a light breeze, to blow off any headaches. The day fi nished with a short coach trip to what must have been the largest fi reworks display in Devon. The event was rounded off by a relaxing dinner and quiz back at the White Hart at Dartington Hall. Fittingly the winner was the President’s Team.

All those who attended agreed that the Institution had “provided support and inspiration for people and organisations” through an excellent event that many others could have enjoyed. They would be encouraging colleagues to become members.

Presentations from this event are available to members to download from archived events on our website.

Presenters receiving a token of thanks from the President.

Frank van der Klei explains the principles of pigging with an ice bucket.

Getting the best view.

Fireworks and Magic at Weekend School on Innovation

21

1

2

3

3

The recent Week-end School demonstrated not only that innovation in the water sector is thriving, but also that learning about it can be educational and entertaining!

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By Scott McCrae

A group of members braved a wet and windy October Night to attend the new National Air Traffi c Control Centre (NATS) in Prestwick, Ayrshire.

Following security clearance, and accompanied by Stuart Beaton (Systems Engineer), we visited the main viewing gallery overlooking the control centre, with the blinds remaining closed until completion of Stuart’s presentation.

Stuart provided an overview of the control centre followed by a very informative presentation about its construction, completed on time and £9m under budget.

The new centre at Prestwick was constructed to form a two centre strategy for UK airspace (Swanwick and Prestwick), where previously there were four centres (Swanwick, Prestwick, West Drayton and Manchester), with the fi nal transition from Manchester control centre to Prestwick to be completed by January 2010. During the construction phase of the project 43 km of power cable was run together with 420.5 km of data and voice cables.

NATS (Swanwick / Prestwick) handled 2.2 million fl ights in 2009 covering UK airspace, UK Military aerial operations and Oceanic fl ights of 400,000 / annum on 24/7 basis. Stuart provided an insight into low level fl ight paths below 25,000 feet and high level sectors above 25,000 feet, along with the subsequent charging process NATS undertakes via a European charging mechanism, based on the distance aircraft fl y through NATS UK Radar coverage airspace, combined with the weight of the aircraft.

Overall the air traffi c control centre at Prestwick covers 2.84 Million km2 of UK air space, handles

42% of all fl ights in the UK and 1.2 million aircraft / year which is a staggering undertaking.

On completion of the presentation Stuart opened up the screens to the viewing gallery where we got a fantastic ‘birds eye’ view of the air traffi c control centre. As the visit was in the evening air traffi c was light, but we obtained an overview of the three sections, UK Airspace, Oceanic and Military which each operate at dedicated areas within the control centre. Stuart provided information on the transition from the current paper fl ight strip system, recording progress of fl ights, to the new electronic process currently being used by the Military air traffi c controllers.

A comprehensive vote of thanks was passed on to Stuart for taking the time out of his busy schedule to host our high fl ying visit. Thanks to the members who attended this very interesting and educational technical evening.


SCOTTISHAREANEWS

Group picture in viewing gallery with NATS Systems Engineer, Stuart Beaton

Scottish Area Cleared for Take Off!

The Scottish Area held a social event with a difference as a group of fearless members and partners met up at the International Climbing Arena, Ratho, in November. Equipped with nothing more than our wits, we signed our disclaimers, said good bye to our friends and family and set off on our expedition.

Our instructor soon got us kitted out with harnesses, hard hats and climbing shoes then off to the climbing arena for our safety briefi ng. Briefed and ready to go we took it in turns to become accustomed to the smaller walls before moving on to the more challenging ascents.

Adrenalin pumping we pushed on to the higher and more challenging walls where some of the girls showed the lads up with their nimble approach and seemingly effortless climbing techniques (good job girls).

We fi nished our session doing a spot of bouldering where unaided with harnesses and ropes and only the crash mats to cushion our fall, we honed our skills and techniques.

The social event was fun-fi lled, adrenalin-packed and offered something a little different for a Saturday morning.

Thanks to the staff at Ratho for ensuring our safety and allowing us to climb the walls! We hope to see all members next year when we take on the aerial assault (not for the faint hearted).

OH NO – OUR MEMBERS ARE CLIMBING THE WALLS!

