News

Call for interest in Working groups

Why would you want to be in a working group:

The first and far most reason is because you want to contribute to improved water and sanitation services by addressing the importance of Operation and maintenance. Your input will however also result in benefits for you:

• Gain access to a network of expertise (the OMN as well as IWA experts)
• Develop your professional Network
• Peer to peer exchange - which will stimulate your career development
• Recognition in the output of your group's work.

Three working groups for this year:

• Knowlege review group - The knowledge review group will be led by one of our members Farooq Janjua (National Water Company Saudi Arabia -Operations and Maintenance Department - corporate regulator and guidance body for the various cities in rolling up O&M practices and standards). The aim of the group is to do a literature review on the knowledge products (guidelines, manuals, checklists, and best practices) available for urban water and wastewater services, with a particular focus on O&M improvement. If you are interested, and willing to dedicate your time (at least 1 day a month), to this cause, please email omn@iwahq.org listing "knowledge review" your contact details, position, organisation and 3 reasons why you should be on this working group. Deadline is 28th of February.
  
• Strategic Asset Management for Low and middle income countries - Some of the OMN network members started to work on a document called the Building Blocks of Strategic Asset Management for Low and Middle income countries. This document requires review, further input and examples from strategic asset management implementation from low and middle income countries. If you have the right experience to support the development of this document, and you willing to dedicate your time (at least 1day a month), to this cause, please email omn@iwahq.org listing "Strategic Asset Management" your contact details, position, organisation and 3 reasons why you should be on this working group. Deadline is 28th of February.
  
• Waste water treatment - best practices for O&M improvement - Some of the OMN network members have initiated a document that focused on certain appropriate management arrangements in waste water treatment to enhance success and sustainability of investment. If you have specific interest of operation, management and regulation of wastewater systems, particularly smaller scale, decentralized systems,and you willing to dedicate your time (at least 1day a month), to this cause, please email omn@iwahq.org listing "wastewater treatment" your contact details, position, organisation and 3 reasons why you should be on this working group. Deadline is 28th of February.

OM advisory service in action

The OM advisory support service responded to a request of Kafubu Water and Sewerage Company (KWSC) in Zambia, to support the identification of causes of poor performance in O&M and help the prioritization as well as identify quick wins to the system. Together with the Manager Director, we selected Kevin Tayler, an independent consultant. He visited Ndola for 2days to work with a team of KWSC officials on an external assessment of O&M. This was performed by means of initial discussions by the team, followed by field visits and separate discussions with the individual team members. At the end of the final day, Kevin presented his
findings, his recommendations to certain O&M challenges and discussed with the team how to move forward.

Amongst others crucial recommendations were:

1) Improve information systems through updating system plans and electronic recording of failures and repairs as well as acquiring/ producing operational manuals for pumps, treatment facilities and other facilities that staff should use

2) Reducing expenditure through installing capcitors to reduce load factor which reduces power costs; ensuring that the agreement with the electricity company is based on actual installed power requirement pumps; acquire ultrasonic flow meters and use them as pilot leak detection and repair initiative, which will mean reduced expenditure on treating and pumping

3) Identify key system components and ensure that spares are available

4) Carry out pilot sewer assessment exercise in one or more drainage area and identify repairs, equipment and procedures required to bring operation to acceptable standard)

To read more click here for the first draft report, which is still under revision. This report will form the basis for KWSC to build an O&M improvement plan to which they can commit itself. We will aim to monitor progress and report this to you.

To read about the actions that KWSC has taken click here to read the evaluation report.

IWA has produced the Water Utility Efficiency (Self) Assessment Methodology which aims to help Governments and utility managers to assess why some utilities function well and can be considered efficient whilst others struggle to provide adequate service.

The LAMIC Water Utility Efficiency (Self) Assessment Methodology can be understood by deconstruction:

Water Utility As can be inferred from its title, this Water Utility Efficiency (Self) Assessment Methodology assesses efficiency from a water utility point of view

Efficiency Is defined not in a narrow technical sense, but in a comprehensive nature analyzing efficiency of the following six areas:

   1. Corporate Governance
   2. Human Resources
   3. Accountability towards Customers
   4. Financial
   5. Commercial
   6. Technical

Self Assessment This method is designed for assessment by those involved in the water utility. It is meant to capture an 'insider's' view

Methodology The Water Utility Efficiency (Self) Assessment Methodology defines replicable and open methods and practices that 1) capture a self-defined efficiency assessment, 2) promote self-awareness of inefficiencies, 3) shared learning of potential solutions by participants, and 4) prioritisation of next steps

The emphasis of the approach are:

