APWA Accreditation Program

APWA Accreditation Program
Guiding Your Organization Through A
Comprehensive Assessment Process
Clark Regional Wastewater District
John M. Peterson, P.E.
General Manager
Kim Thur
Executive Assistant
Agenda
• Comprehensive Assessment Benefits
• Clark Regional Wastewater District
(CRWWD) Overview
• APWA Program Overview
• Self-Assessment Process
• Accreditation Process
• CRWWD Story
• In Summary
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Comprehensive Assessment
Benefits
Comprehensive Assessment
Benefits
• Ensure effective & efficient
operations
– Consistent with customer expectations
• Ensure reliable, predictable service
• Manage financial resources in
responsible, efficient & effective manner
• Protect public & environmental health &
safety
• Optimize use of existing facilities
• Maintain financial transparency
• Measure against national standards
• Identify “opportunities”
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Comprehensive Assessment
Benefits
• Improve professionalism & delivery
of services
• Validation of staff & organization
• Continuous improvement/crossfunction coordination
• Training
• Succession planning
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Comprehensive Assessment
Benefits
• APWA provides framework to
achieve benefits
– Assessment process
• Best national management standards
– Good fit
• Applicable to all operations
– Flexible
• Self-assessment or accreditation
– Cost-effective
– Recognized organization
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CRWWD Overview
CRWWD Overview
• Sewer district (RCW 57)
– Full-service collection utility, est. 1958
• 3 member Board
• 44 employees (administration, engineering, finance, maintenance)
– Rate / connection charge supported
• $34 / month / ERU
• $1,898 (local collection); $4,444 (regional treatment)
– $19.5M annual budget
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CRWWD Overview
• Service area
– 37 square miles
– 34,000 ERUs
– 80,000 people
• Infrastructure
– 550 miles pipe
– 50 pump stations
CRWWD
CRWWD
CRWWD
• Treatment (8 mgd)
– Clark County
– City of Vancouver
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CRWWD Overview
• Mission
– Providing customer-focused, professional wastewater services in an
environmentally and financially responsible manner
• Vision
– An active partner in Clark County, to support economic development
and to manage and protect water resources
• Values
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–
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–
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–
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Stewardship
Employees
Responsibility
Valued Partner
Innovation & learning
Communication
Efficient & Effective Solutions
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APWA Program Overview
APWA Program Overview
• Two Options
– Self-assessment
• Process for internal checks & balances
• Refine policies & procedures
• Compare agency with national standards
– Accreditation (site evaluation)
• Validates self-assessment
• APWA evaluators review compliance
• Become nationally accredited agency
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APWA Program Overview
• Pacific Northwest accredited agencies
– City of Anacortes, WA
– City of Bellevue, WA
• Transportation Department
• Utilities Department
– City of Bend, OR
– Clark Regional Wastewater
District
– City of Eugene, OR
• Public Works Department
– Pierce County, WA
• Public Works
• Utilities
60 accredited agencies
in North America
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APWA Program Overview
• Pacific Northwest agencies
in progress
– City of Albany, OR
– City of Bothell, WA
• Public Works Department
– City of Lewiston, ID
• Public Works Department
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Self-Assessment Process
Self-Assessment Process
• Public Works Management Practices Manual
– Software available
• Select self-assessment
manager
– APWA recommended skill-set
•
•
•
•
•
•
Experience in organization
Knowledge of agency processes
People person
Organized
Decision-maker
Committed to success
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Self-Assessment Process
• Select chapters
– 35 chapters contain 529 practices
– Examples of chapters:
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•
•
•
•
•
Human Resource Management
Finance
Safety
Project Management
Potable Water
Wastewater Collection & Conveyance
– For CRWWD, 18 chapters & 289 practices
applied (v. 5)
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Self-Assessment Process
• Chapter 29: Wastewater Collection &
Conveyance Practices
– 29.1: Collection &
Conveyance
Management Plan
– 29.2: Operations Manual
– 29.3: Records
– 29.4: Infrastructure
Inventory
– 29.5: Infrastructure
Condition
– 29.6: Infrastructure
Management
– 29.7: Facility Maintenance
& Inspection
– 29.8: Inflow & Infiltration
– 29.9: Illicit Discharges
– 29.10: Industrial
Pretreatment
– 29.11: Energy
Consumption
Reports
– 29.12: Sanitary Sewer
Overflows
– 29.13: Testing Alarms
– 29.14: Safety
– 29.15: Long-Range System
Planning
– 29.16: Capacity
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Self-Assessment Process
• Practice 29.5 Sample
29.5 Infrastructure Condition
A record of the wastewater collection and
conveyance system infrastructure condition is
maintained and updated on a regular
schedule.
