Utility August 2015 digital edition

www.utilitymagazine.com.au

Issue #7, August 2015

Engineering, Construction & Maintenance

WHEN WASTE ISN’T WASTED TIME TO JOIN

TEAM TRENCHLESS WHO HAS THE BEST TASTING

WATER?

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF CONSUMER CHOICE WATER

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SEWER

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ELECTRICITY

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GAS

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NBN

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ISSUE 7

FROM THE

EDITOR

Cover image highlights our feature on water and wastewater treatment in this issue.

T Published by

Monkey Media Enterprises ABN: 36 426 734 954 PO Box 3121 Ivanhoe North VIC 3079 P: (03) 9440 5721 F: (03) 8456 6720 monkeymedia.com.au info@monkeymedia.com.au utilitymagazine.com.au info@utilitymagazine.com.au ISSN: 2203-2797 Publisher and Editor Chris Bland Managing Editor Laura Harvey Associate Editor Michelle Goldsmith Journalist Emily Thomas Marketing Director Amanda Kennedy Marketing Consultants Aaron White Cynthia Lim Creative Director Sandy Noke Graphic Designer Alejandro Molano

his edition has a strong focus on treating both water and wastewater. It ties in with the upcoming Water Industry Operators Association (WIOA) Bendigo conference, and we have been proud to be the official media partner of all WIOA events this year.

The work done by Australia’s water industry operators is often not glamorous, but is essential to the lifestyle that all Australians enjoy. We take our clean drinking water for granted, and this edition we look at some of the work that goes on behind the scenes to make this happen.

At the other end of the process, we look at what happens to the waste. The increasing repurposing of waste, whether as recycled water, or energy, will be a growing feature of the industry in the future. It is testament to the ingenuity of our engineers that when waste was once simply a problem to be disposed of, it has now been turned into an opportunity.

I have always been excited by the innovative industry of trenchless technology, an industry where Australia has often been a world-leader in devising new and better methods to install and repair underground infrastructure with minimal surface disruption. In 2004 I was involved in the launch of Australia’s first trenchless magazine and I’m pleased to see it is still going strongly to this day.

The next challenge for the trenchless industry is to maximise awareness and buy-in from the utility decision makers. To

that end, in this issue we talk to some of the utility leaders who are already proud to declare themselves members of Team Trenchless, and we hope their example will be followed by many more.

We have also worked with IT industry leader CSC to create some new crossplatform content with this issue, please turn to pages 38-39 to read the first of our interviews about key utility issues.

From there you can also find the links to go online to watch further video content on these issues. We will be progressively rolling out more of this content in the months to come. To ensure you don’t miss it, make sure you are subscribed to our free online newsletter by visiting the website and clicking subscribe.

We are pleased to note that our audited circulation has once again increased for the past half, and thank the utility industry for their ongoing support and interest in our magazine.

Finally this issue, we look more closely at retail and billing issues, reflecting on the importance of the customer relationship. This leads in well to our next edition, where we look more closely at how the information gathered from the customer can be used more broadly to benefit the whole network.

Chris Bland Publisher and Editor

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CONTENTS

16

WIOA Operating in a changing environment: the water industry professionals delivering water around the nation.........................16 We met with a diverse group of water industry operators to learn about the challenges they face, the new technologies they’re working with and the future for the water industry as they see it.

20

WATER & WASTEWATER TREATMENT Turning waste into energy.......... 20 Harnessing the power of poo..... 26 Odour control company builds air release valve........................... 29 Smarter. Safer. Faster.................. 30 Arsenic removed from drinking water.............................. 31

Trenchless technologies play a major role in the installation and rehabilitation of the buried assets that form our water networks. Here, we’ve gathered a group of leaders within the water industry who are proudly ‘team trenchless’ - the people that are championing the benefits of trenchless technologies, and specifying their use on major projects around the country.

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From prehistoric to artesian gold.................................32

34

DRAIN CLEANING Managing fatbergs: taming the monsters that lie beneath..........................................34 Rats and Batts inspect Queensland sewers......................36

6

WATER

38

50

OPINION What’s holding smart water meters back?................................ 38

RENEWABLES The outlook for renewables in Australia................................... 50

It’s our most precious resource, so why haven’t water utilities been as quick to deploy intelligent metering systems as the electricity sector?

For more than a decade in Australia, the debate around renewable electricity generation has been simmering, alternating between fever pitch and benign interest. The popularity of renewables with consumers is undeniable, with EY research showing that nearly 90 per cent of Australians would consider switching to solar energy.

62

54

ASSET MANAGEMENT Assessing asset management: improving systems and enhancing outcomes...................................... 54 Reaping the benefits of a true mobility solution.......................... 56 The changing face of asset management................................ 58 Connecting Australia................... 59 Strategic asset management for water utilities................................ 60

70

RETAIL The psychology of customer choice............................................ 62

UTILITY IN PROFILE Gold Coast Water......................... 70

Customer information systems: increased need, decreased cost.............................. 65

WOMEN IN UTILITIES Jenny Gannon.............................. 74

SCADA Real-time data powering intelligent networks..................... 66

ISSUE 7

76

PIPE & CONDUIT We need to talk: a smarter way of managing assets..................... 77

Managing your connections....... 69

Utility magazine is bringing together experts on various fields to answer all your questions 86

80 76 72

In each issue NBN Creating constructive NBN partnerships........................ 80

Editor’s welcome.................................................. 4 A word from the ENA........................................... 8

84

News briefs.......................................................... 10 Advertisers’ index............................................... 88

CABLES Who will be the world’s best cabler?.......................................... 84

Editorial schedule............................................... 88

7

A WORD FROM THE ENA JOHN BRADLEY CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER – ENERGY NETWORKS ASSOCIATION

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f you had been starting university 20 years ago, you were probably still photocopying reading materials in the library. Living on campus meant you probably queued to use the college phone and early adopters may have signed up for their own hotmail account. A missed lecture may have come on cassette tape and in some great classes, a forward thinking lecturer may have decided to do some interesting group projects using the world wide web.

Ten short years later, a student may have had their own pre-paid mobile, been able to download lectures and papers from the university’s student website and library database, and the university had apartments to complement the college accommodation.

Today we could ask – do you even need to turn up to a university campus?

Your computer is lighter than the reading compendiums of old. With webinars, online learning and journals, do you really need the bricks and mortar of the university to receive the qualifications for your chosen career?

The ‘business model’ of universities has clearly been challenged, their role is changing and their customers have significantly increased control and choice. Yet they remain a fundamental institution for learning which has embraced, rather than resisted, its own disruption. Most universities have changed their service delivery as technology changes, without diminishing their value. There remains a strong acceptance that participating in the sharing of knowledge, learning in a community of others is important.

Interaction with people matters, choice matters and service matters – and technology is the facilitator not the substitute.

HOW DOES THIS RELATE TO ENERGY? In similar ways, technology and empowered consumers are

transforming our interaction with energy and Australia’s ‘great energy disruption’ is clearly in full swing. While it’s possible this revolution will lead us to atomised, self-sufficient energy production and consumption, most expert analysis concludes that it is unlikely to be the optimal outcome for consumers.

A ROADMAP FOR THE FUTURE In this time of unprecedented change for global energy services, the Energy Networks Association is partnering with Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, to develop an Electricity Network Transformation Roadmap. The project will update and build on the CSIRO Future Grid Forum analysis of Australia’s potential electricity pathways to 2050, which was completed in 2013 after 18 months, involving input from a broad range of stakeholders.

This project recognises there is no crystal ball and no single energy future. However, the actions taken

by Australian network businesses, supply chain participants, governments and regulators in the next critical decade (2015-25) are likely to have significant consequences for our ability to support the evolving needs of consumers. The Roadmap seeks to position networks and the supply chain for the future, to innovate and develop new services that customers value and foster the long-term resilience and efficiency of Australia’s energy system. It will inform options for regulation, business models and electricity pricing that are best able to support delivery of the future services which customers want, while ensuring an efficient, competitive and economically-robust value chain.

The Roadmap program will be highly collaborative, recognising that the transformation of the energy system can not be ‘engineered’ by any single player. Stakeholders from service and

technology providers, policy makers, regulators, consumer representatives and academia will be invited to shape and contribute to key elements of the work program.

The Roadmap framework involves five domains each involving a number of work packages: • Customer Oriented Networks, assessing transformation drivers, the reorientation of network services to customers and potential services of the future • Revenue and Regulatory Enablers, reviewing potential revenue and business models, along with regulatory frameworks and mechanisms • Pricing and Behavioural Enablers, addressing tariff reform and support for vulnerable consumers • Technological Enablers, supporting integration of distributed energy resources; network asset utilisation; grid-side technologies and capabilities • Next Generation Platform, examining new models for market operation and automation.

During this work program, our focus will be on: • Creating new customer value through service innovation anticipating customer-oriented energy futures • Informing Australia’s electricity system evolution including its policy and regulatory frameworks • Providing network businesses with capacity and resources to support innovation • Enhancing long-term asset productivity for both traditional and new value-creating applications • Maximising collaboration and shared learning to focus on key knowledge gaps and barriers impeding network transformation.

It is an exciting time to be engaged in the transformation of our energy

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NEWS

A WORD FROM THE ENA Continued from page 8 sector. Australia is at the ‘bleeding edge’ of high-penetration integration of renewables. Our world leading rates of rooftop solar penetration make us a ‘hot zone’ for the emerging battery storage market – indeed, our networks are already deploying both utility scale and residential storage options to benefit communities and customers.

There is significant Australian and international expertise emerging in smart grids and the future potential for ‘transactive’ energy systems. Our long extended networks in rural and remote locations have always been a disadvantage – now we find them providing insights for the rest of the sector in fringe of grid solutions; the emergence of

NEW POWER STATIONS FOR WESTERN AUSTRALIA

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orizon Power has brought six new power stations online, and relocated a control centre from Karratha to Perth.

The relocation of the control centre from Horizon Power’s Karratha base to Perth is predicted to save approximately $800,000 a year. The delivery of six new power stations in Cue, Meekatharra, Yalgoo, Wiluna, Sandstone and Mount Magnet and more flexible contracting arrangements with the independent power producer Contract Power are together forecast to save millions of dollars over the ten-year life of the contract.

As part of its strategic review in 2013, Horizon Power committed to reducing its operating subsidy to become a low cost and sustainable business. Horizon Power has made strong progress in achieving this reduction, with $203million savings already included over the forward estimates period to 2018/19.

“Projects such as these show that as a business we are delivering on our promise to save taxpayers money, but have not wavered from the commitment to provide our customers with safe and reliable power supply,” said Horizon Power Director Rosie Wheatley.

WA Minister for Energy Mike Nahan officially opened the relocated control centre and acknowledged the steps Horizon Power is taking to become a sustainable business.

“In many ways, Horizon Power is leading the way in an industry that is changing pace at an unprecedented rate and in an environment where customers have higher expectations than ever before,” he said.

Horizon Power will implement further changes to achieve its operational subsidy reduction over the year, including the rollout of new advanced metering infrastructure across its operational area and ongoing collaboration with Western Power to deliver off grid solutions to remote customers.

micro-grids and non-network solutions.

Where electricity networks once connected communities, business and homes through traditional poles and wires, in a one way flow of energy, the network of the future will most likely be a platform of services that enables the technology that customers choose and connecting communities.

The network of the future will rely on its ability to create, and demonstrate, value to customers. The Network Transformation Roadmap will seek to highlight these opportunities to create value in collaboration with stakeholders.

MACQUARIE RIVER-ORANGE PIPELINE COMPLETE

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he 39km Macquarie River to Orange water pipeline in NSW is now complete.

Construction of the $47million pipeline was funded with $20million from the Australian Government’s National Water Security Plan for Cities and Towns, $18.2million from the NSW Government and $8.8million from Orange City Council.

Leed Engineering and Construction began work on the pipeline in October 2013, with Essential Energy undertaking refurbishment of the power, and Poles and Underground completing construction of new electrical infrastructure.

Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment, Bob Baldwin, said the pipeline would deliver 1,616 megalitres of water each year from the Macquarie River to the Suma Park Dam. “This pipeline project reflects the Australian Government’s long-standing commitment to support communities in rural and regional Australia.

“It is another example of how the Australian Government is fulfilling its commitment to meeting the infrastructure needs of regional Australia, promoting sustainable growth and development in this region for many decades to come,” said Mr Baldwin.

Federal Member for Calare, John Cobb, said that Orange had a history of water shortages and in May 2010 the city was on the brink of level 6 water restrictions which would have severely restricted business and industry activity within the city.

“The construction of the new pipeline will help the Orange community achieve its potential, and address a shortfall in the supply of drinking water,” said Mr Cobb.

The Suma Park Dam will be topped-up by pumping during periods of good river flow, so pumping will not be required during drier times.

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NEWS

$100M FOR SOLAR ROOFTOP DEVELOPMENT

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rigin has secured a 12-year $100million finance commitment from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) to further develop rooftop solar offerings for Australian consumers.

The finance will be utilised by Origin to support its Solar as a Service offering where customers can access the benefits of solar without purchasing the solar system. This sort of offering is also known as a power purchase agreement (PPA).

Through Solar as a Service, the customer buys solar energy produced by a solar installation on their roof, which is owned, operated and maintained by Origin. The initial solar contract rate for eligible customers will be lower than what they would pay for energy from the grid.

The CEFC finance also provides flexibility to support Origin’s future rollout of battery storage solutions. Origin is currently trialling a battery solution in the market and expects to have a battery offering available to customers later in 2015.

Origin General Manager Solar and Emerging Businesses, Phil Mackey said, “Origin is already one of Australia’s longest-standing and largest solar retailers and we aspire to be number one, driving long-term growth in the solar market.

“Solar as a Service is already proving an attractive proposition to customers since it was launched earlier this year, and the CEFC finance will be used in expanding the offering, so more Australians can enjoy the benefits of solar,”

said Mr Mackey.

The CEFC provides competitive finance that meets the needs of clean energy business developers.

CEFC CEO, Oliver Yates said, “PPAs offer a clear benefit for residential and business consumers, who can have increased confidence about their long-term electricity costs, while at the same time enjoying the benefits of solar.”

Origin’s Solar as a Service offering was launched in May 2015 and is currently available to residential and business consumers within a 100km radius of the central business districts of Adelaide, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sydney and within a 50km radius of Townsville.

NYNGAN PLANT RAMPED TO FULL POWER

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GL’s Nyngan solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in NSW has been ramped up to full generation, and is now feeding 102MW of renewable energy into the National Electricity Market.

As the biggest solar PV plant in Australia, this is enough to power 33,000 homes annually.

The plant is part of the $440million AGL solar project, which is supported by $166.7million ARENA funding and $64.9million NSW Government funding.

ARENA CEO, Ivor Frischknecht, said the achievement was another critical step forward for large scale solar PV in Australia.

“This new Australian record sends a strong signal to the energy industry that utility-scale solar PV plants can be

constructed on time and on budget,” Mr Frischknecht said.

“ARENA is pleased to support this landmark project, which will greatly increase market confidence in future solar PV projects, bringing down the cost of planning, construction and finance.”

The Nyngan project has provided economic benefits for the community including employment, which during the peak of construction reached more than 250 people on site.

Businesses in Nyngan, and the wider Orana region, have also benefited from local procurement and contracts associated with the project’s construction.

AGL is now conducting final commissioning and testing ahead of the plant being fully operational later this year.

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NEWS

URBAN GARDENS – THE WASTEWATER PLANTS OF THE FUTURE Did you know that by 2050 more than two thirds of the world’s population is expected to be living in urban areas?

A

s our cities grow, traditional sanitation methods with centralised sewage treatment systems may not cope with growing sludge disposal restrictions, the need to reduce and retrieve nutrients and concerns about contaminants.

This led to new wastewater treatment solutions including Organica – a system that relies on a natural plant ecosystem to treat wastewater and makes a treatment plant look more like a greenhouse or a garden.

Organica uses plant roots that grow into the effluent encouraging bacteria and living organisms to develop. This creates a completely natural form of treatment and reduced energy and operating costs. Its bio-film-based treatment technology suits modern society with a small footprint, lower excess sludge production and integration into an urban environment.

With 50 operating references around the world, Organica plants are successfully and easily installed into urban environments where typically it would be difficult to place a traditional wastewater treatment plant.

HOW DOES IT WORK? The Organica Food Chain Reactor incorporates wastewater treatment into a single structure and includes solids removal, biological treatment/ nutrient removal, phase separation and final treatment at a quality for re-use (if required).

This is done in a multi-stage cascade approach that uses Integrated Fixed Film Activated Sludge technology. It combines natural plant and engineered media to provide a habitat supporting a diverse range of bacterial culture.

The plant roots grow in water and their high specific surface area provides an especially good habitat for microbes to form biofilm on the roots. Additional artificial carriers imitating plant root structure are installed into the deeper zone of the reactors where natural roots do not reach.

Due to the biofilm-based process, a lower footprint and lower excess sludge production can be achieved compared to conventional treatment technologies, decreasing capital and operational costs.

DOMESTIC GAS FROM BROWSE

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14

he Western Australian Government has signed a Key Principles Agreement with the proponents of the Browse floating liquefied natural gas project (FLNG).

The agreement obliges the provision of gas for domestic purposes and will also aim to locate a supply chain in Western Australia.

WA Premier and State Development Minister, Colin Barnett, said this was the first time the state’s domestic gas policy would be applied to an FLNG project. “While the State Government would still prefer this project to be developed onshore, this agreement ensures that the project will deliver benefits to the state in terms of domestic gas and opportunities for

local businesses and workers,” said Mr Barnett. “It also clears the way for the extension of the retention leases covering the project fields, and provides the Browse Joint Venture with certainty as it heads towards the frontend engineering and design phase.”

Under the agreement, the joint venture has committed to reserve gas equivalent to 15 per cent of production from the state’s share of the Torosa reservoir, one of three gas fields that make up the project.

“The domestic gas obligation will coincide with first production from Torosa and amount to around 800 petajoules over the life of the project, helping to secure the state’s energy future,” Mr Barnett said.

JOHN KOUMOUKELIS.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR John Koumoukelis is a Board Member of the Hydroflux Group whose subsidiaries include Hydroflux HUBER, an equipment supplier of the world’s best wastewater technology. Organica Water recently appointed Hydroflux as its exclusive agent for Australia.

More information can be found at www.hydroflux.com.au.

PEL BUY-BACK SCHEME EXTENDED

T

he Petroleum Exploration License (PEL) buy-back scheme under the NSW Gas Plan has been extended.

Minister for Industry, Resources and Energy, Anthony Roberts, said the buy-back scheme has so far seen 12 PELs cancelled that covered more than 2,941,081 hectares of NSW. “We have extended the scheme due to the ongoing interest of titleholders.

We understand a buy-back is a significant decision for titleholders, which is why we have extended the scheme,” said Mr Roberts.

The NSW Gas Plan has reduced the footprint of CSG across the state from more than 60 per cent to 11 per cent.

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WIOA

Operating in a changing environment:

THE WATER INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS DELIVERING WATER AROUND THE NATION

Sometimes overlooked, it’s the water industry operators who are at the coalface every day, ensuring the quality of water supply, managing assets and ensuring access to our most precious resource. We met with a diverse group of water industry operators to learn about the challenges they face, the new technologies they’re working with and the future for the water industry as they see it.

T

he Water Industry Operators Association of Australia (WIOA) is the leading body representing people in operational roles in the water industry. It is a rapidly growing, not-for-profit national association with a primary role of facilitating the collection, development and exchange of quality information between people undertaking operational roles in the water, wastewater and recycled water industries.

With key objectives including promoting standards of education and training to ensure efficiency and competency of members; and preservation of clean waterways and protection of public health and the environment, WIOA has an important and ongoing role to play right across Australia.

With a national membership base approaching 2,300 members are represented by an elected committee of twelve. Utility met with four of the general committee members - Anthony Evans, Assets & Projects Coordinator at Wannon Water; Neil Crossing, Process Optimisation Engineer at Allwater; Lindsay Walsh, Process Controller Sewer at MidCoast Water and Darren Lord, Technical Officer/ Senior Operator Operation & Maintenance at TasWater to gain an insight into their roles within the industry and their involvement with WIOA.