What a team – sky’s the limit! Left to right: Elaine Gordon, Craig Murray, Scott McCrae, Bethan Emanuel, Kevin Moffat, Colin Gordon.

569 Tonne Airbus A380 on the same route would be charged £2,464.03 in Navigation service charges to NATS.

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MIDLANDSAREANEWS

By Sarah Williams

Just 6 weeks after opening, Severn Trent Water’s iconic new Severn Trent Centre building in Coventry was host to an exhibition, workshop and seminar focussed on delivering customer and community excellence when undertaking streetworks. The event was delivered in conjunction with the National Joint Utilities Group (NJUG) and the Highway Authorities and Utilities Committee (HAUC).

Once delegates had found the new site and navigated the Automatic Number Plate Recognition System into the car park, few failed to be impressed by the new facilities – the open plan 7-fl oor high atrium and the largest piece of artwork in Europe which spans from the fl oor to the roof of the entire building. Those who adhered to the green travel message and used public transport to reach the site commented that it was remarkably accessible and an easy option.

The event commenced with an exhibition, where 18 companies demonstrated their products and services. Through the afternoon, a Workshop took place for 40 attendees. Dave Turnbull of BT Open reach and NJUG Legal Director opened the fi rst session. He talked about the changed priorities with the new Government and the emphasis on self-regulation, such as performance scorecards

and the National Code of Conduct. This was followed by a session led by Fraser Pithie of Severn Trent Water on the Roadwork promise element of DCCE.

After a break to visit the exhibition, a further 40 attendees arrived, providing a large audience for an evening seminar, expanding on the customer and community excellence theme. Fraser Pithie was joined by Alan Payne (STW General Manager, Asset Delivery) to demonstrate how Severn Trent has begun to adapt its approach to engaging with customers when delivering large capital schemes. They gave a great example of a scheme which required a 12 week road closure of a key route through a small village. Through working with local authorities, businesses and residents it was recognised that this was too disruptive and STW eventually managed to deliver the scheme with a road closure of just 3 days and, thanks to a kindly local publican, the road was even temporarily re-routed through their car park!

Fraser and Alan went on to look at the latest move into applying this approach to emergency works. The key messages of this seminar were to keep the messages simple, relevant and personal to those affected by each scheme. Consult people living and working locally early and understand the emotional impact of the work on them and the consequence of getting it wrong.

Philip Cameron (Streetworks Manager of Gloucestershire County Council and Vice President of JAG UK) then stepped up to discuss whether the Traffi c Management Act had delivered any real benefi ts. He gave some examples of good streetworks schemes carried out in Cheltenham and went on to look at what is around the legislator corner.

Our thanks to all who helped to deliver a very informative and successful day and to trial a great new location, purpose built for this type of event.

Delivering Customer & Community Excellence

By Elise Holmes, Chair CIWEM Midlands New Member Group

Innovation was the name of the game at the third Annual Showcase event, held jointly with the West Midlands branch of CIWEM, in December 2010. This ‘Dragon’s Den’ style event is growing in popularity year on year, with the move to Birmingham city centre’s magnifi cent Council House attracting even more members to come along and vote on the most innovative idea, this year on the theme of ‘effi ciency’. Opened by the deputy Lord Mayor of Birmingham, and hosted by Andy Smith (Severn Trent Water’s Director of Water Services and Midlands Area President), this event was a festive triumph!

Who could forget singing along with Bactest’s ‘Speedy Breedy’, or the hair-raising Smart Sponge demonstration from Source Control Systems? The audience listened to the sounds of faulty and functioning water meters and fl ew through a simulation of Leeds city centre in fl ood, thanks to Arup’s creative use of video game technology. As we moved rapidly through each of the 8 minute presentations, also including pitches from OXEMS

and Proaqua, the speakers didn’t have a second to waste as the giant timer screen counted down and the pressure mounted.

