Utility Magazine November 2015

SHIFTING FOCUS FROM TO TECHNOLOGY SMART GRIDS: CUSTOMER

RAMPING UP AN EXPANDED NBN WORKFORCE

Andrew Gaston Project Manager

On site at the Cranbourne Racecourse Recycled Water Tank Project (LD&C Joint Venture)

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AFROM THE EDITOR

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ustralia has another new Prime Minister, our fourth in less than three years. Having previously served as Communications Minister, Prime Minister Turnbull has been strongly associated with the mixedtechnology NBN for the past few years. I imagine the direction of the rollout is unlikely to change substantially now that he has moved up to the top job. nbn, as they are now styled, recently announced a major new investment in training in order to ensure there is enough of a skilled workforce available to carry out the accelerated rollout, and in this issue we look at the opportunities this creates.

At first glance, the many disciplines and specialties across the Utility industry, like the features in this magazine, can look diverse and disparate. But on closer inspection, connections and patterns begin to emerge.

For example: in this edition we take a closer look at the latest developments in smart grids, covering technology (smart meters), network infrastructure (substations and powerlines) and data analysis to paint a comprehensive picture of customer behaviour itself. As Alistair Legge, General Manager, Customer and Technology at United Energy explains, the focus on smart grids has shifted beyond merely adopting technology, to focusing on the needs and behaviours of customers – who are now, more than ever, influencing and driving the future nature of the network. Turn to page 18 to find out more.

This feature really sums up what Utility is about – bringing the various elements of the industry together; and showing how seemingly different sectors can come together and create a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Water and energy pipelines also form a key part of utility infrastructure, and in this edition we look at the outlook for the pipeline industry and find out where the hidden opportunities lie.

As I write this it is event season again, and the Utility team has recently returned from the Water Industry Operators Association (WIOA) event in Bendigo, where we are proud to continue our involvement as official media partner. We also visited the No Dig show on the Gold Coast, an area of technology which remains dear to the heart of this magazine.

This quarter we will again be exhibiting at the (recently renamed) Australian Pipelines & Gas Association Convention (APGA) on the Gold Coast, and we will again be a media partner at Australian Utility Week in Sydney in November.

For more information on any of these excellent events, please see our online event calendar at www.utilitymagazine. com.au/events. I hope to catch up with many of you at one of these events.

A WORD FROM THE ENA

That great philosopher Ferris Bueller once said, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

One part of life in the energy sector moving very fast is the battery storage market.

We’ve heard a lot about the consumer appeal of the 7kWh Tesla Powerwall home energy storage units, which are now expected to be available in Australia in late 2015.

With marginally less fanfare, Enphase and Orison announced in September systems that could disrupt the disrupters, offering AC ‘plug and play’ storage systems that are the size and cost of a consumer appliance.

The Enphase AC Battery, with a 1.2kWh capacity, is designed to be integrated into the Enphase Energy Management System to allow households to maximise use of their rooftop solar, and is expected to be released in Australia in 2016. It is no coincidence that Australia was the first country targeted for the market rollout with our market conditions and rooftop solar penetration rates.

The Orison ‘Tower’ and ‘Panel’ resemble a lamp and a picture frame and weigh approximately 18kg, with a capacity of 2kWh. These appliances will be released in the US with a built-in demand management system and will retail there at about the cost of a flat screen TV ($US2,000 for the tower and $US1,600 for the panel). Orison says a stacked system could allow a customer to have 8kWh of storage for $4,900, directly competing with Tesla.

It’s fascinating news for Australian electricity networks because both appliances would be not only behind the meter – but behind the wall socket.

Our distribution network operators may not know they are even there – but they will see their effect.

Large and small scale battery technology is prompting important discussions about safety standards, incentives, and a regulatory framework that encourages innovation and efficient use of distributed resources.

However, with technology trends moving so fast, there is a clear danger that they will leapfrog industry, policy and regulatory responses. As if you had any doubt – the age of consumer storage has arrived. This allows more opportunities for customers to take control of their energy choices, as they continue to adopt new services and technology.

Australian electricity networks are already trialling and deploying storage solutions that differ in scale and nature.

Some networks are deploying large systems connected to the LV network, such as Powercor’s 2MW/2MWh battery storage system in Buninyong which supports reliable supply to 6,400 customers.

Other networks are integrating residential systems, such as Ergon’s Residential Utility Support System (RUSS) which trialled ten advanced ‘smart-network enabled’ lithiumion battery storage systems. It demonstrated the effectiveness of VAR-controlled energy storage systems in reducing peak demand, improving supply reliability and quality, and maintaining network voltage regulation, particularly in locations with high concentrations of distributed energy resources.

Energy storage is not all about batteries. Energex is trialling the coordinated use of residential hot water storage to absorb solar PV

output in a high penetration area at Arana Hills, Brisbane.

Networks are evaluating not only the technical potential but the commercial role of batteries and response of consumers. TransGrid’s Demand pilot project uses 400kWh of storage and solar PV technology to support and facilitate demand management research and customer engagement.

In some cases, battery enabled solutions are being deployed today as economic substitutes to poles and wire replacement. Ergon’s Grid Utility Support System (GUSS) has been developed as a single phase 25kW/100kWh energy storage system to avoid expensive replacement in parts of Ergon’s rural and remote SWER networks.

These projects and more are showcased in a new ENA publication The Great Energy Quest: Case Studies in Australian Electricity Storage

It’s clear storage may have a potential role in services across the supply chain including: generation support – shifting supply and optimising generation efficiency; grid support – supporting reliability, demand management and network augmentation; and customer support – enabling demand charge management, energy balancing, peak shaving and optimising time of use behaviour.

For networks, storage may assist the management of high penetration levels of embedded generation – such as power quality and voltage regulation – and allow Australia to unlock more value from distributed generation. Internationally, Navigant estimates significant opportunities across the supply chain – with a forecast of up to 5GW of utility scale solar and wind integration alone.

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A WORD FROM THE ENA

Continued from page 8

At risk of mixing clichés – Australia doesn’t need to ‘pick a winner’ today, but to ‘let a thousand flowers bloom’ on ‘a level playing field’. The jury is out when it comes to scale. Large batteries could compete on a lower cost per kWh due to their economies of scale. Small-scale batteries could compete on their ability to secure multiple revenue streams from behind the meter.

Some Australian innovators already

have world leading applications which are smart, consumer friendly energy management systems that capture the ‘split benefits’ of storage. They are assisting residential customers not only to achieve a personal benefit but to participate in emerging new markets for grid services.

Storage is just another great use unlocked by the integrated grid. With every day, it looks less like a transport

system and more like an ecosystem, with increasingly interconnected uses and users, evolving towards a customer driven, lower emission energy future.

The Great Energy Quest: Case Studies in Australian Electricity Storage is available from the Energy Networks Association website www.ena.asn.au.

TRANSGRID TAKES TO THE SKIES

TransGrid has begun conducting aerial inspections of its high voltage transmission lines (NSW).

“Our annual aerial patrol inspections, which make up part of our comprehensive transmission line maintenance program, are critical in helping to ensure reliability and safety of the public, our staff and network,” Community Engagement Manager Paul Johnson said.

The annual inspections are conducted in early spring to identify and address any issues prior to summer. A specialist team will inspect more than 12,900 kilometres of transmission line and infrastructure across TransGrid’s state-wide network.

During the inspections TransGrid will look for any vegetation encroachments along transmission line easements and inspect infrastructure for any damage.

“We would like to thank the

community for their understanding as we carry out our inspection program, and remind the public to exercise caution around transmission lines and towers,” Mr Johnson added.

Inspections have occurred across the Greater Sydney and Central West regions with Mid North Coast, New England, Riverina and Hunter regions also inspected.

AGL REAFFIRMS WATER MANAGEMENT PLAN

AGL Energy Limited has reaffirmed its plan for all water extracted from its Gloucester Gas Project (GGP) to be treated and desalinated to be reused by the project or local farms. No untreated extracted water or blended water will be reused or discharged in the local catchment.

The final draft of the GGP’s Extracted Water Management Strategy, prepared after widespread stakeholder consultation, proposes several stages of pre-treatment, followed by reverse osmosis to desalinate the water.

Senior hydrogeologist John Ross said the treated water would then be suitable for reuse for operational processes on the project, for local stock watering or irrigation.

In accordance with government

approvals currently in place, AGL would only release this treated water into local waterways in the unlikely circumstance that storage dams were full and irrigation is not possible.

Mr Ross said that forecast water volumes from the GGP were 40 per cent lower than originally predicted, making the stream release option for treated water a remote one. If it did occur the volumes would be very small and would only be in the early years of the project.

“Reverse osmosis is one of the most efficient ways to remove salt from water. More than 90 per cent of the water that comes through the process is recovered and is suitable for a variety of beneficial uses,” Mr Ross said.

“The water would be of such good

quality that in the unlikely event of our storage dams being full, it could safely be released into the Avon river. In fact, the river would most likely have higher salinity than the treated water,” he said.

AGL will be presenting this final draft to key government agencies, Gloucester Shire Council and Mid Coast Water. Following this, a final version will be submitted to the Department of Planning and Environment for its endorsement.

The AGL Board will decide in 2016 if the Gloucester Gas Project, currently in exploration phase, will progress to Stage One of production, which includes the desalination plant.

CUSTOMER USE THE KEY TO NBN SUCCESS

Nbn CEO, Bill Morrow, has said that while ubiquitous high-speed broadband was set to become the backbone of Australia’s digital economy, it would be the ways in which people used broadband over the NBN that would be a key unlocking the nation’s future prosperity.

“We hear a lot about digital disruption. What I’m excited about is the potential for the NBN to create a seismic digital eruption – an innovation-led economic impetus that not only helps Australia maintain its high standard of living but enables us to lift it even higher,” Mr Morrow said.

“Three million more jobs are expected to be created by 2030 in both existing occupations as well as work connected to connectivity and innovation.”

According to Mr Morrow, for the millions of people living in areas where the NBN had already been rolled out, the network has begun to contribute to a lessening of the divide between the city and the bush, the young and the old, and Australia and the rest of the world.

“Whole communities are adopting a new mindset after connecting to the NBN,” he said. “For instance, in Coffs Harbour a software development industry has sprung up and with it an expansion in job opportunities. In Ipswich an environment of digital inclusion has led to it being named one of the world’s top seven Intelligent Communities.”

Mr Morrow said the entire network was scheduled to be completed by 2020, with eight million homes and businesses due to be connected.

Developments in the coming months include the commencement of Fibre to the Node services as well as the launch into orbit of the first of nbn’s dedicated broadband satellites, a critical step in enabling the delivery of better broadband to rural and remote communities from the first half of next year.

POWER POLE TESTING FACILITY ONLINE

Western Power’s pole testing facility has been officially opened at the Bibra Lake depot (WA). The facility currently houses Australia’s largest pole test rig that can test the durability of power poles.

The $1 million research facility will provide Western Power, and other network providers, with a greater understanding of the structural integrity of wood, metal, concrete and composite power poles that are used in networks across the country.

Western Power’s Asset Management Executive Manager, Seán McGoldrick, said the pole test rig could test poles up to 36 metres long and 1.5 metres in diameter.

“New and ex-service poles will be subjected to breaking tests in the

pole test rig to determine how they deteriorate with age, which will allow us to more accurately assess their life expectancy,” Dr McGoldrick said.

“The data we collect will be essential to the improvement of the maintenance and replacement programs for more than 630,000 wood poles in Western Power’s network.”

Dr McGoldrick said that other network providers had already indicated their interest in using the facility to test their power poles.

“Wood pole reinforcement and replacement is one of the largest investments for most distribution network providers, and requires significant effort to effectively manage in order to provide customers with a safe, reliable and affordable electricity supply,” he said.

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BEST TASTING WATER WINNERS ANNOUNCED

Goulburn Valley Water (GVW) officially has Victoria’s best tasting drinking water, being awarded first prize at the 2015 Victorian Ixom Water Taste Test.

Each year at the Annual Water Industry Operators Association (WIOA) Victorian Conference, water corporations from across Victoria battle it out to see who produces the state’s best tasting drinking water. GVW’s Manager Operations, Steven Nash, said that he knew Goulburn Valley Water’s sample would be right up there come judging time.

“We arranged for a water sample to be taken from one of our southern catchment areas and going into the finals we were pretty sure that we had the winning entry in this year’s taste test competition.”

The winning sample was taken from the new microfiltration plant at Marysville and was judged on aroma, clarity and taste before it was announced as Victoria’s top drop. Mr Nash said the real highlight of the competition however is the passion that GVW operators put into continually producing high quality, safe drinking water.

“Although the competition was tough, the event was a celebration

of the fact that some of the best tasting and safest water in the world is produced right here in the Goulburn Valley by people who have a great passion for their job.”

The new $5 million Marysville Water Treatment Plant was rebuilt after the Black Saturday fires and has been producing award-winning water since June. The plant services the towns of Marysville and Buxton with the capacity to produce up to 2ML of drinking water per day.

BEST TASTING TAP WATER

Marysville was awarded best tasting tap water for Victoria at the conference.

The three finalists were Goulburn Valley Water for its sample from Marysville, Barwon Water for its sample from Lorne, and Gippsland Water for its sample from Traralgon. The grand final was judged by a panel comprising technical water experts and water industry connoisseurs.

The judges’ votes were locked away until the conference’s evening awards dinner where Goulburn Valley Water was announced as the winner.

WIOA Chief Operations Manager, Craig Mathisen, said the Victorian Taste Test Award was about raising awareness of the quality of the state’s drinking water.

“We see the award as a fun and exciting way to raise awareness of the quality of our state’s drinking water and recognise the efforts of local water service providers and their operators in delivering safe, valuable water services to their communities.

“This year the water supplied to the community of Marysville came out on top. It’s a great achievement for Goulburn Valley Water and their operators after the rebuild of the facility after the Black Saturday fires,” said Mr Mathisen.

NEW SOLAR FARMS ON THE CARDS

Four to ten large-scale solar farms could be built across Australia, following the announcement of $350million in new funding initiatives.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) marked the start of its large-scale solar competitive round, a $100million program that is seeking bids from major solar PV project proponents for grants of up to $30million. Projects must have a minimum generation capacity of 5MW (AC).

The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) has announced a complementary $250million large-scale solar financing program, which will support projects with loan requirements of $15million or more, targeted at unlocking additional private sector investment in the large-scale solar sector.

The new CEFC financing initiative will provide successful ARENA grant recipients with the opportunity to

secure long-term debt finance to support their projects.

The ARENA funding round aims to support the development of a further 200MW of additional large-scale solar capacity in Australia. Currently around 211MW in solar capacity is being created at AGL’s twin solar farms in Broken Hill and Nyngan and at the Moree Solar Farm. Smaller farms in Royalla (ACT) and Greenough River (WA) together have 30MW of capacity.

ARENA anticipates the competitive funding round will lead to between four and ten projects being funded.

ARENA CEO Ivor Frischknecht said the competitive ARENA funding round aimed to support a spread of projects, with the central aim of bringing down the cost of large-scale solar developments in Australia and achieving cost parity between largescale solar and wind energy by 2020.

“Australia has huge natural advantages in this area: more sun than

almost anywhere else and a solar R&D sector that is the envy of the world,” Mr Frischknecht said.

“The funding round is about unlocking that capability to deploy large-scale solar farms across the nation. This will drive further innovation in the sector and create efficiencies in Australia’s solar PV supply chains.”

CEFC CEO Oliver Yates said the CEFC and ARENA finance would be transformative for the deployment of large-scale solar in Australia.

“While the costs of large-scale solar PV are decreasing, this financing boost will help Australian projects move down the cost curve, in line with international trends,” Mr Yates said.