16

A DAY IN THE LIFE Daily life for our WIOA committee members is diverse, reflective of the different positions each member holds.

While Anthony Evans is busy managing Wannon Water’s latest water and wastewater treatment projects, Lindsay Walsh is up early each morning undertaking operational checks at the Old Bar Sewage Treatment Plant on the New South Wales Mid North Coast.

Darren Lord at TasWater can often be found at reservoir or pump station sites, looking after operational and

maintenance projects, while Neil Crossing from Allwater works at actively seeking new ways to deliver water treatment process optimisation.

“Here at Wannon Water, I manage the Water Plan 3 (WP3) CapEx program for the Treatment Services division,” said Mr Evans. “The projects were identified in the lead up to WP3 and submitted to the State Government for final approval prior to commencing in July 2013. There were around 250 small projects identified in our area ranging in budget from $5,000-$150,000. In total around $6,000,000 has been allocated. The majority of the projects are undertaken in our water and wastewater treatment plants and include new and replacement infrastructure, as well as general amenities improvements.”

“My role at TasWater is rather varied, and there are times when my day turns out very differently than initially expected,” said Mr Lord. “At the moment, TasWater is cleaning out and refurbishing a WTP clarifier consisting of a wide range of projects spanning pump station upgrades, updating of lab equipment to operational fault finding missions and producing risk assessments.”

For Mr Walsh, the day starts early when he arrives on site.

“My day starts at around 6am when I arrive at the Old Bar Sewerage Treatment Plant on the Mid North Coast of NSW. I begin by checking plant flows from the previous day as well as pump starts and runtimes from Old Bar and Manning Point plants. I then check our SCADA system for any overnight faults or failures which need attention.

“At 6.30am I call our Process Coordinator, Pat Welsh, and discuss any outstanding issues. I then begin nutrient tests on effluent produced, and measure the biomass from our bioreactors. Once complete, I jump into the ute for a tour of the remote plants and attend to routine maintenance

WIOA

NEIL CROSSING, PROCESS OPTIMISATION ENGINEER AT ALLWATER

LINDSAY WALSH, PROCESS CONTROLLER - SEWER AT MIDCOAST WATER

throughout the area where required. We are always busy, as there are four operators and one coordinator for the eight sewage treatment plants under our control,” said Mr Walsh.

For Mr Crossing, the main priority throughout the day is managing and monitoring water treatment projects that are aimed at improving water quality for health and contractual compliance, as well as reducing cost. “I also coordinate technical review visits by experts from one of Allwater’s parent companies, Suez Environment,” he added.

THE NEXT FRONTIER Improvements and upgrades are the current buzzwords for our WIOA committee members. Optimisation of processes and upgrading of infrastructure across a range of sites is high on the agenda for all of the operators we spoke to.

Mr Evans noted that Wannon Water is currently working on improving maintenance activities to ensure assets are capable of operating at the optimum level of service for their maximum life expectancy, and beyond.

For Mr Lord, the upgrading of TasWater’s water and sewerage infrastructure is currently the number one focus.

“Since the reforms of 2009, $472million has been spent improving infrastructure around the state. If TasWater’s proposed forecasts are met, the expenditure will total $1billion by 2019. It’s an exciting time to be at TasWater,” he said.

Mr Walsh’s work is also focused on upgrades and process optimisation, with MidCoast Water always looking to improve the way they operate. Reflecting this the utility has recently upgraded its assets to the new, ClearSCADA system.

At Allwater, Mr Crossing speaks of improvements to the water treatment filtration performance at wastewater treatment plants, energy reductions, nitrogen reductions in treatment plant effluent and the increase in site cogeneration, with improved biogas production and optimisation of membrane bioreactors.

EMBRACING THE CHALLENGES Adapting to changes in management, guidelines and the industry as a whole is an ongoing challenge for water industry operators. Restructuring within businesses can

DARREN LORD, TECHNICAL OFFICER ENGINEERING SERVICES AT TASWATER

ANTHONY EVANS, ASSETS & PROJECTS COORDINATOR AT WANNON WATER

result in time and job losses, and the introduction of new systems can slow processes down until they are mastered.

According to Mr Evans, “Awareness of the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines when planning improvements is crucial in ensuring that we aren’t throwing money in the wrong direction on instrumentation and plant operational changes, if we then have to upgrade in a couple of years to achieve the required results.

“As the area we cover has increased since the formation of Wannon Water with two other water businesses in south west Victoria ten years ago, long days travelling to and from jobs or training has also been a challenge for our team,” he added.

“The biggest challenge we have faced as operators would be the overarching changes in the water and wastewater industry in the state over the last six years,” said Mr Lord.

“We transferred from our local councils into three separate organisations which lasted for four years. The companies then transferred into one organisation across the state, which meant another major restructure and a lot of role changes and job losses in the early days.”

For Mr Walsh, the introduction of new technology has been the biggest challenge. “The introduction of new SCADA and IT systems are always challenging, especially for an old bloke like me, but that’s what keeps me going.

“Keeping a quality process operating within a limited budget is also a challenge,” he added.

Managing water quality during drought has been a major challenge for Mr Crossing. Allwater is now dealing with algae blooms and associated elevated pH in raw water at water treatment plants and one of Adelaide’s largest water reuse plant. “Keeping up consistency of operating processes during major upgrades to infrastructure at both water and wastewater treatment plants is also a key challenge faced by our team,” he added.

LOOKING IN THE CRYSTAL BALL Implementation of projects currently in the pipeline will be the most exciting prospect for each of our WIOA committee members in the future.

“Our Wannon Water maintenance strategy that is

17

WIOA

currently in the planning and building stage will hopefully be implemented in the near future, as well as construction of major infrastructure at a number of our plants,” says Mr Evans.

Over at TasWater, the focus has been on a new, three-year price and service plan that has been handed down by the Economic Regulator and came into effect on July 1.

“This plan sets our prices and service standards for our customers,” said Mr Lord. “The successful implementation of this plan is critical for the ongoing sustainability of TasWater.”

Midcoast Water has plans to upgrade its Gloucester water treatment plant as well as to build a new facility at Nabiac to ensure a quality water supply to the Manning Valley and Great Lakes areas into the future; and at Allwater, trials will be carried out in partnership with SA Water involving granular sludge tested at a high salinity wastewater

treatment plant, as well as works to improve pressure management in the Adelaide distribution system to reduce pipe bursts.

EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES From trenchless to SCADA, the emergence of new technologies is impacting the water industry in a number of positive ways.

According to Mr Evans, portable water treatment plants and portable sludge dewatering plants are revolutionising the water and wastewater industries.

“Trenchless technology has also taken off in a big way, as well as CCTV used for condition assessment and SCADA monitoring. Drones to check above-ground assets and recycling of our wastewater are also technologies that are having an impact, and that’s only just scratching the surface,” he added.

According to Mr Lord, “One of the technologies that we are seeing

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more here in Tasmania is the use of membrane filtration plants. We have a lot of small towns that don’t currently have water treatment, just disinfection.

With these towns requiring only small flows, it only takes a small footprint to fit a plant to suit. Some can even be package built off-site and simply dropped into place.

“Further improvements to our SCADA network and our new Network Operations Centre will be key to TasWater getting better visibility of our asset performance in real-time and improving our asset management,” said Mr Lord.

Allwater and SA Water are trialling the use of trade waste to improve digestion and consequently improve co-digestion at wastewater treatment plants. “Allwater in conjunction with SA Water has also successfully run a pilot plant study for the Anammox process and trialling of granular sludge at a high salinity wastewater treatment plant,” said Mr Crossing.

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operators need to be better trained and have a much broader set of skills than just a few years ago,” said Mr Wall.

To ensure ongoing skill development, WIOA has increased the range of services and opportunities it provides for the operational employees.

WIOA has been instrumental in the development and introduction of a certification scheme for water treatment operators, which includes ongoing professional development opportunities.

Mr Wall stated “There are a number

of certified water treatment operators around the country and we are now moving our attention to the introduction of a scheme for wastewater operators as well. At the moment these are voluntary schemes but we see them as vitally important for our industry and will continue to lobby for them to be universally adopted”.

It’s clear that the water industry is destined for change, and with exciting, yet challenging times ahead, we can only imagine what the future will hold for Australia’s most precious drop.

WIOA

THE WATER INDUSTRY IN TEN YEARS According to our committee members, the future of the water industry appears overall positive, and constantly evolving.

“I think we will be doing a lot more remote monitoring of our plants with the installation of online analysers,” said Mr Evans. “A quality reference should only need verifying weekly to maintain the integrity of the instrument...at least that’s what the salespeople tell us!

“I would like to think that operators will still be looking after their plants not just from the treatment perspective but managing the maintenance as well. I also think we will begin to see operators employed with an electrical background as we move into the era of remote monitoring equipment and automation,” he added.

For Mr Lord, the future of the water industry in Tasmania will rely heavily on young people getting involved within the business. “Here in Tasmania, I couldn’t say where the industry will be in ten years if we don’t start to get young people on board,” said Mr Lord.

Mr Walsh believes that the water industry is destined to look very different in the next ten years, with advances in technology being the catalyst for change. “I don’t know what the industry will look like in ten years, but you can guarantee it will bear little resemblance to what it is now. Technology will continue to play a greater part in process control,” he said.

Mr Crossing envisages the future of the water industry to be focused upon optimised management across the board. There will be more centralised operations with higher qualified operators, each operating more than one or two plants.

WIOA Executive Officer Mr George Wall notes that there has been a great deal of change occurring in the industry and the level and range of responsibility assigned to operators is constantly evolving.

“The introduction and use of new technology, the desire to increase operational efficiency from an aging asset base, coupled with community pressure to control costs means

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WASTEWATER TREATMENT

TURNING

INTO

Sydney Water has been utilising biogas to operate cogeneration assets, which produce electricity and heat, since 1999. The renewable energy program has expanded over the last 15 years, and the cogeneration plants now produce around 15 per cent of the organisation’s energy needs, providing significant financial benefits from reduced electricity costs, a hedge against future power cost increases, as well as a green commodity value.

EN

B

iogas is produced in anaerobic digesters at wastewater treatment plants across Sydney and contains between 55-65 per cent methane.

Sydney Water now has cogeneration units at eight wastewater treatment plants with an installed capacity of 9.8MW following the installation of new cogeneration assets in 2009 and 2014.

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THE PROCESS Sydney Water has followed a staged approach in implementing cogeneration. The technology was first implemented at Sydney Water in 1999 and in 2007 a renewable energy program commenced. Several sites were identified where cogeneration was calculated to be financially feasible and facilities were installed at these sites during 2009 and 2010.

Optimisation programs were undertaken between 2010 and 2012, aiming to realise the full potential of the new and existing cogeneration fleet.

WASTEWATER TREATMENT

ERGY

IS THERE VALUE IN COGENERATION? NEW ENGINE AT CRONULLA WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT.

A second program examined sites with excess biogas or sites with anaerobic digestion and no cogeneration unit.

This resulted in further expansion of cogeneration in 2014 at Cronulla and North Head wastewater treatment plants.

Some sites currently remain unviable and will be reviewed again as key success factors change. Sydney Water will continue to investigate ways to get more value from cogeneration in the future. This includes gaining a better understanding of co-digestion and other technologies including the Organic Rankine Cycle.

Sydney Water has gained significant value from cogeneration and continues to invest in it. While the primary benefit of cogeneration is the financial returns achieved, ongoing value from cogeneration also extends to the

environment and plant performance.

The installed cogeneration plants have a capacity to generate over 60,000MWh of electricity per year, reducing over 60,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, which is the equivalent saving of removing 15,000 cars from the road.

LESSONS LEARNED - INSTALLATION Fifteen years of planning, installation, maintenance and operation in the cogeneration space has provided Sydney Water with significant insights. These insights have been amplified due to the technical expertise provided by Sydney Water contractors.

Alex Sanbrook, Renewable Energy Generation Manager at

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WASTEWATER TREATMENT

EXISTING ENGINE AT THE NORTH HEAD WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT.

22

Sydney Water said “Prior to installation it is important for utilities to have a full understanding of all capital investment requirements to ensure value from cogeneration.

“Consideration must be given to ensure appropriate engine sizing, plant type, biogas supply/optimisation and measurement, biogas pre-treatment requirements and to the high voltage connections for large engines.

“We learned pretty quickly that engines below 200kW, are generally not financially viable for Sydney Water.

“Allowance must also be made for site factors such as corrosion, emission requirements, access and maintainability of engines.

“Understanding maintenance costs and developing maintenance strategies compared to those recommended by the manufacturers, as well as any auxiliary equipment costs required and the complexity of the operation are also key considerations. ”Correct assumptions during the evaluation process around costs, onsite power utilisation, minimisation of energy export, electricity price, green commodity value forecasting, as well as accurate prediction of engine downtime and the timing for implementation are keys to success.

“Identifying additional value from cogeneration assets beyond financial

benefits from electricity production is a valid approach. A focus on optimising gas production can lead to better biosolids management”, said Ms Sanbrook.

LESSONS LEARNED - OPERATION According to Ms Sanbrook, during an optimisation program between 2010 and 2012, Sydney Water increased generation from cogeneration by 10 per cent in the first year and a further 5 per cent in the second year.

“We have continued to incorporate improvement planning into our management of renewable energy assets,” said Ms Sanbrook.

“Root cause analysis showed that downtime is the greatest cause of lost generation. Without standby units, any downtime represents lost revenue.

“Maintenance planning remains the biggest challenge in reducing downtime. A high level of unplanned maintenance is required on biogas engines and coordinating these maintenance needs across ten sites with a small team is very challenging.

“Technical expertise of the maintenance provider is essential. The provision of fast diagnosis and innovative solutions are important elements in reducing downtime. Coupled with this, parts management is crucial because waiting for delivery of engine parts can cause significant delays.

“Good performance monitoring provided us with the foundation for identifying and monitoring improvements. Performance was constantly challenged. We soon discovered that cogeneration units running on biogas do not all respond equally. This created differences in maintenance requirements depending on engine model and biogas composition.

“Biogas pre-treatment for removal of hydrogen sulphides and siloxanes needs to be considered on a site-bysite basis to determine whether the cost of biogas cleaning is offset by reduced engine maintenance.

“Optimisation of digester gas production and accurate gas flow measurement is important and can be done before cogeneration is installed to ensure appropriate sizing of engines and that the full potential of the asset is realised.

“Stakeholder engagement can improve performance. Operator training and sharing of lessons can assist in identifying causes of lower biogas production”, said Ms Sanbrook.

As electricity exported to the grid receives a much lower return than the savings generated by offsetting imported grid electricity, there is significant benefit in maximising the onsite usage of electricity produced from cogeneration.

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WASTEWATER TREATMENT

of project delivery and preparing an advanced concept design prior to tendering helped manage capital costs.

NEW ENGINE AT THE NORTH HEAD WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT.

Electrical load studies have provided data to allow Sydney Water to reduce export over the last few years.

Practical limitations on operating and maintaining cogeneration units are now well understood, including operator capability, realistic downtime and major periodic maintenance requirements.

These limitations can now be built into business cases for future investment in cogeneration units, which gives business owners greater confidence in achieving a positive financial return.

UTILISING EXCESS BIOGAS A CASE STUDY In 2012, Sydney Water carried out an investigation into the feasibility of new or additional cogeneration capacity at four wastewater treatment plants Shellharbour, West Hornsby, Cronulla and North Head.

Installation of cogeneration at West Hornsby was not considered feasible as the plant had low gas production and Shellharbour is not currently cost-effective as the result of low biogas production (<200kW) and low electricity rates. However, a future business case may be submitted if a more cost-effective solution or a method to increase biogas production can be implemented.

A $6million project was approved to

24

utilise excess biogas at Cronulla and North Head. The project upgraded the existing cogeneration unit at Cronulla from 475kW to 835kW and installed an additional 1MW cogeneration unit at the North Head Wastewater Treatment Plant. The project was aligned with Sydney Water’s Energy and Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Strategy to provide cost effective reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by on-site generation of renewable energy. The project’s business case provided a net present value of $3.5million.

Sydney Water’s lessons from installing and operating cogeneration were incorporated into these business cases along with an understanding of electricity and green certificate forecast rates, government policy, current price trends and electricity demand forecasts.

Minimising export at North Head was an important consideration as the site had two existing renewable energy assets; a 1.4MW cogeneration unit and a 2.1MW mini-hydro plant. The cost of an 11kV ring main unit to enable more versatile utilisation of power from the new engine to the site was incorporated into the business case to help minimise the export of renewable power.

The North Head project was delivered under a Design and Construct contract during 2014. This method

THE FUTURE Treatment process improvements are being implemented as a result of digester audit recommendations. Studies are underway to improve gas production, storage and distribution at some sites.

Sydney Water is trialling the codigestion of trucked organic waste with sewage sludge. This involves receiving trucked organic waste for a fee and adding it to a sludge digester to increase biogas production. Glycerol is currently being trialled at Bondi. Other waste materials including beverage waste, pulped food waste, dairy, bakery and fats, oils and grease will be trialled at other sites over the next three years. Co-digestion has the potential to double biogas generation, which could see some wastewater treatment plants become energy neutral and make cogeneration cost-effective at plants that were previously not viable.

The Organic Rankine Cycle technology makes use of waste heat from the cogeneration units to produce additional electricity. This process requires higher temperatures and is more suitable from exhaust heat recovery rather than the lower temperature engine jacket water.

Sydney Water is currently investigating the technology. One study showed that an additional 100kW could be generated using heat from the new 1,000kW cogeneration unit at North Head.

While the primary benefit of cogeneration is the financial returns achieved, ongoing value from cogeneration also extends to the environment, plant performance as well as contributing to a liveable city.

Any current limiting factors such as achievable production rates and the market value of energy are constantly changing. Decisions on sites where cogeneration implementation or expansion is not currently feasible should be regularly reviewed.

For further details contact Alex Sanbrook, Renewable Energy Generation Manager at Sydney Water via email at alex.sanbrook@sydneywater.com.au.

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WASTEWATER TREATMENT

WAGE TREATMENT: HARNESSING THE POWER OF

Around 100 years ago, Brisbane’s Municipal Council began removing human waste through an underground network of sewers. It was a revolution for public health and a big mark of progress for modern society. As awareness for environmental stewardship grew, local authorities moved onto both removing and treating that waste.

Now, modern utility companies have embarked on a new frontier, not only removing and treating human waste, but turning that waste into a useful product. In effect - they’re taking the waste out of wastewater.

Q

ueensland Urban Utilities (QUU) is embracing this innovative new approach; from the latest cogeneration machines - supercharged by beverage by-product - to floating wetlands and solar panels.

Utility spoke to QUU Executive Leader of Planning, Paul Belz, about how its sewage treatment plants are becoming more like resource recovery centres, harnessing the power of poo.

SUPERCHARGING COGENERATION “Cogeneration is an exciting technology, that’s why we’ve just installed three new state-of-the-art units at our two biggest sewage treatment plants – Luggage Point and Oxley Creek,” Mr Belz said.

“They work by capturing the biogas produced from sewage sludge to drive an engine and generate electricity.

We’re producing enough energy to provide up to 40 per cent of the plants’ electricity needs, which is the equivalent of powering 1,250 homes each year.

“It’s a win-win for the environment and the business, as we’re not only reducing our carbon footprint but keeping operating costs down. In fact, we’ve estimated we’ll save up to $1.45million a year.”

These cogeneration units are getting an extra supercharge, with QUU experimenting with by-products from soft drink, juice, honey and even alcohol.

“We recognise the potential for this high-sugar waste to

27

WASTEWATER TREATMENT

QUEENSLAND URBAN UTILITIES’ MICHELLE CULL AND TRENT WATKINS WITH THE NEW SOLAR PANELS AT GATTON SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT.

QUEENSLAND URBAN UTILITIES’ MICHELLE CULL AND MIKE OAKEY WITH THE FLOATING MATTRESS INNOVATION AT FOREST HILL SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT.

be used productively in our treatment process,” Mr Belz said.

“By pumping the sugary by-product straight into the digesters we increase the amount of biogas produced, which in turn bumps up energy yields from the cogeneration units even further.

“After a successful trial, we’re planning to take in more than 100,000 litres of beverage waste every week from our commercial customers. It’s a successful partnership – they’re happy to have a low cost, environmentally friendly alternative for their trade waste, and we’re happy to give our cogeneration units an effective sugar hit!”