Audience votes were cast, before indulging in nibbles, networking and an opportunity to interrogate the presenters further on their ideas. Third prize went to Uhrig for their Therm Liner heat recovery system for sewer networks. Second place was given to CM Ventures for their Elimbac low carbon disinfectant system, which uses electrolysis to replace UV. In prestigious fi rst place were Rob Stephenson and Simon Tomlinson of Mouchel, presenting the MeterLogiK, a portable handheld device that economically indicates, in real-time, the condition of in-situ water meters. This is a proven technology that enables targeted replacement, thus contributing to lowering the carbon footprint of the water industry.

The 3 top ranking presentations from the audience vote are now automatically shortlisted for the Institute of Water National Innovations Award, to be presented at the President’s Dinner at the National Conference in Swansea.

This event highlights the innovative work being undertaken within the water and environmental management industry, with a focus on a drive for effi ciency being especially pertinent as we all look to be increasingly sustainable in our work. The evening offers all round benefi ts; an opportunity for the presenters to advertise their products, services and expertise directly to professionals working in the industry, and for those professionals to learn about new technologies to implement on projects and take the industry forward.

For the brave, the evening was topped off with mugs of Glühwein at the Frankfurt Christmas Market, with talk already starting about what 2011’s innovations event may offer...!

Innovations ShowcasePhoto courtesy of Monica Infante, Isle Utilities Left to right: Tony Green, (MIWater & MCIWEM) Ian Pemberton, (MIWater & CIWEM Area Chair) and Malcolm Horne (STW)

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NORTHERNIRELANDAREANEWS

On Target By George Irvine

On a wild and windy November evening, brave members took part in s social event that included some target shooting at Carrowdore Shooting Club in County Down.

After some vital instructions and practice rounds a competition was held to discover the sharp-shooters. In the female stakes our Assistant Treasurer Lilian Parkes was narrowly piped at the post by her daughter, while in the male stakes some average shooting was blown away by the clear winner David Bustard: well done to him.

The event was enjoyed by all - even those who had not participated in the sport before – and after some light refreshments we all departed into the bleak weather for a safe return home.

By George Irvine

Jonathan gave the background to the scheme which included:-

■ Water Resources Strategy 2002 and 2007

■ Renewal of Non Compliant Resources including bore wells

■ Scheme to produce 30 ML/day for future supply

After a number of options the approval was given to a scheme to construct 51Km of trunk main, a new Pumping Station at Moy capable of 30 ML/day and a new Service Reservoir at Carland.

The design philosophy was to minimise interference with the existing system, maximum operational fl exibility, minimal environmental impact and to engage with NI Water operational staff.

Rodney outlined the construction challenges and highlights which included:-

■ Tie in at Ballydoogan SR – 800mm diameter

■ Moy Pumping Station Construction in the tight confi nes of the site

■ Carland Service Reservoir Construction in a confi ned site

■ Crossing the Blackwater River

■ Crossing the M1 Motorway

■ Crossing the River Bann and Belfast to Dublin railway line

Directional drilling was used and all the crossings had twin pipes laid for future maintenance. In total 20 km were laid in roads and the 51 km of mains were laid in 12 months.

Commissioning of the scheme commenced at the end of November and will have six stages:-

1 – Ballydoogan to Kilmore

2 – Kilmore to Moy

3 – Moy Pumping Station end of December

4 – Carland SR January 2011

5 – Pumping station at Carland February / March

6 – New supply to Cobra SR

The total cost of the scheme will be around £20m.

After the presentation there was a lively question and answer session after which National President Sam Phillips summed up and thanked Jonathan and Rodney for their excellent presentation.

CHALLENGES IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE CASTOR BAY TO DUNGANNON TRUNK MAINColleagues from the Pipeline Industries Guild joined the area for a presentation by Jonathan Wilson (Capita Simmons) and Rodney Moates (Dawson WAM) on the challenges in the construction of the Castor Bay to Dungannon Trunk main. The presentation, enjoyed by over 50 attendees, included some excellent photographs and videos of the technology used during the contract.

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Mounting snow, frosty winds and an ice-glazed lake greeted delegates as they entered Wyboston Lakes Conference Centre for the Eastern Area Winter Seminar but they were soon warmly welcomed by Area President Jeff Bishop (Operations Director at Veolia Water).