“When fully deployed, the CEFC finance will be the single largest debt financing commitment to the Australian large-scale solar sector. The CEFC’s provision of fixed-rate, longer-dated senior debt finance is designed to directly support the network of

financiers, project suppliers and developers in the delivery of additional large-scale solar in Australia.”

ARENA and the CEFC have supported a number of large-scale solar PV projects, which are either already generating power, or for which first generation is imminent.

AGL’s project at Broken Hill and Nyngan (supported by ARENA) is already grid-connected at Nyngan and generating electricity. When fully operational it will have a 155MW capacity. The 56MW Moree Solar farm (supported by both the CEFC and

ARENA) is expected to come on line early next year.

Together the two projects created 550 direct construction jobs, will have 2.2 million panels and power 65,000 homes when fully operational.

Construction is also underway on Australia’s largest solar and battery storage project to date, at the Sandfire Resources DeGrussa copper mine in Western Australia. It is also supported by both the CEFC and ARENA.

“By working closely with ARENA, and investing alongside private sector co-investors to bridge the financing

gap for projects that make commercial sense, we’re seeking to build Australia’s expertise in solar and bring down development costs,” Mr Yates said.

“Projects seeking funding from ARENA and debt finance from the CEFC will benefit from our organisations working together during each stage of the application process, to minimise transaction and due diligence time and costs,” Mr Frischknecht said.

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SMART GRIDS: SHIFTING FOCUS FROM THE TECHNOLOGY TO THE CUSTOMER

The notion of a smart electricity network has been around for several decades; but it’s only been in recent years that utilities have developed a more sophisticated approach to the management of their networks. We spoke to Alistair Legge, General Manager, Customer and Technology at United Energy, to learn more about this utility’s approach to making its network smarter, which is centred around the idea that the customer should be the focus of smart networks, rather than the technology itself.

or most of the 20th Century, the only way for utilities to gather information about their networks and usage was to head out into the field and read meters and physically locate any faults.

Smart grid technologies in varying forms have been around since the 1980s, but it’s been since the early 2000s that utilities have really delved into making their networks smarter. The advent of smart meters have provided utilities with unprecedented volumes of information about their customers and usage.

Like many utilities, United Energy (UE) has been actively seeking technologies that provide them with improved visibility and control of their distribution network. Smart grid technologies enable distributors to automatically anticipate and resolve faults on the grid, continually monitor asset condition and identify the need for maintenance. They also support advanced decision-making when it comes to network planning and operation.

However, for UE, the real revolution is not about the smart network technology, but about how customers are driving the changing nature and boundaries of the network itself. The network that was designed to operate passively to move electricity from the transmission grid to end-use consumers is changing and adapting to support customers’ deep integration into the energy ecosystem. For example, the increased take-up by customers of distributed generation and storage means that customers are now themselves becoming generators – they are active participants in the energy supply chain rather than passive supply points at the end of the network.

SHIFTING FOCUS

According to Alistair Legge, General Manager, Customer and Technology at UE, with customers now driving the future nature of the network, their needs and behaviours need to become

the focus of distributors’ smart grid strategies and investments.

Historically, the network ended at the customer supply point – in fact, distribution networks would typically refer to managing supply points rather than servicing customers. But now, the network is regularly extending further into the customer’s premise.

For example, UE is rolling out a program where they are collaborating with customers to install storage solutions behind the meter, for the joint benefit of customers and the network.

To UE, this customer-located and distributor-controlled storage has an equivalent network benefit to an upgraded distribution transformer. The storage is integrated into UE’s smart grid control systems – thus, with the permission of the individual customers, extending UE’s grid control solutions into customers’ premises.

WHAT DOES A CUSTOMERCENTRIC SMART GRID STRATEGY LOOK LIKE?

The customers’ position as both beneficiary of the network and participant in the network means that networks’ strategies need to be fundamentally customer-centric. So what does this mean?

Customer centricity is all about understanding and leveraging value flows. “At UE we need to consider how we can provide value to customers, and, as they become part of the grid, we also need to consider how customers can provide value to each other and to the grid,” said Mr Legge.

“Research shows that customers value safety, reliability, minimised prices and a feeling of being in control. Therefore, we need to align our network strategies with these fundamental value drivers.

“For example, the granular voltage and current data that we can receive from AMI smart meters can be used to detect dangerous neutral faults at premises across our network or live wire down situations.

“Customers may not be aware of

this value, but it is certainly there.”

Similarly, self-healing network investments are focused on the value customers place on reliability; and sensors that improve asset management are focused on both improving reliability and overall cost minimisation.

GIVING THE CUSTOMER CONTROL

Another relatively new area for networks to consider is their customers’ increasing desire for control. Customers around the world are becoming more engaged in energy decision-making. They value simple, timely information that can enable them to be more informed and influence their energy usage.

One of UE’s first smart grid enabled initiatives in this space was its EnergyEasy web portal. This provides customers with the ability to access their half-hourly energy usage, and subscribe to notifications associated with the status of their supply. Toward the end of the year, UE expects to launch additional products and capabilities that will enable customers to access very rich information on their home energy usage – down to the level of efficiency of their major appliances. This information, powered by the smart grid, provides value to customers in managing their energy usage.

TRANSFERRING VALUE

According to Mr Legge, UE is taking its lead from the ‘sharing economy’ trend, and sees the value in understanding that customers can share with each other and the network.

“For example, when we looked at using storage as a solution to network management issues, we considered installing our own batteries at central locations on the grid against batteries at individual customer premises –however we found that customer located batteries were more cost effective,” said Mr Legge.

“Customers provide the real estate to house the battery, the network organisations integrate the battery into

their smart grid program and use it for the approximately 20 hours in a year where it is required for network peak load smoothing, and the customer gets the benefit of the battery for the rest of the time.”

Another way where value can be transferred from customers to the network is in demand management.

Distributors are increasingly facing the situation where their primary objective

of providing safe and reliable energy supply is most effectively delivered through a combination of network and non-network solutions.

“If we forecast demand in part of our network to exceed the physical capacity of the network, we can either build out the network to expand the capacity, or work with our customers to manage the demand,” said Mr Legge. “Smart grid information is the enabler

of both paths.

“Two years ago UE’s smart grid reporting platform identified that a number of distribution transformers were operating at a critical level during a summer heatwave. UE was able to undertake focused communications with customers to encourage them to reduce their load for the final days of the heatwave – thus avoiding costly and disruptive outages that would have

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occurred had the transformers failed. The transformers were then upgraded in a more cost effective process after the peak demand period.

“In this example, smart grid data combined with customer behaviour contributed to improved reliability and reduced network costs,” he said.

Next summer, UE is planning on providing customers in constrained network areas with smart applications

that tap into their smart meters, identify how their individual household devices are using energy and enable them to manage their load to both reduce their energy bill and peak network demand. Customer behaviour, enabled by real-time, customerspecific information, is becoming an increasingly important tool in UE’s smart grid program.

Historically, distributors were run and

managed with a focus on building networks to support the maximum demand that was desired by customers. With privatisation, there has been more of a focus on asset efficiency. Perhaps in the future, society itself will play more of a role in the design and operation of costefficient, safe and reliable networks.

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FIVE WAYS TO PREPARE YOUR GRID FOR THE FUTURE

“Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.”

–

Industry experts all over the world agree – power grids are becoming more complex. They need to be capable of handling various forms of energy, from traditional thermal sources like coal and gas, to newer sources like solar, wind and hydroelectric. They must also support distributed generation and energy-efficient technologies. Most importantly, they will need to comply with regulations designed to control emissions and mitigate the environmental effects of energy generation.

This represents an unprecedented shift in social and industry expectations. As a result, grids must now be adapted to suit an environment in which energy efficiency is prized above all else. For the utility companies responsible for this transition, the big question is how to modernise while remaining competitive and profitable in this brave new world.

Providing a reliable supply of affordable electricity while modernising your grid to meet new social and legislative expectations can be risky, expensive and difficult. The situation is further complicated by the general lack of clarity when it comes to the ideal end state of a modernised grid. Should energy suppliers anticipate full reliance on renewable sources at some point in the future? Or should they plan for a combination of thermal and renewable sources?

With uncertainty in the market comes risk, but with risk comes opportunity. For utility companies, the most promising sources of potential growth are to be found in effectively managing customer relationships,

investing in distributed energy resources, and maximising returns on newly purchased assets.

While many providers are unsure of how best to adapt their business models to accommodate growth, the good news is that there are numerous examples of companies that have successfully switched to new business models and increased their efficiency, growth and market share. In the utilities sector, such companies will likely be those that take advantage of technologies that support distributed energy schemes and energy-efficiency initiatives.

A NEW PARADIGM

The ideal new model will engage consumers as active energy producers while continuing to sell them services provided by traditional assets. And that’s exactly what CSC’s Power System Services business model does. It’s based on four key technologies that will allow utilities to manage costs, increase productivity and bring new products and services to market quickly. The model is made up of five key components:

1. Business transformation

To stay relevant in today’s digital world, businesses need to become ‘digital enterprises’. They can do this by replacing inefficient existing ICT systems and business models with automated self-service alternatives. In doing so, they’ll take an important step towards becoming a lean and agile organisation whose access to on-demand information, applications and services gives them a powerful competitive advantage.

2. IT-as-a-Service

IT-as-a-Service (ITaaS) is a model in which a company’s IT department functions like an independent subsidiary, consuming resources on demand, using defined and industrytested solutions. This involves taking charge of IT performance while also developing products designed to help the business achieve its goals. In some cases, the ITaaS model involves the use of cloud or software-as-a-service solutions, allowing businesses to streamline their IT departments and focus more determinedly on financial goals and meeting market needs.

3. Cloud computing

Cloud computing frees companies from the burden of maintaining an expensive and ageing physical IT infrastructure. More importantly, it allows them to provide new resources as needed, meaning that they only pay for what they use, and can be agile enough to respond quickly to new demands. With multiple hybrid cloud environments available, businesses can easily access the right service for the right price.

4. Mobility

Mobile technology allows employees to access a full range of tools and applications in the field, while remaining in touch with office-based colleagues. A thoughtfully designed mobile solution reduces costs by allowing employees to enter data in a timely and accurate manner regardless of where they are. In the utilities industry – which relies on the maintenance of far-flung power stations, meters and grids – this can be particularly valuable. Mobile solutions work closely with real-time data analysis. For example, smart grids allow for the instantaneous detection of brownouts and power outages. By automatically delivering this information to mobile field workers, a rapid response to customers can be ensured.

5. Big data

Big data refers to the predictive analytics of data – much of which comes from new sources like smart meters and social networks – that can be used to identify patterns which might previously have been obscured or undetectable. Such analysis allows companies to identify areas of possible growth, pre-empt business challenges and make more informed business decisions. For example, predictive and conditionbased maintenance of substation equipment can decrease unplanned outages. Similarly, the generation of short-term weather forecasts can help utility companies prepare and

dispatch repair teams in advance.

A WHOLE NEW WORLD

Moving towards this future requires utility providers to harness the latest IT technologies and, in doing so, ensure their continuing adaptability and growth potential. Fortunately, many businesses have navigated this transition successfully, drawing on the assistance of people with the necessary experience to implement affordable solutions with speed, simplicity and a strategic focus.

The time to start is now…

For more information about how you can begin modernising your company, contact Sheri Cleary, Client Relationship Executive at sheri.cleary@csc.com.

DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGY IS EVERYWHERE

Together we’ll find next-gen solutions to your biggest utilities challenges.

Visit csc.com/au/utilities to discover more.

HOW DO YOU ENSURE SUCCESS WITH SMART METER ROLLOUTS?

Smart meter rollouts are happening all over the world, with utilities trying different approaches, technologies and solutions to accomplish objectives including customer engagement, supply reliability and operational efficiencies.

In the smart metering journey so far, success has varied between utilities. While there are quite a few success stories, there have also been challenges, shortfalls and sufferings. The time has now come to consider and analyse the reasons for those unsatisfactory results. There are many reasons smart meter rollouts can be challenging; however according to Cyient, the most important aspect of any rollout is the expertise and exposure of the solution provider. The solution provider must have exposure to all the key elements of smart meter implementations, in order to provide expert advice and timely recommendations to make the rollouts successful.

Over last few years, Cyient has taken part in some interesting projects and helped customers to succeed in challenging environments. Our involvement in those projects has helped us gain knowledge, wisdom and insight on each and every element of Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) implementations and has also made us a strong solution provider.

MOBILE WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS

For a European customer, Cyient delivered an innovative solution that entailed developing a generic platform independent framework with an extensible library of ‘meter drivers’ for a Mobile Workforce Management System (MWMS). The integration of a MWMS with smart meters allowed the field engineers to perform various meter service activities such as readings, connections and disconnections, and

meter maintenance and replacements much more efficiently. Seamless integration between field and office provided the platform for operational efficiency gains and cost savings. Better work prioritisation and faster work turnaround increased field crew productivity, leading to enhanced customer satisfaction.

BUSINESS PROCESS INTEGRATION

In another example, Cyient was engaged by a leading Southeast Asian utility to deliver business process integration between the Meter Data Management System (MDMS) and existing IT systems, such as billing, portal, call management and shutdown notification. The integration was based on Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), leveraging existing middleware and developing custom interfaces. This helped with accurate billing, support for ad-hoc billing requests, managing tamper/theft/outage notifications, supply automation and smart payment options.

PRE-PAID ENERGY MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS

Cyient also has considerable experience with implementing prepaid energy management solutions, having taken part in a recent project involving pre-paid solutions for another leading Southeast Asian utility. The solution included various leading AMI products and numerous interfaces with back-office and head-end systems.

The two-way communication between meters to head-end to MDMS to pre-paid energy management software ensured that the customer could

access near real-time status of their energy balances against the credit, and take connect/disconnect actions as per pre-configured rules. This helped the customer to reduce commercial losses owing to power theft, reduced credit risk and also enhanced customer service and experience.

WHERE TO NOW?

The above examples have involved AMI rollouts, but what’s next? What do we do with the huge volumes of meter data that keeps accumulating on client and outsourced data warehouse servers? This is a typical issue for most of the utilities who have been a part of the AMI journey so far, but not for our customers.

Cyient has developed an innovative solution to help unlock the economic value of smart meters, by leveraging existing systems and new data sources. For example, we have generated voltage and load profiles of customers and transformers by fusing meter data and geographical data, enabling both graphical and spatial analytics to improve situational awareness.

Utility companies who are gearing up for large scale smart meter rollouts need a solution provider who can hold their hand throughout the journey, from the planning stage until the deployment of the last meter, and then support them with gaining critical operational intelligence from the sudden and continual influx of new data.

Based on their experience on many projects, Cyient knows exactly what needs to be done to make every smart meter rollout a big success.

is smart metering on your mind?

Enabling smart grid technologies for Australia

Business Process Integration

Service Orientated Architecture based integration of meter data management, billing, call management and shut-down notification.

Meter Driven Mobile Workforce

Reducing operational cost and downtime through mobility enablers that utilise real time data from smart meters.

Intelligent Network Operations

Using data analytics to drive intelligent utility operations that minimise operational cost while enhancing system reliability.

To learn how, get your copy of the AMI/MDM white paper today. Scan the QR code below or visit go.cyient.com/ami-mdm to download.

WHAT’S OVER THE HORIZON FOR PIPELINERS?

It’s been a bountiful decade in the gas pipeline construction game, as the CSG-LNG industry in Queensland provided contractors with a steady stream of geographically concentrated work. Now that these projects are up and running, we ask: where to now for pipeliners?