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FLOATING WETLANDS Another way QUU is reducing its reliance on the electricity grid is by making the sewage treatment process less energy intensive. A new trial has been launched at a small treatment plant at Forest Hill in the Lockyer Valley, where floating wetlands are being used to purify the wastewater.

The Queensland-first project involves growing wetlands on specially

engineered plastic mattresses, which are then floated on purpose-built lagoons.

“It’s a natural, cost-effective and energy efficient solution to purifying wastewater,” Mr Belz said.

“The roots of the plants dangle beneath the mattress drawing out unwanted nutrients such as carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus.

“The floating wetland is like nature’s kidney, cleansing the water by trapping sediment and removing toxins. It’s a great example of green engineering and also has the potential to reduce operational costs at the plant.”

SOLAR PANELS It’s not only the treatment process or the wastewater itself which offers utility companies an opportunity to operate smarter. The physical land on which sewage treatment plants lie offers another area of potential to unlock a value stream, while adopting more sustainable sewage treatment practices.

“Harnessing the power of poo is one thing, but in Queensland it makes

sense to also harness our abundance of sunshine,” Mr Belz said. “We’ve done this by installing more than 500 solar panels at the Laidley, Gatton, Forest Hill, Kalbar, Boonah, Kooralbyn, Beaudesert and Kilcoy sewage treatment plants, cutting power use at the facilities by more than 20 per cent.

“The solar systems will deliver operational savings of around $45,000 a year and reduce the annual carbon dioxide emissions to the equivalent of taking 57 cars of the road for a year.”

The initiatives are part of QUU’s Renewable Energy Plan which aims to make its sewage treatment plants cleaner and greener.

“QUU is always exploring innovative ways to become more sustainable, both environmentally and economically,” Mr Belz said.

“In fact, as the population increases, our reliance on the electricity grid is decreasing. Despite this great outcome, we recognise there is more work to be done on the journey of turning waste streams into value streams and fulfill our vision to be a utility of the future.”

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During discussions with council engineers and operators it was found that a secondary major problem existed, which was the failure rate and maintenance cost of single chamber air valves, resulting from their inability to prevent contained solids from causing blocking and leaking. This research also identified an additional eight design faults contributing to early failure of single chamber valves.

Odour Technologies took up the challenge and over many years of prototypes and testing produced their revolutionary twin-chamber, VS-4 Smartvalve air release and inlet valve,

which is now standard purchase for more than 30 Australian and New Zealand councils, and has also gained entry into the US market.

Odour Technologies claim to have overcome all single chamber valve deficiencies and point out the results of one major Queensland council which deferred purchasing until conducting a twelve-month trial.

Twelve VS-4s were installed at highly contaminated sites, at which many makes of air release valves had previously been used, all requiring fortnightly and in many cases weekly servicing. The VS-4s were initially checked at three months and found to be working perfectly and therefore their service intervals extended out to twelve months. At no time during this period were any of the VS-4s blocked or

found to be inoperable.

Because of the considerable cost savings, many VS-4s have since been purchased, plus they have been officially specified for sewage in-line air release and inlet operation.

With the significant quantity of VS-4 Smartvalves now in use, in conjunction with Odour Technologies’ target of 100 per cent reliability and their standing offer of a no obligation trial, it would appear the future of this revolutionary designed valve is assured.

WASTEWATER TREATMENT

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he need for innovation in the Australian drinking water industry has been heavily influenced by changes to the Public Health Act 2010 and the Public Health Regulation 2012. These Acts require drinking water suppliers to develop and adhere to a ‘quality assurance program’ (or drinking water management system) and from 1 September 2014, this requirement applies to water suppliers defined in the Act, including water utilities, private water suppliers and water carters.

The requirements of the Act can be met in different ways including manual sampling or analysers housed in roadside cabinets or service pits, which require external power supplies. The manual sampling process can however be time consuming and power supplies are not always available or reliable. As a result of this, on-site manual water sampling and laboratory testing must be undertaken before problems within the network can be identified.

Reducing risk and streamlining the process of chlorine analysis is the newest product offering from Wallace & Tiernan® an Evoqua brand. The Chloroclam® and Hydraclam® technologies allow for the deployment of analysers simultaneously across the network, providing a multi-measured approach. The process includes the measurement of total or free chlorine and temperature (Chloroclam) while turbidity, electrical conductivity and pressure (Hydraclam) can be monitored throughout the network simultaneously.

Transmitting measurements at preset time intervals, the analysers function automatically and do not require interaction from an operator. Powered by lithium batteries, these analysers allow samples to be taken directly from fire hydrants or from any point in the potable water reticulation system. Once a sample is taken, vital data is transmitted to the utilities provider via the mobile phone network. This enables utilities to receive their chlorination readings in near real-time allowing for quicker responses to any deviations from safe levels.

The technology, which is leading the way in automated water sampling, assists utilities to rectify water quality issues in a time frame far shorter than manual sampling could provide and offers the assurance that the analysers will work, even in the event of a power failure.

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he town sources its water from a local bore field which suffers from arsenic levels in the range of 0.010-0.020mg/L, exceeding the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.

The contract specified that the plant must achieve a target level of arsenic of less than 0.005mg/L in the product water. To achieve the target Amiad proposed a system of chlorination, ferric chloride dosing, DMI-65 catalytic media filtration and cartridge filter polishing. The supplied plant is fully automatic and controlled by an Allen Bradley PLC with a Schneider PC/touch screen loaded with Citect software, for local and remote operation.

TREATMENT PROCESS Chlorination: in groundwater, arsenic

occurs predominantly as arsenite As (III), and requires conversion to arsenate As (V) by chlorination to enhance the effectiveness of the filtration process.

Chlorine also acts as a catalyst for the DMI-65 media, and is required for its regeneration to re-establish the oxidizing environment on the surface of the media.

Ferric chloride dosing: arsenic can bond with iron salts in the water and with metal based coagulants such as ferric chloride. Ferric chloride is dosed such that there is a sufficient reservoir of iron for arsenic to form complexes and precipitants with the iron salts via the chemical processes of precipitation, co-precipitation and adsorption, which can then be filtered.

DMI-65 catalytic media filtration:

DMI-65 is a manganese dioxide (MnO2) infused media whose surface acts as a good oxidant and is effective in removing both arsenite and arsenate, as well as iron/arsenic complexes and precipitants.

The DMI-65 media filters are periodically backwashed and rinsed based on either pressure differential across the media filters, or on time, whichever occurs first.

Cartridge filters: 1 micron cartridge filters were installed to polish the product water and provide a final barrier to the precipitated arsenic.

The arsenic filtration plant, designed and constructed by Amiad utilising DMI-65 media, was commissioned in March, 2015, and has been successfully reducing the arsenic to 0.001 mg/L, making it suitable for consumption by the community of Chillagoe, Queensland.

WATER TREATMENT

Mareeba Shire Council recently engaged Amiad Water Systems to design, construct and commission a 6-10L/s arsenic filtration plant for the township of Chillagoe in Far North Queensland.

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31

WATER TREATMENT

FROM PREHISTORIC TO ARTESIAN GOLD It’s not so often that one hears of a rags to riches water story, let alone one that sees a town’s entire water source transformed into an award-winning drop.

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owever the small town of Richmond in western Queensland, famous for its paleontological discoveries that include the fossils of prehistoric marine creatures, did just that, and has reinvented their town’s drinking supply to win the ‘best tasting water’ award at the 2014 IPWEA Queensland conference.

This year, following the Queensland state win, Richmond’s water ran to compete with NSW at the WIOA Operations Conference and Exhibition for the title of ‘best tasting water’ between the two states. A competition referred to as the ‘Water of Origin’ of water taste tests. The competition is held annually and coincides with the Rugby League State of Origin series.

Although Queensland lost game two of the rugby series, they did take home the honour of having the best tasting water between NSW and QLD. For a small town like Richmond to win such an award against Orange NSW, a larger,

better resourced council from south of the border, demonstrates that it can be done, and all communities regardless of size or location have the opportunity and capacity to deliver the highest quality in essential services.

John Wharton, Mayor of Richmond Shire Council, is proud of the town’s achievements. “It has been a great result winning the awards in western Queensland, let alone winning the state title against all the large councils that were finalists,” he said.

“Topping it off with the water of origin win is testament to the Aeramix design team’s process development methods, expertise and their capacity to deliver outcomes at full scale.”

Further to the taste test wins, Richmond Shire Council also took home another accolade. Geoffrey Johnson, the town’s head plumber and now water treatment plant operator won the Queensland Water Directorate - Young Operator of the Year.

Beyond the honour of receiving

the award, Geoffrey also pocketed a trip to attend the New Zealand WIOG Conference and spend a week touring water and wastewater treatment plants expanding his knowledge and further honing his skills.

Geoffrey also presented a paper at the conference detailing his experiences and involvement with the water treatment plant construction, and his learning curve throughout the commissioning and early days operating the plant - for which he took home third prize in the best operator papers category.

The transformation of the town’s water began when high levels of manganese and iron were found to be present in the Shire’s bore water, combined with sulphide, causing strong odours and rusting of pipes.

“People will not invest in a community that has bad water,” said Mr Wharton. “Continual maintenance and renewal of taps and water infrastructure due to the water’s highly

“Since the opening of the new treatment plant, we can now install water meters in the knowledge that they will actually work, and not block up,” said Mr Wharton. “In the past, council had never been able to meter and charge for water, which led to excessive water usage by some ratepayers and extra pumping charges for council.

“Now the people living in Richmond can drink straight from the tap, and good water means a very positive future for Richmond.”

HOW THE NEW TREATMENT PROCESS WORKS The new water treatment process uses physical and chemical oxidation to aid removal of the iron and manganese.

The aeration stage also removes the sulphide smell and softens the water.

The water is then dosed with a coagulant, which attracts the iron and manganese, forming larger particles which are filtered out of the water

leaving nearly no traces of iron and manganese while the filter media also absorbs organics.

A small scale pilot plant was developed before the project began, to simulate the treatment process and demonstrate its effectiveness.

Aeramix CEO Cole Harvey said “This was a challenging project. There were fixed assets and treatment infrastructure Richmond Shire had already purchased that the design team had to utilise in the process.

“The results are something the team can all take pride in and it demonstrates our resourcefulness and understanding of how to make these systems work.

“We also utilised local contractors and Richmond Shire operations staff in all facets of the project from design through to construction and commissioning. It was a real team effort and a fantastic experience for everyone involved,” said Mr Harvey.

WATER TREATMENT

corrosive properties was costly to the council.”

Not only were residents complaining of the water’s unpleasant odour and the discolouration of building facades from outdoor sprinklers, the poor water quality meant that water meters could not be installed as they were continually becoming blocked from precipitates of iron and manganese.

In 2014, the council stepped into action, contracting Aeramix Water & Wastewater Solutions to construct a new water treatment plant to solve the township’s contamination issue.

Design and installation of the plant was part of the contract, as well as installation of related pumps, pipework, filters, tanks, chemical dosing and connection to the township. The project was a $4million water investment for the Shire and was completed by December 2014. Since the plant’s construction the community of Richmond have benefited greatly from the new water system in multiple ways.

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DRAIN CLEANING

MANAGING FATBERGS:

TAMING THE MONSTERS THAT LIE BENEATH Fatbergs are wreaking havoc on drains and sewers around Australia, with many utilities reporting monster blockages of congealed fat, wet wipes and other materials clogging our drains and sewers.

THE HUMBLE WET WIPE IS CAUSING SERIOUS DAMAGE TO OUR SEWERS AND DRAINS.

C

hances are you’ve already heard the term ‘fatberg’ it’s been hard to avoid in the media in recent years. A series of enormous fatbergs (congealed lumps of fat, wet wipes and other items flushed down toilets that do not break down) have been located around the world. Perhaps most famously, in 2013, a fatberg was found in London’s sewer system which weighed as much as a double decker bus and took ten days to remove.

While material blockages in drains have always been a common problem for utilities and councils to deal with, the problem is now turning almost endemic. Many utilities attribute this to a significantly increased use of wet wipes, which describe themselves as flushable but are actually anything but.

Whether it’s individuals looking for a more ‘luxury’ bathroom experience, an increase in the use of bathroom cleaning products that claim to be flushable, or a combination of both, the end result is the same - blocked sewers and drains that require serious attention before they can resume normal operation.

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TAMING THE FATBERG If the thought of a monster fatberg alone is sickening

enough, spare a thought for the cleaners and ‘flushers’ who are sent into our sewers and drains on a weekly basis to deal with these monsters that lurk beneath.

Sydney Water has reported a wet wipe endemic, with major clogging occurring across the sewerage network.

One million kilograms of wet wipes have reportedly been removed from Sydney sewers over the last two years, a trend which is costing Sydney Water millions of dollars; and in Melbourne, Yarra Valley Water is removing more than 100,000 kilograms of wet wipes per year.

“Amazingly, those horrible pictures of the London fatberg still did not get the message out that grease, oils and fats should not be put down the drain,” said David Snadden, General Manager Infrastructure Services at Yarra Valley Water.

In the ACT, it’s the same story. “We are experiencing our own problems here in Canberra, caused by much the same issue, just on a smaller scale,” said Icon Water spokesperson Angie Drake.

“Instead of disintegrating after flushing – like toilet paper does – these synthetic wipes are not breaking down, and this is contributing to an average of one pump blockage occurring every three days.”

INDUSTRY COLLABORATION The problem has become so serious that the water industry’s peak body, the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA), has stepped in and is collaborating with the Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) and Accord Australasia Limited to discuss short and long term options for reducing the impact of wipes in wastewater systems around Australia.

The three parties met in May and heard case studies from urban water utilities around Australia and considered the current state of play nationally and internationally.

As a result of the forum, the three associations will lead further work in confirming the source of material in sewers, considering ways to better educate the community and participating in the development of an international standard relating to flushable products.

“We are pleased the industry wants to work with us on this issue. We are working towards a solution that will avoid additional long-term costs to water utility customers and adverse impacts on the environment,” said Adam Lovell, WSAA’s Executive Director.

According to Ms Drake, the solution is pretty clear.

“The message is relatively simple for the community – only human waste and toilet paper should be flushed.”

DRAIN CLEANING

EDUCATION IS THE KEY Water and wastewater utilities recognise the issue of fatbergs and blocked drains as one of the serious issues they currently face - and they’re also one of the biggest hazards the people charged with cleaning our sewers regularly face.

“We find all sorts of thing in our blocked pipes and some which even make it to our sewage treatment plants,” said Mr Snadden. “Fats, grease and oils are a real concern as they block up pipes, restricting the flow and ultimately the speed of service we can provide to our customers. Not to mention that the pressure caused by the blockage and build-up can cause sewage spills and damage to our pipes.”

While some utilities are working on upgrading their infrastructure to better cope with wet wipes, the cost to do this is enormous, not to mention time consuming.

“Flushing any kind of wipes down the toilet or drain can seriously impact our sewerage network, and have very serious impacts on the environment,” said Ms Drake.

“There are some things that we can do as a utility, such as replace our infrastructure progressively with non-clog pumps, but this takes time, and comes at considerable cost.”

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DRAIN CLEANING

Rats and Batts

inspect Queensland sewers

Queensland Urban Utilities is using the power of ‘sound’ to inspect its sewer network in a joint trial with the nation’s peak water body, the Water Services Association of Australia.

T

he innovative technology uses ‘sound’ rather than ‘sight’ to assess the condition of underground pipes.

Queensland Urban Utilities (QUU) used both the SL-RAT and SewerBatt technologies to inspect 7km of pipeline in Brisbane in May as part of a joint trial with the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA).

SL-RAT and SewerBatt assess the condition of a pipe by emitting a signal and recording the acoustic response, effectively ‘listening’ for any blockages or defects.

There is no need for the operator to enter the maintenance hole or come into contact with wastewater.

“This new technology could provide us with another tool to quickly find blockages in our sewer network,” said Michelle Cull, QUU’s Media Manager.

“QUU is assessing the effectiveness of these technologies which have the potential to provide significant savings by streamlining the use of existing jet cleaning and CCTV technologies.”

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JOINING THE RANKS These latest technologies are the latest to join the ranks of QUU’s inspection technologies.

In addition to SL-RAT and SewerBatt, the utility is also able to call on the services of a remote controlled robot, Wally, which uses laser technology to assess the condition of Brisbane’s sewer lines.

QUU General Manager of Major Projects, Mike Griffiths, said the robot used a combination of laser pulses and closed circuit TV cameras to create digital 3D images of the pipe’s interior.

“The laser profiling technology picks up faults that can’t be seen with CCTV alone,” he said.

“We need to keep a close eye on things like tree roots, silt and debris as well as corrosion caused by the presence of hydrogen sulphide gas which can attack the internal walls of our pipes.”

The robot is lowered into sewer maintenance holes. A crew above the surface then uses remote controls to drive the robot through the sewerage network.

“The data is sent back via a live feed, allowing us to

THE SEWER-BATT TECHNOLOGY USED TO ASSESS BRISBANE’S SEWERS.

THE SEWER-RAT.

assess the condition of our pipes with minimal interruption to local residents and traffic,” Mr Griffiths said.

“We inspect 100km of the sewerage network every year – that’s about the same distance from Brisbane to Toowoomba.

“Using this technology is a safe approach because we don’t have to send our people into the sewerage system with all the risks associated with working in confined spaces.”

The robot inspection program is part of QUU’s $2.76billion ten-year capital works investment to help ensure the long term sustainability of Brisbane’s sewerage network.

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OPINION

WHAT’S HOLDING SMART WATER METERS BACK? It’s our most precious resource, so why haven’t water utilities been as quick to deploy intelligent metering systems as the electricity sector?

O

f course smart meters for electricity usage have obviously been helped along by the mandatory rollout of metering devices in Victoria. And while they are different products and the benefits between the two industries are slightly different, both electricity and water smart metering technology offers one clear benefit to utilities - the chance to develop a better relationship with customers, and the opportunity to more effectively manage assets.

We spoke to Cesare Tizi, Principal Consultant, Utilities at CSC Australia to gain his insights into the benefits smart meters can offer and their uptake in the current market.

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ESTABLISHING THE UTILITY-CUSTOMER CONNECTION Traditionally, the relationship between water utility and customer could be best described as ‘one-sided’ and ‘infrequent’. Customers receive their bill, usually three or four times a year, and unless there has been an obvious fault or an anomaly in the invoice, these quarterly bills are the only times the customer would hear from their water provider.

Smart meters provide a better way of developing and maintaining a connection between the water utility and customer. They also establish a connection between supplier and customer that isn’t simply based on one party wanting something from the other party - it enables a flow of information that is useful to both parties, and can provide both parties with benefits.

For example, in the case of leak detection. “Previously, both customer and utility wouldn’t be aware of a household leak until the next quarterly bill came in and presented a nasty shock,” says Cesare. “With smart meters, and the incremental measurement of water consumption, the meter can detect a leak – for example, by noting water usage overnight. The customer and utility then become aware of the problem before it presents itself as an increased bill.”

All of this means the customer saves money, the utility is able to repair assets in a timely and efficient manner and perhaps most importantly - water isn’t wasted.

Smart meters also enable customers to be billed more regularly, and according to Cesare, research continuously shows that this is actually how customers prefer to be billed.

“Rather than paying one large bill three or four times a year, customers can spread their payment across smaller, more regular payments which are more manageable for the household budget.”

MANAGING THE ASSETS Aside from improving the customer relationship, for utilities, smart meters also provide a much better picture of how assets are performing, allowing the development of an efficient asset management program.

“Smart meters provide a consumption profile for the entire network, especially at the edge of the network,” says Cesare. “This data is very important for leak detection, and very useful in the planning of infrastructure that delivers water, as an understanding of demand across the network is imperative for the planning of new asset, and for the rehabilitation of existing assets within the network.”

Smart meters also allow water utilities to proactively - and importantly, intelligently - manage their assets.

Traditionally, management of water assets is done in two ways. Reactively, whereby a problem, such as a burst water main, has already occurred and needs to be repaired immediately, usually at significant cost and after some disruption to the general community; or on a time-scale, whereby assets are rehabilitated or replaced simply based on their age and material type, without any consideration of the actual condition of the asset.

