LVVWD ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
FOR LVVWD MCP, DEVELOPER PROJECTS AND WORK ORDERS
The following list shows some of the services that the Division performs for the organization:
• Ensures infrastructure and property information is accurate and provides standardized maps, engineering schematics, and data.
• Performs centralized mapping and spatial analysis using Geographic Information System (GIS) software and Computer Aided Design (CAD) software.
• Provides land survey services to support activities such as engineering design, permitting, right-of-way, environmental analysis, land management, and geodetic control.
• Administers enterprise project management systems used by LVVWD and SNWA.
• Manages FacilityView, a central GIS portal with over 1,000 active user accounts. On average, FacilityView supports about 475 unique users in any given month.
• Manages the Call Before You Dig system for LVVWD and SNWA; which is used to mark and protect facilities as required by Nevada statutes. In 2012, the system processed 36,773 tickets for LVVWD and 7,835 tickets for SNWA.
• Manages a centralized Vehicle Location System that tracks 31 individual fleets, including the LVVWD Engineering Department, Security, SNWS Water Quality, the Meter Services Division, LVVWD Operations Department, and the Big Bend Water District to help manage remote field assets. The system currently tracks 461 vehicles.
• Develops web-based and stand-alone GIS tools for others throughout the organization.
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PROJECTS AS-BUILT
DRAFT
• Manages key databases for the Asset Management group that include cathodic protection systems, acoustic testing, and acoustic leak detection information.
• Provides field systems that directly support Distribution’s preventative maintenance program for valves, vaults, and AVARs. This includes torque readings, number of turns, when valves and vaults were maintained, traffic control directives and the condition of the asset.
• Maintains engineering record drawings used by both LVVWD Operations and LVVWD Engineering to maintain the system and ensure water delivery to customers. The Division currently maintains over 61,100 original record drawings and over 46,800 as-built record drawings.
• Maintains diagrams of major transmission and storage facilities used by Asset Management to guide system control and shut-down.
The Division builds and manages systems which support a wide range of business processes for LVVWD and SNWA. These systems primarily focus on engineering and construction management and typically use spatially-enabled technology to deliver and manage information on LVVWD’s water distribution system and related activities. These systems support one of the Division’s primary goals, which is to reduce organizational costs by eliminating the need for additional GIS software licenses and reducing labor costs by providing tools which assist data owners with their data creation, mapping, and reporting needs.
Land Survey supports LVVWD, SNWA, and LVSP. The team provides topographical survey data, legal descriptions, boundary surveys, control for photogrammetric and Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) surveys, and locations for environmental sample sites. They manage the organization’s GPS base station network and base stations used by SNWA’s in-state project. They manage the Water Facility Control Network for LVVWD which is used to support control for major construction and long-term assessment ground subsidence that impacts major facilities. Key activities in 2012 include performing over 10,000 LVVWD facility locations and over 2,300 facility locations for the Northern Ranches, as well as preparing 110 legal descriptions and exhibits (for easement and facility relocations).
The Division also administers engineering project and program management systems that host capital project processes for LVVWD and SNWA. These systems include Primavera Expedition Contract Manager and Primavera Project Planner.
The Division has been providing as-builting and mapping support for LVSP based on requests from gardens and facility support staff. More than two dozen LVSP garden planting zones, multiple trails and access roads, plants and trees, hardscapes, and irrigation valve locations have been mapped and integrated into the garden’s plant management system. This effort is used to support plant inventory and maintenance, collection identification, signage location, design work, site improvement planning, and area identification tools for collaborative use between teams.
The Division continues to provide staffing support to the Information Technology Department, which includes software maintenance and administrative activities, responding to requests for support from GIS users, license management, and database updates of data supplied by outside entities such as Clark County.
DRAFT
The Division’s primary focus areas targeted for the 2013/2014 fiscal year are as follows:
• Ensure that LVVWD’s infrastructure databases reflect real-world conditions by as-builting new projects and work orders.
• Continue to improve the quality of the infrastructure database through focused research and correction efforts as well as developing tools for constant monitoring of data quality.
• Provide centralized GIS, mapping, and analysis support to the organization.
• Manage centralized and targeted GIS applications and tools such as FacilityView, Call Before You Dig, Automated Vehicle Location System, and other systems that support business processes and address regulatory requirements.
• Continue to support Information Technology as necessary in administration and management of the I.T. GIS Support group.
• Administer project management systems supporting LVVWD Engineering and SNWS Engineering major construction programs.