Jeff briefl y touched on the incredible changes the water industry has undergone, from days gone by of “business fi rst” principles to one that is now vigorously driven by a “customer fi rst” attitude. He envisaged that further changes were afoot with the upcoming Periodic Review and questioned how the industry would fare if the next Period Review was a Customer Development Plan rather than an Asset Management Plan.

Keynote Speaker Richard Brimble (Director of Customer Experience at Veolia Water) suggested the industry would not fare well as he divulged results of a UK-wide satisfaction survey of local suppliers ranging from ambulance services to the local chip shop. Utility companies were rated the worst, with hairdressers taking pole position.

Sue Cox (Head of Consumer Policy for Ofwat) followed with advice on what the water industry would need to concentrate on to ensure enough water to fulfi l our needs today, without using resources from future generations. With the UK population predicted to reach 72 million by 2033, it will be no easy task. Many other industries strive and excel under competitive conditions and next year very large water consumers will have a choice in water suppliers. Should all consumers be allowed a choice? Will it work? Could the water industry replicate loyalty cards and reward loyal

customers in the same manner as supermarkets? With the new SIM performance measures concentrating on consumer experience, Sue like Jeff surmised that the industry may well have to consider drastic options.

Andrew Mackintosh (Head of Group Communications for Anglian Water) is about to leave the industry after 22 years service. He gave an interesting account of water through the ages which looked at the formation of earth; a cholera epidemic in London and the colourful adventures of Attila the Hun. Andrew also drew attention to a little known local charity which he supports known as “Drinking Clubs”, a programme to encourage elderly citizens in care homes to drink more water. A simple reminder of the value of water and the diabolical impact it would have if we were unable to provide water of such high standards.

Session 2, Forming Successful Relationships, began with Caroline Hardwick (Senior Consultant at Harding and York) reminding us the importance of good customer service measured by Ofwat’s new grading systems, SIMs (Service Incentive Mechanisms). Caroline suggested that before you make your customers happy, you need to make your employees happy. She said “How your employees feel has a direct impact on how customers feel,” as it is they who deal with clients. It was a lesson for leaders, managers and directors on empathising with and empowering employees and the incredible benefi ts that can be reaped from simply listening to your teams. In times of recession when customers are not willing to or unable to pay, it seems that customers will

fi rst try to pay companies with whom they have had a good experience and formed a positive relationship. That vital customer to company relationship is most often formed by employees who in turn require a good relationship with their own senior management.

Andrew Kluth (Group Sustainability Director of Halcrow) considered customers from the supply chain point of view providing several examples including the Anglian Water Energy Effi ciency Initiative which Halcrow had been involved with for 3 years. Whilst one might have expected that saving £10 million in electricity (and a whole lot more in carbon) was due to the various effi ciency programmes such as waste water and clean water pumping effi ciencies, ultimately it was down to the relationships between the Energy Team and the often hesitant site managers. After all, the working of a water/wastewater treatment site is incredibly complex, and all changes pose risks to current operations even if these changes will ultimately save money, reduce carbon and increase operational performance. Andrew re-iterated the importance of relationships by pointing out that whilst there are many proven energy-saving technologies, gaining the trust of persons whose systems, processes and often predetermined mindsets you wish to change (in this case the site managers), is the greatest challenge of all.

From one challenge to another, Keith Edwards (Independent Consultant in Training and Development) threw open the fi rst Interactive Session with ‘Armed and Ready to Serve’, a highly informative and entertaining session which delved into the fi ner points of call centre calamities, changes in the education systems (NVQs to NQFs), to water companies who have made it from the from the “worst” to the “best” list and those companies who still had a long way to go.

The fi rst day closed with a 3 course meal, wine and laughter, a WaterAid raffl e and prizes galore. All of this and the blues tunes from the jazz troupe provided a perfect atmosphere to network and catch up with colleagues.