However, this isn’t particularly efficient or effective. It would be much better to base replacement strategies on the condition of the material, how much it has actually been used, and where it is placed.

When you’re talking about an asset base of up to several billion dollars, any improvement you can make in the management of these assets is going to return massive amounts to the utility.

THE CHALLENGES While the benefits are relatively clear, there is one key challenge associated with the implementation of water meters - how to actually power them.

“In the electricity space there’s a natural source of power - electricity - to drive the smart meter,” says Cesare. “For the water meter, there’s only a water pipe - there’s no power, which means water meters are typically run by batteries, which creates some interesting challenges in the deployment of smart meters.”

Another key difference is the fact that when it comes to electricity use, smart meters can be used as a means to incentivise particular customer behaviours. For example, time of use tariffs mean that customers pay a different price for the power they use at different times of day, allowing utilities

OPINION

Utility spoke to Cesare Tizi, along with Harry Kestin, Regional Sales Director, APAC at Bit Stew Systems and Mark Ewan, Global General Manager for Energy & Utilities at CSC for an exclusive video series which looks at some of the global trends currently having an impact on utility industries around the world. to increase or decrease costs across a 24-hour period to best manage demand loads across the network.

For water use, there are no time of use tariffs required to spread the load across the system; and in the current market, customers aren’t incentivised to use more or less water in any greater way than the fact that by using less water they will have a reduced water bill.

However, in the years to come, it’s worth noting that should we see a return to drought conditions, where water restrictions are reintroduced, smart water meters will provide an effective means for actually enforcing restrictions such as those relating to time and quantity of use.

THE NEXT STEPS Given all the benefits associated with rolling out smart water meters, the question remains: when will we see smart meters rolled out in our homes? Naturally, there will be costs associated with the installation of smart meters, but the benefits available to the water utility and its customers will be huge.

If you’re interested in learning more about how smart water meters can help your utility, the team from CSC Australia can help. As one of the world’s only independent IT services providers, CSC is a trusted partner to approximately 2,500 public and private-sector organisations worldwide.

For more information, contact CSC Australia’s Principal Consultant, Utilities Cesare Tizi on +61 402 059 836 or via email at cesare.tizi@csc.com.

To view this video series, head to www.utilitymagazine.com.au/video.

DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGY IS EVERYWHERE Together we’ll find next-gen solutions to your biggest utilities challenges.

Visit csc.com/au/utilities to discover more.

39

TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGY

Trenchless technologies play a major role in the installation and rehabilitation of the buried assets that form our water networks. Here, we’ve gathered a group of leaders within the water industry who are proudly ‘team trenchless’ - the people that are championing the benefits of trenchless technologies, and specifying their use on major projects around the country.

I 40

f you’re not familiar with trenchless technology, it’s a suite of construction techniques used for the installation and rehabilitation of buried assets such as water mains, gas mains, sewers and conduits for electrical and telecommunications cabling. As the name implies, ‘trenchless’ means that these technologies require minimal surface disruption when they’re used - which offers significant benefits to the surrounding environment and the community.

Trenchless technologies are used regularly around Australia, but given the benefits they offer, it’s sometimes

surprising that these technologies aren’t specified more extensively.

To learn a little bit more about the role that trenchless technology is playing in the utility industries, we met with the influencers who are specifying these technologies on job sites around the country. Through these conversations we’ve gained an insight into the things they love about trenchless, the things that are holding them back from using more trenchless, and the things trenchless contractors can do to get in front of end users - and make a major impact.

GLENN WILSON GENERAL MANAGER OF INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES, YARRA VALLEY WATER Glenn Wilson joined Yarra Valley returning from an attempt to swim the Water in January 2000 and has English Channel. extensive experience in engineering and Mr Wilson’s most recent project management roles, including a deep involving trenchless technology was the understanding of water and sanitation undertaking of a new water main spray networks, a track record of innovation, lining technology trial for Yarra Valley and a reputation for leadership and Water. commitment. He currently holds the role “Traditional techniques for water main of General Manager of Infrastructure replacement can include extracting and Services at Yarra Valley Water. Always replacing the entire pipe, or by using up for a challenge, in his spare time Mr a technique known as ‘pipe bursting’, Wilson is an avid swimmer, recently where a new pipe is pulled through

TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGY

PAUL PLOWMAN GENERAL MANAGER OF LIVEABLE CITY SOLUTIONS, SYDNEY WATER Paul Plowman was appointed General south west of Sydney.

Manager, Liveable City Solutions “Trenchless technologies have been at Sydney Water in June 2014 after used on the program to lay the many joining the organisation in August 2013 kilometres of small diameter pressure as General Manager, Infrastructure sewer networks that collect wastewater Delivery. Before this appointment, Paul from houses. These networks run held the position of General Manager, directly under the streets and private Program and Portfolio Management at properties in the villages. Trenchless the Northern Territory’s Power and Water technologies often provide a costCorporation. effective solution with minimal impact to Prior to this, Mr Plowman worked in the communities we work in. several senior positions with Melbourne “The program has also used Water, including Manager Capital trenchless technologies to install the Governance, Project Director and larger transfer pipelines that take the Manager, Infrastructure Efficiency. Mr wastewater collected in the village Plowman is a qualified Civil Engineer to our treatment plants. Trenchless and also holds a Masters of Business solutions have helped tackle the Administration. challenges presented when these Trenchless technology is often utilised pipelines need to cross major rivers, across a broad range of projects by transport corridors or environmentally Sydney Water. “Sydney Water uses significant lands. industry partners offering trenchless For Mr Plowman, trenchless technologies widely across a range technology is effective and simple, of asset rehabilitation and installation providing great benefits to a wide range projects. Many of the trenchless of projects. solutions used have been leading “In many situations trenchless practice for the industry,” said Mr technologies have provided great value Plowman. for Sydney Water. The technology offers “A good example is the Priority the benefit of being able to go under Sewerage Program delivered by or around significant features in the Sydney Water, providing environmental landscape, avoiding the need to cut improvements to previously un-sewered trenches through those features. villages on the outskirts of the Sydney “This can reduce damage and metropolitan region. The program has disruption as well as providing the best run for over a decade and has installed construction risk and cost solution for wastewater services into many villages our customers. Using a trenchless in the Blue Mountains, the Hawkesbury solution can avoid damage to a site area, the Illawarra, and to the west and with significant archaeological value,

can avoid delays to the community when a pipe needs to cross a major rail or roadway or could reduce the construction cost and risk associated with a tricky river crossing,” said Mr Plowman.

According to Mr Plowman, “The increasing use of trenchless technologies will definitely be driven by their ability to offer solutions that can allow our assets to be installed or rehabilitated with minimal disruption to the community, minimal environmental impact and at a cost that provides the best asset life cycle cost outcome for our customers. The solutions need to be both effective and reliable during construction and create assets that are functional and reliable during their operating life.”

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TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGY

behind an expander head which breaks the existing pipe to make room for the new pipe.

“The new spray lining technology works by applying a quick-curing polyurea solution to the inside of the pipe. The coating is applied using a rotating applicator that moves up and down the pipe, effectively building a new pipe inside of the old one. A safe and effective solution, spray lining will reduce costs and disruption to both the local community and the environment when renewing water mains,” said Mr Wilson.

For Mr Wilson, trenchless technology

in general also tends to be much quicker, therefore utilising the method in projects such as these is ideal.

“Trenchless requires minimal excavation and reduces both traffic disruption and the need for extensive traffic management, which can be expensive over an extended period of time,” said Mr Wilson.

Reducing the overall cost of works, as well as minimising the negative impacts on local traffic and our customers are both key benefits of trenchless technology, however Mr Wilson reiterates that it is important to assess each project individually as trenchless

RICHARD PETTERSON EXECUTIVE LEADER OPERATIONS AND SERVICE DELIVERY, QUEENSLAND URBAN UTILITIES As Executive Leader of Operations Brisbane’s oldest and largest sewer and Service Delivery at Queensland pipe, the S1 Main Sewer.

Urban Utilities, Richard Petterson plays “In a technique called spiral winding, a critical role in providing water and a polyethylene liner - reinforced with sewerage services to 1.4 million people steel ribs - is fed down the manhole across South East Queensland. and wound inside the existing concrete Overseeing a network of water and pipe in one continuous piece. After sewer pipes which spans more than installation, a cement grout is injected 18,000km, this includes delivering into the lining to secure it in place,” said responsive work, maintenance work, Mr Petterson. as well as a $2.76billion capital works Cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) is also program over ten years. being used to reline the curved Mr Petterson has 15 years’ sections of the S1 Main Sewer, and experience in the water industry, which according to Mr Petterson, this shows began with an instrumental role in the a perfect example of the benefits of merger of an acquired relining business trenchless technologies. into Thiess Services. Since then, he “The pipe is more than 100 years old, has held leadership positions with with diameters up to 1.5m and it lays Kembla Watertech (recently acquired by up to eight storeys below one of the Abergeldie), Sydney Water and Trility busiest roads in the state. Trenchless before joining the team at Queensland technology allows us to undertake this Urban Utilities almost a year ago. enormous task with minimal impact to Mr Petterson has studied engineering the community. at the University of Sydney and in 2012 “In fact, traffic flows right above the graduated from the Australian Institute worksite with many motorists oblivious of Company Directors. to what’s going on underneath their A recent Queensland Urban wheels. Compared to conventional pipe Utilities project involving trenchless laying methods, trenchless technology technologies is the rehabilitation of is generally faster, cheaper, safer and

42

technology may not be appropriate in every situation.

According to Mr Wilson, Yarra Valley Water is a company committed to delivering quality services at the lowest possible cost to its customers, therefore trenchless technology is often a great option for the company.

“We are constantly on the lookout for ways to innovate and improve the way we currently do things. If trenchless technology can help to minimise disruption to customers and reduce costs then I would advocate its use where possible,” said Mr Wilson.

less disruptive,” said Mr Petterson.

“There’s a great need to upgrade our water and sewer systems to cater for a growing population, yet there’s also a need to deliver these works with minimal disruption to both the community and the environment. This is why Queensland Urban Utilities is keen to continue using trenchless technologies, especially where there’s cost efficiencies over conventional construction techniques,” said Mr Petterson.

JIM MCGUIRE GENERAL MANAGER OF COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, SA WATER Jim McGuire is SA Water’s General for common good.

Manager of Commercial and Business The Hawthorndene River Crossing, Development. This role includes overall which involved directional drilling under responsibility for the delivery of SA Brownhill Creek, was the most recent Water’s substantial capital program and project utilising trenchless which Mr also focuses on business growth for the McGuire was involved with. organisation.

“The project to replace a DN250 The Australian Water Quality Centre MSCL water main was located just out reports to Mr McGuire and provides of the Adelaide CBD,” said Mr McGuire. globally-recognised water testing “The water main was a critical piece services to both SA Water and many of infrastructure due to it being the other clients across Australia and only feed to the Hawthorndene Tank. overseas.

The main had a leak, which was slowly Mr McGuire joined SA Water in getting worse. A material test was 2011, initially as Senior Manager of carried out and determined this section Procurement, and led a significant of main under the creek was required to transformation of the procurement be replaced. function. Prior to his role at SA Water, “Due to the main’s location within a Mr McGuire has held key leadership high traffic area, with a step retaining roles in both the private and public wall supporting the river bank, an open sector, including in energy, banking and cut method was not an option. A bridge consulting. option was also not feasible due to the Mr McGuire has also been active in 100 year flood design of the creek and building broader professional capability the risk of floating objects hitting the across Australia and championed reform aboveground pipe. initiatives which saw the creation of “In the Hawthorndene River Crossing a new global standard procurement project, trenchless technology became professional body and other key joint the best solution, as the directional collaborative activities bringing together drill allowed the pipe to be installed private and public sector organisations under the river and the retaining wall.

TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGY

MARK LEATHERSICH GENERAL MANAGER ACQUISITION GROUP, WATER CORPORATION As the General Manager of Water “Utilising this technology allows us Corporation’s Acquisition Group, to extend the life of vital wastewater Mark Leathersich utilises trenchless infrastructure by 50 to 70 years, without technology across a diverse range of the need to dig up streets in urban areas water and wastewater projects. to access wastewater pipes.

Such projects include the installation “Trenchless technology also allows of new pipelines and the refurbishment Water Corporation to minimise and renewal of existing pipelines. disruption to stakeholders and residents For Mr Leathersich and his team, by removing the need to excavate land. trenchless technologies also aid in the This allows work to be completed with management of difficult restoration minimal traffic management, clearing work. and disruption to land.

“Water Corporation has used Mr Leathersich believes in a positive trenchless technology to reline sewer future for trenchless construction, and mains over the past few years in as advances in technology and cost Northbridge, Mt Lawley, Fremantle and management increase, so to will Water the Perth CBD. Most recently, it has Corporation’s adoption of such methods. been used in Inglewood, Collie and “Water Corporation follows the Midland. industry closely to monitor the

emergence of more cost effective technologies and improvements in risk management, and it is advancements such as these that encourage our use of trenchless technology.”

This minimised the impacts to the local community and traffic in the area.

Potential issues were also deemed minimal, compared to the open cut option,” said Mr McGuire.

For Mr McGuire, the benefits of trenchless are that no excavations are needed for rehabilitation with access via maintenance holes. The technology also helps to reduce costs when compared to excavating in relation to labour, traffic management, groundwater management and bypass pumping.

“Currently the many available trenchless technologies are relaying water pipes at a higher cost per metre.

However in situations where critical crossings occur, trenchless technology has shown to be a real advantage.”

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TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGY

MIKE STOKES PROGRAM MANAGER, SOUTH EAST WATER Mike Stokes has 20 years of due to the low environmental impact experience in the UK water industry, and significant cost savings when starting as a trainee technician at 17. compared to traditional open trench He has worked for both the privatised techniques. water industry and major contractors, “As an area of high environmental covering the water and sewer mains and cultural heritage importance, the rehabilitation market.

HDD technique significantly reduced His work spans across build only the impacts on both, while providing contracts through to full alliance rapid installation in the narrow contracts involving strategic program residential streets of the Peninsula with development and implementation minimal surface disturbance. via a design and build framework, on “The construction impact was often contracts delivering in excess of 200km so minimal and quick, home owners per year of rehabilitation predominantly hadn’t even noticed the sewers had by trenchless techniques. been installed. By delivering the project Mr Stokes has now been working for as one, rather than the traditional 15 the past four years in Australia at South year rollout, significant cost savings East Water, with some of his latest of $150million have been realised, projects including the backlog sewer resulting in this being returned to program and the reticulation renewals customers in the form of lower priced program. property connections,” said Mr Stokes.

His most recent project involving Trenchless construction is also a trenchless technology was the part of South East Water’s ongoing Peninsula ECO project, involving the renewals program. “This renewals installation of a 235km reticulation project involves the replacement or pressure sewer by horizontal directional rehabilitation of existing reticulation drilling (HDD) on the Mornington water and sewer assets across Peninsula from Rye to Portsea. the South East Water region.

According to Mr Stokes, this is one of Approximately 35km of water mains the largest pressure sewer projects of and 20km of sewers are replaced under its kind in Australia to be delivered in an our renewals program per year, with accelerated timeframe.

98 per cent of those being completed “The project was delivered by two using trenchless techniques. Water contractors, Zinfra and Interflow, in 18 mains are predominantly renewed by months of actual construction, against pipe bursting, slip lining or HDD, with an original anticipated program of a very small percentage being carried 30 months. HDD was selected for a out by traditional highly disruptive open number of reasons, but predominantly trench works.

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“Sewers are rehabilitated with either a spiral liner or CIPP technology; and due to the limited impact on the operational network and rapid installation that can be achieved, most sewers are returned to service the same day. Open trenching is very much the last resort technique and is very ‘old school’. Our customers expect minimum disruption and most efficient use of funding to deliver renewals, this can only be achieved by use of trenchless techniques,” said Mr Stokes.

For Mr Stokes, trenchless technology is a solution with endless benefits that is quickly becoming the norm on many pipeline projects.

“We use trenchless technologies all the time and are actively working on the development of other trenchless technologies with our partner contractors.

“They provide safe, low cost solutions that can be delivered quickly when used by experienced contractors in the right scenario and have limited impact on our customers and other stakeholders. They’ve become the norm, rather than the exception,” said Mr Stokes.

The

experts in

dewatering

TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGY

ANDREW MOORHOUSE PROJECT MANAGER, MELBOURNE WATER Andrew Moorhouse has worked lives. The project employed trenchless with Melbourne Water for more than technology for a significant portion of 40 years, with the past 20 years spent the new sewers, including a 590m working in construction as a Project drive of 1500mm RCP laid on a curved Manager. He has been involved with alignment. All in all, just on half of the development of the major lagoon the new pipeline was installed using systems at Melbourne’s Werribee trenchless methods and had absolutely Treatment Plant, upgrades to the no impact on the areas above the Winneke Water Treatment Plant, and the alignments. design, construction and rehabilitation According to Mr Moorhouse, the of numerous sewers around the benefits of trenchless technologies are metropolitan area. His numerous significant, and as the industry grows, construction and rehabilitation projects so too will the adoption of trenchless have utilised slip lining, cast in place technology across utilities and councils. lining, spiral winding, pipe cracking, pipe “Trenchless technologies minimise ramming, horizontal directional drilling, disruption in built up areas, allow pipes pipe jacking and tunnel boring machines. to be installed in the vicinity of other Mr Moorhouse was most recently services without disturbing them and involved in trenchless works as part can be used to preserve features that of the Alphington Sewer Project, a would otherwise be damaged by open $50million project to replace sections trenching, such as significant trees,” said of both the North Yarra Main Sewer Mr Moorhouse. and Kew North Branch Sewer. Both Where rehabilitation and installation sewers were laid early last century and projects are concerned, Mr Moorhouse had reached the end of their useful believes that the modern public is

getting less tolerant of the disruption and loss of amenity that can be caused by the older installation methods such as trenching.

“There is a greater community expectation of infrastructure projects causing minimal disturbance which will drive the adoption of trenchless methods in many cases.

“The pressure to drive down costs is already having increasing influence on how things are constructed in this age, and any technological improvements that reduce trenchless costs will go a long way towards making them the preferred construction method,” said Mr Moorhouse.

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TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGY

46

REX DUSTING LEADER, INFRASTRUCTURE GROUP, Rex Dusting has 40 years’ experience in the water industry, having worked for many water authorities and engineering consultants, including national and international roles in water industry management, planning, design and construction.

One of Mr Dusting’s strong interests is promoting sustainable asset management for the water industry. He currently is a member of the Water Services Association of Australia’s national Asset Management Committee.

In Mr Dusting’s current position as head of the Infrastructure Group at South East Water, he is responsible for ensuring that the company’s assets meet the ongoing service needs of its customers and stakeholders.

“The group uses its expertise to research and identify trends in service delivery and environmental policy, asset performance and future urban development needs, as well as develop management systems, master plans, budgets and projects for its assets,” said Mr Dusting.

According to Mr Dusting, South East Water has also been undertaking observation of a reduced area for

SOUTH EAST WATER Greenfield development as the Urban Growth Boundary has changed little over recent years.

Open trench techniques still predominate in Greenfield areas, where it is generally accepted that there will be a high level of disruption when developing land with new infrastructure such as roads, sewers, drains, water mains, gas mains and telecommunications. However according to Mr Dusting, trenchless techniques are being considered as an alternative within these areas.

For Mr Dusting, trenchless technology provides a solution to significant disruption caused during asset construction and rehabilitation works.

“Times are changing as we are now seeing over 50 per cent of new development occurring within inner city areas, activity centres together with a general trend of converting single detached dwellings to multiunit developments. Clearly there is a significant disruption element to the community when augmenting or renewing pipe infrastructure and this is where we see the compelling case for adopting no-dig technologies.”

THEO VLACHOS MANAGER OF WATER AND SEWER PROJECTS, CITY WEST WATER Theo Vlachos is a civil engineer Administration. with over 20 years experience In recent projects undertaken by in detailed design, construction, City West Water, Mr Vlachos and his project management, operation and team adopted trenchless technology preventative maintenance of water, for the full range of projects including sewer and sewage treatment assets. the water main renewal programs, Prior to joining City West Water in sewer rehabilitation programs and 2003 he worked at Melbourne Water, construction of the water, sewage and Goulburn Valley Water, Deloitte recycled water mains in growth areas.

