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City of Austin Water and Wastewater Utility

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
The population in counties served by the City of Austin Water and Wastewater Utility increased more than 40 percent in the last decade, with a corresponding 36 percent explosion in average water demand. The challenge has been to meet both this increased need and higher customer expectations through a strategy of continuous process improvement and a customer satisfaction philosophy. Using benchmarking, competitiveness assessments and employee involvement, the Utility systematically created and implemented systems, processes and programs to increase efficiency, effectiveness and competitiveness. Major accomplishments include: accommodating the increased demand for products and services with fewer employees; increasing the capacity for water production and delivery; stabilizing water service rates over the planning horizon; upgrading the Utility's bond rating to an A+; winning the Greater Austin Quality Council's Significant Merit in Quality award for two years; and, becoming a model for other utilities for the treatment plant operator and mechanic cross-training program, which resulted in a 20 percent reduction in operators. Not only has customer satisfaction with water quality increased by 22 percent, but internal customer (utility employee) satisfaction also increased by 11 percent, with labor and management successfully partnering to resolve mutual issues.

City of Columbus Division of Water

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
City of Columbus Division of Water, Ohio Achievement Highlights: Aware of the growing competitive challenge within the water utility environment, the Division followed a proactive course to ascertain its competitive position: Eighty-four employees representing all sections of the Division participated in a two-day "Thinking, Getting & Staying Competitive" workshop which resulted in a total of 245 individual recommendations to increase competitiveness. Employees concluded that existing practices placed the Division at a competitive disadvantage of approximately $15 million per year. To close the gap, the Division eliminated all uneconomical take-home vehicles; began work on several classification merge projects; combined similar work sections, monitored electrical usage through bill review and demand monitoring equipment; and reviewed and amended the purchasing process. Future goals include a thorough study of and reduction in overtime, and continued progress in organizational restructuring and process improvement.

City of Raleigh Public Utilities Department

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
The City of Raleigh Public Utilities Department provides water to a service population of approximately 315,000 customers. While experiencing a period of large growth, Raleigh remains committed to providing quality services at an affordable cost to its citizens. With only two rate increases during the past 12 years, current utility rates are the second lowest in the state and among the lowest in the region. Two new two-million-gallon elevated storage tanks, a new five-million-gallon clearwell and a new ozone generator top the list of recent improvements to the system. A proposed new water treatment plant is in the design phase to accommodate additional growth. Raleigh currently maintains bond rates of Aa1 from Moody's, AAA from Fitch and AAA from Standard and Poor's, the first water and sewer utility in the U.S. to achieve AAA ratings from Fitch and S&P. Utility employees continue to be a vital part of the improvement process. A SIP (Service Improvement Program) Committee develops programs to improve service to both internal and external customers. Work Order Process Teams study ways to improve various work processes and increase efficiency.

City of St. Louis Water Division

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
For the City of St. Louis Water Division, competitiveness improvements begin and continue with staffing levels. The improvement process started in 1996 when each section manager was charged with evaluating the number of positions needed to perform critical functions. The resulting reduction of 8.7 percent of staff was realized through re-thinking work processes and utilizing technology advances, without any layoffs. Completion of a touch-read meter reading system, with an on-going migration to an automated meter reading system (AMR), more than doubled the productivity of meter readers. With the final installation of the AMR system, the meter reading force will be reduced to one individual. As a water utility in a city with fixed boundaries, the Water Division determined to use its excess capacity to become a regional water supplier. Using its Howard Bend Plant on the Missouri River as the source, it successfully negotiated to supply three wholesale customers in neighboring St. Charles County. An aggressive capital improvement program was initiated. A completely new reservoir (two tanks) was built within the historic exterior of the previous reservoir, retaining the character of the neighborhood. Also, a new pre-sedimentation and softening basin was added at the Chain of Rocks Plant on the Mississippi River to ensure compliance with future quality regulations. Conventional and innovative technologies are being utilized to upgrade the distribution infrastructure.