Day 2 dawned and was opened by an inspirational Nick Ellins (Deputy Chief Executive for CC Water and Vice President, Institute of Water) who questioned whether customers place a high enough value on water. Customers say that the water industry provides a good service compared with other utility services, yet they will not pay any more for water, but are perfectly happy to pay more for gas or electricity. A cup of high street coffee costs a customer more than they pay for 2.5 tonnes of water, yet the cappuccino has a greater value placed on it than the water. Despite this, customers’ bills have brought in £85 billion to the water industry and it is up to the industry as a whole rather than the individual company to “communicate the value-for-money” of water. Nick suggested the industry needs to “be more emotionally connected with customers” in order to communicate that the price charged for water is more than simply a monetary transaction: it provides life and sustains communities.

The Customer Experience By Mandhy Senewiratne

Some of the Winter School organisers (slightly tired but satisfi ed following the end of a successful Winter Seminar), L-R: Richard Bench, Jeff Bishop, Mandhy Senewiratne, Sharna Richings & Mike Robertson

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EASTERNAREANEWS

Upcoming Instituteof Water AreaEvents at a glance. . .

12 March, Barceló Carlton Hotel, Edinburgh

Scottish Area President’s DinnerDinner and Dancing to the Band “On The Wagon”

12 March, Ravenscar Hotel, Ravenscliff near Whitby

Northern Area President’s Dinner

24 - 26 March, Marwell Zoo, Hampshire

South East Area Weekend School ‘Unlocking Potential’

19 - 21 April, Burn Hall Hotel, York

Northern Area Spring Seminar ‘Inspiring Innovation’

19 - 20 May, Northern Ireland, Hilton Hotel, Templepatrick

“WHEN THE WELL RUNS DRY” Lessons learned from the Freeze Thaw 2010

For full up to date event information visit: www.instituteofwater.org.uk

Homeserve has partnerships with 14 of the UK water companies and David Graham (Director of Partnerships for Homeserve) began the third session by outlining how they offer customers cover for water pipes beyond the stop tap where the responsibility of the water company ends. Without insurance, damaged pipes can be costly and repairs may be carried out by plumbers whose workmanship may not be guaranteed. Homeserve engineers are CRB checked and trained with all work guaranteed.

The next speaker, Rob King, (Customer Service Technician at Veolia Water) said that he “has the urge to give customers a cuddle” when they confi rm they have Homeserve insurance as he is assured that the customer will be looked after with minimal cost. It seemed a session of comparisons as Rob followed similar suite of rather humorous comparisons, between himself and “Bob” an early 19th century Water Inspector, complete with a fetching policemen style uniform, and in the days before the telephone and internet, dropped calling cards door to door informing homes that “Water will be disconnected for works today,” and whose water quality test was simply to drink a glass of it after any works had completed.

John Tizard (Director for Public Centre Partnerships) delivered a paper on “Stakeholder Consultation: what we can learn from others.” John sympathised with the water industry over its sufferance from the public perception that water is a “right to life and should be provided freely”, left over from the days of public services. Not until water runs out will the public truly appreciate the value of water; much like the NHS is generally undervalued, until there is a very large accident and emergency treatment is required.

Jo Parker from the “Future Water Company” whisked delegates off to the future as she considered how the industry would look in years to come and Catherine Waddams (Director of ESRC Centre for Competition Policy University of East Anglia) presented the latest facts and fi gures on consumer behaviour in relation to changing gas and electricity suppliers. Three quarters of consumers have switched at least one fuel. In short Catherine suggested that customer behaviour was diffi cult to predict and unlikely to make sense any time in the near future.

In the fi nal presentation of the day Jim Marshall (Policy Advisor for Water UK), drew attention to increasing poverty levels and considered how the water industry will convince Ofwat to increase prices suffi ciently to cover the cost of rising energy prices and the adoption of private sewers, when such a large percentage of the population struggle to pay at present. This was a perfect precursor to the fi nal interactive session which related to 5 futuristic scenarios set in the year 2030.

The Institute would like to thank Mandhy Senewiratne and Sharna Richings for all of their hard work in delivering such a successful event.

Presentations are available to download from the Archived Events section of the website.

Speakers from Day 1: Keith Edwards, Richard Brimble,

Caroline Hardwick, Andrew Kluth and Sue Cox

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A glitzy, glamorous evening in mid November is always fun, especially when it is the culmination of at least 6 months of hard work. This year our Fifth Innovation Awards ceremony was no exception.