Consulting and Standard Roads.

The specific trenchless technologies In 2000 he moved to the UK and used include cured-in-place pipe and worked in the civil service for the expanded pipe lining techniques, pipe Highways Agency and as a consulting cracking, slip lining, directional drilling engineer at Parsons and Atkins Global. and microtunnelling.

Mr Vlachos has a Bachelor of Civil According to Mr Vlachos, trenchless Engineering and Master of Business technologies provide City West

“City West Water has embraced trenchless technology for most of its construction activities. However, there would be further utilisation as the technology improves allowing larger bores to be implemented and boring through mixed ground conditions (clay and rock),” said Mr Vlachos.

TRENCHLESS TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGY TECHNOLOGY

Water with an effective solution for the protection of the environment during construction.

“Trenchless technologies minimise the disruption in roads and streets where much of our renewal and rehabilitation programs are undertaken. They also allow City West Water to construct mains across creeks, rivers, roads, rail and avoid areas with flora, fauna and cultural sensitivities,” said Mr Vlachos.

For City West Water to utilise trenchless technologies further, improvement in the technology to allow for a wider range of bores and soil conditions would be a must.

Utility will talk to members of team trenchless in electricity, gas and communications utilities in a future edition.

#teamtrenchless Are you proudly #teamtrenchless too? Share a photo of yourself, your equipment or your job site where trenchless technology is being used on LinkedIn and Twitter with the hashtag #teamtrenchless to show your support for this innovative industry. Utility will be posting a range of images and quotes across social media too - so keep an eye out for our posts, and don’t forget to share them too to spread the word about the benefits utilities can experience by using trenchless technologies.

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Utility Partner Solutions

TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGY

PEZZIMENTI TRENCHLESS DEFIES THE ODDS

R

ail corridors, highways and floods prove no obstacle for Pezzimenti Trenchless, who have successfully completed drilling of three bores as part of APA’s Victorian Northern Interconnect Expansion (VNIE) project.

Working under contract by Nacap Australia, engineers at Pezzimenti Trenchless saw the varied clay ground conditions as the least of their worries, with harsh weather and challenging crossings being greater obstacles in their path.

“Extreme weather conditions played a major role throughout the majority of

the project,” said Pezzimenti Trenchless Director, Joe Pezzimenti. “Our team was faced with floods one day and hot, dusty climates the next, requiring diverse management of each trenchless operation.”

The month-long drilling contract saw Pezzimenti Trenchless completing a total of three bores followed by pipe jacking, pipe insertion and pull back.

Each bore was 45m, 60m and 117m in length respectively, crossing beneath the Benalla to Yarrawonga Railway, the North Eastern Railway and the Goulburn Valley Railway.

“Drilling under the rail corridor was

particularly challenging,” says Mr Pezzimenti, “not to mention carrying out highly accurate drilling beneath the Seymour-Avenal Highway. These are each high-traffic channels, meaning that there was added risk to consider.”

Each bore was 700mm in diameter and a tight tolerance of 10-15mm was required along the bore length.

“The 10-15mm tolerance was a must, as the gas pipe was required to be pulled back in one continuous string. There was also only 18mm clearance between the gas pipe, centralisers and diameter of the RC jacking pipe,” says Mr Pezzimenti.

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HDX 38 spacers were used.

Sensitive native flora and fauna were also thrown into the mix, covering sections of the pipeline construction route. However, “great care was taken to ensure that correct management of these native sites throughout our operations were upheld,” said Mr Pezzimenti.

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RENEWABLES

ROOFTOP SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAICS IN AUSTRALIA HAVE SEEN SIGNIFICANT UPTAKE, INITIALLY BUOYED BY GENEROUS FEED-IN TARIFFS, BUT INCREASINGLY REFLECTING THE RAPID COST REDUCTIONS SEEN GLOBALLY IN THE SOLAR PV SECTOR, AND PUBLIC SENTIMENT.

THE OUTLOOK FOR RENEWABLES IN AUSTRALIA

by Dr Graham Sinden and Jamie Mattison, Ernst & Young

For more than a decade, the debate in Australia around renewable electricity generation has been simmering, alternating between fever pitch and benign interest. The popularity of renewables with consumers is undeniable, with EY research showing that nearly 90 per cent of Australians would consider switching to solar energy. However, electricity utilities face significant current and future market disruption from their increased uptake.

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he recent accelerated global rollout of renewable technology has provided an early indication of the ways existing electricity sector operators may be impacted.

This growth has been driven by attractive policy settings for renewable energy across a range of locations, including Europe, North America and Australia, together with innovation and investment driving down production costs (by around 80 per cent in five

years for solar photovoltaics).

The impacts are starting to be felt not just in network operations, but also in asset valuations.

According to Eurotracker, the five largest power generators in Europe lost over 100billion euros in value from 2008 to 2013, compared to an 18 per cent gain in the German share market over the same period. The scale, and counter-cyclical nature of this change, should be a clear message to operators

that the old way of doing business needs to be reevaluated.

Recently, a period of significant policy uncertainty in Australian renewable energy policy was partially addressed, with the government and opposition reaching agreement over a reduction in the legislated Renewable Energy Target (RET); the new target of 33TWh generation in 2020 replaces the original 41TWh. However, there is speculation that this will not altogether

Australia now has one of the higher levels of solar PV installed capacity globally, with 0.26kW per person installed across the country to date, compared to Germany’s 0.47kW per person in 2014.

attractive investment opportunities than Australia.

Coupled with the size of these markets, and rapid development driving increases in electricity demand in countries such as India (at a time when electricity demand in Australia is falling), further growth in the investment attractiveness of these countries is likely.

However, potential disruption to the sector is not just coming from largescale renewable projects. Since around 2007, rooftop solar photovoltaics (PV) in Australia have seen significant uptake,

RENEWABLES

end the policy uncertainty that has stalked the renewables market over the past 12 months.

New investment in renewables has fallen around 90 per cent in the 12 months to March 2015 (source: EY, Renewable energy country attractiveness index, June 2015), and a scheduled RET review in 2016 could open the door to further changes and uncertainty.

This uncertainty has had a major impact on investor sentiment, and is reflected in EY’s global index that assesses country attractiveness for renewable energy investment and deployment opportunities. Over the period 2013-2015, the period of RET policy uncertainty, Australia has fallen from the fourth most attractive country for renewable energy investment to tenth (out of the 40 countries tracked) – see Figure 1. India and Brazil, along with enthusiastic supporters of renewables in Europe such as Germany and Spain, are now ranked as more

initially buoyed by generous feed-in tariffs, but increasingly reflecting the rapid cost reductions seen globally in the solar PV sector, and public sentiment. Australia now has one of the higher levels of solar PV installed capacity globally, with 0.26kW per person installed across the country to date, compared to Germany’s 0.47kW per person in 2014.

The rooftop solar PV sector has been somewhat insulated from the wider policy uncertainty of the RET, particularly once the Government rejected an early recommendation

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RENEWABLES

Figure 1: EY’s Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index: Top 10 countries, 2013-2015 by Rank May-13

Aug-13 May-13

Aug-13

Nov-13

Feb-14

Jun-14

Nov-13

Feb-14

Jun-14

Sep-14 Sep-14

Jun-15 Jun-15

1 – China

1.4 bn

2 – China

2 – US

324 m

3 – Germany

3 – Germany

83 m

4 – Australia

4 – Japan

127 m

5 – UK

5 – India

1.3 bn

6 – Japan

6 – Canada

35 m

7 – Canada

7 – France

65 m

8 – India

8 – UK

64 m

9 – France

9 – Brazil

202 m

10 – Belgium

10 – Australia

24 m

1 – US

FIGURE 1. EY’S RENEWABLE ENERGY COUNTRY ATTRACTIVENESS INDEX: TOP 10 COUNTRIES, 2013-2015 BY RANK.

52

Est. 2015 Population

39 countries, including Australia, with regions where the long-run cost of electricity from rooftop solar PV costs households less than grid electricity.

WHAT ABOUT THE GRID? All of this does not mean consumers are taking flight from the grid, or at least not yet.

Solar electricity may be costeffective, but households use electricity during both day and night.

In many regions, grid connection (combined with solar PV) provides a compromise between cost and reliability. But cost reductions in electricity storage could affect this balance, initially in remote or islanded systems where the cost of establishing or maintaining grid connection is high.

The European experience makes it clear that the large-scale rollout of renewable energy projects can have

a significant impact on the utilities industry. And while both large and small-scale renewables have played a part in electricity demand falling in Australia, it has been a limited role to-date. Efficiency, demand reduction and price have all played key roles.

Nevertheless, with further declines in solar PV and battery technology costs expected, and as customer knowledge and trust in these products grows, electricity utilities will need to carefully consider how they adapt. Reliable, competitively priced electricity will continue to be a cornerstone of the Australian economy, and the grid and centralised generation will remain key players in delivering these services.

However, the sectorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s business models, with a need to accommodate innovative finance solutions for renewables or electricity storage, may look significantly different in the future.

RENEWABLES

of the 2014 RET Review to bring forward the phasing-out of support for small-scale renewables. The popularity of domestic solar PV may have been a barrier to implementing this recommendation. However, the continuing debate over renewables, likely combined with the scaling back of feed-in tariffs, has seen the yearon-year growth rates for rooftop solar PV slow from a 77 per cent average across 2011 and 2012 to a 25 per cent average across 2013 and 2014 (timing that is consistent with policy uncertainty over the RET).

Yet the domestic solar PV market remains robust: in absolute terms, total installation capacity continues to grow, with 3.7GW added since January 2011 compared to a base of 0.5GW in 2010. And increasingly, it appears that this demand will be driven by fundamental costs. Data published

by Deutsche Bank in January showed

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53

ASSET MANAGEMENT

Assessing

ASSET MANAGEMENT:

IMPROVING SYSTEMS AND ENHANCING OUTCOMES

TransGrid has recently adopted a strategic asset management framework for the management of its network assets. Here, we take you through the process the utility went through to assess and improve their asset management processes.

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ransGrid is the owner and manager of one of the largest high voltage transmission networks in Australia, connecting generators, distributors and major end users in NSW and the ACT. TransGrid’s organisational structure provides a framework for strong asset management governance and accountability. This also leads to sustainable asset management decisions, better performance, achieving business results over the entire asset life cycle, and clarity around the boundaries, handover and communication flows.

These accountabilities for asset management are separated into three core roles: asset owner, asset manager and service provider. Within this framework, asset management processes are integrated into the business model, which provides clear

direction and leadership around the accountabilities for optimising asset management.

IMPROVING ASSET MANAGEMENT In 2011, TransGrid embarked on its asset management improvement journey. The objectives of this improvement project were to enhance asset management capability, identify opportunities for ongoing improvements and move towards the adoption of internationally recognised asset management good practice.

TransGrid recognised the benefits to be gained from improving its asset management system and decided to move towards certification to PAS 55. In September 2011, TransGrid undertook a gap analysis against PAS 55.

Following the gap analysis, a number of improvements were made in asset

management planning to maintain and improve effectiveness in the various life cycle activities. Some of the improvements included: • Development of a Network Vision to provide a long-term view of the objectives for the electricity transmission network • Enhancement of asset strategies to: • Better align to the corporate objectives • Consider both longer term and shorter term objectives • Consider all asset life cycle stages • Improvement to the scope, charter and membership of the various asset management committees • Undertaking of an asset management system gap analysis to identify opportunities for

• Asset data • Risk framework and methodology • Asset health measures • Refreshing the asset strategies to align to the corporate planning cycle • Leveraging the asset management committees to monitor the achievement of the asset strategies and the asset management plans • Moving to establish service provider service level agreements, based on achievement of the asset management plans • Enhanced monitoring of the maintenance service provider’s delivery of the asset management plans.

The next steps in TransGrid’s asset management journey are to refresh the asset management strategies to align to the Corporate Plan for 2015-2020; address minor non-conformances arising from the ISO 55001 Certification Audit; establish a road map of asset management continual improvements; and enhance the team’s asset management capabilities and competencies.

TransGrid is now moving into a challenging regulated business environment with greater public interest and reductions in its allowed regulated revenues. Therefore, TransGrid will be relying on its asset management system to respond to these challenges through better decision making and asset strategies; better analysis of implications and consequences of alternative funding scenarios; delivering better value for electricity consumers; and better communication with stakeholders about their asset risks and strategies.

ASSET MANAGEMENT

improvement which identified a number of potential noncompliances and clauses that were potentially at risk of noncompliance.

Using the outcomes from the gap analysis, TransGrid initiated a number of smaller projects to enhance the various elements of its asset management system and to address the potential non-compliances.

During this stage of the project TransGrid observed the continual advancements in asset management occurring both in Australia and internationally, including the development of the international standard for asset management ISO 55001. As the timing for the public release of ISO 55001 became clearer and TransGrid’s understanding of its own asset management system and capabilities matured, the decision was made in late 2013 to move from PAS 55 and towards ISO 55001 certification.

Following the strengthening of the asset management system to align to ISO 55001 requirements, TransGrid undertook a pre-certification audit to ISO 55001 requirements in March 2014.

Following the successful outcome of this ISO 55001 pre-certification audit, TransGrid then moved towards achieving certification to ISO 55001 in November 2014.

The benefits of TransGrid’s asset management improvement journey so far include: • Changing the focus of asset management from how to maintain/refurbish this asset to keep it in service, to how can this asset be better managed to contribute to achievement of the required asset outcomes and corporate objectives • Defining the hierarchy of asset management objectives and targets • Better understanding of asset risks and risk based asset management decision making • Recognising that in order for asset managers to make better decisions they require better:

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ASSET MANAGEMENT

REAPING THE BENEFITS OF A TRUE MOBILITY SOLUTION Mobile workforce management is a challenge, and even more so for the utility industry where field services often involve managing assets and data, as well as scheduling resources over wide geographic areas. The right mobility solution will not only help manage this challenge, but can actually add value to an organisation.

T

he key to a successful mobility system is that it must be flexible and highly configurable. Off-theshelf solutions will force users to run their operations to suit the software, rather than enabling the most efficient operating methods. Select Solutions has proven capability in delivering successful works programs on behalf of a variety of utility customers, using their own Field Mobile Computing (FMC) system.

This sophisticated tool was developed by the Geomatic Technologies team, who specialise in solving complex problems for customers by bringing leading edge technologies to traditional services in the utility industry.

FMC is an advanced, award-winning mobility solution, proven in practice across various industries. It adds value by linking into existing IT systems and connecting them to the field, enabling the user to plan field work, issue work orders and share information more efficiently and cost-effectively.

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PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS OF FMC Making the complex simple In Queensland, Select Solutions delivers metering services on behalf of Unitywater. The nature of the services

presents a number of complexities for delivering the works, including the requirement for significant data transfer and management across an extended workforce. For example, the water meter reading portion involves over 1,100,000 reads per annum, and further services include approximately 15,000 meter replacements. Compounding the challenge of mobilising the workforce and managing a wealth of data, the Unitywater network covers a geographical area from the north side of Brisbane through to Cooroy and west to Samford.

Introducing FMC has not only simplified the workforce management of this service but also allowed Select Solutions to transfer this data and seamlessly integrate it into the enterprise systems of Unitywater, who now also have immediate access to this valuable data.

One further advantage in this instance has been the ability to deploy FMC across all resources delivering the works, employees and contractors.

Select Solutions is able to measure field worker performance, while contractors can use the system to generate invoices without having to access core systems. The workflow management functionality drives the right behaviours to achieve high

rates of service compliance and performance.

Workflow management and traceability Select Solutions undertakes bulk meter exchange programs for electricity distribution businesses in NSW. As with many services in the electricity industry, meter exchanges need to be delivered in stringent accordance with regulations as well as the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own standards for work practices such as safety considerations.

The tailored solution for these operations had its foundations in the deployment of a configured FMC solution that would effectively integrate with client enterprise systems.

It enables better management of data and the effective scheduling, planning,

ASSET MANAGEMENT

RIGHT: FMC MODULE OVERVIEW.

and logistics of meter exchange works in the field, along with data capture undertaken at the point of exchange, including commissioning testing.

By leveraging the configurability of the FMC system, Select Solutions has been able to define and manage work orders in a structured framework and assign different tasks or work areas to various remotely deployed resources, whilst continuing to manage work centrally. For clients, FMC provides the analysis, statistics and accountability needed to satisfy regulations and other government requirements.

Select Solutions has been able to repeatedly demonstrate that an FMC solution can be implemented quickly and efficiently. Each system can be customised to client needs and is backed by specialist knowledge and extensive experience in mobility and mapping technologies, offering a proven solution to connecting field staff through an intelligent and reliable tool.

CAPTION

Select Solutions acquired Geomatic Technologies (GT) in 2014 following a long working relationship between the two businesses. Together, we focus on bringing leading edge technology solutions to enhance traditional services in the utility and essential infrastructure sectors.

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Utility Partner Solutions

G U I D E D B O R I N G S P E C I A L I S TS

WHERE ACCURACY MATTERS

THE CHANGING FACE OF ASSET MANAGEMENT

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s utility workforces and infrastructure continue to age, the importance of asset management increases. The International Energy Agency’s World Energy Investment Outlook 2014, says US$740 billion in power infrastructure investment is required globally over the next 20 years.

So, how can optimising existing utility assets help, and where do the most critical areas for improvement lie?

Ageing infrastructure is creating a growing risk for utilities at a pace which asset replacement budgets can’t maintain. Many utility assets in operation today were installed in the growth boom of the 1960s-1970s and are no longer valuable. This is why asset optimisation is mission-critical for utilities; however, many are not yet realising the business value it will provide. One of the biggest areas where improvement is vital is using asset analytics to drive reliable maintenance programs. A manual approach to asset management in the face of ageing infrastructure and workforce increases the likelihood of device failures, leading to higher costs to the utility. This can be prevented if given more timely maintenance.

In order to gain a holistic view of asset management, better visibility and sharing of asset data across the enterprise is needed. Automation and analytics can provide actionable data for utilities to leverage in order to strike the correct balance between optimising the availability of the assets against cost constraints. For example, utilities can leverage detailed usage and weather data to help identify overloaded transformers and better prepare field employees for specific replacement situations. This ability to effectively mitigate a problem while it is still minor also saves on costs, helping utilities to better maintain corporate financial targets.

Essentially, asset risk management requires a strong focus on asset optimisation. With readily available enterprise data on different assets, utilities can leverage proactive insights to make well-informed decisions on best action for each particular asset, helping to manage and minimise risk.

MARKETS & OFFERINGS This steady growth has reflected the adoption of high-precision GNSS positioning across several markets including precision agriculture, road

construction, surveying and asset management by utility and resources companies.

As the largest provider of CORS GNSS services in Australia, SmartNet Aus offers a broad range of RTK and DGPS correction services and postprocessing datasets from single state through to national coverage, that they believe will satisfy your requirements.

SmartNet Aus offers RTK GNSS corrections in RTCM V2.3 and V3.1 formats over cellular NTRIP across all states supporting real-time positioning at the centimetre level. DGPS corrections in similar RTCM formats assist with decimetre level positioning, most often used by the GIS and asset mapping markets. In support of post-processing activities typically used in airborne mapping applications, it offers RINEX GNSS datasets across all stations in SmartNet Aus. The business plan and roadmap for the next five years of SNA sees

continued network expansion and densification in support of existing market segments, and new market segments. The adoption of real-time GNSS positioning across many different applications is driving the need and benefit of high-precision RTK corrections, and will continue to do so across Australia.

With a unique cooperative approach at the core of its business model, in which parties with their own existing base station can share their data streams with SmartNet Aus, the company foresees a strong continued expansion across all regions. The business model means that SmartNet Aus does not attempt to own CORS infrastructure, rather they pay royalties in return for use of the data from existing infrastructure.

For information about the various services available from SmartNet Aus, contact your local SmartNet Aus distributor or visit www.smartnetaus.com.

ASSET MANAGEMENT

I

n November 2009, a startup business called SmartNet Aus took its first steps with the provision of high-precision RTK GNSS corrections across a small area in South East Queensland. By working with third parties in the acquisition of real-time GNSS data, the aim was to reduce the proliferation of CORS sites and lower the overall cost of RTK networks.

