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
Kansas City Water Services Department
2005 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
The Kansas City Water Services Department's 10-year competitive business plan includes performance targets and action items to upgrade infrastructure and facilities, improve service levels and minimize annual operating costs. The plan aims to reduce response and repair time to main breaks while increasing the performance of more preventative maintenance and doubling the amount of capital projects the Engineering Services Divisions oversees.
Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Department
2005 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
To improve services, the Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Department implemented an Efficiency Business Plan with benchmarks, staffing plans and 120 opportunities for improvements. The utility worked towards improvements by empowering employees to submit new ideas, implementing efficiency projects, providing financial incentives to employees for documented efficiency savings, and investing in employees through a comprehensive training program, competitive salary adjustments and a bonus incentive program. These initiatives proved successful as the utility's water and sewer rates are among the lowest in the country. In a resident satisfaction survey, 87 percent of Miami-Dade customers rated services as good to excellent.
Nashville Metro Water Services
2005 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
With a goal of continuous improvement, Nashville's Metro Water Services began a government-wide strategic planning and performance measurement initiative called Results Matter. The utility introduced new technology such as GIS, automated meter reading and an engineering document management system, and implemented a mobile dispatch, all of which led to improvements in customer and employee satisfaction, productivity and cost.
Orange County Utilities Water Division
2005 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Technological and organizational strategies helped the Orange County Utilities Water Division maintain its competitive edge. Major technological accomplishments included a state-of-the-art laboratory, a SCADA room that is fully operational 24/7, and Maximo, the wireless Computer Maintenance Management System that has allowed field staff to process work orders more efficiently. The Florida utility increased security at its facilities, expanded water conservation programs and completed conversion from gaseous chlorine to hypochlorite.
Portland Water District
2005 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
The Portland Water District measures its success through customer satisfaction. The District reduced water rates in 1999 and 2000, and since then rates have remained stable. Early on, the District understood it needed to take charge of an evolving industry and aging workforce by becoming a leader in water and wastewater training. A state-of-the-art development center was constructed, and partnerships were formed to conduct quality workforce development programs. Communication with both internal and external customers has been a high priority.
Tampa Water Department
2005 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
The Tampa Water Department focused on continuous organizational improvement using the Networked Talent Model and process improvement teams. Training is targeted in leadership, management, team and task skills for employees at all levels. Performance indicators were developed and benchmarked against industry leaders. Results from these comparative analyses were integrated back into the strategic and tactical planning processes and immediately incorporated when applicable. Technology is a strong part of existing and planned programs, including GIS, asset management, process improvements and data management.
Anchorage Water & Wastewater Utility
2004 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Since receiving the AMWA Gold Award for Competitiveness Achievement in 2001, Anchorage Water & Wastewater Utility (AWWU) has continued to stabilize expenses and increase revenues, efficiency, customer service and quality in a competitiveness process of continuous improvement designed and driven by AWWU employees. As a result of major technology initiatives, systems integration and numerous other improvements, customers per employee increased from 375 to 400 and the amount of plant per employee increased from $3.2 million to $3.8 million. During this period of no rate increases, AWWU net income totaled $18.3 million and its water revenue bond rating increased from A to AA minus. What started as an employee steering team has evolved into a combination of formal teams for utility-wide efforts and more informal teams for the division and section levels. All supervisors are now part of the Leaders of Change Group, which is tasked with facilitating continuous improvement at AWWU. A tremendous synergy is occurring and the number of grievances and accidents are at a historical low while employee moral and customer satisfaction are at an all-time high. AWWU is on its way to attaining a lasting culture of employee involvement and continuous improvement.
Chesterfield Utilities
2004 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Chesterfield Utilities today continues the Total Quality Initiative (TQI) it initiated in 1992. The TQI includes strategic planning, team problem solving, process management, performance based measurement, staff development, and rewards and recognition, all of which have positioned Chesterfield to easily implement competitiveness strategies as they have evolved in recent years. Chesterfield Utilities' efforts have allowed user charges to remain relatively low while at the same time achieving higher levels of customer satisfaction. The utility also established a Rate Stabilization Reserve Fund to assure funding for infrastructure replacement in the future. The rate-setting model incorporates operating and capital improvement budgets, rate stabilization reserve funding for the next 10 years and bond covenant requirements. This approach avoids significant rate increases in a particular budget year. In 2002, Chesterfield Utilities' enhanced financial position was recognized when its bond rating was raised from AA to AAA by the three primary rating agencies, one of only two joint water/wastewater utilities in the nation to achieve this status. Fitch Ratings commented, "The county's utilities department credit strengths include a positive operating performance record, substantial reserves, rapid debt repayment, sound management practices and healthy debt service coverage levels."