Despite the wet weather our event was very well attended: more than 200 people came along to Cardiff to fi nd out who had won what – and of course to network with friends, those they had met before and new ones they met on the night.

The compere for the evening was our very own, highly entertaining, Wynford Emanuel. Wynford started the proceedings by thanking our visiting guests of honour: Sam Phillips (National President); Nick Ellins (National Vice President); Maureen Taylor (National Chair) and our sponsors for the evening Mike Sibley (D T Civils) and Dwr Cymru Welsh Water.

He then explained to his gathered audience that “Somewhere in the room were three spot prizes (£200 and two bottles of Champers!) - Please look under your chairs to fi nd out if you are a winner!” There was much amusement and excitement while guests located the winning stickers.

Next was the turn of Tim Williams, our Area President, to welcome everyone, and then Dominic Scott, committee member said grace before we all sat down to a lovely three course meal and lots more networking.

Further entertainment was provided by singing waitresses during dinner. More than one guest thought their luck was in when a lovely young lady started to serenade them, and then the penny dropped.

Wynford’s next task was to invite Peter Perry (Executive Director of Operations for Dwr Cymru Welsh Water), to present the Awards.

This year there were fi ve Award Categories plus the Chairman’s Award. The winners are listed below with a short paragraph about their submissions: more details can be found under the Innovation Feature on page 20 - 21

AWARDSCustomer Service & People CategoryWon by Morgan Sindall - Safety Coaches; A Safe Way Forward

The introduction of Safety Coaches at Afan and Cardiff Advanced Digestion sites, has delivered tangible results indicating positive health and safety performance. This, combined with a defi ned approach of engaging the supply chain, has resulted in a robust behavioural based safety programme.

National President Sam Phillips joins Welsh Area Committee

Innovation Awards Night By Carol Cooke

Tim Williams thanks Fiona Jehu and Maureen Taylor Aerial view

Tim Williams with some of the Welsh Water Graduates who attended

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WELSHAREANEWS

Steve is a past Area Chair and supported Simon Williams during his year of offi ce as Area President to implement the Innovation Awards. He was also active in the smooth transition of IWO North and South Wales to one Welsh Area. Steve is still a very active member, even though no longer on Committee, supporting the organisation within his parent company Daniels and attending events whenever possible. Thanks to his determination and persuasion, a team from Wales competed in the Drilling and Tapping competition last year - the fi rst for a number of years.

Dave has been Area Chair for three years. His enthusiasm and devotion to growing the Institute of Water at all levels is recognised by the award of Fellowship, especially working with Tony (O’Shea) in gaining support at Principals level within Dwr Cymru Welsh Water and the continued success of the Innovation Awards. Dave has also set some key initiatives with regard to promoting membership and events. Prior to and after each National Conference he has attended, he sends a letter to all on the Principals Group, outlining the theme and professionalism of the Conference. He has always emphasised the benefi ts of our Institute over and above other professional organisations and will always deliver.

Tony was Area President for three years, having continued in the position whilst Tim Williams was committed to the PR09 submission. He encouraged and supported the Committee during a particularly demanding period with OFWAT submissions and contract reviews, which included his own organisation. Tony has actively promoted the Institute of Water at the highest level on the Principals Leadership Team. He also carried on the Innovation Awards challenge set by Simon Williams and has grown it into a successful and well supported event. It is fi tting that the three Fellows were presented with their certifi cates by Area President Tim Williams at the Innovation Awards Dinner.

Fellow Members (left to right) Steve McElveen, Dave Bayliss and Tony O’Shea with Area President Tim Williams and National Chair Maureen Taylor

Fellowship AwardsThree Members in Welsh Area have been made Fellow Members of the Institute of Water: Steve McElveen; Dave Bayliss; and Tony O’Shea.

Operations Delivery CategoryWon by Welsh Water Waste Services Department - True Grit; the road to reduced landfi ll use and costs

Welsh Water as part of its waste water treatment process currently produces around 1,600 tonnes of grit every year and until recently this grit was sent to landfi ll. Following a trial a 3 year contract, to take grit from the Cardiff and Gwent catchments, was awarded to Neal Soils. This new innovative method of dealing with waste is expected to save the company more than £380,000 over the fi ve year AMP5 period, as well as improving the company’s sustainability status.