Five years later, and thanks to strong partnerships with numerous federal and state government departments, as well as private organisations, commercial partners and network providers, SmartNet Aus is now the largest GNSS CORS service provider in Australia, with over 530 active base stations and almost 1,000 regular subscribers.

Utility Partner Solutions

CONNECTING AUSTRALIA

ASSET MANAGEMENT

STRATEGIC ASSET MANAGEMENT FOR WATER UTILITIES

by Shane Day and Daniel Lambert, Arup

When Melbourne Water overhauled its old business model and took on a new customer-centric strategic direction, it was a good opportunity to also change its approach to asset management.

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60

his was a fundamental shift in the way the utility operated, from an asset-centric organisation to one that put the customer at the centre of its business objectives.

Arup came on board to develop an asset management strategy that would support Melbourne Water’s service delivery whilst at the same time helping to improve the performance of the assets and of the organisation as a whole.

Asset management is all about ensuring that physical assets can deliver on the business requirements for which they were built – essentially to do what they are meant to do.

It involves aligning the assets with the business strategy to get them to work in the same direction as the organisation.

In the recent report The Future of Urban Water, Arup identified a range of challenges faced by Australian water utilities, including a changing climate, managing diverse sources of supply, ensuring the health of waterways and ecological systems, maintaining the affordability of water services, and population growth.

Urban water utilities need to maximise opportunities to provide services of value, while mitigating future risks and uncertainties, and a strong asset management strategy can help with this.

At Melbourne Water, the process started with identifying the organisation’s goals, taking into account the business, social, economic and environmental factors, as well as the key challenges and issues in each area.

It might be surprising, but in many

utility businesses maintenance of assets exists in a silo, where the focus is on the asset itself. This is not asset management; asset management focuses on the way the assets can align and deliver the overall business needs to the end customer.

As the delivery model changed to a customer centric one, Melbourne Water had to make sure that it could deliver consistently and align its asset strategy to its business needs and the customer, which has a service focus not an asset focus.

Along with helping to provide better services to their customers, an aligned asset management strategy is helping Melbourne Water save on operational costs and capital costs.

By aligning asset management to the business objectives, the asset management team can start identifying assets that aren’t actually helping them achieve those objectives, opening the way for the asset to be phased out.

This approach also raises the issue of whether or not an organisation actually needs to own all of the assets it uses.

For instance, a business objective might be to maintain a service continuity for a pump station to a particular standard.

This may require a redundant power supply which traditionally may have been serviced by a standby generator set. But that supply could be outsourced through a power supply utility generator or second supply. The water utility starts to ask whether it really needs to own the equipment, or whether it could be delivered by other providers or solutions.

In some cases, state-owned utilities own some assets, but they’re not being utilised very much, or they have spares, and their disposal could free up

operational capital for other uses.

It’s all about balancing cost, risk and performance. It’s easy to say this, but harder to do it. The processes involved in strategic asset management can help an organisation understand the actual risk and balance it against the storage and maintenance costs, allowing for rationalisation of a lot of plant and equipment.

An asset management strategy can also help defer capital works programs until they’re really needed.

Once an organisation maps its assets to the business’s needs and it has gained a good understanding of their performance, and therefore their cost, the organisation will get an understanding of their condition at the same time. At that point, it can assess whether it can push back some capital works programs, freeing up capital for more urgent projects.

Our colleagues in the UK recently helped Yorkshire Water develop a water asset management cycle that provides for capital replacement decisions to be founded on business risk assessments.

They used impact scales linked to a series of measures, together with probability scales, to rank business risks and provide justification ahead of investment approvals.

Red and amber findings were resolved using an action tracker to drive through improvements whilst areas of best practice were shared with all partners, leading to collective improvement.

Our colleagues also undertook a pilot study trialling a quantitative risk assessment of ten earth embankment dams. The project is to provide a better appreciation of the condition of these

Urban water utilities need to maximise opportunities to provide services of value, while mitigating future risks and uncertainties, and a strong asset management strategy can help with this.

balancing performance, cost and risk.

Once an organisation has reached a certain maturity of asset management, they’ve got a really good understanding of the key performance indicators of their assets and how much they cost to maintain and run. They can trace that up to the business requirements because each asset is matched to a business requirement. If the business requirements change, the organisation

knows how much that is going to cost and what it has to do to adapt to that challenge more effectively because it has got all the business requirements matched to its assets.

It’s about being able to react to the changing business environment more effectively and in a way that balances cost, risk and performance to provide a solution aligned through the business to the customer.

ASSET MANAGEMENT

assets and their current level of risk exposure. This will enable Yorkshire Water to tailor their operating practices and prioritise investment to most efficiently reduce this risk. Following on from the pilot study Arup undertook the assessment and categorisation of risk across nearly a hundred dams owned by the utility.

Asset management is all about

Shane Day works in Arup’s Sydney-based asset management practice.

He has two decades’ experience, and has developed a wide range of operational and maintenance solutions in the design and support phases of several rolling stock projects. Shane is a Certified Asset Management Assessor.

Daniel Lambert leads Arup’s water business in Australasia. He has played a key role in delivering asset management projects for clients, including Melbourne Water’s Transformational Asset Management Strategy and Indah Water Konsortium’s Asset Management Roadmap in Malaysia.

Arup’s Holistic approach to Management of Assets We work with clients to develop and implement holistic operational strategies.

Aligning your assets (multiple asset types) to the strategy across the life of the assets.

Main Outfall Sewer Redevelopment, Melbourne, Vic © Arup

Recent projects: •

Publicly Available Specification (PAS) 55 Assessment Methodology, Brisbane City Council (2013-2014)

•

Sydney Cross Harbour Tunnel

•

Melbourne Water Asset Management Strategy

Contact: Daniyal Mian, Asset Management Leader, Australasia daniyal.mian@arup.com Daniel Lambert, Water Business Leader, Australasia daniel.lambert@arup.com

We shape a better world | www.arup.com

61 2015 - Best Engineering Firm >$200m

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF

CUSTOMER CHOICE

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CSIRO has completed fascinating new research which provides a range of insights from behavioural economics which can help utilities understand and predict likely customer responses to changes in electricity tariff designs.

THE RESEARCH The Future Electricity Tariffs Experiment was conducted in December 2014, with 1,192 nationwide respondents. The respondents were asked a series of questions to gain insight into thoughts on five different electricity tariff types: time of use; critical peak pricing; peak time rebate; real-time pricing; and capacity pricing.

These were tested against the

traditional flat rate tariff to discover which option was most likely to be accepted by electricity customers.

Time of use A flat price for each kilowatt hour of electricity used. The customer will also receive a rebate on each occasion that they use less electricity than normal, during about 15 ‘extreme temperature’ days each year.

Critical peak pricing A particular price for each kilowatt hour of electricity that is used. This price would depend on when electricity was used. The customer would pay a much higher price for electricity use during a few hours, on up to 15 ‘extreme temperature’ days each year.

A lower price would then apply for the electricity used at all other times of the year.

Peak time rebate A particular price for each kilowatt hour of electricity that is used. This price would depend on when electricity was used. A higher price would be in place for electricity used between 4pm

and 8pm on weekdays. A lower price for electricity use overnight between 10pm and 7am, and a moderate price for electricity use at any other time.

Real-time pricing A particular price for each kilowatt hour of electricity that is used, where the price would vary hour-by-hour. The price would be higher during the hours when consumer demand is high and lower when consumer demand is low.

Capacity pricing One charge is paid by the customer for the whole billing period that would be determined by the largest amount of electricity used at any one moment during that month. The charge would depend upon which band the customer had managed to keep their electricity within at all times that month. The three bands are, low band with the lowest charge, medium band with a moderate charge and high band for the highest charge. If at one time multiple appliances were running and a band was exceeded, the customer’s bill would reflect this for the entire month.

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T

he future of electricity tariffs is a huge topic with equally huge social and societal implications.

CSIRO’s aim with the study was to provide utilities with a sophisticated perspective from which to think about new tariff design, and also highlight further questions that require deeper exploration.

The research, undertaken by a team led by CSIRO’s Dr Karen Stenner, is unique in that it employed a behavioural economics lens to investigate how human beings might make decisions about new tariff designs.

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FINDINGS Overall, all forms of cost-reflective pricing were found to be significantly less attractive to customers than traditional flat rate tariffs, which is not surprising, given that flat rate tariffs adhere to the key psychological factors influencing customer choice.

Consumers ‘ranked’ the tariffs fairly predictably: from the simplest, most familiar and apparently lowest-risk schemes (flat rate tariffs) down to the most complex, novel and apparently highest-risk structures (real-time tariffs and, least favoured of all, capacity pricing).

Of the cost-reflective pricing options, time of use tariffs, critical peak pricing and (especially) peak time rebates are perceived significantly more favourably.

This is probably because peak time rebates offer potential for gains rather than losses, the latter being something to which human decision-makers are disproportionately averse (i.e. people generally work harder to avoid a loss than to secure an equal-sized gain). Essentially, with these tariffs the consumer stands only to gain (in the form of rebates for reduced consumption in the peak), and never to lose (via higher charges for peak consumption). They also offer, for most of the year, the certainty that comes with what is, essentially, a flat rate tariff.

Overall, we understand these relative tariff preferences as roughly reflecting public perceptions both of how difficult a proposed pricing structure is to comprehend, and how hard it might be for households to behave in ways that would maximise its benefits.

The capacity pricing tariff was the least attractive option for electricity customers. Initial loss becomes apparent in the fact that an ‘accidental’ overuse of power at one point in time could result in a high electricity price for the month, despite this being an outlier to a customer’s average energy consumption. This leads to the tariff being viewed as particularly risky. This tariff design is also rather unfamiliar,

it does not reflect community interests and is the most complex and difficult to understand.

THE CONSUMER CHALLENGE The greatest barrier to uptake of cost-reflective pricing appears to be consumer’s aversion to making any kind of choice, and giving up the status quo. Taking into consideration those who will never even respond to such a tariff offer, CSIRO estimates that the initial voluntary adoption of costreflective pricing is unlikely to exceed 5-10 per cent of households.

On the face of it, this seems to present policymakers, regulators, networks and retailers with two alternative courses of action: • Allow the enthusiastic 5-10 per cent to voluntarily ‘opt-in’ and willingly sustain 100 per cent effort to modify their energy use behaviours; or, • Use mandates or ‘opt-out’ schemes to essentially impose cost-reflective pricing on 100 per cent of consumers – although only approximately 5-10 per cent will significantly modify their energy use patterns (especially where no enabling technologies are provided).

Without enabling devices, other studies have demonstrated many consumers find it hard to continuously and significantly modify their energy use behaviour, especially at times correlated to extreme network peak demand.

If dependent primarily on manual responses, CSIRO expects that even the most compelling consumer engagement campaigns and pricing offers may result in many households being unable to fully reap the desired benefits.

CONCLUSIONS Considering their own findings in conjunction with prior research on usage and key principles from psychology and behavioural economics, CSIRO believes that cost-reflective pricing will be more successful the less it relies on

consumers themselves, responding to changing price signals.

Analysis indicates that money-back guarantees might significantly boost acceptance of cost-reflective pricing plans. However, in terms of effective usage (vs. initial uptake), prior research suggests that providing automated demand management devices is likely to prove particularly consequential in terms of: • Simplifying household demand response at peak times • More easily and consistently achieving desired household bill reductions • Reliably mitigating network peak demand spikes • Delivering overall improvements to network efficiencies and utilisation rates.

It is predicted that the beneficial impacts of pricing and enabling device bundles may be further increased by: • Providing simple, low cognitiveeffort, high visual-impact reminder devices, such as ‘energy orbs’ that glow different colours (e.g. red, yellow, green) depending on household energy consumption.

• In the longer term, pursuing additional innovations in building and technology design (e.g. building codes, solar air conditioning, electric vehicle integration with home energy systems).

RELATED CONSIDERATIONS Given the study conclusions, it is highly relevant that Australia is a global leader in automated demand management standards. Australian Standard AS/NZS4755 has already been adopted by many global manufacturers of the three largest sources of residential peak demand: air conditioning, swimming pool filtration and electric hot water. If AS/ NZS4755 compliance is mandated by the government, 100 per cent of relevant appliances sold in Australia will be ‘demand response ready’ out of the box.

Within a holistic pricing and enabling devices bundle, cost-reflective pricing

The CSIRO study takes into account some of the key factors influencing customer choice: Loss aversion & future discounting The consumer steers clear of initial losses, even if the future has potential to provide gains. In this way, the future is discounted.

Risk aversion The consumer avoids risk and makes their decisions based on certainty.

Status quo bias The consumers chooses to stick to defaults or that which is familiar.

Cognitive overload The consumer chooses tariff designs that are clear and simple over those that are complex. As information and options increase, the consumer’s ability to make a decision decreases.

Message framing The consumer bases their decision on community norms and interests.

By also considering the above factors, energy companies will be able gain a greater understanding of how future cost-reflective tariff pricing options may be received by their customers. This information can then be used to create cost-reflective tariff designs that adhere to particular behavioural principles. This would ultimately enable energy companies to optimise an increasingly decentralised electricity system and stabilise real cost of electricity to consumers themselves.

RETAIL

primarily functions to provide a quid pro quo incentive to engage in demandside participation. If a considerable proportion of consumers have positive experiences with cost-reflective pricing – aided by highly automated enabling technologies – and these experiences are widely shared, some forms of dynamic pricing could conceivably be ‘normed’ and normalised.

In all policy making around costreflective pricing it will be absolutely critical to distinguish what might promote uptake as opposed to effective usage of cost-reflective pricing.

Anything that induces the former without also facilitating the latter will carry with it considerable political, economic and social risks.

CUSTOMER INFORMATION SYSTEMS:

INCREASED NEED, DECREASED COST

by Rodger Smith, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Oracle Utilities

U

tilities have begun to transition their decades-old, custombuilt customer information systems to meet 21st century needs.

A core business application, the utility’s customer information system (CIS) supports a variety of legacy and new business processes, including customer self-service. According to a recent study by IDC Energy Insights, it’s clear that “these systems are ripe for replacement, given advances in underlying technology, changes in regulations, acquisitions, the need to accommodate new pricing structures, and retirement of the workforce (who are) supporting legacy systems.”1 A recent study underwritten by Oracle found that, with the price-per-customer cost of implementation declining considerably, a third of the utilities surveyed have a CIS upgrade or replacement on their near-term radar.

These findings reflect an upswing in interest by utilities globally in elevating and refining their approaches to customer management. Technological advances in recent years have provided the means to supply the end-to-end utility need to more intelligently manage its customers in order to improve customer insight, efficiency, and the introduction of innovative products and services. As well, new technology supports demand management programs and strategies, customer life cycle management for micro-generation programs and innovative customer participation in grid utilisation.

There are numerous business drivers spurring the push to overhaul CIS performance, including: • Improving customer interaction and customer service performances with responsive

and reliable call center operations based on high-performance, real-time customer data • Leveraging maximum value from customer data to further optimise operational performance and customer interaction • Retaining customers through improved customer retention strategies, innovative product offerings and efficient resource management.

In implementing a new CIS, a strong business case going into the project is imperative. Ensure that you know what you want it to achieve before you start.

1

Feblowitz, Jill and Torchia, Marcus. “CIS: Meeting Today’s Need for Low-Cost Implementations,” IDC Energy Insights, April 2015. http://www. oracle.com/us/corporate/analystreports/corporate/ idc-cis-energy-insights-2527670.pdf

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REAL-TIME DATA POWER NG INTELLIGENT NETWORKS

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Traditional supervisory control and data acquisition (or SCADA) assets are commonly used in the water sector to enhance oversight of operations, but in a move which will incorporate mass deployment of low-powered sensors, South East Water predicts their 100,000 real-time data points are set to grow to over 6,000,000 in the coming decade.

吀䠀䔀刀䔀 䤀匀 䄀 䐀䤀䘀䘀䔀刀䔀一䌀䔀

匀䴀䄀刀吀 䜀刀䤀䐀 䄀唀吀伀䴀䄀吀䤀伀一 昀漀爀 匀唀䈀匀吀䄀吀䤀伀一 ☀ 倀伀䰀䔀 吀伀倀 䴀䔀吀䔀刀䤀一䜀 倀伀圀䔀刀 儀唀䄀䰀䤀吀夀 吀伀 䤀䔀䌀㘀㄀ ⴀ㐀ⴀ㌀ 䌀䰀䄀匀匀 䄀 圀䄀嘀䔀 䘀伀刀䴀 刀䔀䌀伀刀䐀䤀一䜀 䘀䄀唀䰀吀 刀䔀䌀伀刀䐀䤀一䜀 唀倀 吀伀 ㈀ 䄀 ⠀㐀 砀 㔀䄀 䌀吀 匀䔀䌀伀一䐀䄀刀夀⤀ 䐀䤀匀吀䄀一䌀䔀 吀伀 䘀䄀唀䰀吀 䌀䄀䰀䌀唀䰀䄀吀䤀伀一匀 唀匀䔀 圀䤀吀䠀 倀伀䰀䔀ⴀ吀伀倀 䴀嘀 匀䔀一匀伀刀匀 ㄀㔀Ⰰ ㈀㔀Ⰰ ㌀㔀䬀嘀

匀洀愀爀琀 䜀爀椀搀 䴀攀琀攀爀椀渀最 䴀愀渀愀最攀 䰀椀渀攀 䰀漀猀猀攀猀 嘀漀氀琀愀最攀 刀攀最甀氀愀琀椀漀渀 伀甀琀愀最攀 䐀攀琀攀挀琀椀漀渀 䰀漀愀搀 䈀愀氀愀渀挀攀 䔀渀攀爀最礀 刀攀愀搀椀渀最猀 䠀愀爀洀漀渀椀挀猀 䌀漀洀洀甀渀椀挀愀琀椀漀渀猀

SCADA

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A

ccording to Andrew ForsterKnight, Group Manager of Intelligent Systems at South East Water, “Real-time reporting will jump over 60-fold in the next five to ten years, providing us with more information on our assets than ever before – the challenge for us is how we leverage this data to create efficiencies.”

The recent SCADA Australia conference showcased practical SCADA case studies, trends, challenges and opportunities in upgrading control systems. Mr Forster-Knight’s presentation at the conference detailed the modernisation of management processes made possible through implementation of low-powered sensors to manage the retailer’s $3.5billion of infrastructure through a SCADA network.

“South East Water’s assets encompass over 300 sewage pumping stations, 180 water pumping stations, 70 water storage facilities, nine local sewage treatment plants, 4,000 pressure sewer stations and 1,000 low-powered sensors,” he said.

“It is essential for the business to have a 24/7 live feed on how our network is operating, how each pump and plant is performing within that network and that each asset is communicating with the others to provide seamless water and sewerage services for the 1.65 million people we supply.”

The retailer integrates SCADA into almost all essential network operations.

This includes automated generator management and control, which has allowed initiatives such as pool pricing, where the price signal is directly read from the market and generators operate in real-time. Integration with weather services also allows assets to be controlled based on environmental conditions.

“When major storm fronts are detected, the pressure sewer network can automatically shut down in order to ease the load on treatment plants and other transfer infrastructure,” he said.

“Having a high-speed, Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocolbased SCADA network allows real-time

MONITORING AND CONTROLLING WATER AND SEWER ASSETS THROUGH SCADA.

sharing of data between assets in the entire network. It also allows for greater insight into asset behaviour and operational status, as things such as CCTV cameras, pump diagnostics and instrumentation health can now be easily accessed from control rooms.”

Mr Forster-Knight said the business is on a journey to discover all it can about its assets in order to optimise the operations of the water and wastewater networks, with lowpowered sensors key to enabling collection of this data.

“Battery technology and lowpowered micro-controllers have progressed significantly in recent years, allowing for mass deployment of low-cost sensors. These can monitor everything from flow, pressure, odour and water quality with all information transmitted back to a central SCADA system for analysis and action.”

Deployment of a mass network of sensors to monitor and control operation of infrastructure and optimisation of assets is the main focus for the retailer’s intelligent systems team. In-house developed technology is providing innovative solutions to ageold issues faced by water and sewer retailers, including BlokAid (a selfcontained overflow monitoring device providing early warning of increasing levels in manholes or drains), NuRON

ANDREW FORSTER-KNIGHT.

