Doing More and Spending Less: How Dallas Water Utilities Launched a City-wide Asset and Work Management Program that Actually Cost Less than Going It Alone

In 2015, Dallas Water Utilities established an enterprise asset and work management program, laying the groundwork for a City-wide system by establishing robust standards and developing requirements for new technology. The efforts were so successful that in 2017, every department in the City signed on to participate in the roll-out of the program and the configuration of the selected software. As a result, we are improving productivity across department lines and we have lowered the overall cost of the program by reducing the need for the interfaces and securing volume discounts. The Utility and the City are benefiting from the enterprise perspective, and the inclusive approach and shared standards are unleashing numerous benefits, including improved data quality and customer service. This paper will discuss the steps taken to engage the entire City while ensuring the program meets the needs of the utility. We will compare the original cost estimates for a utility-only program with the savings realized by leveraging enterprise purchasing power and City-wide standards. We will also look at the specific standards and discuss the details of their implementation. We will present the software and hardware architecture, the integration framework that links all City business applications, and the organizational model that created the consensus and collaboration needed for the effort.