Records of infrastructure condition are maintained and
used in tracking maintenance and operating costs and
identifying service needs to maximize life expectancy
of the infrastructure.
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Self-Assessment Process
• Chapter 4: Finance - Practice 4.6 Sample
4.6 Rate Setting
Rates are set for both internal and external
customers for designated goods or services
according to financial objectives, equity,
efficiency and administrative feasibility.
Determination of the rate or price for a given good or service
should take the cost of service analysis into account along with
applicable laws and regulations. The characteristics of how
and why the customer consumes the good or the service, the
timing of payment for the good or service and the community’s
sense of equity and efficiency are important factors in
determining how and what the customer actually pays.
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Self-Assessment Process
• Self-assessment manager:
– Assigns chapters
– Maintains files
– Tracks status
– Provides progress reports
– Finalizes practices
– Submits approved practices to Director for
signature
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Self-Assessment Process
• Staff:
– Review practices & compliance level
•
•
•
•
Full
Substantial
Partial
Non-Compliance
– Provide explanation of compliance
– Substantiate compliance level
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Self-Assessment Process
• Self-assessment completion:
– Utilize results for continuous improvement
OR
– Submit results to APWA for certificate of
completion
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Accreditation Process
Accreditation Process
• Set budget
– APWA costs
– Staff time
• Create schedule
• Submit application
• APWA provides
– Agreement
– Checklist
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Accreditation Process
• Improve less than
“Substantial” procedures
• Update
– Documentation
– Tracking Software
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Accreditation Process
• Submit documentation
• Submit site evaluation
request
• APWA sends evaluation
team
– 3 evaluators / 3 days
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Accreditation Process
• Typical Site Visit
– Sunday
• Welcome & orientation
• Chapter 1: Organization & Strategic Planning
• Tour
– Monday & Tuesday
• Interviews – verification with examples
– Wednesday
• Finish interviews
• Evaluators review final results with agency
• Done by 12 PM
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Accreditation Process
• Accreditation
recommended
• Awarded accreditation for
4-year term
– APWA representative
• Continuous improvement
– Biennial update
– Substantial ratings
improved to Full
– Re-Accreditation?
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CRWWD Story
CRWWD Story
• Initially accredited 2005
– Substantial & Full compliance
ratings
• Sought re-accreditation 2009
– What we changed
• Develop scope & schedule
• Provide more engaging process
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CRWWD Story
• Re-Accreditation kickoff breakfast
(January)
– Management served employees
– APW-Yay!
• Update practices / documentation
– 20% per month (Feb-Jun)
– Regular status reports
• Internal review by:
– Departments
– Re-Accreditation Manager
– Director
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CRWWD Story
• Celebration BBQ –
Materials submitted! (July)
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CRWWD Story
• Site evaluation (August)
– Interviewees with “observers”
• Awarded Re-Accreditation
(September)
– 100% practices Full compliance
– Five model practices
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•
•
•
•
Organizational chart & description of duties
Policies & procedures review process
Strategic Plan
Claims reporting & investigation manual
Safety Manual
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CRWWD Story
• CRWWD Suggestions …
– Make the commitment!
• Scope process
• Allow staff time for process
– Express appreciation
• Good food & friendly
services
– Kickoff breakfast
– Celebration BBQ
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CRWWD Story
• Key: Involvement!
– Elected officials support
– Practices in staff’s hands
– Make it an event
– Communicate, communicate,
communicate
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In Summary
In Summary
• It’s worth the effort
–
–
–
–
Ensures effective & efficient operations
Identifies opportunities
Measures against national standards
Improves professionalism & delivery of
services
– Validation of staff/organization
– Provides continuous improvement/
cross-function coordination
– Platform for succession planning/training
“We are an improved organization due to the APWA
accreditation process.” ~ Clark Regional Wastewater District
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Questions?
John Peterson
General Manager
(360) 993-8819
jpeterson@crwwd.com
www.crwwd.com
Kim Thur
Executive Assistant
(360) 993-8822
kthur@crwwd.com
www.crwwd.com
Ann Daniels
Director of Credentialing
(800) 848-2792
adaniels@apwa.net
www.apwa.net/About/Accreditation/
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