Flint, Michigan has become a lightning rod for attention to the financial needs of water infrastructure in the United States. But the financial issue cannot be separated from the needs of proper utility management. The potable water industry was built with a very conservative approach to operations with the protection of public health, and a philosophy of water quality first and foremost.…
Read MoreThe fixed costs in most water utilities (depreciation, labor, amortization, maintenance, taxes, regulatory compliance, overheads, etc.) are far greater than the fixed charge on a customer’s bills. The commodity charge in theory should cover the variable costs of production only (power, chemicals, and residuals) but that creates a high base bill that neither municipalities nor state regulators...
Read MoreMany electric utilities have implemented some type of Outage Management System (OMS) to help manage outage information and restoration efforts on the electric distribution system. But these same systems are rarely employed by water utilities. These have increased in sophistication and are often integrated into the utility’s Customer Information System (CIS), Interactive Voice Response...
Read MorePart II: So, what technology can make the difference? Part I discussed the difficult challenges facing the water industry. Now, let’s examine some of the technologies that can help water systems meet these difficult challenges. There are a number of operational technology tools available to address the main issues confronting the industry.…
Read MorePart I: How did we get here? This discussion of the challenges facing the water industry will be followed with “Part II”, which will provide insight on how technology can help meet these difficult challenges. The water supply industry is feeling the pressure of extensive infrastructure replacement needs, rising operations costs, declining average customer consumption, and fragmented water...
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