Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Like the Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance, the criteria for the Platinum Award for Utility Excellence are based on the Ten Attributes of Effective Utility Management and the Keys to Management Success. Applicants are expected to show progress in implementing the attributes and keys, as well as a distinctive level of management expertise and expanded utility achievement.
Three years after winning a Gold Award, member utilities are eligible to apply for the Platinum Award for Utility Excellence.
Recent Award Winners
Orange County Utilities
2014 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Orange County Utilities’ mission is to provide water resources and solid waste recovery services to protect and enrich the lives of the Florida county’s citizens and millions of annual guests. Strategies implemented over the last five years have yielded benefits for county residents that have been modeled throughout the state. These include the use of technology and the untapped talents of employees, who have embraced the need for change, the need for operational improvements and the need for their own skills to be enhanced. The utility’s contributions to the well-being of the area are helping make Orange County a “Water Smart” community.
Tucson Water
2014 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Tucson Water’s proactive investments in supply availability and infrastructure development are demonstrated in the Clearwater Program, an innovative recharge and recovery project that delivers the majority of Tucson’s water supply, and its recycled water master plan. Reliability-centered maintenance led to a high ratio of planned vs. reactive infrastructure maintenance, and an acoustic fiber optic monitoring system protects the system’s pipeline. Community relations are defined by transparency, as demonstrated by work with the Citizens' Water Advisory Committee on financial and rate-setting decisions, and the water reliability program, which communicates the utility’s focus on water supply, water quality, customer service, infrastructure and operations, and efficiency.
WaterOne
2014 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
WaterOne’s strategic business planning allowed the utility to grow from a capacity of five MGD in 1957 to over 210 MGD in 2014, making it the largest public water utility in Kansas. The utility focuses on enhancing communications, customer service, safety and security, fleet and emergency preparedness. It optimizes its production and distribution processes, including a state-of-the-art water quality laboratory. WaterOne has been recognized for its self-initiated water quality standards, which are more stringent than state and federal requirements. It earns exceptionally high bond ratings while offering some of the most affordable water rates in its area and consistently scores in the top percentiles for customer satisfaction.
City of Columbus Department of Public Utilities
2013 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
The Division of Water in the City of Columbus Department of Public Utilities has implemented effective utility management processes, including strategic planning, asset management, benchmarking, environmental management and employee training. Successes were also realized in updating water treatment processes, achieving fiscal responsibility, enhancing community outreach and improving customer service. A $700 million dollar capital improvement program is addressing aging infrastructure, the latest regulations, population growth and the Division’s vision to provide the best quality drinking water. Other important facets of its operations include innovations in water treatment, reduction in chemical use, implementation of business case evaluations and reliability-centered maintenance.
City of Palm Bay Utilities Department
2013 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
The City of Palm Bay Utilities Department (PBUD) incorporates the Effective Utility Management Attributes into its daily operational procedures and processes through its Environmental Management System known as GreenWay. By tracking and measuring operational performance throughout the organization, PBUD has made continual improvements to optimize efficiencies and services. The Department continues to see a reduction in energy use due to its plant optimization programs and continues to champion the City’s Sustainability Master Plan. Some of PBUD’s continuous improvement initiatives include: a revised distribution sampling plan, a uni-directional flushing program, EGIS mapping applications, expanded asset tracking and enhanced customer service processes and communication.
Louisville Water Company
2013 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Louisville Water Company has a rich history of dedication to quality and continuous improvement. Recent honors include the Partnership for Safe Water Phase IV “Excellence in Water Treatment” Award, the “Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement Award” for riverbank filtration and tunnel technology, and the “Excellence in Distribution System Operation Award.” In addition to its 2013 S&P AAA rating, in 2012 Louisville Water achieved its highest customer satisfaction rating from the “Customer Service Index.” Employees volunteered over 5,700 hours to 117 organizations throughout the community and contributed more than $200,000 to Fund for the Arts, Metro United Way and Water for People.
Onondaga County Water Authority
2013 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
To address its workforce needs, Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA) developed an in-house succession planning program to enhance skills of management and supervisory personnel as well as staff members interested in advancing within the organization. To improve efficiencies and address both customer needs and system needs, OCWA invested heavily in automated and enhanced systems for billing, accounting, asset management, work management, GIS, SCADA and the employee training to see these systems operate successfully through one unified database. A comprehensive budgeting process that includes annual and long-term O&M budgets, coupled with annual and long-range capital budgets, has been developed and implemented throughout the organization.
San Diego County Water Authority
2013 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
The San Diego County Water Authority staff has scrutinized each element of the agency to squeeze out inefficiencies and promote good government. The Business Plan was updated to reflect current market realities. Its facilities plan is undergoing a major upgrade as is the multi-agency Integrated Regional Water Management Plan. Profound improvements were made to the Asset Management Program so it provides detailed risk data in a visual format for better decision-making. An Online Water Ordering System was adopted and a high-low rate forecasting tool was developed to improve customer service. Outreach to stakeholders was greatly expanded through enhanced online offerings, community forums and other tools.
Western Virginia Water Authority
2013 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
The Western Virginia Water Authority uses technology and innovative water management practices to enhance the quality of life for its regional community. In 2011, the Authority entered into a guaranteed energy performance-based contract with upgrades that will help the Authority save more than $1 million in annual electrical and operational costs and add approximately $1.5 million in revenue through increased water meter accuracy. The Authority’s rate methodology of setting competitive and sustainable rates supports infrastructure maintenance and improvements, operational expenses and creation of reserve funds while placing the Authority in a better position to provide citizens with reliable long-term and reasonably priced water service.
Central Arkansas Water
2012 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Central Arkansas Water’s strategic plans developed in 2008 and 2012, adoption of the Effective Utility Management framework and a renewed focus on performance measures have guided the authority’s operations and management decisions in recent years. Major accomplishments include the adoption of a new Mission Statement and Values PICTURE; the execution of numerous watershed protection initiatives; development of a watershed management plan, utility master plan, succession plan and forest management plan; a complete overhaul of major utility information systems; an increase in maximum capacity at the Wilson Plant from 100 MGD to 133 MGD; and discontinued use of gaseous chlorine.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Utility Department
2012 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Utility Department (CMUD) has shifted from a rapid-growth to maintenance focus, with a new emphasis on continuous improvement. Refusing to compromise essential services, CMUD earned a third AAA bond rating, continued building cash reserves, improved its debt service coverage ratio and maintained competitive rates. Customer trust was established through collaborative development of a 40-point action plan. Transparent stakeholder communications included a rate study involving public input, resulting in rate structure changes that provide more stable revenue while maintaining affordability and conservation incentives. As a founding leader in the Catawba-Wateree Water Management Group, CMUD reaffirms its commitment to protecting shared natural resources.
City of San Diego Public Utilities Department
2012 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
City of San Diego Public Utilities Department prides itself in continual improvement and challenges employees to be optimally efficient. Initiatives regarding bond refinancing and State Revolving Fund loans generated savings of $107.8 million over 30 years. Through award-winning projects, like the Water Purification Demonstration Project, it pursues innovative ways of creating new local water supplies to address the increasing demands. The utility explores revenue-producing initiatives that help alleviate the rates citizens pay, such as a digester gas project for production of a renewable energy source. Operational optimization is assured through regularly updated facility master plans, an asset management program, and a condition assessment and rehabilitation program.