Capital Project Delivery CategoryWon by Morgan Sindall - Brook Street, Porth; Project Solution for Unsatisfactory Intermittent Discharges & Surcharge of the Rhondda Valley Trunk Sewer

This project set about improving the water quality of the river Rhondda by dealing with the causes of intermittent pollution of the river. A project solution was found in the form of replacing a combined sewer overfl ow with an additional pipeline and a pumping station. Upon completion benefi ts will be reaped in the form of improvements to water quality, ecology and the environment.

Product CategoryWon by Ashtead Plant Hire Co. Ltd - Auto Tool Hire Unit; the Future of Hiring

The Auto Tool Hire Unit - an unmanned, fully automated unit - is designed to be located at customer sites to provide instant access to a range of tools and other equipment.

This offers both the customer and the supplier an opportunity to dramatically reduce their costs, as well as their carbon footprint, by minimizing the volumes of deliveries, collections, breakdowns and servicing required to support a single location

Process and Systems CategoryWon by AGA2 Project Team - AGA2 Portal Application

AGA2 demonstrates an innovative approach to solving IT challenges, using technology in a new way to help Welsh Water capture, assign and execute operational fi eld activities. This includes; a user friendly single-page solution to a complex process previously disliked by users; remote working capability and; a new link between the SAP Portal (Infozone) infrastructure and Webpro technology.

Chairman’s AwardWon by Waste Process Operations, North Wales - Rattle Pots

Each year the assessors make recommendations for a submission to be awarded the Chairman’s Award. This goes to a team or individual whose application has captured the imagination of the judges.

The Waste Process Operations came up with a simple and cost effective method of de watering sludge prior to treatment by using Rattle Pots. This innovative idea has proved to be both more cost effective and better for the environment.

Throughout the evening raffl e tickets were sold and raised £1,859 for WaterAid. To fi nalise the business side of the evening Maureen Taylor was invited to draw the raffl e.

A very big thank you is extended to all those who entered or judged the submissions, and especially to Fiona Jehu, Wales Area Secretary, Maureen Taylor, National Chair, and Adrienne Walsh, Welsh Area National Forum Member, without whom the event would not have taken place!

AWARDS continued

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By Alastair Tawn

As part of the Area President’s theme of Innovation, the Northern Area organised an ‘Innovation Day’ at Esholt WWTW plant near Bradford to provide a platform to showcase innovation at work across the industry.

Mark Penny (Northern Area President) formally opened the day with his keynote address. Within it Mark talked about inspiring innovation of which he used an example from the space race many years ago. Challenged with the zero gravity of space, America spent millions of dollars inventing a pen that worked in this environment (having said that, the Russians simply used a pencil!). Mark encouraged us all to challenge our own thinking and our own culture to inspire innovation, noting that innovation can happen in any area, be that operational departments, Health & Safety, Customer Service etc. This set the tone for the day.

Throughout the day delegates were able to visit numerous exhibits and engage with the exhibitors to explore and understand the innovations on show. Indeed there were a wide variety of

exhibits from manned poster board displays to real life working exhibits in the grounds of the venue, including a United Utilities tanker that had been specifi cally developed to supply water mains from the tanker barrel to tackle DG3 performance. Some exhibits even included audience participation. Yorkshire Water in conjunction with Guide Dogs for the Blind demonstrated their new collaborative approach for street works training after conventional training methods had failed to improve their compliance scores during audits. This new approach allowed operatives the opportunity to see the world from a different perspective and understand why compliant street works installations are so important. The training in essence became real and signifi cant improvements in compliance scores were subsequently noted.

Two seminars were held during the day with a variety of guest speakers covering innovation at work. There really was something for everyone within these seminars, whether you were interested in water/wastewater operations; getting involved in the community; exploring knowledge transfer partnerships or even making

innovation work within a business environment. One of the topics covered was sludge phyto conditioning which had been put into practice at Esholt WWTW itself which provided delegates a unique opportunity to build on the presentation and see the innovative approach fi rst hand during a site tour; this proved to be very popular.