Columbus Water Works

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
Columbus Water Works (CWW), Georgia
  • Provides water and wastewater treatment services to a population of about 250,000 in the 221 square mile Columbus service area and via wholesale accounts.
  • 205 full-time employees.
  • Source of water is the Chattahoochee River.
  • Operates a water treatment facility rated at 90 mgd.
  • Annual budget is $34.7 million of which $20 million is for operation and improvement of the system and $14 million is to retire debt.
Achievement Highlights: CWW has developed a plan for continuous improvement, which increased automation throughout the organization, and implemented an effective information acquisition, storage and retrieval system. The total staff was reduced over a four-year period from 250 to 205 with an annual operating budget reduction of $1 million. Automation of all treatment plants is complete with only two staff needed to monitor four plants and 39 pump stations. The ratio of 1.5 employees per 1000 customers for full water and wastewater service is among the lowest in the industry. These results have been achieved while receiving over 40 local, state, regional and national awards and maintaining water and sewer rates below most other systems in the regions. A Data Warehouse has been created to connect to a Human Resource System (OPTIMUM), Laboratory Information System (LIMS), Computerized Managed Maintenance System (CMMS), Customer Information system (CIS), Geographic Information System (GIS) and Financial System (ORCOM) so that information is readily available to all employees. An Interactive Voice Response System (IVR) has been installed to facilitate customers accessing their billing records. All of these have allowed the staff to provide more service with less time. A centralized maintenance management system was established to maximize equipment and line reliability and longevity, minimize failure and downtime, increase equipment efficiency, and replace/rehabilitate equipment and lines when it is cost effective. An atmosphere where innovation and creativity has flourished. Open discussion and examination of all work processes is encouraged. The results -- which have produced significant cost savings and increased customer service — speak for themselves.

Contra Costa Water District

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
Contra Costa Water District, California
  • Provides water to approximately 430,000 people in Contra Costa County.
  • Over $1.05 billion in assets, including a 100,000 acre foot reservoir, two regional water treatment facilities with a combined capacity of 115 mgd and a 1,000 miles of distribution piping and facilities.
  • 320 employees.
  • Annual budget of $169.9 million.
Achievement Highlights: In Contra Costa Water District's efforts to continuously strive for improvement and stay competitive, the District has developed a Mission Statement and a set of goals to be achieved through over 300 annual milestones such as: The Engineering Department benchmarking practices include: decreased turn-around time for Engineering Support requests; increased accuracy of project cost estimates; and reduced number of change orders due to reduction in design errors. Engineering administrative costs for capital projects were reduced from 45 percent of total project cost to less than 40 percent. A Supervisors Academy was established to provide District supervisors with the tools and training they require to serve as excellent supervisors. A Skills Training Program was also established for clerical /maintenance employees. The new Multi-Skilled Equipment Operator classification was recently created to allow employees the ability to operate a wide rage of equipment which provides for increased effectiveness, efficiency, the development of enhanced job skills, while it provides a cost savings to the District. The Finance Department has implemented a customer survey program, demonstrating a customer service approval rating of 83 percent, and a procurement card program has reduced the cost of processing transactions under $500 by 65 percent. A new Financial & Customer Service System is being implemented and has the potential to provide customer service programs and customer billing service for other agencies. The Finance Department is researching point of use and customer specific devises as well as bottled water and service line maintenance to provide consumers with total customer care.

Des Moines Water Works

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
For more than 100 years, the independently operated Des Moines Water Works (DMWW) has been committed to supplying a safe and sufficient supply of drinking water to the residents of central Iowa. The largest drinking water utility in the state, DMWW currently services approximately 350,000 people. Through the years, changes have been implemented to improve water quality, increase water production, enhance and beautify the properties' landscape and provide educational opportunities for all ages. Some of the DMWW programs and projects include: a 1,400-acre park system used for watershed protection, picnics, walking, jogging, bike trails, flower beds and fishing; the Arie den Boer Arboretum; 200-acre Maffitt Reservoir, educational initiatives including a Water Wisdom newsletter for teachers; a DMWW Museum; an Urban Environmental Partnership to educate the public on the importance of water quality protection; a Volunteer Monitoring Project in the Raccoon River watershed; development of the Lime Sludge De-watering Facility; and Project H2O (Help-2-Others), a program to assist low-income households with the payment of water bills.

East Bay Municipal Utility District

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
The East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) in Oakland, California, provides water service to 1.3 million customers and wastewater service to 610,000 customers. Despite rising inflation in the greater San Francisco Bay Area, EBMUD has met its strategic goal of keeping water and wastewater rates at or below the rate of inflation. The Capital Improvement Program is prioritized annually, investment is made in new technologies that increase efficiency and effectiveness, and the operating budget is continually reviewed for cost reductions. In 2000, EBMUD bought chemicals, pipe and other commodities through a single contract and entered into multi-year contracts to save over $1.5 million. At the same time, the utility promoted industry-leading programs in water conservation, water recycling, seismic improvement and water quality. EBMUD's 10-year, $189 million Seismic Improvement Program is internationally recognized for its proactive approach to seismic risk assessment and mitigation. At the program's halfway point, more than 200 critical facilities have been upgraded. Commitment to financial stability resulted in bond rating upgrades to AA and AA2, changes that will lower interest payments on new bonds by $5.5 million over 30 years.