• Water Utility Focus: Problem definition, constraint characterisation, and solution creation all use the boundary of the water utility in their construction
• Comprehensive Understanding of Efficiency: All functional areas of the water utility, its operating environment, and dimensions of water service
• Self-Assessment: The methodology is participatory and designed for use by those within the water utility. It is meant to complement and not supplant more focused of in-depth measurements of efficiency assessment
• Methodology: This IWA methodology is explicit, open and participatory. It is created by international water utility professionals for use in a low and middle income country context

Click here to download the assessment tool

OMN Assessment of Asset Management in African Region

The OMN wants to gain a deeper understanding of African Utility's current approach to managing their assets. It will aim to inform us what support would be needed to implement asset management. I request all African utilities to take some time and fill out the online survey here / copy in www.survey.bris.ac.uk/iwa/assetmanagement

Online O&M advisory service available NOW

The OMN is proud to announce their online system for the advisory service. This online system
allows for interactive networking, where you as member can request advice from other sector
professionals, and provide response and share your experience to support others facing O&M
challenges. Click here to read more and click here to download information on the service in
pdf format. Feel free to distribute this pdf to those in your network that could be interested in
using the service.   

 Article in Water 21: Improving water operator finances through better practices – experiences from East Africa

The Fast Track Capacity Building programme implemented by the National Water and Sewerage
Corporation (NWSC) in Uganda under UN-HABITAT’s ‘Water for African Cities’ programme
demonstrates that an integrated programme of training and capacity building, combined
with investments in physical infrastructure, offers the best hope of improving institutional
capacities to reduce non-revenue water, improve service delivery and increase the sustainability
of investments in the long-term. GRAHAM ALABASTER discusses the programme’s success in five
towns in Kenya and Tanzania. Click here to download the article.
 

Water Utilities Management Capacity Building Program (WUM-CBP)

The Arab Countries Water Utilities Association (ACWUA) is pleased to announce the first training
course titled “Operation and Maintenance of Wastewater Treatment Plants” in cooperation with
Engicon O&M and the German Association for Water, Wastewater and Solid Waste (DWA).

The training course will be held in Amman, Jordan from the 2nd till the 7th of April, 2011
Please click here for more information. 

Global Winners of the International Water Association’s Project Innovation Awards (PIA) were
announced at the IWA World Water Congress in Montreal. In the category, operation and
management these are the winners. 

Winner: 
"The Manila Water Experience – Reducing Manila’s Water Losses Through a Multi-Pronged Approach." 
Manila Water Co. Inc. The Philippines
 
Honour Awards: 
"Creating Premium Seoul Tap Water – From” Clean & Safe Water” to “Tasty Water”. 
The Office of Waterworks, Seoul Metropolitan Government Republic of Korea
 
"COWAMA (Coastal Water Management)"
CLABSA (AGBAR) Spain

Detailed descriptions of the global winning projects, and a general brief on the 2010 IWA
Project Innovation Awards, are available if you click here  

O&M profiled in innovative engineering work as part of IWA Project Innovation Awards

The results of the 2010 Regional PIA were announced recently at three regional forums -
the European Regional PIA was presented at the IWA Utilities Conference in Barcelona,
Spain on 10 May 2010. The winner in the category Operation and Management was:

• CLABSA (AGBAR) - Coastal Water Management is a decision making aid tool which
  uses integrated modeling (sewer and marine models) fed with real time data from
  controlled sensors and meteorological model predictions, to provide forecast of
  bathing water quality with a forecast horizon of up to 48 hr.

The East Asia Regional PIA Ceremony and Luncheon was held in Shanghai, China on 4 June
2010 in conjuntion with Aquatech China. The winner in the category Operation and Management is:

• Tokyo Suido Services Co. Ltd. - Development of Time Integral Type Leakage Detector
  that detects water leakages within the range of 20m from the measuring point within
  a short time of 1 – 5 seconds.

The winners of the Asia Pacific Regional PIA will be presented with their awards on 30
June 2010 in Singapore. The winner in the category Operation and Management is:

• Goulburn-Murray Water- FutureFlow Alliance for FutureFlow Irrigation Modernisation
  Project will deliver long term average water savings of 94 gigalitres and have dramatically
  improved the level of service and reliability of the system for irrigators

To read the summaries of each of the winners and read more about IWA project innovation award
click here

Article in Drinking Water Safety International:
Achieving improved watersafety through better operation and maintenance practices

In this article, Jonathan Parkinson advocates that the achievement of objectives defined by
the water safety planning process is dependent on the introduction of improved operation
and maintenance practices. To read more click here to download the pdf.

WSPortal launched at World Water Day 22 March 2010
A similar toolbox to the toolbox has been set up, with practical guidance on the
development and implementation of Water Safety Plans. The Water Safety Plans
recognises the importance of institutionalizing good O&M practices, with particular
emphasis on the mitigation of risks through preventive actions combined with
consistent monitoring. To read more about the link between operation and
maintenance and Water Safety Planning click here.