(creates virtual water distribution networks) and HydroTrak (data logger with built in GPS monitoring capability).

“The low-powered sensor network complements the other machine-tomachine initiatives that we are already running,” said Mr Forster-Knight.

“These include remotely controlled residential water tanks (for optimising rainwater capture and reducing load on nearby stormwater infrastructure) as well as thousands of domestic pressure sewer pumps, all of which are remotely controlled and monitored by the SCADA system in real-time.”

Incorporating pioneering technical solutions into water and sewerage networks has ultimately enabled the retailer to transform assets to perform as high-speed communications hubs.

The pathway towards increasingly intelligent networks will continue in coming years.

W

hen terrestrial mobile coverage does not stretch to rural and remote areas of Australia, a satellite SCADA solution powered by solar is a reliable option for organisations needing to know what is going on no matter where their remote operations are.

Australian satellite communications company, Pivotel Group, has been a leader in providing remote satellite monitoring and tracking services with over 50,000 low speed simplex and duplex satellite data services.

Pivotel has recognised the increased communications needs of Australian industry and launched a range of SCADA capable satellite data solutions that

have been optimised for the Australian environment.

Operating in conjunction with Inmarsat, Pivotel has released SCADA connectivity solutions to support monitoring solutions for temperature, pressure, flow or video surveillance.

As an example, the Inmarsat BGAN M2M system is simple to integrate and install, has a low power budget so it can operate from solar power and effectively maintains IP connectivity at speeds of up to 448kbps so the user has the bandwidth they need when they need it.

Pivotelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s commitment to the satellite M2M and SCADA market is evidenced by its Australian carrier network, which has been purpose built for satellite

SCADA

Reliable, secure and cost-effective communications are imperative in any organisation, more so when an organisation operates in remote areas of the country. SCADA communications offer companies with remote operations a low power, low cost connectivity solution for telemetry, surveillance and monitoring of both manned and unmanned sites.

Utility Partner Solutions

MANAGING YOUR CONNECTIONS

voice and data services. Pivotel is the only Australian carrier working directly with all four major mobile satellite operators â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Inmarsat, Iridium, Globalstar and Thuraya.

Pivotelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s range of satellite data solutions offer cost effective, secure and reliable connections with the lowest possible latency. Data security and network reliability are of paramount importance to users of SCADA systems, and with network interconnect points in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, Pivotel customers can connect securely in more places with lower cost, bypassing the public internet and eliminating the risk of cyber-attacks on the system.

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UTILITY IN PROFILE

GOLD COAST W Gold Coast Water is a directorate within the City of Gold Coast, charged with providing safe and reliable water and sewerage services to the Gold Coast.

Working in cooperation with Seqwater, Gold Coast Water is focused on protecting the health and lifestyle of the community while building future prosperity and opportunities.

I

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n performing its job Gold Coast Water (GCW) is committed to protecting the health and safety of their staff and the community; performing regulatory requirements; preventing unacceptable impacts on the environment and the community; and planning, developing, operating and maintaining their assets efficiently and effectively.

GCW has just under 235,000 customers across the Gold Coast and the directorate consists of more than 400 professional, technical and field based staff. GCW staff are dedicated to managing customer interactions, planning, constructing, operating and

maintaining the essential infrastructure to service and sustain the community.

Their water and sewerage network and assets are worth more than $2.7billion and include: • Four sewage treatment plants • One advanced recycled water treatment plant at Pimpama • 3,210 kilometres of sewer mains • 529 sewerage pump stations • 227,027 sewerage connections • 3,168 kilometres of water mains • 57 water pump stations • 58 water supply reservoirs • Five re-chlorination facilities • 238,302 water connections.

UNIQUE ORIGINS GCW has owned and operated their assets since 2012, after a somewhat tumultuous period in the Queensland water industry. In July 2010, water service providers from the Gold Coast, Logan and Redland city councils were amalgamated under the Queensland State Government’s South East Queensland (SEQ) Water Reform to become a regional water retailer, the Southern SEQ Distributor-Retailer Authority, trading as Allconnex Water.

The reform was initiated to improve the delivery of water services in SEQ and to make this rapidly growing region drought resilient.

ATER

In 2012, following extensive public pressure, the Queensland Government announced that local government would be given the option to withdraw from the distribution and retail entities.

Gold Coast City Council opted to withdraw from Allconnex Water, ceasing operations on 1 July 2012.

Gold Coast City Council once again became responsible for retail water and sewerage services on the Gold Coast with GCW steadily re-establishing themselves as a trusted and reliable water service provider.

The transition of water and sewerage services from Allconnex Water back to the City of Gold Coast has been

the biggest change for the business in recent years. The transition involved a number of major changes to the business including restructuring, rebranding, changes to data and record management systems and business management processes.

A key part of management during this period of change has been regular communication with staff and customers and the allowance of adequate time for adjustment to changes. Clear business goals and documented processes have also assisted in driving improvements in an efficient manner.

CUTTING EDGE TECHNOLOGY The biggest change for the business was the transfer of the existing maintenance and operations systems to a new city-wide SAP plant maintenance system with an integrated geospatial information system (ArcESRI) in mid-2014. GCW approached the SAP roll-out in a phased approach, using new and existing systems in parallel until all staff were trained in the new system and processes.

The City of Gold Coast is currently looking to source a single local government software platform to replace and consolidate a number of legacy applications across the City, and deliver a single point of truth for property related processes and information. The replacement system will enable a number of improvements such as customer self-service, electronic application lodgement, electronic service delivery and mobile computing for field officers.

It is expected to take just over a year to design and deploy the local government platform solution which will commence after a contract is awarded. Implementation is envisaged to occur in 2017.

SAFETY IS PARAMOUNT City of Gold Coast (City) believes safety is everyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s responsibility, and no task is more important than health and safety. GCW supports the Cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s WHS Policy, which has recently been updated to promote Work safe and Home safe.

Underpinning this new Policy the City expects all workers and persons

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GOLD COAST WATER

Utility in Profile

conducting work on behalf of the City to take reasonable care of their own health and safety, for other workers, and for members of the public by complying with the following: • Wearing correct Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) applicable to the activity or task • Operating only when ‘fit for work’ • Reporting immediately to their Manager or Supervisor any injuries, unsafe activities, hazards, near hits, incidents or anything that they believe to be dangerous • Knowing the qualifications, training and licensing requirements of their role and being responsible for ensuring they only operate within their current competency and capability • Starting every activity and task with hazard identification, risk assessment and implementation of appropriate controls • Actively monitoring and managing risks and controls throughout all activities and tasks, and stopping work if it is unsafe • Following all legislative health and safety requirements, relevant industry standards and codes

of practice, and any reasonable instruction, policy or procedure that is given by the City relating to health and safety • Ensuring attendance at scheduled safety training and applying their safety knowledge.

Concurrently all Managers and Supervisors have a responsibility to maintain a safe and healthy working environment and to identify and manage risks in the City’s workplace in accordance with the following: • Hazard identification and management to protect workers and other persons against harm to their health, safety and welfare through the elimination or minimisation of work health and safety risks • Organising, monitoring and updating the currency of worker health and safety competency through inductions, instruction, information and training • Monitoring workplace conditions and worker performance, for adherence to all legislative health and safety requirements, relevant industry standards and codes of practice, and any reasonable

•

•

•

•

•

instruction, policy or procedure that is given by the City relating to health and safety Engaging with workers to encourage open discussion on work health and safety issues with a commitment to improving safety performance through the conduct of Fair and Just Safety Behaviour Reviews Supporting implementation, adherence to and ongoing improvement of the City’s Work Health and Safety Management System through the conduct of Safe Act Observations Actively managing and investigating incidents and near hits, and implementing recommendations to improve safety procedures and performance Facilitating that workplaces, plant, materials and equipment are appropriate for their activity or task, and are maintained in a clean, tidy and safe condition Ensuring support and return to work for injured workers so they can get back to work as soon as possible.

established in conjunction with Gold Coast Water as part of their long term ocean release project. This project, which is the largest on Gold Coast Water’s capital works program is aimed at achieving a long term environmentally safe ocean release system for excess recycled water from the Gold Coast’s four sewage treatment plants. Currently around 20-25 per cent of recycled water is reused for irrigation of sporting field and golf courses. All excess recycled water is currently released at the Nerang River entrance (or seaway) on outgoing tides. Gold Coast Water is seeking to extend and promote further reuse around the city and last year released a widespread expression of interest in recycled water reuse. A number of new opportunities were identified for extension of the existing reuse system, however Gold Coast Water is always on the lookout for more innovative options to make use of this valuable resource. The ultimate long term ocean release project is expected to cost around $300 million. For further details on the test, or for other microbiological and chemical testing and consultative services, visit cityofgoldcoast.com.au/ laboratoryservices.

THE FUTURE FOR GCW GCW will be a customer driven organisation, leading the industry in providing water and sewerage services for the long-term benefits of the community. We will lead the industry in planning for future demands, designing innovative solutions and be financially and environmentally sustainable and resilient. This will be challenging and will require re-think and reengineering of many well established processes. More importantly, it will require commitment, adaptability and resilience.

GCW IN THREE WORDS? GCW’s commitment can be summed up in four words!

Protecting – the health and safety of staff and the community.

Performing – to meet of all regulatory requirement.

Preventing – unacceptable impacts to the environment and the community.

Planning – to ensure decisions are prudent, efficient and effective.

GOLD COAST WATER

Utility in Profile

MAKING WATER SMARTER As well as providing essential water and sewerage services to the City of Gold Coast, GCW manages its own laboratory in collaboration with the Smart Water Research Centre, providing an integrated centre for excellence in water management. The collaboration offers water research, sampling and analytical testing, and consulting services at the one location.

Their laboratory has now joined the few Australian laboratories set up to test for Cryptosporidium and Giardia.

These aquatic protozoan parasites can cause severe gastrointestinal illness when present in water consumed by humans. This poses a particularly serious health hazard to children, the sick and the elderly.

This intricate test is one of many commercial testing services now offered by the Smart Water Research Centre. In a first for South East Queensland, the Smart Water Research Centre has established a capability for undertaking direct toxicity assessments (or DTA). This is the first time a Queensland laboratory has established this capability operationally using local marine species. This has been

WOMEN IN UTILITIES

JENNY GANNON

TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION ENGINEER, ERGON ENERGY In this edition, our regular profile of women working in utilities sees us talking to Jenny Gannon, a Technology Innovation Engineer at Queensland’s Ergon Energy. Jenny’s role currently sees her managing the Guided Innovation Alliance Adaptive LED Streetlight Trial.

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enny’s career at Ergon Energy began with vacation engineering work in Toowoomba in 2003.

In 2004 she moved to Townsville and in 2005 to Cairns as part of Ergon Energy’s graduate program. The early years were about getting experience in a range of different technical areas, as well as gaining knowledge of the company’s electricity network and corporate systems.

In 2006 Jenny received her first role as project manager for Ergon Energy’s hydrogen fuel cell trial. The project developed contracts for Ergon Energy to own residential sized generation or storage at a customer’s premises, and provided hands-on experience with fuel cells. “I have seen many other technology trials run by Ergon Energy benefit from the processes and contracts developed for small scale generation or storage through my project,” said Jenny.

After the fuel cell trial project concluded, Jenny’s role refocused as a project engineer for the Doomadgee Solar Farm, as well as small, strategic, research and development projects for Ergon Energy’s Isolated Power Stations. The focus was on removing barriers to enable an increase in the amount of energy being produced by renewable energy, and the organisation had some big

wins with increasing the allowable limits of customer owned solar by an additional 50 per cent through a load profile matching risk-based methodology.

The system Jenny proposed for the Doomadgee Solar Farm pushed perceived stability limits for instantaneous renewable power through advanced control systems, obtaining 50 per cent instantaneous solar power with no storage, and winning Ergon Energy the Clean Energy Council 2014 Innovation Award.

Jenny also successfully submitted and negotiated for ARENA funding and expansion of the Doomadgee Solar Farm to achieve 100 per cent instantaneous penetration.

CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR CURRENT ROLE AT ERGON? I am currently an Innovation Engineer with the Technology Development team. The team is working on a range of cutting edge solutions to ensure we can use new technologies to deliver sustainable network design. We are also focused on how to best evolve our network for customers who are adopting new technologies, and changing the way they use energy. The team has expertise in solar, inverters, battery solutions, electric vehicles and home automation.

CAN YOU TELL US A BIT MORE ABOUT THE MOST RECENT PROJECT YOU’VE WORKED ON? I am the project manager and innovation engineer for the Guided Innovation Alliance (GIA) Adaptive LED Streetlight Trial. The project is a collaborative effort of the GIA which is made up of: • Smart grid partners: Queensland University of Technology and Ergon Energy.

• The host sites: Townsville City Council, Ipswich City Council and Brisbane Airport Corporation • LED streetlight manufacturers and suppliers: LED Roadway Lighting and Pecan Lighting.

The project is funded by the Australian Government and Ergon Energy, with additional support being provided by all project participants. As project manager it’s my job to make sure the project is on track as far as timing, quality and cost, but with it being a technology trial, there is also a significant focus on identifying and sharing lessons learned.

The biggest challenge for the project was getting the streetlights delivered to Australia and installed for site testing. With new solutions, there are always going to be challenges that need to be worked through. We were able to stay relatively on track

with site testing by ensuring minimum work was completed for the testing and outstanding installation work completed as soon as practically possible.

While the project is a trial, the streetlights will be used by the host sites for 15-20 years. It’s important to maintain perspective regarding what can be achieved in the relatively short timeframe of a project and the energy savings and operational and maintenance lessons that will be obtained in the long term.

HOW DID YOU GET YOUR START IN THE UTILITY/ENERGY SECTOR? In my fourth year of university, I was enjoying my studies, but could only see how engineering was applied in university practice. It wasn’t clear to me how I would be matching my skills and knowledge in delivering projects as part of a career.

In order to finish my degree, I was required to undertake 60 days of vacation placement. I chose to complete my placement at Ergon Energy in Toowoomba. I enjoyed the role as it had a great balance of office and field work and I was soon-after successful in securing a three-year graduate program position within the company.

WHAT ARE THE MAIN THINGS YOU ENJOY ABOUT WORKING IN THE UTILITY SECTOR? Power utilities are both a visible and key participant in local communities.

We get to work with councils and customers to plan for a sustainable future. You know your work makes a positive difference because it’s easy to see that what our organisation does every day impacts on people’s lives and of the future of regional areas in Queensland. I also enjoy working on the deployment of new

JENNY GANNON.

technologies, as it is a lot of fun learning about how the technology will interact with the power network.

In my current role, I also get to work with lots of different teams across the business, to help everyone identify and implement the changes needed to make our solutions ‘business as usual’ for Ergon Energy and our customers.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE MAIN CHALLENGES INVOLVED IN WORKING IN THE UTILITY SECTOR? There is a lot of regulation and statutory requirements governing the sector, which when established, couldn’t foresee some of the new innovative solutions of today. Because of this, certain regulations

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WOMEN IN UTILITIES aren’t always accommodating.

Making change in the regulation space is just not something we have control over. Whilst we can initiate discussion on required changes to governance bodies, the investigations and consultation required to identify and implement change needs to be comprehensive. This takes time, and unfortunately puts up a barrier to innovative change. Conversely, a lack of regulation or standards can be problematic for introducing new technologies or innovative solutions.

A lack of product standardisation increases the risk of products or systems of today becoming redundant once regulations and standards catch up.

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WHAT ARE SOME OF THE MAIN CHALLENGES FACING ERGON AT THE MOMENT? Adapting to a modern network and keeping the price of distributing energy affordable. There are many so called disruptive technical solutions entering the marketplace, and Ergon Energy needs to be ahead of the game where possible, in order to prevent adverse effects on power supply quality as well as meet customer’s expectations for product choice.

New technology and a change to how customers are using electricity, bring a vast range of opportunity for Ergon Energy.

New technologies can provide a cost competitive alternative to traditional network investment.

Customers who are interested in changing usage patterns to match home PV generation or avoid peak tariffs can help improve power system utilisation, maximising the return on existing assets and preventing peak driven development.

CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT SOME OF THE MENTORS YOU’VE HAD THROUGHOUT YOUR CAREER? While I haven’t had a specific long term mentor, I have been lucky to receive guidance and advice from a range of senior engineers throughout my career.

Networking is an important tool in any career and it’s important to foster relationships.

CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT SOME OF THE WOMEN WHO HAVE INSPIRED YOU BY THEIR WORK IN THE UTILITY SECTOR? My manager, Michelle Taylor, is surely an inspiration to everyone who knows her. I’ve known her for ten years, but only recently started working for her. She has had a large range of jobs, from working at a university; getting hands on technical work installing solar battery systems in some of the remotest places in Northern Australia; to her current role as a manager of a research and development team. This team also happens to be leading Australian utilities in their work with designing and integrating cost effective battery solutions.

She is recognised as a leader in her field and is always giving back to the industry and engineering community. Michelle expects and appreciates high quality work and practices what she preaches. I’ve always been able to bounce ideas off her and get her contribution to projects I’ve worked on. Now I’m enjoying the challenge of working with her and getting the opportunity to learn from her and our team.

CAN YOU GIVE US SOME INSIGHT INTO YOUR EXPERIENCE WORKING IN SUCH MALEDOMINATED SECTORS? Working in a male dominated field has been a good experience for me, but I probably don’t have anything else to compare it to. I haven’t found the structure of content of work to be biased towards any particular gender. I do occasionally notice if I am the only female in a large group, but otherwise it doesn’t generally cross my mind.

The real challenge with working in a male dominated sector is learning how to deal with the occasional person who does feel the need to make your gender an issue. There are still people out there that think that checking you’re not planning to have babies in the next five years is standard practice in a job interview; or you have suppliers who expect deal with someone with a male first name. My approach is just to leave the issue with them, I don’t have time to waste on people with closed minds – their loss not mine.

DO YOU SEE YOURSELF CONTINUING TO WORK IN THE UTILITY SECTOR? The opportunity to continually learn and work on exciting, ground-breaking projects is significant in the utility sector and I plan to make the most of the opportunity.

WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO OUTSIDE OF WORK? Outside work I tend to steer away from technical type work and fill my time with more creative activities. I’ve always got more projects on the go than I can find the time for. I love trying new things but some of my favourites are reading, singing or playing music, gardening or heading off on overseas adventures.

A SMARTER WAY

PIPE & CONDUIT

WE NEED TO TALK:

OF MANAGING

PIPE ASSETS

by Mark Heathcote, Executive General Manager, Plastics Industry Pipe Association of Australia

A recent candid discussion between members of the Plastics Industry Pipe Association of Australia (PIPA) and a senior executive from a major utility highlighted some interesting shared experiences for both parties.

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he executive focused on the scale and complexity of the issues facing his organisation over the coming decades and the need, in his view, for industry and the utility to work together strategically to better understand and address system wide challenges.

What was extraordinary was that his words could well have been those of PIPA, and from the outset, both parties were on the same page on this fundamental perspective.

The view was also that the sooner both parties did this in the life cycle of asset management, the greater the benefits for everyone, most notably the consumer.

There was a candid recognition that there was an urgent need to share expertise, particularly in the case of organisations that have lost considerable corporate knowledge over the years as a result of restructures

and internal change. Both the utility and PIPA recognised the need for certain cultural change within both organisations to make this effective.

From a pipe industry perspective, it needed to be acknowledged that there was a need to focus ‘beyond the next order’ and from a utility perspective, there was a genuine motivation to reach out to valued industry expertise and experience.

In short, while the systemic issues facing the utility’s network managers were unquestionably important, the manner in which they were addressed was considered to be increasingly more so. Pressure on utilities to remain at arm’s length from product suppliers for reasons of commercial probity is both understandable and accepted. Hence, it was imperative that the commercial interface remain the exclusive domain of the utility’s procurement division and the individual

PIPA member companies.

For our part, this was business as usual for PIPA, as we have always strictly separated ourselves from any commercial discussion and rigorously adhered to our publicly stated goals to promote the correct use and installation of plastics pipe systems.

In doing so, we safeguard product and safety standards and protect the reputation of our products, including through their entire lifecycle. This is also consistent with PIPA’s established and demonstrated commitment to continuous improvement of environmental outcomes.

