Enabling Lean Operations: Transforming Data Into

Information

Driving Efficiency for Renewable Water Resources (ReWa)

Authors:Randy Boyette, Senior Process Control Officer (ReWa)

Chuck Scholpp, Director IIM Business Unit, Hach

Utility Market’s Growing Challenges

• Budgets are tight– Treatment costs are increasing– Infrastructure investments going unfunded– Raising rates is difficult

• New regulations are coming at a fast pace

• Retiring workforce = knowledge loss

Everyone is being asked to do more with less but how?

Renewable Water Resources A Real World View

• Operates 9 wastewater treatment plants and one of the Southeast’s largest liquid biosolids land application program

• Providing water reclamation to more than 400,000 population in 5 counties

• Employee safety and Zero Non-compliance are top priorities

ReWa’s Mission: promote a cleaner environment and protect public health and water quality of the upstate waterways, while providing and developing necessary sewer infrastructure for the

growing economy

Aligning the Five Principles and Ten Attributes of Effectively Managed Utilities

with “Lean” Concepts

Steps to Enable Lean

1. Create lean culture

2. Take holistic approach

3. Automate manual processes

4. Achieve Lean sustainability (plan, do, check, act)

“Lean applies in every business and every process.

It is not a tactic or a cost reduction, but a way of

thinking and acting for an entire organization.”

- Lean Institute

ReWa’s Data Management Situation

• Waste: – Data entered into spreadsheets to consolidate data across facilities

– Traveled to each site daily to capture data, introducing delays and added cost

– IT struggled to manage multiple systems, installations, upgrades and spreadsheets

• Needed a multi-facility network to gain easy visibility into overall operations

– Difficult and inconsistent cross facility communications and operations

• Uncertain if historical data (essential to optimized operations) was complete and had adequate redundancy

Full Capacity of Central Management & Optimization Not Realized

Cross-Facility Transparency Essential to Optimized Operations

• Risks for inaccuracy– Environmental or public health impact– Reputation in the community & impact on community promise– Regulator scrutiny– Citizen complaints– Inefficient operations = higher costs

• Compliance is critical to business success– Trust of communities– Zero Non-Compliance – driving quality – Focus on operational excellence

Quality and Zero Non-Compliance are Key Priorities

Data Management Objectives1. 1. Increase Efficiency & Improve Decision Making

– Automatic data inputs– One central location for data storage with easy access – Provide data consistency across entire organization

2. 2. Better Data Utilization– Provide accurate compliance reporting– Anticipate compliance issues before they occur– Accurate data for budgeting– Provide secure environment

3. 3. Reduce Costs– Monitor key performance indicators– Analyze operations for peak performance

Make “Lean” Operations Sustainable

Solution Enabled “Lean Operations”

• Holistic Approach: Networked, centralized database– Track all environmental, safety, compliance needs from single source via web– Enhanced security allowing access to authorized users only– Improved insight into operations across facilities/system

• Automate Manual Processes: e-interfaces and electronic entry forms– Pulled data from existing SCADA systems– Allowed for consistent data entry and no replication or errors

• Ensure Data Accuracy: Auto incoming data checks, audit trails, data backups

• Turn Data into Information: Graphing, statistics, auto alerting & reporting– Helps with compliance, accuracy, enhanced communication & operations

understanding

• Achieve Sustainability: Dashboards highlighting key information– Tailored for individual areas of operations for KPI monitoring and ease of use

Implemented Networked Data Management Solution

Results – Objective 1: Increase Efficiency & Improve Decision Making

• Achieved data consistency with common database– Secure long-term data storage– Disparate systems linked together– Employees all see same critical data; leverage expertise across sites

• Provides easy access to accurate, organized data– Meaningful comparisons of processes and parameters– Accurate data for engineering firms now provided in minutes– Quickly provide comprehensive information to regulatory agencies

• Provides tools to monitor sustainable improvements– Dashboards provide easy access to and monitoring of key information– More efficient and effective internal communications– Invest time on more critical tasks of quality control and customer relations

Speak with Data

Results – Objective 1: Increase Efficiency & Improve Decision Making

Focus on Data Analysis

Personalized dashboards provide fast access and increase efficiency

Monitor key parameters like TKN, a required regulatory parameter

Results – Objective 2: Better Data Utilization

• Improved data accuracy– More automated data entry and less transposition yield fewer errors

– Incoming data checks and audit trails provide built in quality control

– Accurate compliance reporting

– See accurate expenditures in “real-time”

• Improved operations management– Zero Non-Compliance program drives quality earning NACWA awards – Alarms tied to key indicators warn when any process data starts to drift– Automatic data rollup and drill down functionality– Track trends, plan budgets, make operational decisions

– Spot trends in pre-treatment to develop mutually beneficial solutions

– Reduce learning curve for new employees

Enabled Data-Driven “Lean” Culture

Results – Objective 2: Better Data Utilization

Enabled Easy Visual Management

Dashboards monitoring key performance indicators save time

Enterprise-wide data is organized and accessible

Monitoring Polymer usage is essential to efficient operations

Results – Objective 3: Reduce Costs • Savings

– $200,000 a year in solids management– $32,000 a year in chemical usage– Facilitates close monitoring of equipment, reducing costs & increasing

efficiency

• Realized time savings(~300 hrs/year) applied more productively– Focusing more attention on safety and environmental work– Analyzing for peak performance: Track trends, plan budgets, monitor

operations– Analyzing historical data provides seasonal perspectives

• Improved process for cost analysis and budgeting– Fast, reliable, and easy aggregation of operations expenses– Supports decision making and improves budgeting and forecasting – Provides accurate data for construction and optimization projects

Driving Sustained Cost Reduction

“Lean” Concepts: Five Principles and Ten Attributes of Effective Managed Utilities

Steps to Enable Lean – Plan, Do, Check Act!

1. Create lean culture

2. Take holistic approach

3. Automate manual processes

4. Achieve Lean sustainability

“Lean applies in every business and every process.

It is not a tactic or a cost reduction, but a way of

thinking and acting for an entire organization.”

- Lean Institute