• Provide centralized document management for a majority of the LVVWD’s digital and hard-copy engineering documents.
• Support Distribution’s preventative maintenance program with mapping support and management of field systems.
• Provide mapping and analysis support to Asset Management for corrosion management systems, leak detection results and facility system shut-down and control schematics.
• Provide land survey and mapping to support all parts of the organization.
• Provide control and calculations for the Virgin and Muddy Rivers and in-valley aerial photography missions.
Strategic Plan Objectives and Accomplishments
LVVWD Strategic Plan Goal: Build and Operate Necessary Facilities to Treat and Deliver Water
2013/2014 Department Goals
• To complete projects on time and under budget.
• To enhance the oversight process to manage project costs.
• To support the long-term operation and maintenance of LVVWD facilities.
• To maintain technical excellence toward complex planning, design, and construction on projects for the purpose of ensuring proper system hydraulics, water quality, reliability, construction, operation, and total project lifecycle.
2013/2014 Performance Objectives
• Develop optimized operating and emergency strategies for the LVVWD’s potable and recycled water systems that maximize the capabilities of existing systems and the opportunities available in new power rate structures, while ensuring coordination with SNWS operating strategies and water quality throughout the systems.
• Conduct studies and implement measures to ensure regulatory compliance including evolving water quality rules.
DRAFT
• Conduct studies of customer usage patterns to ascertain the impact of drought-related conservation policies, reduce capital improvement and operational costs, and enhance water quality in the distribution system.
• Develop LVVWD's year 2040 master plan based on updated demand forecasts, demand distribution and changes in development patterns.
• Assist in transmission pipeline condition assessment and prioritization of rehabilitation.
• Continue to perform constructability design reviews to refine the designs incorporating sustainable concepts and to minimize issues, change orders, and field issues.
• Develop and operate construction management systems to facilitate excellence in design, construction, and operation of facilities.
• Monitor conformity of construction projects to Design and LVVWD objectives.
• Provide constructability design reviews to enhance the completeness of contract documents.
• Proactively anticipate and prevent construction issues during construction.
2012/2013 Major Accomplishments
• Developed updates to the existing master plan based on updated demand forecasts, demand distribution, changes in development patterns and performed required facility evaluations.
• Performed hydraulic criticality analyses on projects submitted by Asset Management. The analyses include impact assessment of potential failures and identification of improvement options.
• Evaluated pipeline rehabilitation options for the Distribution Division at various locations within the distribution system.
• Evaluated the 1985 Pressure Zone using genetic algorithm optimization technology to develop an efficient pipeline rehabilitation/replacement plan for aging assets while maintaining maximum flexibility and system reliability.
• Completed an update to the LVVWD Triggered Source Water Monitoring plan to comply with the Ground Water Rule for 2013 system conditions.
• Monitored disinfection by-product samples collected monthly and quarterly to develop strategies meeting compliance requirements of the Stage 2 Disinfectants/Disinfection-By-Product Rule.
• Updated and obtained State approval for the LVVWD monitoring site plan to comply with the Stage 2 Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproduct Rule.
• Identified and set the minimum water level at the Alta Reservoir through daily operating plans and completely eliminated tripping of the blowers for the Alta aeration system.
• Completed a Preliminary Engineering Evaluation on Potential Perchlorate Issues and Mitigation Strategies.
• Collaborated with SNWS in monitoring and studying hexavalent chromium levels in the LVVWD distribution system.
• Evaluated and updated Capital Improvements Programs for the Big Bend Water District, Blue Diamond, Coyote Springs, Jean, Kyle Canyon and Searchlight systems.
• Coordinated with recycled water resource center staff, golf course superintendents, and park irrigators, to maximize recycled water consumption and to reduce potable make-up water.
• Analyzed recycled water production and consumption trends to generate estimated potable make-up water demands for the three year operating scenario.
• Performed surge analysis for the El Dorado 2975 Zone Pumping Station to determine the potential cause of repeated pipeline leak on the suction side of the pumping station.
• Coordinated with SNWS to follow up with surge protection improvements at the Boulder City Raw Water Pumping Station.
DRAFT
• Coordinated with the City of Las Vegas and BLM to resolve conflict between an LVVWD proposed facility and the Sheep Mountain Parkway proposed by the City.
• Coordinated with City of Henderson to identify potential emergency connections between the two systems.
• Maintained a cumulative change order rate of 2.59%.
LVVWD Strategic Plan Goal: Continuously Ensure Organizational Efficiency and Effectiveness to Achieve Rate Stability and Customer Value
2013/2014 Department Goals
• Continue to operate, develop, and refine applications that improve the productivity of LVVWD Engineering staff.