Some might suggest that on one level, in commercial terms, there was little to be gained by the plastics pipe sector through improved engagement.

This could be said, as plastics pipe represents more than 85 per cent of the reticulation pipeline assets going in the ground today, and they are already

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PIPE & CONDUIT

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established as their best performing pipeline systems.

However, that is a very short sighted view and not one that PIPA shares.

Our industry is here for the long-term and there simply has to be a smarter way of doing things through the sharing of expertise. It requires a more collaborative and strategic approach to long-term asset management, based on simple common sense and better and more proactive communication, based on trust, to assist with the early identification and management of issues. It is also unquestionably in the broader public interest to do so.

From PIPAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s perspective, we found the interaction with the utility instructive and helpful, primarily because of the decision on behalf of some of its senior management to be candid about the long-term systemic challenges, the need to approach them strategically and the willingness to approach them in partnership with an established and respected industry

group such as PIPA. The desired outcome would be mutually beneficial.

It was clear to all that the future infrastructure challenges were complex and required a more lateral and more mature approach from all parties.

For its part, PIPA has certainly demonstrated our willingness to collaborate in such a way, and there have been measured and successful steps by both parties in that spirit with positive results.

There has been a series of meetings over the last year where industry and utility representatives have sat around a table and discussed both short and long-term issues. The projects vary from the quite specific to system-wide solutions. In all cases, they addressed asset management areas that were priority hot spots involving condition assessment and problem analysis of specific asset classes, development of improved interfaces between utility and private pipeline systems, to the more strategic thoughts around making often

subtle changes using different product options to maximise pipeline life and minimise future operating expenditure.

The benefits of sharing perspectives on a number of these issues have become increasingly evident to all.

Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not to say that there havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t been a few hiccups along the way; but demonstrable progress has been made. A wider array and deeper level of relationships have been developed across both organisations.

Whilst the original motivation for this article came from that candid discussion with one executive, this position is not unique to a single agency. This may have been the first time a utility agency had made such a clear and open statement about their need for a different type of engagement, but it did however, encapsulate a view that has been developing across the gas, water and wastewater sectors over recent years.

Increasingly, PIPA is engaged in projects with agencies or their

PIPE & CONDUIT

consultants looking at issues like asset risk assessment, resilience and product life cycle assessment.

Increasingly, it was evident that many - if not all - of these projects required a change of mindset in terms of the strategic approach to the long-term management of the asset.

COLLABORATION IN ACTION One of the highest profile examples of successful strategic collaboration, is with Queenslandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s coal seam gas (CSG) industry. A significant component of their asset program was the creation of a pipeline network to gather gas and the produced water from literally thousands of individual wells.

This asset creation process needed to be achieved safely, and also needed to ensure that these long-term assets performed without the need for intervention by the asset owner for their entire design life. Plastics and most commonly polyethylene (PE)

were the pipeline materials chosen to meet the environmental and operational demands of this industry.

The decision by the CSG industry to use plastics pipe meant that PIPA engaged with their peak industry group, the Australian Pipeline and Gas Association (APGA), to focus on what has become a highly successful collaborative effort developing a Code of Practice covering practically all aspects of the design, installation, testing and operation of this group of key pipeline assets. This collaborative effort involved CSG companies, contractors, designers, product suppliers and the Queensland gas technical regulator in a totally non-commercial and strategic context, based on the logical but sometimes challenging concept of sharing expertise based on trust. As a testament to the quality, integrity and relevance of the information in the Code, it is now embedded in Queensland Legislation.

The take home message is that in this changing landscape with a leaner workforce focused on core business activities, there is an increasing need to look outside the organisation for much of the specialised expertise needed to effectively make sound strategic decisions about pipeline assets.

In order to take advantage of this knowledge, there needs to be a recognition of, and respect for, the need to develop a relationship where commercial imperatives can be effectively segregated from the need to facilitate open strategic discussion. This requires a collective cultural shift across organisations and that does not occur overnight. Over time, and with common commitment, the significant mutual benefits are apparent to all, and with that comes more positive change.

For our part, we have learned that the earlier we start this conversation the better, as it is simply an excellent investment for the future.

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NBN

Creating

CONSTRUCTIVE

NBN PARTNERSHIPS

by Michelle Goldsmith, Utility Associate Editor

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W

e took the opportunity to speak with spokespeople from nbn and some of its construction partners to learn more about the new contracting arrangements and what they mean for the project as a whole.

TEAMING UP TO FAST-TRACK THE NBN The first agreements signed under the new contracting model were between nbn and rollout partners Transfield, Downer, Visionstream, Silcar, Fulton Hogan and WBHO. All

in all, these agreements combine to cover approximately 4 million premises across Australia.

These premises are located within the fixed line NBN footprint and include homes and businesses within the additional 200,000 premises added to the 18-month rollout schedule detailed in the newest version of the nbn Multi-technology Rollout Plan.

In a recent statement, nbn CEO Bill Morrow said that the renegotiated contracts were a vital factor in allowing the company to schedule such a large volume of construction to begin

NBN

nbn has finalised a number of new construction contracts with its delivery partners to extend the National Broadband Network’s fixed-line footprint to another 4 million premises. These contracts are based on a revised Multitechnology Integrated Master Agreement, involving simplified performancebased contracts intended to reduce administrative overheads, enhance competition, enable flexibility and incentivise a faster, more effective NBN rollout. over the next 18 months, which he described as an “important step toward reaching our goal of connecting eight million premises to the nbn network by 2020”.

Connections to the NBN will occur through the use of fibre-to-thenode (FTTN), fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) and fibre-to-the-building/ basement (FTTB) technologies. The technology used to connect each individual premise will be determined according to the nbn Multi-technology Deployment Principles. They do not however, include connection to

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NBN

the HFC network, for which other contracting arrangements will be made.

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INITIAL MULTI-TECHNOLOGY CONTRACTS AWARDED Utility talked to spokespeople from Downer and Transfield to discuss their new contracts in more detail.

Downer signed a five-year contract with nbn valued at approximately $100million in the first year.

“The value of the contract in subsequent years will depend on the volumes allocated by nbn as the rollout continues under the Multi-technology Integrated Master Agreement (MIMA),” said a spokesperson for Downer. “In the first year of the MIMA rollout, Downer is forecast to make the NBN available to approximately 144,000 premises in Queensland, New South Wales and Western Australia. This is in addition to the work volumes on hand under the previous contracting model.”

For the past two and a half years, Downer has been successfully rolling out the FTTP network in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory under the previous contracting agreement, the Network Services Master Agreement (NSMA).

Transfield’s new contract with nbn is worth up to $140million in the first year.

“We expect to make the NBN available to well over 200,000 premises in New South Wales and Victoria by June 2016,” said a spokesperson for the company.

The new agreement comes in addition to Transfield’s two previously announced contracts for the NBN rollout in Victoria, which included a twoyear, $300million extension to continue the Local/Distribution Network design, as well as construction of the Fibre Optic Network, and a two-year $66million contract for the construction of exterior house pre-connections.

Visionstream also signed a new MIMA contract, valued at approx. $270million in the first year, that will see the company construct FTTN and FTTP across Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania.

Silcar, Fulton Hogan and WBHO were also awarded new contracts, of undisclosed value.

The terms of the agreements formally came into effect on 1 July 2015 and works on the new premises are already underway. nbn states that further contracts are likely to be finalised in the near future.

A RESULT OF INDUSTRY INPUT The new contracting arrangements were formulated as a result of extensive consultation with nbn’s delivery partners to make sure contracts were less complex, easier to administer, more competitive and incentivised great results as the company ramps up works to accelerate the rollout. “nbn’s industry management team has been working closely with all stakeholders across the industry, spending many months to ensure the terms instill the principles of competition and flexibility,” said an nbn spokesperson.

Both Downer and Transfield were involved in the consultation process leading to the new arrangements.

KEEPING NETWORK CONSTRUCTION ROLLING An nbn spokesperson said that flexibility was key to the differences between the new contracting agreements and those under the old model.

“The new contracts are a marked departure from the old commercial model, which guaranteed large volumes of work yet placed high administrative burden on delivery partners. They also create competition, where successes from our delivery partners can be rewarded with more volume.”

The previous contracting arrangements guaranteed suppliers with set amounts of work in specific states and regions regardless of performance and created higher administrative overheads. In contrast, the revised contracts enable flexibility in volume commitments, competition between delivery partners, and pricing

based on outcomes rather than inputs.

Under the new contracting agreements, six-month parcels of work are released to delivery partners, whose performance is evaluated according to a matrix based on the key criteria of the speed and delivery of the rollout, quality and adherence to safe work practices. Contractors who perform well according to these criteria may be rewarded with additional volumes of work.

“All three are equally important,” said the company spokesperson, “with volume and timing sequenced to release more work once current assignments reach their milestones.”

REWARDING CONSTRUCTION EXCELLENCE The new arrangements have been met with a largely positive industry response and the nbn delivery partners we spoke to were confident about their ability to secure additional work via performance excellence.

A spokesperson from Downer said “Although the work done is similar, the new contract is more outcome focused. It provides us with more flexibility, such as flexibility with construction methodology in connecting the NBN from the main network. The new contract also provides Downer with greater opportunity for increased work volume through delivering excellent performance.”

A Transfield spokesperson said, “The new contracts have a fixed program of work that enables us to better plan and program the works. They are also less prescriptive and more outcomebased, which reduces much of the administrative burden and allows us the flexibility to better manage our works with regard to our approach and timing.”

“The performance criteria of the new contract focus mainly on the speed and coverage of the rollout, quality of the works and health & safety. The flexibility and ownership we attain from the new contract enables us to focus on positive outputs that satisfy these criteria. This approach suits Transfield

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is very similar.”

“We have been connecting premises to the NBN in New South Wales and Victoria for nearly four years under our existing NBN contracts, so this new model is more about adapting our business operations to the changes in technology and commercial approach.”

A CONTRACTOR’S PERSPECTIVE OF THE NBN Both Downer and Transfield were passionate about the benefits their companies can realise through the performance incentives instilled in the new contracts and by working on such a substantial infrastructure project in general.

“A contract like this is an example of the future direction Transfield Services is taking in terms of investing in capability so that we can participate meaningfully in rolling out the right infrastructure for the benefit of all stakeholders – including our clients, their customers and our shareholders,”

said the Transfield spokesperson. “We also have the potential to create our own future – one that builds on our existing relationships with key clients such as NBN. In turn, our credibility grows and we win more work with more clients.”

Downer said “The goal of the NBN is to deliver Australia’s first national wholesale-only, open access broadband network to all Australians. As a leader in the communications sector in both Australia and New Zealand, we are delighted to be supporting the rollout of this significant project.”

The new streamlined contracting agreements look set to enable nbn’s delivery partners to get on with their job of delivering Australia’s National Broadband Network as quickly, effectively and safely as possible. They also provide an example of a positive project partnership and contract renegotiation achieved through consultation with contractors and other stakeholders.

NBN

Services as we have been one of the NBN industry leaders in these areas over the last four years.”

The contractors also envisaged a smooth transition from the full fibre rollout of the past to a multi-technology rollout, citing their comprehensive experience with various network types and the similarities of the works on a construction level.

According to a Transfield spokesperson, “The technology we have rolled out over the last four years has been FTTP. The new contracts utilise a mix of FTTP, FTTN and FTTB, although there will be a higher focus on the FTTN to utilise the existing copper network. Transfield Services has had extensive experience with design, construction and maintenance of Telstra’s copper network in New South Wales and Queensland, and we still have significant contracts involving the copper network in New Zealand.

Although the technology is different, the nature of the construction activities

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CABLES

Who will be

THE WORLD’S BEST CABLER?

Perth-based telecommunications tradesman Cameron Rolfe has proven his cabling skills by winning Australia and the South Pacific’s highest achievement award for technicians, the BICSI South Pacific Industry Skills Challenge.

CAMERON ROLFE, JOHN CROXSON, MANAGING DIRECTOR JB HUNTER TECHNOLOGY AND PAUL DONOVAN, MANAGER DATATEL.

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he BICSI South Pacific Industry Skills Challenge was held in Sydney in May, when Darling Harbour played host to the 2015 BICSI South Pacific 2015 Conference.

The grand final for the Industry Skills Challenge was held as part of the conference exhibition, at the booth of training provider JB Hunter.

Cameron, of Datatel WA, had already competed in and won the Western Australian qualifying heat during April.

In the Grand Final Cameron competed against two other finalists from NSW and NZ in structured cabling, and optical fibre and commissioning practical exercises.

Cameron was required to demonstrate a high level of telecommunications expertise as a technician to win the grand final. His

skills have been honed in a workplace that encompasses not only data including outside plant and LAN, but also customer premises cabling, audio, video and automation systems.

Cameron’s employers at Datatel are thrilled with this result and claim he gained the practice from one of their recent significant projects on the Perth University of WA Communications Network Upgrade. This project also took out an award for ICT Infrastructure Installation at the conference.

As the winner of this special award, Cameron will now compete in the BICSI International Cabling Skills Challenge in Florida, US in February 2016, to determine the ‘world’s best cabler’.

ABOUT BICSI BICSI is a global not-for-profit association supporting cabling design and installation professionals.

BICSI strives to provide information, education and knowledge assessment for individuals in the information and communications technology community.

BICSI recognises high achievement in the telecommunications industry with international awards offered annually in the ‘Skills Challenge’, the ‘ICT Designer of the Year’ and the ‘ICT Infrastructure Installation of the Year’.

This BICSI Skills Challenge is an annual event and the organising committee is already on the lookout for the next participants.

JOIN US AT THE VIC WATER INDUSTRY OPERATIONS CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION

Bendigo 2 & 3 September, 2015 Promoting best practice in water management by building the knowledge, skills and networks of industry operators. WIOA annual conferences provide a medium for individuals involved in water operations to:

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ULD ATT SHO EN

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• Listen to the experience of others through the latest “operational” technical and research based information through platform and poster presentations.

• View and discuss the latest advances in technical equipment, products and services with suppliers and trade consultants • Update their knowledge and skills through interaction with fellow water industry employees.

All water industry personnel involved in the operation and maintenance of urban, rural and industrial water related infrastructure for the management, conveyance, treatment, discharge and reuse of water and trade wastes should attend this conference.

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Sponsorship Opportunities Available Water Industry Operators Association of Australia (WIOA) WIOA is a national association with a primary role of facilitating the collection, development and exchange of quality information between people undertaking operational roles in the water industry.

Take advantage of the opportunity to position your company as a leader in water management by aligning your company as a supporter of the leading non-profit organisation serving the needs of operators in the water industry.

For more information on exhibiting or sponsorship, visit the conference website.

PO Box 6012 Shepparton, Victoria 3632 E info@wioa.org.au P 03 5821 6744 W wioaconferences.org.au

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www.wioaconferences.org.au

The utility industry is regularly required to call on an enormous and varied range of specialists; from mapping, to drilling, to wastewater treatment, to asset management, to pipe relining, to pipeline integrity, to land access, to risk management, and the list goes on. To make the process a little easier, Utility magazine is bringing together experts from various fields to answer your questions.

MICROTUNNELLING HOW DO YOU SELECT THE RIGHT TYPE OF PIPE TO USE FOR A MICROTUNNELLING INSTALLATION? IS THERE ANY TYPE OF PIPE THAT IS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN OTHERS? During an installation, microtunnellers are managing the machine through a variety of ground conditions - soft/hard, sticky/flowing, dry/wet, highly abrasive/highly elastic - all of which are constantly changing and effecting the drilling method.

Because of this, pipe selection plays a major role in reducing risk, enhancing accuracy, reducing cost and the overall success of installation. There are a number of options available, and the best option will depend on the prevailing ground conditions.

CC-GRP JACKING PIPE CC-GRP jacking pipe would be the preference for most contractors, as it offers a narrow wall with maximal strength and minimal skin friction.

The pipe is manufactured with tight tolerances which allow for the accuracy of the installation to be maintained into the final product.

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RCP RCP offers a range of jacking pipe which allow for high jacking loads.

The different manufacturers offer slight variations in both tolerances, specifications and wall thicknesses, all

of which have an impact on installation costs. The increased weight and higher skin friction increases the required jacking load for installation, which in turn, places greater force on the jacking shaft.

HDPE HDPE is a pipe typically used for HDD installation and offers low skin friction. This pipe, however, requires a trail out trench which is detrimental to the shaft construction and the overall advantage of the keyhole pipeline.

Furthermore, the need to string out the line to reduce installation time would limit the jobsites where this pipe would be practical to install. The limitation of force that the pipe can manage also creates some issues with the minimal overcut common in microtunnel installations. The flexibility of the pipe is ultimately detrimental to ultimate precision.

PVC AND PP PIPES PVC and PP pipes are typically limited to either being installed within a casing pipe or requiring consistent, self-supporting ground, as the pipes in their typical format do not allow for jacking, and can deform the joint under load. Furthermore, these pipes have collars and typically require centralisers to eliminate collar wear.

Also, with the variation in outer profile, most contractors would also

recommend grouting the annulus in order to prevent pipe deflection over time due to point loading. The issue is still present when installed within a casing pipe, however there is also a tolerance stack from installing two pipes then centralising and grouting.

There are some new options available in PVC that allow for some jacking and pullback without collars. This does create numerous advantages in terms of accuracy and also reduces the installation risk of PVC significantly in microtunnel styled installations. At this stage, these pipes are limited in diameters available - please check with suppliers.

ABOUT STUART HARRISON Global microtunnelling pioneer Stuart Harrison is the Managing Director of Edge Underground, where he specialises in on-grade microtunnelling installations with millimetre accuracy. Stuart is also the inventor of the Vermeer AXIS Guided Boring system, and he is constantly working to improve the effectiveness of this and other trenchless systems used in the installation of gravity sewers. To discuss your next microtunnelling installation, contact Stuart on 0458 000 009 or at stuart@ edgeunderground.co.

HORIZONTAL DIRECTIONAL DRILLING HOW CAN WE INCREASE THE REPUTATION AND RELIABILITY OF THE HDD INDUSTRY SO THAT IT IS NO LONGER CONSIDERED HIGH RISK? As our urban centres continue to grow and our demand for resources needs to be met, I expect there will be continued growth for the HDD industry as long as we ensure clients our methods and practices are well engineered and reliable. For example, the Australian market has been slow to take advantage of new technology such as gyro surveying, which is widely used in other countries. One recent application demonstrates its value and the need for accurate and independent confirmation of pipeline as-builts installed by HDD. A civil engineering contractor was engaged to construct a major road underpass and was in the process of drilling in the concrete piles when they severed a 300mm diameter conduit containing a 132kVA cable. According to the as-built supplied they were more than two metres away from the three HDDs. We mobilised the next day and were able to survey the two remaining conduits, which contained the other phases. We confirmed the position of the two remaining conduits to +/-150mm along the entire length of the crossing therefore allowing the

works to confidently proceed.

In this case, they were lucky no-one was hurt and just had a major power outage to deal with. As most pipe bundles are installed with a spare, I would like to see all HDD crossings resurveyed with the gyro tool to ensure pipeline owners and service suppliers have accurate and reliable as-builts.

I think this will simply become more and more critical as HDD installed infrastructure continues to grow with population density.

Secondly I feel that we, as an industry, need to increase the quality, reliability and performance of HDD services in Australia. Our industry continues to expand, at all levels, and there should be a means to standardise performance and ensure product delivery. At the moment there are no real codes of practice that exist that are applicable to current practices and capabilities of the market. Often foreign or out dated references are used in contract documents; but these are rarely applied or used in earnest.

To give pipeline owners, engineers and contractors a valid and recognised guideline would greatly enhance industry performance, reduce construction risk and ensure best practices are employed. It would help put Australian construction practices forefront on the world stage, and

would provide the fabric for the development of HDD QA/QC. Every other part of pipeline construction is regulated but often the most challenging part of the works, the HDD, is left without independent inspection and verification. Stockton Drilling Services is hoping to help facilitate the pipeline industry and trenchless industry in working together to develop a code of practice/ guidance note for the planning and execution of HDD projects in Australia.

ABOUT CHARLES STOCKTON UK-born Charles Stockton has been a part of the HDD sector in Australasia since 2003. He is the Managing Director of Stockton Drilling Services, a leading engineering consultancy specialising in HDD and other trenchless pipeline installation methods.

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