Consider nominating operational employees who have excelled in the workplace for the prestigious NSW Operator of the Year award that is sponsored by the Water Directorate to recognise the important work done by operators.
This annual award goes to an outstanding operator and will be awarded at the WIOA NSW Annual Conference in April. Consider nominating an outstanding operator as the winner joins the WIOA tour group to attend the WIOG New Zealand conference.
Check out some of the 2017 highlights from WIOA.
Launceston’s Brisbane Street Mall provided the perfect backdrop for the Ixom Best Tasting Tap Water in Australia competition, held during National Water Week on 18 October. TasWater, the reigning national champion hosted the event that saw the winners of each of the 5 State based Taste Test competitions go up against each other.
Many of the State winners also sent across a staff member to help out on the day. They joined WIOA, Ixom and TasWater staff to help encourage members of the public to taste the samples and cast their vote.
From toddlers to tourists, students to seniors, members of the public were asked to try each blind sample of water from the separate schemes and note the different tastes present in the tap water. In all, more than 150 members of the public voted and Toowoomba Regional Council’s Mt Kynoch WTP in Queensland took out the top drop this year.
Congratulations to Toowoomba who will go on to represent Australia at the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting Competition to be held in West Virginia.
The 2017 WIOA operators tour of New Zealand began in Christchurch and comprised visits to 11 water and wastewater treatment plants over 5 days, followed by attendance at the WIOG annual conference in beautiful Queenstown. In all 15 representatives from 5 Australian States made it one of the largest groups to date.
There were many highlights over the tour that visited the following facilities:
• Rolleston Wastewater Treatment Plant
• Timaru Wastewater Treatment Plant
• Peireora Water Treatment Plant
• Oamaru Water Treatment Plant
• Waikouaiti Water Treatment Plant
• Mount Grand Water Treatment Plant
• Balclutha Water Treatment Plant
• Alexandra Wastewater Treatment Plant
The WIOG conference was well attended and was themed ‘Wellness in Operations’. Keynote speaker, Dr Kirsty McCulloch from Adelaide presented on fatigue management and its contribution to failures in system performance, whilst learning to manage fatigue in the modern “24/7” environment. Both operators and technical presenters alike did very well, and the format was great. Good to see the interesting initiatives being discussed and innovations in development.
Tours like this only can happen with the support of WIOG and people like tour guide John Clemens who give their time freely to show the WIOA contingent around. Our thanks are also extended to all the operators, in particular those who offered their time for weekend site visits. They were all very accommodating and knowledgeable, happy to share their time and experience.
Our Members are spread right around this massive country and we recognise that it is not physically possible to be able to travel and attend all WIOA events. The Board and staff have been considering the option to utilise webinars for some time as a way of linking our remote members and providing more services without the need for travel.
In December, WIOA conducted our first online webcast to provide an update on the recertification scheme to certified operators and other interested parties. The webinar received over 60 registrations and enabled us to communicate with individuals from across Australia. Webinar participants logged in from Far North Queensland, South Australia and the Eastern states of Australia.
It is intended that the webinar facility will be utilised extensively in 2018 and beyond. A series of technical and more general information webinars are currently under development with a range of guest and expert speakers being arranged to talk on a variety of topics
The WIOA staff team was bolstered late in 2017 with the inclusion of Dr Kathy Northcott into the newly created position of Technical Operations Officer.
Kathy has hit the ground running and is already making her mark on the organisation with her broad knowledge, experience and valuable contacts across the industry. We are certain that with Kathy’s input, we will be able to significantly increase our technical offerings going forward.
In 2017, Individual membership of the association increased by 97 (4.5%) to a total of 2,229 members, Utility Corporate Members remained steady at 66 organisations and Corporate Member numbers increased by 16 (3.8%) to 435.
The Associate Corporate member numbers reduced by 84 (6.1%) to 1,301 predominately due to the enforcement of the constituted maximum number of 10 individual nominees in this category for each Corporate Member. As Associate Corporate members receive limited benefits, there is an opportunity for them to become Individual members in the future, allowing them to access the full benefits of membership.
The overall result is that the Association’s total membership at the end of 2017 is 4,031, a 0.7% increase across all categories.
The Network Operator Development Program has been established to identify, mentor and develop future leaders in the Network Operations field across the Victorian Water Industry. The program was instigated by WIOA members Mick Mahoney from Wannon Water and Mike Rankin from Water Training Australia who bought the concept to WIOA. Following an initial meeting with WIOA, a program Advisory Committee was established and the content of the program was created.
The program aim is to expand knowledge and skill sets of Network Operators, exposing them to strategic thinking and best practice initiatives in technology, business management and leadership. The program provided the opportunity to build a network of colleagues within their field of expertise and assisted to deliver an improved customer focus.
The program commenced in February 2017 and involved one day each month over an eight month period, with sessions held at a variety of venues across the state.
Sessions covered a range of topics including Leadership and Industry Focus; Water Quality Mains Repairs; Managing Water Reticulation Systems; Wastewater Collection Systems; Pumps and Pumping Systems; Asset Management; and Solid Waste Management Issues along with a Program Evaluation by Participants.
The first cohort of 13 participants completed the program in September 2017. They were presented their program completion certificates and a shirt at a special graduation ceremony at a dinner held on Tuesday 5 September. They were each presented their certificates by Mike Rankin from Water Training Australia and were acknowledged by all those present for their hard work and dedication.
Further information on the Network Operator Development Program
At the Victorian Conference in Bendigo, WIOA presented Peter Tolsher our highest individual award, Life Membership. In receiving the award, Peter became the seventh Life Member of the Association and it was pleasing that five of the other six living Life Members were able to be present to congratulate him.
In his time as a Board and Committee member, Peter rarely missed attending a meeting. His input was always constructive, well thought out and valuable. When making decisions, Peter has the knack of being able to listen to all views on a topic and then contribute his own insightful and relevant comments, allowing an informed decision to be made.
Peter has been a regular attendee at WIOA events and with the support of his current and past employers, he has attended many interstate events and helped with the expansion of WIOA.
Through his enthusiasm, commitment, energy, personal qualities and friendly nurturing nature, Peter epitomises the values our organisation aims to display, and we are pleased to appoint him as the seventh Life Member in WIOA’s 44 year history.
In 2017, WIOA conducted operationally focused conferences in NSW, Queensland and Victoria. With attendance numbers passing the previous records in Queensland and Victoria, attendees came from all states in Australia as well as a from overseas. Overall some 3,039 people participated in the technical sessions or the exhibitions.
The conferences provide a forum for water industry operational employees to come together and discuss issues, share experiences, learn about the latest product and technology developments, and network with their peers.