• Continue developing staff core competencies.
• Continue to improve contract administration effectiveness through continued imple-mentation of project management software.
• Continue to coordinate engineering issues and responsibilities with other departments.
• Document construction management and inspection processes and procedures.
• Continue to support Asset Management in the assessment of facilities.
• Maintain a well-calibrated hydraulic model of the distribution system for effective decision support.
• Continue to maintain and enhance the organization’s infrastructure mapping database and as-built record drawings to provide as complete and accurate a picture of the water delivery system and organizational assets as possible.
• Continue to operate, develop, and refine applications and tools that improve the productivity of LVVWD Engineering staff, focusing on giving engineering and field staff the ability to create and edit data, as appropriate, in the corporate database, including spatial components.
2013/2014 Performance Objectives
• In collaboration with LVVWD Operations, continue development of LVVWD’s Energy and Water Quality Management System.
• Continue to develop and implement pumping station energy cost tools to optimize pumping costs for daily operations.
• Further automate the hydraulic model for maintenance, calibration, emergency response, shutdown analysis, and water quality applications.
• Implement automation of data exchange between Planning Project Database applications and the Digital Plan Submittal process to further improve plan review efficiency.
• Maintain/improve current development review times while handling the expected significant increase in development workload.
• Design support for in-house conversion of facility communications control.
• Leverage CAD applications to establish 3-dimensional design and infrastructure database.
• Continue integration and standardization of Master Specifications between LVVWD and SNWA.
• Incorporate ISI Envision Rating System project components into capital project deliverables.
• Provide continued engineering support to Operations for PLC migration.
• Continue to operate, develop, and refine applications that improve the productivity of LVVWD Engineering staff.
DRAFT
• Continue developing staff core competencies.
• Continue to improve contract administration effectiveness through continued imple-mentation of project management software.
• Continue to coordinate engineering issues and responsibilities with other departments.
• Document construction management and inspection processes and procedures.
• Continue to support Asset Management in the assessment of facilities.
• Maintain a well-calibrated hydraulic model of the distribution system for effective decision support.
• Leverage CAD applications to establish 3-dimensional design and infrastructure database.
• Collaborate with the I.T. Department to achieve cost savings by performing map-based services in-house.
• Complete implementation of digital submittal for hydraulic grade line requests and network analyses.
• Streamline developer project review process to achieve a consistent submittal review period of 45 days or less.
• Provide continued LEED support for the LVSP.
• Review and update Job Hazard Analyses in the District’s efforts to reduce work related accidents.
• Implement digital submittal of hydraulic grade line requests and network analyses.
• Manage additional pavement replacement contracts in order to replace temporary patches within 90 days.
• Continue to manage the pavement replacement project and to work on the backlog of 995 open work orders, which includes 324 work orders with open permits. Improve our processes, software, and capabilities to increase efficiency and accuracy.
• Continue management responsibilities for pavement replacement contracts with a goal of completing approximately 3,000 distribution work orders.
2012/2013 Major Accomplishments
• Integrated the contract and development inspection group into a cohesive division providing consistency and synergy to the construction management functions.
• Prepared Facility Operational Manuals for LVVWD facilities, per statutory requirements.
• Prepared site record drawings for PLC migration of LVVWD facilities.
• Continued automation of hydraulic model for emergency response, shutdown analysis, and water quality applications. Further streamlined the model construction process.
• Continued model construction, maintenance, and calibration and added 6,000 pipes to the All-Pipes Model. The All-Pipes Model currently consists of 169,000 pipes representing the existing distribution system, with an additional 2,000 pipes representing future distribution system additions, for a total of 171,000 pipes.
• Created tools for Hydraulic Criticality Analyses to analyze more than 8,000 pipes. The default tool that came with existing software was limited to running less than 8,000 pipes and required a lot of personnel time in skeletonization of the All-Pipes zone models to run the tool.
• Added a new set of independent variables to the Conservation Model. These new variables better explain how conservation efforts impact the sensitivity of water demand to weather over time.
DRAFT
• Created a spatial demand model based on actual customer demand mapped to meter locations. This model significantly improves our understanding of the geographic characteristics of water demand.
• Created a monthly spatial demand forecast based on the Max Day forecast. This model is used to improve Daily Hydraulic Model calibration.
• Created a daily demand forecasting tool to be used on weekends to update the ten day water demand forecast.
