PARTNERING RESULTS IN SELF-SUFFICIENCY FOR THE SACRAMENTO REGIONAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT PROJECT

Forming partnerships within a wastewater utility can be a fine art, but including a major contractor on a complex control system replacement project that hugely impacts all areas of plant operation can be overwhelming. Forming and maintaining such a partnership involves a great commitment on the part of all staff directly involved with the project, and from plant and vendor management who must allow the partnership the freedom to work through issues together without reverting to any old paradigms. For Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District, this effort has proven successful. With the help of an outside professional facilitator, the District and Westinghouse Process Control Division have functioned as partners for over a year working toward complete replacement of an aging process control system. Through a series of partnering meetings, the District and Westinghouse identified and ingrained in all team members the goals that define a successful project outcome for all parties.The contractor assured Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District that it would get a project that prevents disruptions/violations during cutover; improves access to data across the plant; provides for future needs; minimizes vendor dependence; maximizes self-sufficiency–so that the District can provide wastewater treatment to continue to efficiently meet the needs of their customers.We look at many of the issues that came up at the series of partner meetings, giving a glimpse of how the concept can make a difficult project run very smoothly.