After an unprecedented construction boom in recent years, now that the Queensland LNG industry is effectively up and running, many gas pipeliners have reported that the industry has quietened down somewhat. Projects are harder to come by, budgets are being squeezed and redundancies have been commonplace.

While the rota of upcoming transmission pipeline work might be relatively quiet – save for the mooted North East Gas Interconnector pipeline, planned to connect the Northern Territory with east coast gas markets – smart pipeliners have turned their attention to other sectors of the industry where their skills and expertise can be put to good use.

While opportunities remain in the gas sector, the water, wastewater, telecommunications, irrigation, distribution and maintenance sectors are all deploying a unique range of projects that can utilise the skills of pipeline industry players. There are roles for contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers of products and services on many of these projects – so if you’re a pipeliner wondering where to now, these projects might just give you a few ideas.

GAS INDUSTRY EXPANSION

While the main transmission pipelines have been built, there’s still a significant rota of ongoing work to be completed for the Queensland CSG-LNG industry. In particular, the gas gathering lines that each of the three major CSG-LNG projects require will generate a huge volume of work each year. The APLNG project alone

anticipates drilling between 350-500 wells per year; for QCLNG and GLNG, it’s approximately 300 wells per year. Over the life of the project, these wells will require gathering lines to connect them to gas processing facilities.

Other developments in the early stages in Queensland include Senex’s Western Surat Gas Project, and Arrow’s Bowen and Surat gas projects. These projects have yet to reach the final investment decision stage. If and when they do, each will provide an additional source of supply for domestic and export markets – and provide a significant boost for the pipeline industry.

EXPANSION OF EXISTING ASSETS

The addition of the LNG export market has effectively trebled Australia’s natural gas market. With this growth has come the need to expand existing assets, particularly

along the east coast grid, and enable bi-directional flows of gas when and as required to meet domestic and international market requirements.

APA Group, as the owner of the vast majority of Australia’s east coast transmission network, has been particularly active on this front. In the last financial year, APA Group spent $343.1 million on growth projects, including expansions and enhancements to its gas infrastructure in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia.

Over the next three years, the group expects to continue to expand its network, according to APA Group Managing Director Mick McCormack.

“We’re continuing to work on enhancements and additions to our existing pipelines, including building the new Eastern Goldfields Pipeline in Western Australia, and the fourth expansion project for the VictoriaNew South Wales Interconnect, which will see capacity on this asset treble.”

All up, the Group has forecast between $300 to $400million in annual growth project expenditure over the next two to three years.

It’s reflective of the wider trend within the gas transmission industry away from

‘construct’ to ‘operate and maintain’ – but importantly it highlights that with the expansion required as part of organic growth in demand, there is still work available in this sector of the industry.

CATERING TO SUBURBAN SPRAWL

A major consideration for utilities around the country – but particularly in New South Wales and Victoria – is the need to cater to the ongoing trend of suburban sprawl. In Australia’s most populous cities, the city limits continue to push further and further out, with the trend for new communities and housing estates showing little sign of abating in the near future.

In New South Wales, the Government has established the North West and South West Priority Growth Areas to sustainably plan Sydney’s growth on its urban edge. The Government has forecast that by 2036, Sydney will need 770,000 additional homes, with up to 30 per cent of these new homes to be in the North West and South West Priority Growth Areas.

Establishing the new growth centres will be done by way of ‘Precinct Planning’, which coordinates the planning and delivery of water, wastewater, recycled water, gas, electricity, roads, transport and other services for new communities.

Sydney Water is currently planning and building the new water and wastewater services for the growth areas, and Endeavour Energy is responsible for electricity services. Works are already underway, and will continue to be delivered in stages over the years and decades to come.

The Sydney Water program of works in particular can provide pipeliners with unique opportunities. Lead contractors including Zinfra, Diona Civil, ENSure (a joint venture of GHD and Jacobs) and John Holland have already been

appointed, with a steady stream of works available as part of each contractor’s package for many years to come.

Richard Schuil, Sydney Water’s Engineering and Planning Manager, Growth Centres, Engineering and Environmental Services, noted that the growth centre projects are offering the industry a major tranche of works in the short to mid-term.

“Sydney Water is working together with state and local government, the general community and developers to deliver trunk water and wastewater infrastructure in time for dwelling occupation,” said Mr Schuil.

“We are currently delivering trunk wastewater assets valued at $75million to service 14,000 dwellings and $21million of trunk drinking water assets to service 6,000 dwellings.

“We are also progressing with further water and wastewater trunk infrastructure to service an additional 5,000 dwellings by 2018 to 2020.”

It’s a similar story in Melbourne, where the sprawl beyond the city is providing similar opportunities. A key area for Melbourne’s growth has been in the north, along the Hume Highway. At Donnybrook, Yarra Valley Water and APA Group are installing new water, wastewater and gas infrastructure to cater to new customers in the region.

The project consisted of two stages of a 300mm diameter steel gas main and a 300-450mm diameter MSCL water main. The pipelines are being installed by both open trench and trenchless technologies. With the services both going in at the same time, the project is benefitting from the use of a shared trench.

These are just two projects currently underway which are required to meet the needs of a growing population. With Australia’s population tipped to reach up

to 48.3 million in 2061 by the ABS, utility connections to new population centres will clearly be an ongoing source of work for the pipeline industry.

MODERNISING RESIDENTIAL SERVICES

The upgrade of existing wastewater services is another key focus area for water and wastewater utilities around the country. Perhaps the most notable of these projects is the Peninsula ECO

project currently being undertaken by South East Water in Victoria.

Along the state’s Mornington Peninsula, more than 16,000 properties currently rely on septic tanks and onsite treatment plants to manage household sewage. However, due to ageing, failing and poorly maintained septic tanks, there is evidence of waste polluting groundwater, waterways and the

rolling out one of the largest pressure sewer constructions in Australian history. With this comes an Early Connection Option (ECO), enabling customers to connect to the new sewerage system up to 16 years earlier than scheduled.

Your network to people into Networks

The project involves 246km of sewer pipe being installed in an accelerated timeframe. Innovative technology (horizontal directional drilling) is being used to ensure minimal impact to the community and environment.

While this is probably the largest example of a sewerage network modernisation, similar upgrades –particularly in rural destinations – are also taking place right around the country.

FARMING AND IRRIGATION

Improving water access for farming and agricultural use is also shaping up to be a huge focus for utilities around the country. In Victoria, Coliban Water and Goulburn-Murray Water have been upgrading their irrigation channels to piped networks for a number of years.

In Western Australia, Water Corporation has announced plans to improve farmlands water pipes across the Wheatbelt region, with more than 64 kilometres of pipe to be replaced and 7,500 pipeline joints repaired.

The three-year project will significantly improve the performance of the Water Corporation’s farmlands water supply system, which has a history of leaks and breaks, many at a higher rate than the rest of the state’s rural water supply network.

The Water Corporation is encouraging contractors to get in touch to get involved with the works. Details of how contractors can get involved in the project are available on the Water Corporation website.

WHAT NEXT?

For utilities around the country, this is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the infrastructure projects that are planned or underway. Between surging populations and expanding communities, there is a significant quantity of work available to the pipeline

WHY IT PAYS TO BE DIVERSE

Many players in the Australian gas pipeline industry have been quick to respond to slowdown in gas transmission works, and have already identified the broader utility sector as a sensible place to work during this trough for the industry.

industry – the industry just needs to be smart enough to know where to look; and understand how to best position itself to be involved in these works.

Daryl Broun, Pipeline Survey Manager at WKC Spatial, has experienced a some shift in his customer base in the past 12 months, a change which has partly been organic and partly been by design.

“At the moment, we’re still doing pipeline project work, but it’s currently being balanced out with work for new subdivisions and new construction projects – a bit of everything really.

“We’ve also expanded our service offering beyond just land surveying, to also doing some utility locating work for our clients. We now have Telstra accreditation for our subsurface location and mapping department, which will diversify our offering further and allow us to work on projects requiring service location and mapping.

“This differentiation has been crucial as it means for many clients, where they might have had two contractors out on site previously, now we can take care of both jobs. We also utilise the newer technology of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) combined in with our GPS equipment to allow accurate service mapping. In the current market, this diversity of skills has been particularly beneficial for us.”

For Brett Trembath of Tremco Pipeline Equipment, his business has always focused on being diverse enough to ride out the peaks and troughs of the transmission pipeline construction game.

“We have always supplied equipment and emergency response/maintenance services to all the different people involved in the pipeline industry,” said Mr Trembath. “We have been doing this for 22 years now. We have never focused too hard on the transmission project side of things, as it’s always been up and down, and can take a disproportionate amount

of time away from helping our customers with day-to-day business.”

Similarly, John Wilton, Managing Director of Piping Specialty Supply Services, has also diversified his business model to suit the changing market dynamics – so much so that the business has changed its name, having previously been known as Pipeline Specialty Supply Services.

“A minor change, but one we believe better reflects our broadening product range, and also the wider ‘piping’ industries we now service,” said Mr Wilton. “Not only do we focus on our traditional pipeline clients, but these days our products are being used in the broader piping applications of pipeline construction, maintenance, fabrication, facilities and plant construction, onsite machining and shutdown sectors.

“Having a broader product range gives us a broader appeal and enables us to operate in a broader market space, which has helped us while things are quieter on the major project front.”

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Managing pipeline crossings: INDUSTRY ESTABLISHES BEST-PRACTICE GUIDELINES

RIVERS OFTEN PRESENT CHALLENGES IN PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION AND ARE HIGHLY VALUED.

River, road and rail crossings will usually be required in the construction of new pipelines. The Energy Pipelines Cooperative Research Centre has combined with the industry to establish best-practice guidelines to ensure crossings are completed safely, efficiently and with minimal impact on the surrounding environment.

Pipeline shoreline and waterway crossings have traditionally been challenging sections in pipeline routes. The primary objective is to ensure that the pipeline at the crossing will maintain its integrity during the operational lifetime of the entire pipeline system. Just as important is the care for the natural environment.

The geology along shorelines and waterways can be complex. In some cases, a natural waterway has been formed along an ancient geologically

active zone. In many cases, gravels and cobbles have been deposited in the bed or banks. Rivers can experience intense flooding events and are usually subject to meandering. Shorelines are often subject to gradual or extreme change under the influence of waves, tidal currents, and weather. Sometimes there is a natural seasonal erosion or accretion process with fluctuating beach levels. Shoreline cliffs are also often subject to catastrophic erosion and collapse. These geomorphology

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processes can sometimes be difficult to predict, introducing risks for the operation of a pipeline system.

In Australia, shorelines and waterways are almost always pristine environmental habitats for flora and fauna. They are also highly valued by people for a range of purposes. Australian legislation requires that due care is applied when planning, designing, building and operating pipelines across these areas.

The need for better engineering

At the forefront of ‘big data’ technology, Taylors can deliver fast, accurate and cost effective customised solutions for a broad range of projects and market sectors including water and sewer, waste management, local government, transport (road and rail), pipeline, resources and telecommunications.

guidance at crossings in pipeline routes has been relevant for decades; not only in Australia, but also globally.

SAFE, EFFICIENT, RELIABLE

The Energy Pipelines Cooperative Research Centre (EPCRC) enables safer, more efficient, and reliable pipelines to meet Australia’s economic growth. This is achieved by providing the Australian pipeline industry with the technology necessary to extend the life of the existing pipeline network, and to build better, more cost effective networks necessary to support increased demand for utilities.

To address the above concerns in relation to crossings in pipeline routes, the EPCRC Offshore Users Group teamed up with Woodside Energy and Chevron Australia to form the Crossway Joint Industry Project (JIP), together with subsea and pipeline consultancy Atteris.

Selecting Atteris to undertake the work was a logical choice, given their extensive design and engineering expertise in this field. This has included many trenchless river and shoreline crossings in Australia and overseas, including small scale projects as well as large diameter pipelines; such as the Alkimos Ocean Outfall, Gorgon’s HDD shore crossing and Wheatstone’s microtunnelled shore crossing, to name a few recent Australian examples.

RESEARCH STUDY AND ENGINEERING GUIDELINE

The objective of the Crossway JIP has been to develop an Engineering Guideline for these challenging areas in pipeline routes. It was proposed to develop the guideline in two phases. The first step was to conduct a research study in order to collate all the existing relevant literature, and identify any gaps in the industry’s knowledge. This formed the basis with which to develop the engineering guideline.

The study has involved the review and assessment of applicable national and international engineering standards, as well as relevant published literature such as books, technical papers, company standards, existing

engineering guidelines, and technical articles. In addition, Atteris’ extensive national and international in-house expertise was applied; including lessons learned from a large number of projects in Australia, Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas. An overview of the regulatory approvals regime in relation to designing, constructing, and operating pipelines at shoreline and waterway crossing locations in Australia has also been provided.

The Engineering Guideline has subsequently been prepared to provide recommended processes and considerations to assist the design of pipelines at shoreline and waterway crossings, from the early concept development through to detailed design. Guidance for the operational phase of a pipeline system at crossings, focusing on inspection, monitoring, maintenance and repair, has also been included. Finally, the topic of decommissioning is addressed in the guideline.

The document presents an overall approach to engineering in relation to pipelines at crossings. A clear process is given, broken down into design steps, for the pipeline route selection and crossing design development. This incorporates the required engineering design data, such that appropriate site data collection can be planned and coordinated for each design step.

A comprehensive pipeline system integrity design section is provided, which outlines all the considerations that require assessment in order to complete the engineering design of a crossing. The topics range from system and mechanical design through to external coatings and cathodic protection design. Pipeline stability and seismic loading are covered, among many other topics. The construction, commissioning and operational considerations that might influence the design are also listed.

In addition to these, specific issues common to shoreline and waterway crossings are presented: environmental preservation and design interface management.

The recommended environmental

preservation philosophy at crossings is that it should be an integral component in the development of the design of a crossing, rather than an afterthought. Key decisions in any phase should always consider the impact on the natural environment. Environmental submissions should have appropriate engineering input reflecting the design of a pipeline at a crossing. The timelines for development of a crossing design and the environmental approvals processes should be integrated at an early stage of the design, and regularly updated as the design progresses.

Design interface management is relevant for all engineering design, and can be particularly onerous for pipeline shoreline crossings on very large projects. Internal interfaces are those between the different disciplines within a project or operations team. External interfaces are those between the project or proponent and an external stakeholder. Interfaces can be managed formally or informally, depending on the nature, size, culture, complexity and composition of a crossing. For large scale and complex crossings, a detailed project interface system should be developed in the early project phase.

The work performed under the JIP was completed within a ten-month period. The research study commenced in September 2014; the Engineering Guideline was delivered in its final issue in June 2015. Further work is necessary to refine and add to the guideline, and to close some existing gaps in the knowledge of complex technical issues regarding pipeline shoreline and waterway crossings.

The Engineering Guideline has been presented to the AS2885.4 Standards Review Committee with a recommendation to incorporate the considerations outlined within. The recommendation has been received favourably and work has begun to update the standard. Det Norske Veritas (DNV) of Norway has also expressed interest in the guideline and the JIP partners are working together with DNV to update their submarine pipeline standard DNV-OS-F101.

AGAINST CORROSION Winning the war

The battle against pipeline corrosion can sometimes seem like a never-ending fight. The Australasian Corrosion Association works with industry and academia to continually improve the technology available to pipeline owners and operators to help win the war against corrosion.

Pipelines are integral to many industries. In the utility sector they form the gathering systems bringing resources to processing facilities and delivering product to homes and businesses. Pipelines vary from simple steel tubes to state-of-the-art spiral-wound, flexible lines, with diameters ranging from 50 millimetres to two metres.