El Paso Water Utilities

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
Continuous process improvement by a workforce focused on quality and customer service is the mainstay at El Paso Water Utilities. In four years, costs have been reduced by re-engineering the organization and enhancing technology. Staff was reduced more than six percent while the customer per employee ratio improved by 14 percent because of rapid growth in the customer base. In addition, human resources were improved with enhanced training efforts, greater employee empowerment and better safety training, and workman's compensation claims were reduced 30 percent. While the utility is rapidly expanding its infrastructure, it has not neglected renovation needs. About $12 million per year is dedicated to renovation projects. The renovation program, combined with an expanded leak detection program, helped reduce unbilled water from 14 percent to 11 percent over the past few years. Because El Paso Water Utilities serves an arid, water-short region, it established an aggressive water conservation program that resulted in a 20 percent reduction in per capita water use since 1990. The Utility continues to be one of the most efficient water systems in the Southwest, whether measured by its low rates, AA3 and AA bond ratings or workforce size.

Greater Cincinnati Water Works

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
The Greater Cincinnati Water Works (GCWW) is a 162-year-old municipally owned utility serving over 950,000 people in a 400-square-mile area. In 2000, the utility supplied an average day demand of 133 million gallons of water through both surface water and groundwater treatment plants using 2,800 miles of transmission and distribution mains. In addition, as the billing agent for the primary sewer and stormwater utilities in Hamilton County, GCWW operates a multi-utility billing operation of approximately 225,000 accounts. In 1995, a five-year Strategic Business Plan (SBP) was implemented to lead GCWW closer to its vision of being a utility that will serve as a standard for excellence in the water utility industry and will remain extremely competitive. Various strategies in the SBP were designed to allow GCWW to assist the southwest Ohio region grow economically by providing a reliable supply of high-quality water and outstanding services in a financially responsible manner. Results of the most successful strategies include: surveys demonstrating that GCWW customers are extremely pleased with the service received; a review of chemical treatment processes that saved $100,000 annually; utilization of real-time electric pricing that saved over $290,000; reduction of 70 employee positions; and participation in an award-winning groundwater protection program.

Green Bay Water Utility

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
Since the 1970s, the Green Bay Water Utility has been committed to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of its service through teamwork and participation, a cultural change that impacted all areas &endash; from purchasing through design teams. The utility met increases in customers supplied, customer services offered and mandated programs without the need for an expanded workforce. Water quality was upgraded with the addition of ozonation to the utility's treatment train, main rehabilitation proceeded without the need for rate increases, and GIS will bring real time information to repair crews and customer service personnel. An upgrade of the utility's SCADA system will allow one person to control the entire operation from pumping stations to pressure control vaults. Billing and record-keeping software are also being upgraded to allow for more efficient data handling and a more timely response to customer inquiries.

Kansas City Water Services Department

2001 Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance
Kansas City, Missouri Water Services Department (WSD)
  • 240 mgd water supply capacity with 2,300 miles of water mains.
  • Service population is over 600,000 within the Kansas City metropolitan area.
  • Annual budget is $166 million.
  • Employment of 970 associates.
Achievement Highlights: In 1994, the WSD began its competitiveness strategy with a total quality management program entitled Associates Creating Excellence (ACE), which: Provided the means by which associates were empowered to make process improvements, which resulted in cost savings of $1.4 million. Chartered 38 process improvement teams. Created a culture change that served as a fundamental building block to the organizational development and change that resulted from the subsequent Competitive 2001 Program and the current competitive and efficiency improvements underway through the Kansas City Government Optimization (KC-GO) Initiative. In 1997, the Competitive 2001 Program (C2P) was launched as a result of competitiveness assessments of WSD's Water Supply, Wastewater Treatment and Line Maintenance Divisions which revealed a 19 percent competitive gap. Goals were to transition from reactive to proactive maintenance, decrease maintenance costs and increase reliability of equipment, realize greater customer and associate satisfaction while becoming competitive with all public and private operations. Six self-directed work teams (SDWTs) in the Water Supply Division improved productivity and efficiency in the treatment process, communications, and cross-training among operations and maintenance associates. Empowerment of the labor work force through SDWTs improved water quality, reduced overtime and improved working relations between labor and management. Through the pilot of an O & M high performance work team (HPWT), the Wastewater Treatment Division reorganized its workforce into a HPWT structure, eliminating three reporting layers. As of July 2000, the WSD's competitive efforts were integrated into the City's KC-GO Initiative, a strategy for becoming more competitive and efficient in the delivery of government services across all City departments. WSD was selected as the "first" major operating Department to undergo competitive review and business plan development because of its organizational readiness. The utility is currently involved in a large-scale competitive business planning process with 51 workgroups consisting of both labor and management working within 11 functional areas to identify continuous improvements that will result in additional cost savings, revenue enhancements and best business practices.