• Developed and implemented a GIS-based, interactive Ground Water Rule monitoring tool on the Hydroweb to assist LVVWD Operations and SNWS in complying with the GWR reliably and efficiently.
• Developed a Total Coliform Rule monitoring tool for prompt review and relocation of sampling stations in response to changes in the field conditions.
• Developed and implemented a semi-automated process to improve water age calculations by tracking water age from the SNWS water treatment plants on average, compared to the existing calculations by tracking water age from the turnout locations.
• Worked with Operations and continued operation of the Alta aeration system with the 12 hours daily schedule and met treatment goals while cut the operating cost more than 50%.
• Completed implementation of the Water Plan Packet application in the Planning Project Database.
• Administered the Planning Division’s database for the tracking of major MCP and developer projects, including data entry, project lifecycle status updates, and significant Planning Division reporting functions.
• Negotiated with the City of Las Vegas to reduce the winter construction shutdown time at the Water Resource Center by one month; the additional make-up water for that month would cost approximately $93,000.
• Worked with Knowledge Management Team to refine a project management software to adequately handle pavement replacement contracts.
• Managed pavement replacement contracts completing 3,005 work orders.
• Prepared Facility Operational Manuals for LVVWD facilities, per statutory requirements.
• Initiated integration of the GIS and SCADA databases, providing live SCADA system data through a web-based map interface.
• Upgraded all survey-grade radios to comply with FCC narrow-banding requirements by January, 2013.
• Completed initial survey of all passive and active irrigation systems for the northern ranches.
• Continued to process record drawing requests via the Internet, continuously responding to requests within 2 to 5 days, where 7 days is expected.
• Reduced the Distribution work order backlog of open permits from 1,399 to 995 open permits, and closed out an additional 481 permits without additional permit fees.
LVVWD Strategic Plan Goal: Enhance and Expand Communications and Collaboration Within and Among Member Agencies and the SNWA
2013/2014 Department Goal
• Continue to work and coordinate with outside agencies, community organizations, citizens, and other community stakeholders in the design and construction of LVVWD facilities, and the development and dissemination of information resources.
DRAFT
2013/2014 Performance Objectives
• Continue strategic relations with other agencies and entities pursuing project permitting and coordination efforts.
• Continue to employ and solicit intradepartmental comments and public opinion within the design and construction phase.
• Partner with other agencies to advance the water industry through exchange of information and knowledge.
• Continue to employ and solicit intradepartmental comments to find opportunities to upgrade, assess, or protect existing facilities by partnering with outside entities and/or developer projects to reduce cost.
• Provide inspection assistance to SNWA in areas of individual inspector expertise.
• Continue to provide expert analysis of existing infrastructure to Asset Management when staff is available.
• Continue to provide expert opinions on anything related to construction to Operations, Facilities, and other departments.
• Partner with recycled water end users and outside agencies to ensure efficient operation of recycled water distribution systems.
2012/2013 Major Accomplishments
• Conducted local community meetings in order to inform the community of LVVWD’s intent to perform work in their area, and actively sought and obtained feedback that was successfully incorporated into the project designs.
• Supported a Master Degree student thesis of the University of Cincinnati, entitled
“Controlling Disinfection By-products within a Distribution System by Implementing Bubble Aeration within Storage Tanks”, as a part of the scope of work of the EPA’s Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with LVVWD.
• Coordinated with CCWRD regarding design and water service for the Searchlight Water Resource Center project.
• Presented a paper titled, “Using Interaction Effects to Model the Impact of Conservation on Seasonal Water Demands,” at the AWWA California-Nevada Section Conference in San Diego, California.
• Coordinated 12 recycled water “User Provider Meetings” with Golf Course representatives and the Water Resource Center staff to discuss recycled water related issues including production, water quality, usage trends, water budgets, shutdowns, energy efficiency, policy changes, overseeding schedules, turf conversion, and NDEP related issues.
• Jointly conducted a tour of the Durango Hills Recycled Water Distribution System Water Resource Center and TPC Summerlin Golf Course for 5th grade students of Richard H.
Bryan Elementary School. The tour covered the recycled water treatment process, how it is conveyed, and how it is being applied by the golf courses. The tour emphasized the importance of water and the need for water conservation.
• Presented at the August 2012 Nevada Environmental Health Association annual conference at the Three Square covering the recycled water systems, and the partnerships between the City, golf courses, and LVVWD.
• Presented at the August 2012 Nevada Environmental Health Association annual conference at the Three Square covering the recycled water systems, and the partnerships between the City, golf courses, and LVVWD.