To meet increasing global demand, oil and gas infrastructure is expanding. Corrosion poses a threat to all facilities, and the economic impact of all types of corrosion – and its degradation of infrastructure, such as pipelines, oil rigs and towers – represents an annual cost of many millions

of dollars to the industry.

Whilst non-ferrous materials such as fibreglass and polypropylene can be used in non-critical, low pressure applications, the overwhelming majority of petroleum pipelines are constructed from metal. Whether buried or on the surface, all metal pipelines are exposed to a range of physical, climatic and chemical environments that can cause corrosion.

BEST PRACTICE IN CORROSION MANAGEMENT

Working with academia and industry, the Australasian Corrosion Association (ACA) supports research into all

aspects of corrosion in order to provide an extensive knowledge base of the latest technologies and best practices in corrosion management. Historically, metallic zinc and primers containing chromate have provided excellent corrosion protection. These materials have properties that

allow coatings containing them to actively respond to a corrosive environment while maintaining a barrier to that environment.

Advances in coating technology can offer significant cost savings if developed and successfully demonstrated. Zinc, polyurethane, polyurea and powder coating technologies make them a superior alternative to epoxy resin technology for longer-term service life. Zinc gives a very basic cathodic protection effect as a thin coating, polyurethane is effective and aesthetically appealing, while powder coatings can meet environmental and regulatory challenges.

Ageing or damaged infrastructure presents many challenges to the oil and gas industry and regulators worldwide. There are thousands of kilometres of pipelines associated with the oil and gas wells and platforms operating in more than 50 countries around the world. These facilities vary in size, shape, and degree of complexity.

Much of this infrastructure was built in the 1950s and designed in accordance with lower standards than are currently prescribed. Some facilities are operating well beyond their intended service life and others have suffered damage as a result of storms or accidents or, because of the lack of active maintenance programs, have deteriorated to the extent that there is now doubt as to their continued structural integrity.

THE PATH FORWARD

Achieving the most effective corrosion control strategies is likely to require changes in industry management and government policies. All companies are striving to reduce maintenance budgets for their infrastructure while optimising performance, so new corrosion protection materials must be cost effective and non-hazardous. One of the latest advances in coating technology has been the development of protective coatings that can respond to damage and changes in the external environment and can be applied using conventional methods. New materials such as nanostructured materials and organic metals may be appropriate as the basis for developing damage-responsive coatings and structures.

Internal corrosion controls for gas pipelines include reducing the water content of gas and adding inhibitors to the fluid flow. In addition, removing solids from the stream, and the mechanical design of the layout, can also reduce internal wear. Corrosion caused by moisture in a gas stream can be controlled by decreasing the dew point of the gas to a temperature below the lowest operating temperature likely to be encountered in the pipeline.

One way to allow for corrosion is to make the pipe wall thicker to provide additional metal for corrosion loss. The corrosion allowance should anticipate the maximum metal loss over the life of the pipeline and ensure that sufficient wall thickness remains to enable the pipeline to operate safely. A corrosion allowance should not be a substitute for other corrosion protection measures, since actual corrosion rates in practice can be much higher than those used in the

estimation of the corrosion allowance.

The oil and gas industry invests large sums of money in the design, laying and protection of pipelines. In comparison, far less attention is paid to the mounting and bracing structures that support and guide a pipeline.

MANAGING RISK

An effective way to reduce corrosion risk is to minimise the contact point between the support and pipe so that no crevice is formed. Water cannot be trapped, so corrosion no longer occurs. With minimal contact, air can also circulate and evaporate moisture beneath pipes, and it’s far easier to inspect the contact area. If the material of the support is non-metallic, the pipe can be electrically isolated so there is no contact between dissimilar metals.

One of the most common support methods is to lay the pipe onto a standard structural element such as an I-beam or metal channel and secure it in place with a stabilising U-bolt. A similar method is to use a saddle clamp, where the pipe is clamped between two rolled plates, with one of the plates welded to a structural element. These two categories account for more than 95 per cent of support points on a typical structure.

One alternative is to weld a part of the pipe, which is usually free to move, directly to the support structure. This is a common approach for insulated piping systems. There are a number of other alternative pipe supports, such as

flange bolt supports, various types of pipe hangers and other specialty-type supports.

Not surprisingly, it is the beam supports and the saddle clamps that cause the majority of problems. Visual inspection and other non-destructive testing is often difficult, and it is virtually impossible to paint or otherwise maintain some areas of the pipe at the support. Some of these support types may even develop bi-metallic contact. Despite both the pipe and support being steel, the metallurgical differences can still provide a small potential difference to create a corrosion cell.

The shape of a cylindrical pipe on a flat surface forms a crevice where moisture gathers and evaporation is restricted. The moisture softens the paint, which fails and exposes bare metal, which is then in constant contact with water. Once corrosion starts there can be rapid wall loss leading to eventual failure of the pipe.

The ACA is a not-for-profit, industry association, established in 1955 to service the needs of companies, organisations and individuals in Australia and New Zealand involved in the fight against corrosion by providing an expert knowledge base and conducting educational activities such as seminars and training courses across the region. The vision of the organisation is to reduce the impact of corrosion. For further information, please visit www.corrosion.com.au.

Small sacrifice, BIG REWARDS

As a population, Australians are critically dependent on the pipelines that deliver essential services to our homes and businesses. Pipeline owners need to be vigilant in protecting their assets from corrosion. We take a look at some of the common methods for protecting these vital pieces of infrastructure.

In Australia, tens of thousands of kilometres of steel pipelines run underground right beneath our feet, carrying basic human essentials such as gas and water to our houses. In addition, there’s also a significant network of pipelines to take things like sewage and stormwater away from the community.

The length and diameter of the pipelines in our network is varied; from large diameter transmission pipelines stretching hundreds of kilometres across the country, carrying precious cargo between states, to the smaller diameter gathering and distribution pipelines transporting gas and water between delivery points.

Pipelines are an integral part of our infrastructure, and given the way we live our lives today, it is important that they are able to fulfil their function. There are several important factors to ensure that the steel pipelines we all depend on stand the test of time in a safe and cost efficient manner.

LAYING THE RIGHT FOUNDATIONS

There are a few simple steps that can be taken at the construction phase to ensure pipelines are up to the task. They include choosing the right material, using the right coating application method and fabrication technique, working with experienced installers during the build and adhering

to quality assurance standards.

These are the things asset owners can do before the pipeline is in the ground – but what can be done to ensure a pipeline stays operational once it is buried?

The most common reason for pipeline failure is coating degradation or failure, which causes bare steel to become exposed and then allows it to corrode and fail. This is predominantly a problem with older inferior coating systems used before 1990; but it can also be an issue with new pipelines that were not manufactured or installed properly, or that have suffered some mechanical trauma.

The challenge is that it is difficult to determine where coating defects (and hence corrosion) will occur. It’s also hard to estimate the extent of corrosion damage in a buried pipeline. Further, with older pipelines, it is impractical to excavate and repair large amounts of coating – even if you know where the damage is.

COMBATTING DEGRADATION

When it comes to combatting coating degradation, utilities and asset owners generally have two options.

The first option is to conduct a coating defect survey, usually using the specific technique Direct Current Voltage Gradient (DCVG), a test that can be used to locate coating defects as small

as a pinhole, without any excavation. To perform this test, experienced technicians are required to walk above the length of the pipe with equipment that can pick up changes in a signal that is applied to the pipeline from corrosion test points. These test points consist of an electrical cable being welded to the pipe, with the end stored in a testing box above ground which is easily accessible. Once the DCVG survey has been completed, defects can then be excavated and repaired so the pipeline is fully protected from the soil again and will not corrode.

The second option is cathodic protection. Rather than repairing damaged sections of coating, cathodic protection supplements the coating. Corrosion is an electrochemical reaction, in which a metal loses electrons before chemically changing into rust. Cathodic protection works to supply the pipeline with electrons from an alternate sacrificial metal rather than from the metal of the pipeline itself, hence controlling rust. Cathodic protection is a legal requirement for many authorities around Australia, and AS2832.1:2015 Cathodic protection of metals Part 1: Pipes and cables is the industry guide to cathodic protection. There are two main types of cathodic protection, both of which work to the same end: they provide a sacrificial material that corrodes in place of the

UTILITIES CAN USE DIRECT CURRENT VOLTAGE GRADIENT TESTING TO LOCATE COATING DEFECTS AS SMALL AS A PINHOLE, WITHOUT ANY EXCAVATION.

pipeline. The first technique is widely used in most residential hot water systems, and is known as a sacrificial anode system. In a sacrificial anode system, a metal, usually zinc or magnesium, is electrically attached (this can be through a wire or through physical contact) to the structure to be protected, whether it be the internal surface of a hot water heater, or a large pipeline. The idea is that the sacrificial anode (the zinc or magnesium) corrodes in preference to the steel structure, and protects that structure in doing so. These systems can easily be installed on a pipeline by simply welding a connecting wire between the anode and the pipeline and leaving them in the ground together. These systems are very cheap and easy to install, and not much can go wrong with them; however, they only supply a limited amount of protection – so it is best to use these systems on pipelines that are very well coated or for ‘hotspot’ protection.

The other type of cathodic protection that can manage pipeline corrosion is impressed current cathodic protection (ICCP). These systems work using the same scientific basis as sacrificial anode corrosion protection; however, they use a power source connected to the sacrificial anodes to supply extra protection. As a result this technique can protect kilometres of pipeline with a single impressed current system. These systems are more complex to design and install compared to sacrificial systems and, by law, as well as in good practice, they require bimonthly monitoring. The advantages, however, are that they allow additional control over protection levels; last longer, with a typical design life of 30 years; and of course, protect a longer amount of the pipeline. In some situations where the coating is particularly bad, as is the case with most pipelines installed prior to 1990, ICCP is the only option to protect the pipeline from corrosion.

Before installing any system it is essential to do a ‘potential survey’, which gives a picture of the severity and nature of corrosion issues the pipeline may be facing. Armed with this information, a system can be designed to best cater to the needs of the pipeline.

Criteria for results obtained from potential surveys to classify the pipeline as protected or unprotected are provided in AS2832.1:2015. To conduct a potential survey test, corrosion test points are required, usually every 500m along the pipeline. ’Potential charts’ are obtained at each location and then compiled to give an overview of the

pipeline’s corrosion activity. From this survey, recommendations can be made on what extent of cathodic protection would be required to protect the pipeline.

Select Solutions has extensive experience in the design, installation, and commissioning of corrosion protection systems, as well as corrosion condition assessment and DCVG surveys. Their cathodic protection systems are designed, monitored, and maintained as a cost effective means of preserving and controlling maintenance and replacement costs on underground and overhead metallic structures.

For more information on how Select Solutions can help you protect your pipelines, visit their website select-solutions.com.au.

CAN NEGI RESCUE THE EAST COAST?

The Northern Territory Government has granted major project status to the development of a gas pipeline connecting the Northern Territory to the east coast gas market. With the project spanning three states and affecting traditional landowners, the land access negotiations that will be required before this project can even begin will be immense.

With a major gas shortage imminent across Australia’s east coast, the North East Gas Interconnector (NEGI) pipeline has been flagged as a potential saviour for the country’s biggest gas markets.

According to Jason Schoolmeester, Executive Director, Major Projects, Northern Territory Government, the NEGI pipeline is a project of national significance, which will deliver significant economic benefits to both the Northern Territory and Australia.

“Not only will the pipeline deliver much needed Northern Territory gas to the eastern states, it will also provide the level of market access needed to stimulate further investment activity in the Northern Territory gas exploration and production industry.

“The project will also generate employment during the construction and long-term operational phase. Much

of this employment will be seen in regional areas of the Territory, with additional direct and indirect benefits flowing to our communities.”

NT Chief Minister Adam Giles agrees. “The NEGI pipeline is a critical piece of economic development infrastructure, which means real jobs in the bush and roads that open up our remote areas, not only for the pipeline, but for other economic activity as well.”

Four proponents were invited by the Northern Territory Government to submit final proposals for the pipeline’s construction: APA Group, DDG Operations (DUET), Pipeline Consortia Partners Australia (China National Petroleum Corporation) and SGSP (Australia) Assets (Jemena). These four parties submitted their proposals at the end of September and the successful bidder will be announced by the end of the year.

NORTHERN TERRITORY GAS HAS THE POTENTIAL TO SAVE EAST COAST CUSTOMERS FROM AN IMMINENT SHORTAGE.

LAND ACCESS CONSIDERATIONS

The pipeline will be approximately 1,000km in length, and will cross diverse terrain with limited access to road infrastructure.

Two routes have been proposed for the pipeline: one from Tennant Creek to Mt Isa in Queensland, and the other from Alice Springs to Moomba in South Australia.

The confirmed route will not be determined until the end of the competitive bid process and will be based on the proposal of the preferred proponent.

According to Mr Schoolmeester, the NEGI project team has established coordination points with the Queensland, South Australian and Federal Governments, which will assist the engagement with government agencies as proponents develop their final proposals.

WHY IS THE EAST COAST RUNNING OUT OF GAS?

Most analysts are now predicting that the east coast gas market will face a serious shortage in supply at some stage in 2018 or 2019, with the NEGI pipeline flagged as a potential new source of gas supply to counteract this looming shortage.

But, given the detailed analysis that goes into domestic gas supply and demand, how have we gotten ourselves into this position?

According to EnergyQuest Chief Executive, Dr Graeme Bethune, we’re currently experiencing a perfect storm as the collapse in the global oil price coincides with the commencement of LNG export out of Queensland.

“With the fall in the oil price, energy companies exploring for, developing and producing gas on Australia’s east coast, are slashing their capital spending and workforces,” said Dr Bethune. “These actions simultaneously collide with the massive growth of LNG along the east coast within a relatively small domestic gas market. This is an unprecedented market development globally and has, as yet, uncertain results on longer term volumes of gas available for domestic consumption.”

Similarly, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Chairman Rod Sims believes the east coast gas uncertainty is due to a number of significant factors relating to unexpectedly high demand over a short time period.

“Firstly, it is apparent that the arrival of the major LNG projects has upended the east coast gas market,” said Mr Sims. “QCLNG has commenced production from both of its trains, and GLNG and APLNG are ramping up their initial trains towards production. Already LNG export demand equals the total domestic demand of the east coast gas market.

“By the time all six trains are operating, east coast gas production will need to have tripled to meet both LNG and domestic demand from industrial, commercial and household customers and remaining gaspowered generation.

“To meet these changing market dynamics, transmission pipelines are being inter-connected and flows being made bi-directional. In other words, the transmission network is being prepared to enable some gas to flow north out of southern production areas and into Queensland,” said Mr Sims.

But despite the challenges facing the east coast gas market, industry body the Australian Pipelines and Gas Association (APGA) is positive about the impact the NEGI pipeline will have.

“This infrastructure could be the beginning of a national gas market, as well as provide new gas for the east coast,” said APGA Chief Executive Cheryl Cartwright.

“The east coast gas supply situation is challenging. But the Northern Territory Government has gas it could sell interstate provided it could ship it there. And a new pipeline, whichever route is chosen, could open up new exploration and production in areas now too remote to be viable.”

“It can be assumed that the pipeline route will pass through remote areas within the Territory, Queensland and South Australia, therefore proponents will be expected to engage with potential landowners such as pastoralists and traditional owners at

the early stages of the project,” said Mr Schoolmeester.

“Land access across states will require the preferred proponent being responsible for securing access to land for the purposes of construction and operation of the NEGI, and complying

with relevant Northern Territory and Commonwealth legislation.

“The competitive process for the NEGI is on track for a preferred proponent to be appointed before the end of 2015. The preferred proponent will then need to progress all environmental and other regulatory approvals prior to construction, which is anticipated to begin in 2017.

