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What do you see?INTRODUCTION: Research into how the sewer system can be prepared for the 21st century finds that accurate monitoring is the essential first step, says Adam Dean(Utility Week Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Few people question the importance of Great Britain's 300,000km public sewer network but many take it for granted. It is only when sewers fail or become overloaded that we can see the damage this can cause to the environment through pollution, flooding or both. That is why it is essential that steps are taken to modernise the country's sewerage infrastructure. Mouchel, with support from HR Wallingford and WRc, has carried out an 18-month study on behalf of UK Water Industry Research (UKWIR). This is the second to be commissioned by UKWIR under the banner 21st Century Sewerage. The latest study looks at what the water industry must do to ensure the sewerage infrastructure and service is adapted to meet current and future needs. The first report was a strategic look at recent and impending changes that might have an impact on the provision of sewerage services in the UK. The new research takes a more detailed operational and tactical approach. Research for the second study was based on the fact that, on the whole, the UK sewerage system has changed little over the past century in terms of materials and methods of installation and maintenance. But the pressures on the system have increased enormously, from the environment in terms of water quality and climate change and from the regulator in the drive for year-on-year efficiency. Since privatisation, there have also been major changes in the way the delivery of the sewerage service is managed, financed and regulated. Working to objectives set by UKWIR, Mouchel's study sought to identify tangible outputs that could be implemented by the industry. To monitor this process, a UKWIR steering committee, with representation from all UK sewerage undertakers, was established for the duration of the project. The study considered four main areas: data collection and management and operation maintenance active operational control of sewerage systems life style and environmental factors and statute and codes of practice. To achieve UKWIR's objectives, the research team not only carried out desktop reviews, but also conducted research using water company data, site visits, workshops and consultations with experts in the industry. For the data collection research phase, the team reviewed undertakers' data sets through a series of site visits and workshops. This involved looking at the data the sewerage undertakers collect now and what they should be collecting in the future. A common theme that came from the research was that data is often costly to collect, store and use. So it is important that only necessary data is collected and stored, and that it is used to maximum effect. The research confirmed that long-term trends in data may be as important as the instantaneous values themselves, making a coherent longer-term strategy of data collection, analysis and implementation by undertakers a top priority. The research identified that the cost/benefit ratio of data collection can be dramatically improved if data is shared across a sewerage undertaker's wider business. The undertaker's need for data should flow from its vision and its business plan, and the desire to deliver serviceability to customers and the environment. One way of helping to collect more affordable data sets is to use low-cost continuous monitoring. Some undertakers are already successfully doing this, but this is mainly restricted to monitoring the depth at combined sewer overflows to detect operational conditions that require intervention to prevent illegal discharges. Other companies are also trialling installations in areas prone to blockage. Present indications suggest that with the current level of installation costs, this is worthwhile only in areas where the consequences of failure are serious. As undertakers are required to take a more proactive approach to improving customer service through the Common Framework, it is likely that more use of low-cost continuous monitoring will be needed. Unfortunately, innovation is slow because of manufacturers' perception that there is a limited market for low-cost monitoring equipment. There is also a high cost associated with achieving explosion-proof certification. More support for innovation from sewerage undertakers would accelerate the development of new technologies to improve data collection. The industry should consider collaborating in testing products to speed up development and deploying innovative equipment that will lead to enhanced customer serviceability. It is inevitable that service to the 21st century customer will be based on comprehensive and accurate data sets where asset condition data can be linked to live operational performance data, so that undertakers can make instantaneous and long-term management decisions when operating their assets. Operating sewerage assets in the coming decades will have its own set of challenges. Sustainability trends associated with flow reductions may indicate a greater need for access to sewers, particularly if the hydraulic component is reduced and the solids component increased. Reactive maintenance is likely to become a much more focused exercise where restoring service quickly and effectively is the priority. This will have to be balanced against changes in health and safety requirements and undertakers questioning the need for conventional levels of access to operate and maintain their sewers. But for sewerage operators to fulfil their statutory duties some form of access to the sewerage system is an essential requirement from an operational and maintenance perspective. Given the importance of health and safety issues, particularly with respect to access and maintenance, Mouchel's research looked at a broad range of ideas and methodologies associated with this topic. One example is the research conducted during a project on curved sewers, which are widely used in Australia and New Zealand. As the industry moves towards larger, populated and more accurate data sets collected through low-cost monitoring, planned preventive maintenance will become the norm. But if the industry is to become more productive in delivering this maintenance, it must develop quicker and safer access to the sewer network. The need to develop safer, non-man entry access has further potential in the UK, especially if account is taken of other legislation, such as the Traffic Management Act, which may affect the operator's ability to access the sewer in traffic-?sensitive streets. The industry will become more proactive with respect to preventive maintenance. This will drive companies to look at the equipment they use for sewer maintenance and to examine what efficiencies can be gained by introducing more innovation into site-based activities. Training will have a bigger role as the equipment and procedures needed to deliver the service become more advanced. As new technology is adopted, or when legislative changes cause alterations to methodologies, additional specific training will be required. This will include training in data management and its application, the use and management of increasingly complex monitoring systems, and understanding of the new technology, particularly in developing systems for sewer inspection and maintenance. Training will also involve the design and management of real-time control systems, operating for both hydraulic and water quality objectives. It will also require an increasing appreciation of new drainage designs, such as how sustainable urban drainage systems can be incorporated and managed as a part of sewerage systems.n Adam Dean is divisional director for water asset management, Mouchel. Tel: 01332 680066. Further information on the research is available is available from UKWIR's website: www.ukwir.org.uk Copyright ? 2008 Reed Business Information - UK. All Rights Reserved. |