First Address Your Valves, Then Assess Your Pipe

Nearly, every water system operator that has worked in the water industry for 5 or more years has experienced some levels of frustration and challenge trying to isolate a part of their water system. Whether it be raw water, finished water, wastewater, or reclaimed water, the number one problem faced by operations and maintenance staff is valve reliability. And, the system water operators are not alone. Consultants, engineers, designers, and civil contractors all struggle with the same challenges. The good news is that it does not have to be that way. There are proven industry best practices, backed by AWWA, that will improve the reliability of your system valves from an initial average of 60% before the first inspection and assessment to above 90% after the initial valve assessment. After identifying and correcting the initial failure modes in a second pass of specific valves, the reliability of your valve inventory can be improved to 99% by employing some corrective maintenance, and 100% in the seldom case, a valve must be replaced. Rarely do valves need to be replaced if the AWWA recommended practices are implemented. As a result, the success rate of any shutdown, whether planned or reactive, CIP, or maintenance driven, will be achieved 100% of the time.