“This will allow for commissioning of the pipeline in mid-2018, and will be ideal timing to capture opportunities in the east coast gas market, and to accelerate supply from new gas sources for Territory consumers,” said Mr Schoolmeester.

THE TWO PROPOSED ROUTES FOR THE NEGI PIPELINE.

SEALED CABLES STOP SILT AND WATER SEEP

Roxtec and TasNetworks recently collaborated to solve an ongoing issue with silt and water seeping into TasNetworks’ Hadspen substation, in Tasmania’s north.

Water ingress through the conduits and the moisture condensation was creating partial discharge on the 22kV switchgear in the substation.

TasNetworks approached Roxtec Regional Manager Gary Lee, and through working together, Mr Lee was able to present a reliable cable sealing solution for the TasNetworks asset team.

“We are pleased to assist TasNetworks in providing cable

seals that will protect the network assets in Tasmania for many years to come,” Mr Lee said.

The existing leaking medium was replaced by openable Roxtec RS seals.

TasNetworks Area Asset Manager – EHV Substations, Alan Brown, said that the Hadspen solution was working well and that the business had installed Roxtec seals at its Lindisfarne substation in southern Tasmania and four other sites were being prepared.

ROXTEC CABLE SEALS WERE RECENTLY USED AT TASNETWORKS’ HADSPEN SUBSTATION. FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER INSTALLATION.

Flexible seals for active risk management

Use Roxtec seals to ensure safety, efficiency and operational reliability. You can always rely on our solutions, wherever cables and pipes run through openings – and whatever size they are.

Ready for upgrades

Our modules adapt to cables and pipes of different sizes in order to simplify design and

installation and hold down the total cost of ownership. You can even seal multiple cables in one opening and add more cables later on.

Protect life and assets

Roxtec seals protect your project from several risk factors such as fire, gas and water, and provide solutions for bonding, grounding and EMC.

Our concept includes design services and software for easy planning. We also provide installation training onsite.

Contact us for more information or visit www.roxtec.com

Roxtec Australia Pty Ltd

TEL +61 2 9708 0055

EMAIL info@roxtec.com.au

CATERING TO GROWTH IN METFORD

Ausgrid crews have put the final touches on the new Metford zone substation in the New South Wales lower Hunter Valley.

The 33/11kV substation has been fitted out with two transformers and space for a third, as the potential for growth in the immediate area is significant.

Crews have installed two transformers and the electrical switchgear at the new Metford zone substation, which will help to safely supply electricity to about 8,000 local homes and businesses.

The substation has been designed to fit in with the surrounding neighbourhood while still achieving an economic and efficient solution to meet the requirements of the network.

“The new Metford zone substation will allow the nearby East Maitland zone substation to be shut down after almost 50 years of service,” said Ausgrid Deputy Chief Executive Officer Trevor Armstrong.

“The recently completed Maitland Central zone substation replaced equipment installed in the 1970s, and these two projects together will help provide a safe and reliable power supply in the area for years to come.”

The Metford zone substation is an indoor-outdoor design with connections to the 33kV network via existing overhead infrastructure nearby and all the 11kV cables connecting to the existing underground network.

THE WORKS

Fitting out a substation of this size is a major project, with crews carrying out work both within the substation and on the surrounding electricity network.

Ausgrid crews had to build new sections of powerlines, both overhead and underground, to connect the substation to the network, and to the homes and businesses it supplies. Crews worked in 16 different locations across East Maitland and Metford, building the necessary 33,000 volt and 11,000 volt powerlines.

The new substation replaced the existing East Maitland zone substation, which was nearing the end of its serviceable life. The new substation is located at 67 Turton Street, Metford, with the site being chosen as it is located next to an existing 33,000 Volt powerline that will be used to supply power to the substation.

The new substation is connected into the existing electrical network via two separate 33,000 Volt connections to ensure security of supply. A number of 11,000 Volt cables

CIVIL WORK IS COMPLETE ON THE NEW METFORD ZONE SUBSTATION, AND IT HAS NOW BEEN COMMISSIONED.

have also been connected from the new substation to the existing network.

Now that it’s up and running, the Metford substation project will assist Ausgrid in maintaining a safe and reliable power supply to East Maitland, Metford and surrounding suburbs.

THOUGHT YOUR ELECTRICITY BILL WAS OUT OF CONTROL?

But how closely are you monitoring your wastewater discharge costs?

The media, with its focus on news for general public consumption, has been full of coverage of the growing cost of electricity.

As a consequence, the public in general and managers in most industries in particular are well aware of increases in the cost of electricity. Both have taken steps to reduce their power consumption and, in the case of managers, the impact on their bottom line.

But members of the general public do not pay directly for the cost of the pollutants discharged into their wastewater. Thus the massive increase in the cost of discharging wastewater pollutants has not received any coverage in the media, and has largely gone unnoticed.

Only the most diligent of managers will be aware of just how massively these costs have gone up and/or taken any action to mitigate this cost.

By way of example, if we look at Sydney Water’s charges, the actual increases are materially very significant.

As Sydney Water’s models are often used as the benchmark for other water authorities and councils throughout Australia, industry should take note and take action.

As an example, five years ago, a typical food and beverage manufacturer discharging a couple of hundred thousand litres a day was paying just $0.72 per kilogram of BOD discharged. Today that manufacturer is paying a whopping $2.19 for that same kilogram.

That’s a massive 300 per cent increase in just five years!

In annual terms, the charges for this single pollutant will have gone from $95,000 to $282,000.

Given that many factories discharge

five to ten times this quantity, this makes the 35 per cent increase in the cost of electricity over the same period look minuscule in comparison.

To make matters worse, this bill shock for pollutants is often masked in authority agreements by complex formulas, setting rates based on milligrams per litre and then converting to kilograms discharged.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

Most industries discharging these volumes of water will have, or should

have, some form of wastewater treatment plant. These plants often either do not run at their optimum and, like other complex process units, need a professional to review the operation on a regular basis.

Optimisation and/or minor upgrades can significantly reduce both the milligrams per litre (thus dollars per kilogram rate) and the total number of kilograms discharged.

Massive savings can often be achieved with minimal expenditures.

Mathew Pugh is a member of the Board of Directors of Hydroflux Industrial. He has dedicated his career to the water treatment industry and has held a diverse range of roles from commissioning engineer, project manager, technical support, contracts administration and sales and marketing, and has been heavily involved in hundreds of industrial wastewater treatment projects.

ABOUT THE HYDROFLUX GROUP

The Hydroflux Group operates in a number of sectors via unified complementary businesses, each engaged in the supply of specialist professional services and products to the water, wastewater and sustainability market. Hydroflux Pty Ltd is an Australian private company.

WHO CAN YOU CONTACT?

The Hydroflux Group is home to some of the leading wastewater specialists in Australia. Collectively these specialists have more than 200 years of experience in the local wastewater industry. They will provide you – free of charge – with a professional preliminary review of your wastewater plant and recommendations. So what have you got to lose?

Hydroflux can be contacted on 1300 417 697.

BUILDING URBAN WATER RESILIENCE

A two-day international water reuse and desalination symposium, focused on climate resilient water solutions, will be held in Brisbane in November.

Organised by the Water Services Association of Australia, WateReuse, the Australian Water Recycling Centre of Excellence and the National Centre of Excellence in Desalination Australia, the symposium will feature applied research and innovation outcomes from all four organisations over the last five years.

Scheduled for Brisbane on 4-5 November 2015, this specialty conference will focus on practical aspects of water reuse and desalination, as well as relevant research being conducted in the US and Australia.

The conference will feature a blue ribbon assemblage of world class experts on these two vital components of the water supply equation. As many as 250 top water professionals from Australia, the US, Asia, and Europe are expected to attend this important international conference.

The symposium will:

• Focus on industry, and industry-led and relevant research

• Focus on recent advances in water reuse and desalination

• Feature senior industry and research leaders from the US and Australia

• Highlight international alignment of current applied research

• Identify future challenges to delivering water security

• Link science and innovation with public policy and industry practice

The symposium will be attended by consultants, water and wastewater utility officials, engineers, water agency managers, government officials, academics and scientists.

For more information, visit www.wrdsymposium.org.

ABOUT US

Edge Underground is a precision microtunnelling contractor that operates in Australia and the USA. With a focus on innovative technology and expertise, Edge Underground designs and enhances the performance of trenchless equipment.

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The future of DESALINATION

Stretching all the way back to 1895, the Mammoth Condenser at Coolgardie, completed by the Public Works Department, was, at the time, the largest in the world and could produce 500kL/d. A condenser was built at Cook on the Trans Australia Railway in 1917 for boiler water. A reverse osmosis (RO) plant, thought to be Australia’s first, was built in 1968, but it only operated for a short time as it was cheaper to haul water from Port Augusta. Many remote areas in Australia have brackish or saline water and there are an estimated 600 desalination plants of reasonable scale across the nation.

Historically, evaporation by boiling salt water followed by condensation has been the most common form of desalination. Many large distillation plants have been built in the oil states of the Middle East to provide drinking, recreation and industrial water. Since its commercial development in the 1960s, RO has come to dominate the world market. All of Australia’s major desalination plants use this process.

THE MILLENNIUM DROUGHT AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Observed most strongly in southwest Western Australia since 1970, the impact of climate change has seen a modest reduction in rainfall with a very large reduction in runoff. This has virtually ended reliable water supplies

THE MILLENNIUM DROUGHT SPURRED THE CONSTRUCTION OF DESALINATION

Australia has a long history of experience in desalination. While the Millennium Drought may have broken, there’s many compelling reasons as to why desalination plants will continue to play an important role in the supply of water across the country.

from Perth’s dams. A CSIRO study completed in 2008 into climate change and water across the whole of Australia found that, while overall rainfall is likely to be slightly less, climatic variability is increasing dramatically. This means longer droughts interspersed with more intense rainfall events. Knowing this, provision of climate resilient water sources (like seawater desalination) as insurance against water shortages is recognised as good policy.

Seawater desalination projects were constructed in all mainland state capitals during the 13-year Millennium Drought – the worst in Australia’s recorded history. From the first (Perth Seawater Desalination Plant – Kwinana) in WA in 2004, all six projects were completed by 2012 – an eight-year construction period including environmental approvals. The total cost of around $12billion was a huge water security project and the delivery of such a large infrastructure package in such a short time was impressive by world standards.

The Millennium Drought was severe and it could well have continued for several more years. Adelaide was within weeks of running out of potable water as the River Murray became more saline, and Melbourne could have run out of water had the drought continued for another year or so.

The crisis precipitated decisions to build desalination infrastructure, naturally with some cost premium due to the tight project delivery time frames.

However, the drought broke in 2010 and floods came to the eastern states in 2011. Not so in Western Australia, where the two desalination plants at Kwinana (140ML/d) and Binningup (300ML/d) operate at 100 per cent and supply half of Perth’s drinking water. Fresh water from the sea will continue

to be the main source of drinking water in Perth for the foreseeable future.

Where governments changed (after the drought had broken), incoming governments were often critical of decisions taken by their predecessors, and desalination infrastructure became the subject of political debate. However, in Queensland and Victoria, the new conservative governments were defeated after only one term. It is my belief that one of the reasons for this was that voters grew weary of the politicking and were smart enough to realise that water security is too important an issue to be left entirely to chance.

ADVANCES IN DESALINATION

The National Centre of Excellence in Desalination Australia (NCEDA) was established in 2009 as a policy response to the drought. Given the challenges of Australia, being the driest inhabited continent, it was logical that a centre to develop Australia’s capability in desalination be established and funded to provide water solutions and to develop an export industry.

In the six years since its inception, the NCEDA has established itself as a world-leading research organisation that has established an excellent reputation and extensive networks throughout Australia and internationally. The centre has delivered five competitive funding rounds converting an initial investment of $23million into $81million of research activity across 50 projects, involving input from over 400 national and international researchers. The centre has also awarded over 40 PhD and honours scholarships and developed laboratory, pilot-scale testing and education facilities.

Many of the centre’s projects have concentrated on pre-treatment, essential for sustainable desalination.

Much has been learned about the microbiology of biofilms which inevitably build up in all RO membrane systems, increasing the energy required to desalinate water, and reducing membrane life. Better scientific understanding helps prevention, control and removal. Another new idea is to eliminate fouling organisms by allowing them to grow in a membrane bioreactor pre-treatment system rather than on the RO membranes. Robust ceramic membranes with ozone pre-treatment have been used prior to RO of recycled water to greatly improve pre-treatment performance.

A new polysaccharide coating on RO membranes has been found to prevent biofouling by making it difficult for bacteria to attach and grow. This idea has been patented and is approaching commercialisation. A comprehensive guide has been developed for cleaning membranes. Another project that is underway is using aquaporins (nature’s salt separation membranes) for the next generation of productive and efficient membranes.

Centre researchers have developed an operating forward osmosis system that has been trialled on a mine site to supply ‘fertigated’ water to a turf farm in NSW. Fertigated water is formed from concentrated fertiliser solution using forward osmosis to dilute it with, in this case, mine tailings wastewater. A solar powered membrane distillation system has been used in a remote community in WA to produce freshwater from hypersaline groundwater. Another centre-funded project used solar powered membranefree capacitive deionisation to desalinate brackish water in remote Northern Territory. Further projects have examined the use of graphene to improve capacitive deionisation.

Concentrate minimisation is essential for efficient desalination of inland waters. A project undertaken in partnership with an Australian desalination system manufacturer and a coal seam gas company in NSW has seen an improvement of recovery from 80 to 95 per cent treating coal seam gas

produced formation saline water. This has resulted in a huge reduction of the downstream infrastructure required to evaporate or crystallise the concentrate.

A centre project has thoroughly tested an operating concentrate outfall and diffuser in Queensland to understand any risk that might exist to the marine environment. The results confirm that a properly designed diffuser returns the concentrate (about double seawater salinity) to near background salinity in a very short time and poses no risk.

This is confirmed by the operating experience at the Water Corporation’s Kwinana Desalination Plant, which has run at 100 per cent flow for eight years and discharged concentrate to Cockburn Sound without adverse impact on the marine environment.

Another project surveyed more than 3,000 Australians to determine their views on desalination. Most were happy with desalination as a water source in times of shortage, although the survey confirmed the

rapid implementation of the projects did not allow for adequate conversation and consultation with the community. A further economic study into all the capital city desalination projects revealed some surprising results – a portfolio of water sources including major desalination plants removes some of the costs associated with increasingly costly alternative supplies and the high cost of restrictions, and actually leads to lower overall costs.

THE FUTURE FOR DESALINATED WATER

In 2011, National Geographic magazine ran a feature on water. It proposed three potential disruptive technologies to enable cheaper and more plentiful fresh water from saline sources: biomimetics (use of aquaporins for example); forward osmosis and carbon nanotubes. The NCEDA has had projects in all areas of new technology, and it is evident that they are all some way off commercial reality.

It is likely that RO will remain the workhorse of desalination in the near future. Research efforts by the major manufacturers are high and the performance and efficiency of RO membranes continues to improve.

The big six Australian desalination plants are effectively wind and solar powered. It is more expensive, but they have virtually no operating carbon footprint. The NCEDA is of the view that improvements in efficiency for collection of energy (particularly photovoltaics), coupled with improved RO membranes, will enable the cost of seawater desalination to fall. Couple this with population and demand growth, and the higher cost of alternative and increasingly hard-to-reach sources, and the option of sourcing some base load supply from the inexhaustible supplies adjacent to our coastal cities (where most of the people live) makes increasing sense.

