Transforming the water industry by advancing successful
collaborative delivery through advocacy, education, and research
Water Design-Build News
November 10, 2021
Issue Highlights
New Research Report Just Released - Collaborative Delivery of Water and Wastewater Projects: Advancing Project Success and Avoiding Failure
Two Education Sessions Left - Still Time to Register
Blog Feature - Is CMAR the Best Delivery Solution for your PFAS Problem?
Legislative Corner - Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Passes the House
New Report Highlights Key Factors for Water Collaborative Delivery Project Success
WDBC recently released our latest research identifying how owners define success or failure for water collaborative delivery projects. Based on interviews with utility executives across the United States, the report also highlights the most critical steps over the project lifecycle that lead to success if managed well—or to failure if managed poorly.
“Our goal is to transform the water industry by advancing best practices for collaborative delivery methods,” said Mark Alpert, Executive Director of the Water Design-Build Council. “By assessing the real-world experiences of project owners, we can develop better training and tools to support successful outcomes.”
The WDBC Research Committee initiated the two-phase research project in 2020 to better understand the elements of successful collaborative delivery projects. The new report, titled “Collaborative Delivery of Water and Wastewater Projects: Advancing Project Success and Avoiding Failure,” summarizes the first phase of research. The findings shed new light on: • What criteria owners use to evaluate project success or failure • How owners rate the relative importance of people, processes, and tools • Which steps in the project lifecycle are most crucial for success • Which project stages include the most decisions and actions leading to project success or failure • How early operators should be involved in a project • Whether owners would pursue collaborative delivery projects again
You can download the full report—as well as other WDBC research reports—via our website.
Join the WDBC for the remaining two lessons in our six-session package of online education sessions designed for owners and practitioners in the water industry. Officials, managers, and engineering and O&M staff of public water/wastewater facilities who are looking to gain essential knowledge needed to procure and deliver design-build and CMAR projects should attend these classes.
Don't just take our word for it, see what some of our attendees have said:
"Continue doing what you're doing: using polls and/or encouraging audience participation with your questions and scenarios. Great job! "
Each morning session will include a review of the principles and best practices of collaborative delivery followed by the topic of the day in the afternoon:
November 18: Managing and Implementing Collaborative-Delivery Projects
December 16: Getting to Project Completion & Transition
Time: 10:00 - 1:30 p.m. MST (break 11:30 - 12:00 MST) All sessions will be conducted on Microsoft Teams
First session includes a hard copy and PDF of the 5th edition Water and Wastewater Design-Build Handbook. Additional sessions can be purchased a la carte.
Perfluroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (commonly referred to as PFAS) are impacting drinking water supplies nationwide. These emerging contaminants are challenging municipalities, water districts, and all water providers. Unlike system capacity increases and aging facilities incorporated into long-term planning, PFAS levels spike, forcing owners to take immediate actions to maintain water quality and the need for regulations surrounding them to change quickly. Do you need a PFAS solution?
House Passes $1.2T Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, Sending it to Biden’s Desk
On Friday, November 5, 2021, Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package, approving a signature part of President Joe Biden’s economic agenda. It will deliver $550 billion of new federal investments in America’s infrastructure over five years, touching everything from bridges and roads to the nation’s broadband, water, and energy systems. The package marks one of the most significant investments in the country’s infrastructure since Congress responded to the Great Recession. It seeds new funding in the hopes of delivering urgently needed fixes to the country’s outdated inner-workings while setting the U.S. on track to tackle more intractable future challenges, including the fast-worsening climate crisis. The legislation includes several authorizing bills, including the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act of 2021 (S. 1931), Surface Transportation Investment Act (S. 2016), Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act (S. 914), and the Energy Infrastructure Act (S. 2377), among others. In addition, the bill provides supplemental appropriations for many of these authorized programs, both existing and new. The infrastructure bill will cost $1.2 trillion over eight years, and offers more than $550 billion in new spending, including the following:
$110 billion toward roads, bridges, and other much-needed infrastructure fix-ups across the country; $40 billion is new funding for bridge repair, replacement, and rehabilitation and $17.5 billion is for major projects
$73 billion for the country's electric grid and power structures
$66 billion for rail services
$65 billion for broadband
$55 billion for water infrastructure
$21 billion in environmental remediation
$47 billion for flooding and coastal resiliency as well as "climate resiliency"
$39 billion to modernize transit, the largest federal investment in public transit in history
$25 billion for airports
$17 billion in port infrastructure
$11 billion in transportation safety programs
$7.5 billion for electric vehicles and EV charging
$2.5 billion in zero-emission buses, $2.5 billion in low-emission buses, and $2.5 billion for ferries
The bill appropriates $55 billion for various new water infrastructure programs. To read about some of the key programs authorized and, in some cases, appropriated by the bill, visit our Advocacy page.
*Article provided by WDBC advocacy consulting firm, Venn Strategies
5th Edition of the Water and Wastewater Design-Build Handbook
Learn the Best Practices on Collaborative-Delivery Methods for Water and Wastewater Projects
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The Water Design-Build Council stands ready to contribute its expertise, resources, innovation, and enthusiasm to the challenge of strengthening our water and wastewater infrastructure.