City of Portland Bureau of Water Works
2004 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
The City of Portland Bureau of Water Works created and sustained a strong organizational culture of performance measurement built on a process called City-wide Service Efforts and Accomplishments. Portland's successes are augmented by active involvement in benchmarking and ongoing work to develop and apply a balanced scorecard for the organization. Portland consistently evaluated and redesigned work practices to improve productivity and effectiveness and made substantial progress in dealing with critical but historically difficult projects. Portland achieved a 24.8 percent reduction in its operating and maintenance budget over the last five years, using the savings to offset financial impacts of increased capital spending and to support rate relief to its customers. At the same time, the utility demonstrated a strong commitment to customer needs and carefully tracked performance and adjusted resources to ensure that performance targets were met. Portland maintains an Aa1 bond rating, demonstrating a strong organizational commitment to dealing with many challenges without undermining the utility's historically strong financial position. Finally, Portland prepared the organization for the future by investing in workforce training and development for key field positions and accomplished multiple objectives through this important program.
Columbus Water Works
2004 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Columbus Water Works (CWW) focuses on continuous improvement by thinking competitively in all aspects of its operation. CWW measures itself against industry leaders and continually strives for improvement. CWW's competitive drive influences its strategic planning processes and financial planning processes by placing emphasis on compatibility and synergy of central business elements. All planning projects (i.e., Capital Improvement Plan, Financial Management Plan, Asset Management Plan and Strategic and Master Plan) are tested against CWW in order to be competitive and to excel in business, all to the benefit of the customer. CWW formed five strategic planning goal teams to pursue further development of its vision and major goals. Each goal team identified key strategies for advancing each goal. This effort was the continuation of a formal process intended to improve CWW's performance throughout every component of its business, thereby becoming more competitive. CWW has invested considerable effort to promote a cultural change, which values innovation, self-direction and empowerment of employees. It has encouraged a team-oriented work process, which stresses cooperation and communication. The organization also encourages open discussion and examination of all work processes, and the positive work environment encourages a participative work effort.
Contra Costa Water District
2004 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
Contra Costa Water District's (CCWD) goal is to assure that the public not only receives a reliable supply of high-quality water, but that the process of delivering the water is both efficient and customer-focused. CCWD is one of the largest urban water districts in California and is a leader in water treatment technology and source water protection. CCWD has completed over $600 million in major projects since 1999. A 100,000 acre-foot reservoir in Los Vaqueros was built to deliver better quality water and provide an emergency water supply. A 21-mile long treated water pipeline and a pump station were constructed to provide a new distribution system and a backup to the existing canal. And, the Contra Costa Swim Lagoon was created to improve public health by separating a recreational swimming area from a large raw water reservoir. While implementing new projects, CCWD has succeeded at holding water rate increases at half of inflation. Current data shows that over 83 percent of customers give CCWD excellent marks.
El Paso Water Utilities
2004 Platinum Award for Utility Excellence
El Paso Water Utilities has proactively embraced change as it moves into the 21st century. Serving a growing population in a desert community and sharing water resources with two other states and one other country dictates an assertive water management strategy. El Paso developed and continues to update its strategic plan, a 50-year water master plan and a strategic information systems plan. Guided by these plans and with input from key constituents, stakeholders, consultants and the community, El Paso aggressively implemented strategic goals and objectives. By implementing new technologies – such as Geographical Information Systems project management tools and the Enterprise Financial and Human Resources Systems cross training employees and reengineering processes – the utility lessened and even deferred operating and capital costs. El Paso adopted benchmarking and best management practices as a result of a major initiative to instill the concepts of Total Quality Management (TQM) and Continuous Process Improvements (CPI). It effectively mitigated dire predictions of unsustainable groundwater pumping by implementing an aggressive conservation rate structure, proactive conservation education and rebate programs; adding water management strategies (including utilization of reclaimed water); and building the world's largest inland desalination plant.