It is our view that the improving unit cost of both photovoltaics and RO membranes will enable much larger scale renewable desalination, especially in areas of high sunshine, substantial availability of cheap land and abundant seawater. Australia has an abundance of all of these. A developer (Sundrop Farms) is using these resources in Port Augusta with a 20 hectare greenhouse powered by solar energy deriving fresh water from Spencer Gulf. The success of this enterprise will lead to other similar developments and there is plenty of scope for sustainably producing high quality horticultural products for the very large Asian market nearby.

Future of Urban Water

Arup is actively collaborating with the water industry to nurture and facilitate innovation and inspire a progressive water sector. This has been demonstrated through new approaches such as our partnership with Sydney Water to develop the highly regarded ‘The Future of Urban Water’ report, which outlines four different scenarios for how water authorities will manage the resource and how consumers will access and pay for it.

Contact:

Daniel Lambert, Water Business Leader, Australasia daniel.lambert@arup.com

SECURING WATER SUPPLY FOR SWANSEA

Hunter Water will tunnel a pipeline beneath Swansea Channel as part of a $4million project to secure the water supply for residents south of Swansea Bridge, NSW. The new second water main will ensure that more than 4,500 homes are no longer at risk of running out of water if the existing pipe breaks.

Currently the water supply of every home in Swansea, Caves Beach, Cams Wharf and Nords Wharf is reliant on a single pipe crossing Swansea Channel and running up the edges of the Swansea Bridge. If that pipe breaks, the repair time would likely be up to one week, due to the difficulty of having to make the repairs under a boating channel.

Repairing the pipe could also require shutting down bridge crossings, causing significant disruption for the hundreds of boats that move through the channel every week.

Hunter Water said a second pipeline will be built underground to ensure there is secondary supply in case the primary main breaks.

If the current pipeline breaks in the underwater section at Swansea Channel, it could take a week to repair using divers and underwater

equipment. Hunter Water would then have to send a pipe across Swansea Bridge during the evening to refill the reservoirs while repairs were underway.

Although the reservoirs in Swansea and nearby suburbs are larger than most, our modelling shows some residents would run out of water within 24 hours of a break.

To remove the risk of residents running out of water, a second pipeline will be tunnelled underground from Little Pelican to Swansea using horizontal directional drilling.

Residents will have two connections to Hunter Water’s network, essentially providing a safety net in case of a break.

Member for Swansea Garry Edwards said the second pipeline was an essential project for the region.

“With Swansea Channel the only way for boats to enter and exit Lake

Macquarie, I understand it is an unusual necessity for the Swansea pipeline to run underwater. It is, however, an unacceptable risk to have just one pipeline delivering water to more than 4,500 homes.

“Hunter Water has listened to the people of Swansea and Caves Beach who have for years had to live with the fear of losing their water supply.

“The second pipeline will be laid using technology which allows it to run beneath the waterbed, away from potentially damaging tidal movements and salt water. This means the homes and businesses south of Swansea Bridge will have a stable supply that’s less prone to breaking in the elements,” said Mr Edwards.

The Swansea Supply Project is currently in its design phase and will be completed by 2017.

COMMUNITY CHALLENGES PROVIDE UNIQUE OPPORTUNITIES

Where there’s the installation of underground infrastructure, there’s usually an element of horizontal directional drilling involved, allowing councils and utilities to navigate features including rivers, creeks, roads and railroads without disturbing the natural environment. Here, HDD contractor Anthony Doherty provides a unique insight into the upcoming projects that will reinvigorate the sector after a quiet 12 months.

Horizontal directional drilling (HDD) is an innovative pipe installation technique which allows assets to be put in place without disrupting the surrounding environment. It’s one in a suite of installation technologies that fall under the banner of ‘trenchless’, meaning – as the name suggests – they do

not require the digging of a trench for installation to take place.

HDD contractor Anthony Doherty, the directory of AHD Trenchless, believes that after a quiet 12 months, the industry is starting to turn around.

“I think we’ve hit the bottom of the trough,” said Mr Doherty. “It has been quiet, but I can see greener pastures

ahead. Whereas 12 months ago we were receiving very few enquiries, now we are receiving regular enquiries for a diverse range of projects.

“We’ve been speaking to utilities, consultant design engineers and pipeline construction contractors about projects across the country.

“Lots of these projects are linked

Thrust/Pullback: 133kN / 30,000lbs

Rotary Torque: 5,168Nm / 3,800 ft lb

Engine: Cummins 93kW / 125hp

Weight including Drill Rods: 5,620kg

Drill Rods: 50 x 3m Forged Rod

to the suburban sprawl we’re seeing, particularly in Melbourne and Sydney. There’s a number of new communities and housing developments popping up on the fringe of Melbourne and Sydney, and they all need essential services connected.

“We’ve installed a number of gas distribution mains in Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia and Tasmania,” Mr Doherty said.

“We’ve also been involved in the construction of some large diameter water and wastewater pipelines in these new communities. The diameters are increasing beyond what I’ve traditionally seen for these types of projects, which in part is future-proofing the services that are going in now.

“With the population of both Melbourne and Sydney expected to increase considerably in the next 20 to 30 years, utilities are acting now to ensure the infrastructure they’re

installing will be able to deal with the future population.”

In addition to these greenfield developments for new communities, Mr Doherty is also seeing a spike in work in built-up environments, including in suburbs close to CBDs, as increasing populations begin to put pressure on the infrastructure that services them –some with assets that are more than a century old.

“Again, increasing populations, and the increasing density of inner-city suburbs is putting pressure on the assets already in place, particularly the water and wastewater infrastructure. For example, in Melbourne, we’re seeing high-density apartment blocks being built in CBD-fringe suburbs such as Brunswick, Carlton and Parkville. The water and wastewater infrastructure in these suburbs was not designed for the number of residents that are currently there, let alone the influx of residents

planned in the next 20 to 30 years.

“I’ve already seen a number of projects to upgrade and expand existing CBD infrastructure to cater to the growing population, and I believe this trend will continue in the years to come. HDD is particularly well suited to these types of jobs because of the minimal site footprint it offers –meaning residents and local businesses experience less disruption while these expansions and upgrades take place.

“Also in Melbourne, the State Government has committed to a program of removing over 50 level crossings in Melbourne. This too is creating a significant tranche of works for HDD contractors, as services are relocated as part of the program,” he said.

After a quiet period, it’s clear that the upcoming pipeline of work for the HDD sector is beginning to grow.

Watch this space.

RAMPING UP FOR AN EXPANDED NBN WORKFORCE

The past few months have been both busy and transformative for the National Broadband Network rollout, with the announcement that nbn plans to connect 9.1 million premises by 2018 and complete the network by 2020. To support this accelerated rollout plan, the company must embark on a recruitment and training drive to double the current workforce. Here, we take a look at some of the recent developments pertaining to the rollout, and explore the training requirements for those working on the NBN.

SHAKING UP NBN DEPLOYMENT

A number of changes have recently occurred that either directly relate to, or have implications for, the NBN rollout.

Australia’s new Minister for Communications, responsible for overseeing the project, is Senator Mitch Fifield, who was appointed to the role by former communications minister and new Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

Additionally, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has granted final approval for the $800million deal that will see ownership of Optus’ hybrid fibre-coaxial (HFC) network transferred to nbn for use in the HFC component of the rollout.

Service Stream has joined the ranks of Transfield, Downer, Visionstream, Fulton Hogan and WBHO in signing a five-year contract with nbn under the new Multi-Technology Master Agreement (MIMA) contracting arrangements. Service Stream’s contract will see the company begin

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rolling out fibre-to-the-premises (FttP), fibre-to-the-node (FttN) and fibre-tothe-building (FttB) connections, and is estimated to be worth $8-$10million in the first year, with the value in subsequent years to be dependent on performance. The company will begin work under the new contract in December by rolling out connections in Victoria.

“Service Stream is proud to expand our role in supporting nbn as they undertake one of the nation’s most significant infrastructure projects to provide better broadband to all homes and businesses,” said Leigh Mackender, Service Stream’s Managing Director. “This MIMA provides an opportunity for our business to grow our program of works with nbn, and to increase work volumes across subsequent years.”

nbn has reached another significant milestone in the launch of its FttN connection product. The first premises connected to the network via FttN technology were located in Belmont,

NSW. nbn aims to have 500,000 FttN premises ready for service by mid-2016 and 3.7 million by mid-2018. Due to the reduced amount of new construction required for this type of connection compared to FttP connections, the new product launch will play a vital role in accelerating the time frame of the project.

“The launch of FttN technology will help us get fast broadband to Australians more quickly and with less inconvenience to end users,” said John Simon, Chief Customer Officer at nbn.

This product launch is especially important in light of the rollout’s new construction targets. In late August, nbn released its comprehensive corporate plan, detailing its three-year targets, and announced that it planned to accelerate the network rollout to reach 9.1 million premises by 2018 and to be complete by 2020. In order to achieve this, the company intends to invest nearly $40million on recruitment and training to double the current workforce.

INVESTING IN TRAINING

nbn and its training partners have begun a recruitment and training drive which will see the current workforce expand from approximately 4,500 to 9,000. The company’s $40million investment will go primarily towards awareness campaigns and providing funds for training.

“To bring high speed broadband to Australians faster, our delivery partners will need a bigger pool of trained, skilled workers,” said nbn CEO Bill Morrow. “Both the rapid rollout plan and the multi-technology mix means we need more people in our united partnership to connect eight million happy homes by 2020,” added Morrow.

Timothy Lee, of training partner ASG Integracom, said “We train over 6,000 students nationally each year across the telecommunications industry including extensive numbers in NBN specific training, such as the NBN Safety and Awareness course.”

nbn is currently in the process of reviewing its training regulations to ensure that the new workforce can be quickly and effectively deployed without compromising on quality and safety. The company is also actively meeting with its delivery partners and their subcontractors to discuss their training requirements for new staff and to formulate training incentives to attract workers to the industry or upskill those already working in related roles. nbn is signing agreements with a number of TAFEs and Registered Training Organisations across Australia, to provide appropriate training in every major rollout region in the country.

nbn states that construction partners will explore flexible career options to make the roles more attractive to latestage career workers trying to balance work and family commitments. nbn also aims to attract school leavers and workers rolling off other construction jobs, by building a range of training and re-skilling programs with tailored career paths. Long-term opportunities will also be created as the network moves into ongoing operations and maintenance.

A national NBN skills register will also be established to help record worker accreditations across the network and improve the ease of administration.

BECOMING NBN READY

nbn’s safety and environmental management systems have been certified to Australian and International Standards AS4801 and ISO 14001.

The current minimum requirements for those working on the network include having completed the mandatory nbn™ Safety & Awareness course (provided by an nbn-accredited training organisation) and an industry recognised Perform CPR training course (Unit of Competency). These accreditations need to be maintained throughout the entire term of a worker’s employment on the network. In many cases, workers employed by nbn’s delivery partners are eligible to receive funding from nbn to undertake the necessary courses.

Depending on a worker’s role, other nbn accredited qualifications may be necessary. These include:

nbnAcc12029A Elevated work platform rescue: Covers performance of rescue procedures from an Elevating Work Platform (EWP). Encompasses responsibility for health, safety and risk management processes at all levels and adherence to safety practices.

nbnAcc12030A Power Awareness – Work safely near power infrastructure: Describes performance outcomes to conduct telecommunications operations near substantial safety hazards.

nbnAcc12030A Power Awareness – Working safely near live electrical apparatus as non electrical worker: Covers compliance with working safely up to the defined ‘safe approach distance’ near energised electrical apparatus for non-electrical workers.

nbnAcc13031A Remove non-friable asbestos: Specifies the outcomes required in the removal of non-friable asbestos containing material, including knowledge of decontamination and disposal procedures.

nbnAcc13032A Supervise asbestos removal: Specifies the outcomes required in supervising the removal of friable or non-friable asbestos containing material. Maintaining safety procedures and ensuring compliance with the asbestos removal control plan (ARCP) are central to this role.

The different rollout partners often

also have their own minimum training requirements for employees.

The nbn-accredited Safety and Awareness course is currently available through the following training providers:

• Alertforce

• Ashley Institute of Training

• ASG Integracom Training

• BSA

• Celemetrix

• Chisholm Institute

• Conquest Comms

• Gipps TAFE

• Gordon

• Holmesglen Institute of TAFE

• JB Hunter Technology

• Milcom

• NMIT

• Ramsden Telecommunications Training

• SKILLED

• Skills Institute

• SkillsTech

• TAFE NSW – NCI

• TAFE NSW – SWSI.

GOING FORWARD

While nbn’s review of training regulation is still ongoing and the exact final requirements, training options and funding arrangements remain to be seen, delivery partners and subcontractors looking to increase their workforces for the accelerated NBN delivery time frame are likely to want well-trained staff in a variety of different roles, in order to meet the performance incentives inherent in the new construction contracts.

Doubling the workforce will likely require both newly trained or upskilled staff who may not have previously worked in the network construction area, as well as those highly experienced in the industry to oversee them. Until the new training arrangements are finalised, the current requirements will continue to apply. Those seeking to take advantage of the emerging roles as the rollout ramps up should contact nbn, their direct employer (if currently working for an nbn delivery partner) or an nbnaccredited training organisation.

INNOVATION BOLSTERS RETURNS

Innovation is more than just a dot-point inclusion on a list of corporate values at Queensland water utility Unitywater. Not only has it won a global award for adopting innovative technologies in recent months, Unitywater also has a Research and Innovation team dedicated to seeking out and introducing ways to work smarter, quicker and safer.

The innovation process improves operational efficiency and environmental performance in three ways:

• Capturing the continuous improvements that Unitywater people achieve day to day

• Adopting new ideas and technologies

• Working with suppliers of equipment and services to prove up concepts on a live water and sewage network.

Unitywater Executive Manager

Simon Taylor was also inspired by his Research and Innovation (R&I) staff to challenge the very way he approached his work days recently.

“Innovation is about curiosity and discovery,” said Mr Taylor, who leads Unitywater’s Infrastructure Planning and Capital Delivery division.

“To be truly open to new ideas, I need to look at familiar processes and

ICE PIGGING

activities differently. I thought I would challenge myself to start questioning the norm, and consider being brave enough to try something that we haven’t tried before.

“Over the past few months, I have been asking ‘why?’, ‘why not?’ and ‘what if?’ to help shake up my thinking.”

Ice Pigging is an innovative technique to clean water mains. The technology has been used both nationally and internationally with success. Ice Pigging removes sediment and biofilm many times more effectively than alternative techniques whilst using minimal water and reducing risks to the network.

The process involves the injection of an ice slurry (think of a Slurpee) into water pipes through a standard water hydrant. The ice is then forced along the pipe by the pressure of the water supply, and is collected from another hydrant further down the line in a waste tanker and disposed of. Sediment particles become trapped within the ice slurry and are removed from the water mains along with the ice. Ice pigging can be used as an effective tool as part of a preventative maintenance strategy to help keep water quality high.

The process only uses half the amount of water of the traditional cleaning process of flushing water through the pipes. Interruption to supply is kept to a minimum. This ice pigging process is more expensive on a cost-per-metre of pipe basis, but because it takes out 17 times the sediment, it becomes a very effective option in some situations.

The JCS 4100 Liquid Vacuum Chemical Feeder is a chemical dosing system that uses a vacuum to pull chemicals through the unit where an electronic sensor accurately measures it. The electronic sensor helps maintain accurate and stable dosing rates. The JCS unit will respond to blockages or entrapped air (off gassing) and automatically adjust to situations that would normally cause errors in conventional liquid feed systems. Unlike pressure dosing devices, the JCS 4100 conveys the chemicals under vacuum conditions, eliminating the risk of exposure to hazardous chemicals under pressure therefore increasing safety.