As midday approached there was not a spare seat in the marquee as four leading fi gures from within the industry took to the stage to talk about what innovation meant to them. Richard Flint (CEO of Yorkshire Water) was the fi rst to take the stage and he duly reminded us all of where we had come from and the achievements that had been made to date in the industry. Richard talked through a graph that depicted a link between improvement in water quality and infant mortality rate which really underlined the importance of the service the industry provides. Richard underlined that we have made some big steps forward using innovative approaches to date and noted that there are a few more to come. His parting comment about innovation was that many years ago the idea of having a running tap in a house was thought to be a ridiculous idea, something

Innovation Day

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we all now take for granted. Linked to this, when school children had been asked to comment on the strategic direction statement for Yorkshire Water, one child drew a picture of their vision of the future for water which depicted a house with its own reservoir on its roof. Richard asked if this really was such a ridiculous idea.

Next to take the stage was Paul Worthington (CIO of United Utilities) who asked the audience: what is the simple meaning of innovation? For him it was ideas put into practice that deliver a positive change. Paul went on to talk through numerous words coupled by their sometimes seemingly opposing meanings but Paul showed that to truly innovate you need a mix of both words. Paul commented that we all have our own strengths, we all favour one of the coupled words over other but it is the pooled strengths of individuals in a team that cover all words that can really deliver the best results.

Speaking after Paul was Ken Oswald (Head of Economic Regulation for Northumbrian Water). Ken defi ned the goal of innovation as being ‘to achieve positive change’ and without innovation we’d keep doing things the same way, getting the same result. Ken stated that innovation isn’t just shiny new things, we also need to analyse business structures and processes and seek innovative approaches there. Ken encouraged the audience to challenge everyone we work with

everyday (even the regulator) to spur innovation, he also commented that there is a need to have the capacity to have unsuccessful attempts; we shouldn’t be afraid to fail when trying to innovate. Ken’s fi nal comment was that more innovation has occurred than at fi rst might meet the eye and we shouldn’t forget that.

Last to take the stage was Mark Worsfold (Head of Asset Strategy for OFWAT). Mark described OFWAT viewing their role as maintaining the fl ow of service to customers and viewing innovation not only as reducing cost but also improving the service to customers. OFWAT are now challenging water and wastewater service providers to bring more innovation to the price reviews. Mark asked everyone to remember as an industry why we are all here: bench-marking ourselves against the industry leaders isn’t good enough - we all need to do the best we possibly can do, all of the time.

As the day highlighted innovation has a key role moving forward, just as it has helped the industry to get to where it is today. The recent Walker and Cave reviews acknowledged the success of the industry over the past two decades improving service levels and quality but, moving forward, the reviews recommend the industry focuses on sustainability, effi ciency, competitiveness, affordability and customer satisfaction. The Cave review suggests that innovation and competitiveness will help deliver improved

service at lower customer cost. Balancing the need for lower costs in a time of changing climate patterns and water scarcity presents new challenges, therefore becoming more effi cient whilst improving service levels will require new approaches. The penalties for not delivering expected performance are now more severe than ever; innovation therefore has a key role to play in helping to deliver to the standards required. Let us not forget it is within us all to innovate - anyone can have an idea - and we all have a role to play in bringing an innovative idea to life. It is also not just up to the water and wastewater service providers, everybody in the industry must innovate so that together we will succeed.

Whilst the innovation day itself was open to all and free to attend, charitable donations were made by each exhibitor to WaterAid which will result in a fantastic fi nal total of over £11,000 being donated to WaterAid in due course. The aim of the day was to create a platform to showcase the best of what is happening within the industry. Organising the day involved a lot of hard work by so many but I’m sure everyone who attended would agree that the day achieved its goals. As a fi nal comment a thank you is conveyed to the organisers, exhibitors and participants for making the day the great success it truly was.


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Keynote Address - Mark Penny, Area President

Working Exhibits

Working Exhibits

Working Exhibits

Richard Flint, Yorkshire Water

Ken Oswald, Northumbrian Water

WaterAid set to receive over £11k

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