PHOENIX, AZ, Aug. 27, 2007 -- The American Water Works Association Research Foundation (AwwaRF) is funding a $182,000 research project led by environmental consultants from Red Oak Consulting, the management and information technology consulting division of Malcolm Pirnie Inc. to develop guidance for drinking water utilities to extract more business value from information technology (IT). The Research Agenda that results from this project will provide actionable ideas for water utilities to implement in the short term to better leverage and manage IT, and a program to promote long term progress for the industry.
Water utilities face a challenging future. In a 2006 AwwaRF report, 19 trends were identified as likely to affect utilities, and information technology (IT) was presented as both a coping strategy and a complex discipline in need of improvement. This project will include a review of existing literature, a survey and focused discussions on IT governance, globally-adopted best practices and the state of the marketplace supplying IT solutions to utilities.
The highly qualified research team, led by Red Oak Consulting, consists of foremost experts in IT use by utilities, and a broad cross-section of utility participants from over ten organizations. The Principal Investigator, Dave Harris, has been providing IT solutions to utilities for 25 years. Co-PI, Corey Williams, is co-founder and facilitator of the industry's leading IT focused peer group, and Co-PI Chris Dermody is a proven water utility IT leader, with a background in other industries. The team is rounded out by best practices expert Tommy Bernard, support staff, and quality advisors, Doug Owen and Dr. Zaid Chowdhury.
Seventy percent of the cost of the project will be provided by AwwaRF, with the balance contributed by participating utilities.
Malcolm Pirnie Inc., a century-old environmental consulting firm, provides governmental and industrial clients with comprehensive services in water and wastewater engineering, solid and hazardous waste management, environmental sciences and, through its Red Oak Consulting Division, management and IT consulting. With a diversified staff of over 1,700 engineers, scientists and consultants in 60+ offices nationwide, Pirnie has won over 200 professional awards for project excellence.
The AwwaRF is a member-supported, international non-profit organization that sponsors research to enable water utilities, public health agencies and other professionals to provide safe and affordable drinking water to consumers.
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