The trial of the JCS 4100 with sodium hypochlorite on a recycled water scheme aims to confirm that the JCS 4100 is accurate and that it does not require ancillary devices such as back pressure, pressure relief, pulsation dampeners and calibration columns. This would make the JCS 4100 much cheaper to install and operate than traditional pressure systems.

Unitywater is currently assessing the benefits of the JCS 4100, but the system is expected to offer improved safety, accuracy, control, data transmission and alarms as well as operational savings.

UNITYWATER IS TRIALLING A JCS 4100 VACUUM CHEMICAL FEEDER AT ONE OF ITS SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANTS.

CLOEVIS

Cloevis is a technology that came out of research conducted by the Advanced Water Management Centre at the University of Queensland. Cloevis is a mix of commercially available chemicals that becomes Free Nitrous Acid (FNA) which acts as a biocide.

The university claimed that Cloevis’ proprietary technology will yield significant operating cost savings for water utilities and municipalities. The results of Unitywater’s Cloevis trial supported these claims.

Cloevis is an alternative to other chemicals on the market for the control of odours and corrosion in sewerage networks. Unitywater has completed a trial of dosing Cloevis at a sewage pumping station at Scarborough and found that it is effective in controlling odours and the potential for corrosion downstream. Cloevis acts as a biocide to kill the biofilms that grow on the sides of sewer pipes. The biofilms give off the offensive hydrogen sulphide gas.

Unitywater has 778 sewage pumping stations. A small proportion of these transfer raw sewage long distances and provide a good opportunity for biofilms to grow and multiply. If the potential for odour and corrosion caused by the biofilms is not managed properly then downstream residents may experience offensive odours, and Unitywater’s assets may experience a slow and steady decay.

The trial at Scarborough proved that Cloevis is very effective. Unitywater will now work with the university to develop a commercially attractive product.

Through its R&I strategy, Unitywater aims to become an innovative and learning organisation, exploit research and development opportunities, and be across emerging technologies as well as research grants and subsidies.

“This is an incredibly important area for Unitywater,” Mr Taylor said.

“It means promoting a culture of knowledge-sharing within the organisation so that we can showcase current projects and trials, form partnerships with industry and ultimately deliver benefits to our customers by simply doing things better.”

Unitywater won the Global Most Active Member award from the Technology Approval Group (TAG) this year.

TAG is a partnership between global consultancy Isle Utilities and

organisations from around the world to look at fast-tracking the adoption of new inventions and innovations to benefit various industry sectors.

At the 100th water industry TAG forum in Athens (which was held in association with the 2015 Global Water Summit), Isle Utilities decided to honour innovation leadership in the global water industry.

Technology companies were recognised for their step-change inventions and contribution to the industry.

Unitywater was up against seven other international authorities for the ‘Most Active TAG Member’ award.

Unitywater won the award based on: trialling technologies from TAG, followup meetings with technology providers, working with technology companies and involvement in collaborative trials

and horizon scans.

“Winning this award is a significant achievement for Unitywater and one we are very proud of,” Mr Taylor said.

“This award is shared by staff working in many sections of the organisation, including infrastructure planners, engineers, field crew and treatment plant operators.”

Some of the technologies trialled and/or purchased by Unitywater include: ice pigging, the JCS liquid vacuum chemical feeder, and the Cloevis chemical for odour and corrosion management.

“As a regulated business Unitywater needs to act prudently and efficiently in all of its business decisions,” Mr Taylor said. “However, Unitywater is starting to see benefits from new technology.”

The TRILITY advantage

TRILITY operates as a water utility. This means we have an intimate understanding of every issue encountered by water authorities, government agencies, local councils and industry. The depth of expertise at TRILITY means we create options for our clients and outline likely outcomes based on our experience as a long term water infrastructure owner-operator. TRILITY operates plants across Australia treating over 1.8 GL/d and servicing millions of Australian’s everyday.

WHEN LEAK COMES TO SHOVE

With between 30 to 50 per cent of sewer lines globally exhibiting some type of infiltration and leaking, it’s no surprise that water efficiency programs have become a priority for water utilities. Sometimes it’s hard to know when a minor leak can cause a major problem, but the reality is, any leak is bad news and needs to be dealt with quickly.

In Australia, pipe infrastructure involves some 150,000km of water mains and 96,000km of sewers and sewage pumping mains. With a significant proportion exceeding or approaching the limits of their design life, there is an increasing awareness of the economics of renovating or maintaining this ageing infrastructure.

“It’s crucial that water utilities have a clear understanding of the current condition of pipes, so they can make more informed decisions regarding repair, replacement and rehabilitation. However, many tools currently available are labour-intensive, time-consuming and may be difficult to measure,” said Eduardo Santos, General Manager of UVS Trenchless Technology.

“A detailed evaluation and subsequent understanding of these challenges was the catalyst for research, development and manufacture of an efficient and easyto-use electronic detection system for early identification of pipe leaks or infiltration.

“While UVS already specialises in pipe inspection with CCTV cameras, crawlers and other innovative technologies, discussions with industry clearly showed that new tools were necessary. There is definitely a need to improve detection of failures in glued joints, hairline cracks, pinpoint holes, leaks, voids or other imperfections in the pipe structure that will ultimately break down and cause leakage.

“The result is the SewerSerpent, an electronic leak detector which enables

the location of leaks and infiltration of wastewater pipes using extra low electric voltage flow through the pipe wall,” said Mr Santos.

The SewerSerpent system introduces a more sophisticated level of engineering that provides a solution beyond cameras that will detect an issue if there is a non-visual problem. Even where pipes are fully relined they may appear perfect and clean, however, there can be imperfections in the lining material itself, which would not be seen by a camera but can be electronically detected by using SewerSerpent.

“An important application of the product is its ability to certificate relining works in pipes to give assurance to infrastructure owners that the integrity of the pipework is correct and sound.”

According to UVS Trenchless, apart from their ease of use and accuracy, one of the major benefits of the electronic detectors is that the software is located in a control box connected to the cable reel and scan head and immediately accessible and stored for sharing by USB. The number of scans that can be stored is only limited by the USB size and the control box is fully waterproof, meaning that users can keep working in rain and harsh conditions. The control box includes an integrated GPS so that all scans can be geo-referenced, making review and referencing of data to pipe locations easy.

“The commercialisation of this new technology means users will

benefit from a tool that’s considerably simpler to use and more fail-safe than others that are reliant on cloud-based software,” said Mr Santos. “There are no ongoing fees required for operation of SewerSerpent – users have complete control of their own data and the ability to move, store and analyse it as required. The SewerSerpent series is designed to reduce user effort and the time taken to detect pipe defects. It’s a highly cost-effective solution to satisfy the needs of contractors or those responsible for early prioritisation of pipe replacement or remediation tasks or quality assurance.

“Users appreciate the system’s speed and quality of data collection, compact size, mobility and cost benefits including logistics and low risk of data loss,” Mr Santos said.

“With any cutting-edge technology, it makes a lot of sense to enter the leak/infiltration detection market with a hand-held portable unit which simplifies the process and reduces the cost for users. This is why the SewerSerpent 225 Push Rod unit will be the first of its type to be seen in the market.

“Simplicity of operation, low cost and a high level of portability were key aspects of designing this system that is operated by just five buttons – anyone can use it successfully, even with minimal training. The system comprises a ground stake, cable, cable reel, cable counter, data display and recording unit,” Mr Santos added.

While the SewerSerpent 225 Push Rod unit is designed for water utilities’

100 to 225mm diameter pipes, SewerSerpent 100 and 600 units are expected to follow shortly. The SewerSerpent 100 is designed for the plumbing market that has a need to locate leaks in small pipes of less than 100mm, typically used in swimming pool installations and house drains. The SewerSerpent 600 Sewer Main Unit is suitable for pipeline inspections of between 150 to 600mm in diameter.

ABOUT UVS TRENCHLESS

The company has recently become a recognised supplier in the specialised sub-sector of trenchless technology, supplying innovative products and services to the water distribution, water collection markets and general plumbing. For more information visit www.uvstrenchless.com.au.

CCTV-equipped mini submarines and computer-chipped balls are now a part of Unitywater’s impressive arsenal, fighting the battle against pipeline leaks.

These innovative new technologies are now regularly flowing through the utility’s water mains, identifying leaks quickly and efficiently, helping Unitywater save money and improve its operations.

ROVING THROUGH THE NETWORK

The Submersible Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV) Robot, dubbed ‘Rove’ by Unitywater staff, is a 25cm wide remote-controlled device fitted with a CCTV camera.

From a vantage point underwater, it performs a condition assessment of reservoir interiors, checking for any structural or safety problems. It means there is no need to divert water supplies while reservoirs are taken off line for human divers to perform a confined-space entry. This improves safety, saves time and comes in at half the cost of a diver and

associated stand-by rescue team.

A total of 15 reservoirs and towers have been identified for ROV inspection in 2015/16. The first cabs off the rank are in Narangba, Margate, Peregian Beach, Bli Bli and Mooloolah Valley.

SMART BALLS

The SmartBall leak detection and condition assessment device is an aluminium alloy ball – about the size of a tennis ball – encased in a foam outer shell, which is disinfected and placed into a sewer or water main to ‘free swim’ with the water flow for up to 12 hours at a time.

The core ball contains instruments including an acoustic sensor and GPS tracker, which can detect the sound of leaks to an accuracy of less than two metres, as well as gas pockets which can reduce the capacity and efficiency of the main.

Unitywater recently used the SmartBall device through 8.9km of pipeline in the Landers ShuteWoombye region, one of the main water pipelines supplying the Sunshine Coast. The journey took three hours and 12 minutes.

The trial resulted in three leaks being detected. These leaks were forwardestimated to lose $31,000 worth of water on an annual basis, had they remained undetected.

Unitywater has repaired one leak already and is investigating the others.

“The advantages of both of these innovations is that they allow us to monitor our assets from inside the pipe or reservoir, rather than attempting to draw conclusions from indirect, external clues. Plus the data collection is in real time and on the spot,” said Simon Taylor, Unitywater’s Executive Manager Infrastructure Planning &

Capital Delivery.

UNITYWATER EXECUTIVE MANAGER INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING & CAPITAL DELIVERY SIMON TAYLOR AND ASSET PERFORMANCE ENGINEER KEIR ANDERSON WITH THE SMARTBALL.

“Leaks can be precursors to pipeline failure and the integrity of our reservoirs is critical.

“If we can discover leaks or reservoir defects early, we can take the immediate necessary action to repair

them before they become a major problem.

“This helps us better target our maintenance priorities, minimise impacts to customers and reduce the strain on our maintenance crews and repair budgets.

CUT & CLEAN

CONCRETE CUTTING • SLURRY RECYCLING

Cut and Clean Concrete Cutting is a specialist provider of concrete and asphalt cutting services. We have been working in the civil industry for over 25 years and provide a 24/7 service.

- Concrete/ Asphalt Flat sawing to depths up to 525 mm.

- Slurry Vacuuming and Recycling

- Hand sawing to depths up to 150 mm.

- Core holes up to any size

- Silence blades (up to 375 mm deep)

- Hydraulic Sawing

PHONE: (03) 9458 1434

MOBILE: 0412 311 963

WEBSITE: www.cutandclean.com.au

EMAIL: info@cutandclean.com.au

UNITYWATER ASSET RENEWALS ENGINEER GLENN STOCK WITH THE CCTV ROV.

“These are two good examples of using technology to work smarter, streamline the business and save valuable dollars.”

THE LOST ART OF LEAK DETECTION

Modern advances have made the detection of leaks in pipe networks easier than ever before. But while modern telemetry systems warn operators of the potential for leaks in a water network, what they don’t do is teach operators how to actually find the leak.

Emphasis on correlation, looking at displays and inaccurate information to locate leaks have resulted in many dry holes being dug, with no water leak being found. The use of correlation equipment requires detailed information and an accurate location of the service and the distance between these two points. Material and diameters of the service are also required to get the best results with this technology. Some of this information may not be available, or may have changed without being updated in the GIS mapping system, which can affect the accuracy of correlation.

The old fashioned method of walking the line, listening on fittings and using your ground microphone along the path of the service can result in a quick and efficient form of leak detection with less dry holes. This does take a small amount of skill to get good results, but once operators get to know the operation of their instrument, and with proper training, traditional leak detection is a very cost-effective way of locating leaks accurately. Of course a good quality leak detection device also helps and there are many good brands out there.

So what’s new with traditional acoustic listening devices and what should a potential purchaser look for in selecting an acoustic water leak

instrument? Some of the new features on more advanced machines are as follows:

CORDLESS MICROPHONES

These have the advantage of not being tethered by a cable, which removes the noise associated when moving the microphone and receiver. Not having to touch the handle, and the lack of cord means less distractions for the operator. Another advantage is no wearing plugs or leads to replace, and better water protection. Of course disadvantages are that they require a battery to power the microphone transmitter, so users need to have a unit with at least a day’s worth of battery power for leak detection.

CORDLESS HEADPHONES

Cordless headphones can also be advantageous. It is crucial to use a high quality set with good communications – a cheap Bluetooth set will not cut it when doing water leak detection. Reduction in outside noise and headphone noise is critical.

LCD TOUCH SCREENS

The ability to add easy-to-use features or expand on the system using the latest touch screens can create informative and easy-to-use systems. In some cases these systems will assist and advise the operator on what

microphone they should use for a particular task.

DIGITAL MICROPHONE TECHNOLOGY

Good quality microphones are an essential part of a water leak detector’s system. Advancements in microphone and filtering technology can reduce unwanted noise, and offer better filtering so operators can better detect the smaller leaks on services. Microphones should have full IP65 or 68 housings, be isolated from outside noise and should be robust, as these parts of your system take the most abuse from day-to-day use, cheap plastic housings won’t last long with our harsh climates.

Remember, detectors don’t have to have the latest system to achieve good results, and a good system in good working order with a knowledgeable trained operator will find the majority of leaks. Less gimmicks and good performance will always work better. It pays to be sure of what a particular machine is being used for, and in some cases, a basic listening device is fine. It’s also worth remembering that multifunction machines that trace both gas and acoustic tend to be compromised as a system, usually with a cheaper microphone and sensor technology. Purchasing a dedicated system for the task at hand will always be a better choice.

A REVOLUTION IN ACOUSTIC LEAK DETECTION

Sewerin is highly regarded in the water and gas leak detection industry with over 60 years’ experience manufacturing equipment. Access Detection and their staff have worked with Sewerin and their equipment for over 13 years. The original Aquaphon EW is still manufactured today under the A100 name tag and this unit has provided professional water leak contractors with years of trouble-free quality leak detection.

The new A200 is Sewerin’s most advanced acoustic leak detection unit available. Developed based on expertise and customer feedback, Sewerin determined what was important for the operator in their day-to-day leak detection. The first thing that was improved was the filtering and microphone technology, combining the latest digital sound processing. Combined with the addition of cordless microphones, it gives the operator less noise interference, improving on location and pinpointing of a water leak.

The next improvement was the receiver interface. The new colour touchscreen guides new operators through

simple set-up and offers advanced operators complete control of filtering, headphone protection levels, microphone selection and recording of leak noises for future reference. The system is open to future updates with a flexible interface.

The new connection handle allows the operator a single interface to use all the cordless microphones including TM200 contact microphone, BM200 hard surface and BM230 soft surface ground microphones. The unit also has a UM200 universal corded microphone for internal leak detection in houses and confined areas.

All these advancements help operators determine leak position more quickly and easily than ever before. Aquaphon EW & A100 professional leak operators who have upgraded to the new Aquaphon A200 are already having great success with the unit and are giving great feedback on the new product.

If you would like more information on the new A200 or any other Sewerin Product, contact Access Detection on 02 9999 0777 or visit www.accessdetection.com.au.

UTILITY IN PROFILE

JEMENA

Jemena is a unique utility, being one of the few in Australia to own and operate assets in the electricity, gas and water sectors across the country’s east coast.

Jemena owns and operates a diverse portfolio of energy and water transportation assets across the east coast of Australia. Owning more than $9billion worth of major utility infrastructure, Jemena supplies millions of households and businesses with essential services every day.

Jemena has more than a century of experience and expertise in the utilities sector and has now established a strong portfolio of high-quality distribution and transmission assets.

Since 2008, Jemena has been led by Managing Director Paul Adams. With over 30 years’ experience in the Australian energy sector, Mr Adams has overseen the expansion of the Jemena Gas Network and is establishing Jemena as a world leader in electricity distribution and pipeline infrastructure, technology, ownership and management.

Jemena is backed by the strong resources of its shareholders, the State Grid Corporation of China and Singapore Power.

A WIDE-REACHING NETWORK

The Jemena Gas Network is a 23,800km system, established in 1837 and delivering gas to more than 1.3 million homes, businesses and industrial customers in New South Wales.

Other gas assets Jemena wholly owns include the Queensland Gas Pipeline, a 627km pipeline delivering gas from the Surat and Cooper basins to the Gladstone and Rockhampton markets; the Eastern Gas Pipeline,

a 797km pipeline delivering gas from Victoria’s Gippsland Basin to Sydney, the ACT and regional New South Wales; VicHub, the pipeline interconnect which enables gas to flow between the Eastern and Tasmanian Gas Pipelines, as well as the Victorian gas transmission network; and the Colongra Gas Transmission and Storage Facility, which consists of a pipeline and compressor station that transports and stores gas for Delta Electricity’s 667MW gas-fired peaking generator.

In terms of electricity, Jemena owns the Jemena Electricity Network, an 11,000km system delivering electricity to more than 319,000 homes and businesses in north-west Melbourne.

Jemena also has 100 per cent ownership of the Aquanet Rosehill Recycled Water Scheme, a 20km recycled water scheme which transports 20ML of water per day to the industrial centres of Western Sydney.

In addition to its fully owned and operated assets, Jemena also has a distribution partnership with ActewAGL Gas and Electricity Networks. Together they own the electricity and gas networks in the ACT, and Jemena manages the gas network. Jemena also owns 34 per cent of United Energy’s 13,000km network, delivering electricity to more than 640,000 homes and businesses in south-east Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula.

DEMAND MANAGEMENT

Like all energy utilities, Jemena is keenly focused on the management of supply and demand, in order to ensure that the Jemena Electricity Network

is planned and developed optimally to meet customers’ expectations of supply security and reliability.

Jemena is committed to considering non-network options as alternatives to address any system limitations identified in its annual planning review.

To achieve the appropriate balance in meeting electricity demand while

maintaining customer expectations of supply security and reliability, Jemena is undertaking studies and trials to inform itself of the viability and impact of various demand management technologies.

A strong level of understanding and support from the community are important to ensure the benefits of

demand management are maximised.

Jemena believes that Distribution Network Service Providers (DNSPs) and non-network option providers will need to embrace changes in the way electricity is generated, distributed and consumed to pursue gains from demand management, which will in turn provide benefits to consumers, DNSPs

and non-network option providers.

PEOPLE, SAFETY, CULTURE

Jemena employs more than 1,600 people at multiple sites around Australia. Jemena’s people are among the most skilled professionals in the

JEMENA’S WHOLLY-OWNED ASSETS

sector, and are well known for their knowledge, expertise and positive attitude.

Many of Jemena’s field, technical and professional staff began their careers with the State Electricity Commission of Victoria, the Gas & Fuel Corporation of Victoria and AGL in NSW more than 20 years ago, giving Jemena a level of experience unrivalled in the industry.

The community’s utilities infrastructure is in safe hands at Jemena. The team has extensive design, build and maintenance experience, and a thorough understanding of electricity and gas networks throughout Australia.

Colongra Gas Transmission and Storage Pipeline

Jemena is also deeply committed to the safety of its people, regardless of their job or location. Jemena’s health and safety management policy has made safety a priority within the organisation and there is a well-established culture of employees looking out for each other.

CORPORATE VALUES

Jemena operates under the philosophy that safe, reliable and affordable energy is essential to the health, happiness and prosperity of the broader community. As a provider of energy to homes and businesses, Jemena needs to have enduring

The Colongra Gas Transmission and Storage Pipeline was designed and built by Jemena to deliver gas to Snowy Hydro Limited’s 667MW gas turbine facility near the existing Munmorah power station on the Central Coast of NSW. The pipeline not only transports gas to the power station but also stores enough gas to allow the power station to run at full capacity for five hours.

The existing Sydney to Newcastle gas supply cannot meet the peak demand of the power station and so the Colongra pipeline is designed to be pressured over a 24-hour, off-peak period and held at pressure until the power station is brought on line during peak periods.

The Colongra pipeline includes 3.5 kilometres of 10-inch feeder pipeline, a 42-inch storage pipeline, a compressor station that increases gas pressure from 3.4MPa to 13MPa and a let-down station. It is the largest onshore gas pipeline in Australia and is double looped to create nine kilometres of pipeline storage in a three kilometre stretch of land.

Eastern Gas Pipeline

The Eastern Gas Pipeline is a key supply artery between the Gippsland Basin in Victoria and NSW. The pipeline supplies more than half the gas consumed in NSW, and is ideally located to meet the growing demand for natural gas in NSW from residential, industrial and commercial customers.

The pipeline also transports natural gas to demand centres in Sydney, Canberra and Wollongong as well as a number of regional centres including Bairnsdale, Cooma, Nowra and Bomaderry. The Eastern Gas Pipeline is well placed to accommodate future expansion projects to meet new demand.

Queensland Gas Pipeline

The Queensland Gas Pipeline links the Wallumbilla gas hub in south central Queensland to large industrial gas users in Gladstone and Rockhampton. Natural gas and coal seam gas enters the pipeline at Wallumbilla and at various receipt points located near gas fields along the pipeline route. The main pipeline was constructed in 1989 by the Queensland state government and commissioned in 1990.

VicHub Pipeline

VicHub is an interconnect facility situated at the Longford Compressor Station and enables gas to flow bidirectionally between the Eastern Gas Pipeline and the Victorian gas transmission system. The facility was commissioned in January 2003.

Many of Jemena’s field, technical and professional staff began their careers more than 20 years ago, giving Jemena a level of experience unrivalled in the industry. innovative

relationships with its customers and the communities it serves.

Part of Jemena’s core values is a desire to enrich the welfare and amenity its customers and communities enjoy. Jemena’s operations meet the highest safety and environmental standards, and the utility partners with a range of not-for-profit and charitable organisations, such as Landcare Australia, the SES, Kildonan Uniting Care, Anglicare and the Starlight Children’s foundation, to help make a real difference to people’s lives and opportunities.

Jemena has also committed to an environment policy which promotes reducing, recycling and reusing materials wherever possible, and the protection and revitalisation of natural habitats around its operations.

Jemena’s Environmental Management System is consistent with the principles of ISO 14001, so Jemena can monitor and reduce its environmental footprint and continuously improve performance

Multiple utility installation, rehabilitation or removal you can count on Multipipe’s flexibility and efficiency

IT’S YOUR COMPLETE PROJECT SOLUTION

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A REHABILITATION STORY FOR THE AGES

Combining traditional tunnelling technology with modern day rehabilitation techniques, ITS Pipetech recently provided a solution to the New South Wales Department of Roads & Maritime Services (RMS) to extend the life of an existing set of culverts that crossed the Princes Highway outside the University of Wollongong.

The prime objective of the work was to provide structural integrity and equalise the bores of a triple cell culvert that passed beneath one of the busiest arterial routes in Australia, and to achieve a design life of 100 years.

A secondary consideration was to devise a methodology and a sequence of works that caused the least disruption to the motorway, which carries over 18,000 vehicle movements a day just two metres above the top of the culverts.

The university culverts carry the Dallas Street branch of Fairy Creek, and this crosses under the motorway via a three cell precast concrete pipe. Over the years, as the Princes Highway had been upgraded and widened, the original 1,350mm triple culvert set had been extended to take additional traffic lanes. However, the northern extension was sized at 1,200mm, which, at times of heavy rainfall, was restricting the flow of water into the culverts. This would cause flooding to the upstream creek valley and threaten local property and the university campus.

The project had identified the probability of one or more of the culverts becoming blocked under a one-in-100-year storm event; therefore the feasibility review recommended that the pipes at the upper ends of the culvert set be enlarged to a common profile, similar to the remainder of the culvert. It was also recommended that a debris barrier with vehicle access be installed at the culvert entrance, so that maintenance and routine debris clearance could occur.

ITS Pipetech’s submission was to develop a methodology to tunnel around the existing inlet pipes, standardising the three cells into a common profile to meet the hydraulic demands, and reducing the potential for blockages and water retention in the upstream valley. Once this had been engineered, the void profile of the existing culverts had to be created and structurally lined together with the existing pipe to complete the structural rehabilitation process.

The proposal also took into consideration any potential damage to the riparian zone, and the effects that this would have in regards to damage to local flora and fauna. It also designed an access point from the motorway level to the culvert level, with an associated structural retaining wall.

It had been identified that any blockage of the culvert would result in significant flooding to the surrounding area during periods of high intensity rainfall, with the possibility of an eventual collapse of the culvert. This would risk the security of the motorway above, causing possible closure and widespread traffic chaos. This section of motorway is a fundamental link between the Port Kembla industrial area and the Hume Highway, with average annual daily traffic of approximately 18,000 vehicles (16 per cent of which is heavy goods). Closure of this stretch of motorway would have

had serious ramifications on the local economy, as well as resulting in negative exposure for the client.

The brief was to remove the restrictions in the head pipe, create a structural element to provide a 1,350mm void, and then to reline this with a fully structural element – providing the required diameter and negating the need for extra works to maintain capacity and avoid road closures.

ITS Pipetech’s proposal was to remove the initial 6.5m of 1,200mm internal diameter concrete pipework to each of the three cells, and replace them with a cast in situ reinforced structural pipe bore. Matching the existing diameter, it could be structurally relined with a UV-cured Berolina GRP liner to provide the client with an uninterrupted, free flowing three cell underpass to meet hydraulic requirements.

The initial 6.5m of each culvert progressed from a headwall intake under the breakdown lane and inside carriageway of the northbound lanes of the Princes Highway, one of the busiest traffic highways in Australia.

The contract scope preference was to avoid any closure of the highway. In order to remove the pipes without disruption to the traffic, ITS Pipetech proposed a modified tunnelling system using a three-stage heading arrangement commencing with the outer right, then the outer left, before completing the middle bore.

As the heading advanced, the existing concrete pipe could be broken up and removed, leaving a space large enough to facilitate casting a structurally reinforced surround, to form a bore at a diameter similar to the existing downstream pipework.

Prior to this, ITS Pipetech had to construct an access to the site: a reinforced concrete driveway with a spray concrete retaining wall was built to allow plant movements to the tunnelling site.

The cover to the highway above was less than 1,600mm above the existing pipe, with allowance for working room to build the tunnel reducing it to 1,200mm. ITS Pipetech’s designs needed to accommodate SM1600 and 45 ton axle loadings.

ITS Pipetech opted for the use of Tunneline cast in situ structural lining system to construct the three bores, that were set at 1,350mm internal diameter to match the internal main cell diameters. Each bore was cast in a single operation using a 40Mpa structural concrete.

The final stage in the operation was to install a 1,350mm high strength UV-cured fibreglass Berolina lining through the culverts, to provide the client with a smooth bore structural lining with a design life of 75 years.

The adoption of old techniques and new technologies used in an innovative way enabled ITS Pipetech to undertake and complete the works efficiently, effectively and to the client’s specification. ITS Pipetech was able to deliver the project with zero accidents, zero incidents, zero lost time events, within program, with numerous benefits and at a significant all-round saving to the client and the community.

INNOVATIVE APPROACH TO BIOSECURITY AROUND POWERLINES

The Yuleba North to Blythdale Transmission Line Project in south-west Queensland has introduced several innovative measures for managing the biosecurity concerns of landholders.

The innovative project has used techniques, including helistringing to run the powerline between towers. In addition to this, one of the unique features of this project has been the ongoing engagement with landholders, as the transmission line traverses through multiple landholder properties over a distance of approximately 60km.

The project is being delivered for Powerlink by John Holland. Their National Construction Manager, Infrastructure, Jeff Hayes, said the team had worked collaboratively to proactively develop and implement solutions to ensure biosecurity

compliance, including engaging landholders; developing colour coded biosecurity magnets and sign system; improving wash down facilities and establishing a ferry system for crews to and from site.

“The team consistently pursues innovative alternatives, effectively communicates and engages with stakeholders and consistently reviews performance to achieve great results,” said Mr Hayes.

“Powerlink rolled out its new Land Access Protocol (LAP) for this project, which includes a requirement to submit a Property Access Plan (PAP) for each property or activity seven

days prior to entering a property or tower pad location. This PAP must list every vehicle, plant, equipment or machinery (VPEM) along with any personnel who will be on site during this period.

Project initiatives include:

Colour coded biosecurity magnets and signs system

The properties have been divided into six biosecurity zones and as part of a strict biosecurity management plan. VPEM cannot enter any zone unless accompanied with a Third Party Weed Hygiene Certificate specific for that zone. Certificates are also required for the entry into new

zones or when changing between zones, in addition to other biosecurity protocols.

Project Manager Warren Monks said that to assist in the management of VPEM within a zone, the team created a system utilising colour coded magnets to align with the colour coded biosecurity zones implemented by Powerlink.

“Each VPEM has a magnet specific for each biosecurity zone, with colour coded signage placed at the gates within each zone, matched to the colour coding of the magnets to reduce the potential biosecurity breach,” said Mr Monks.

Wash down facilities

In addition to the third party wash down requirements for VPEM, all vehicles on the project are required to perform weekly wash downs. To accommodate these requirements, the team is currently utilising full time third party certifiers, three water trucks (filling tanks of wash down facilities and dust suppression) and three wash down bays.

Ferry crews

The project introduced a bussing system to reduce the potential of the biosecurity risk. The system is designed to ‘ferry’ the workers to and from camp, yard or site, which allows

THE YULEBA PROJECT FEATURES HELI-STRINGING WORK TO RUN THE POWERLINE BETWEEN TOWERS.

the vehicles to be left on site within the zones, reducing potential biosecurity breaches.

Showing accountability for their actions, the project team has been successful in developing these biosecurity initiatives and demonstrating strong landholder engagement. Adopting these biosecurity measures and engaging Enviro Champions within each work crew has helped drive John Holland and Powerlink’s joint continual improvement in environmental management.

GOING DEEPER UNDERGROUND

AusNet Services is on track to complete its $40 million Dandenong Ranges powerline upgrade project by April 2016, having relocated more than 30km of existing powerlines underground.

The two-year project involves relocating approximately 50km of overhead high-voltage (22,000-volt) aerial bundled cable (ABC) underground and replacing a further seven kilometres of the cable with a modern design.

AusNet Services’ Project Manager, Aaron Emmerich, is pleased with the progress and thankful to the local community.

“AusNet Services would like to thank the local residents and broader ‘Hills’ community for their patience and understanding while we undertake this project to improve supply reliability and reduce bushfire risk,” said Mr Emmerich.

“Since April 2014, we’ve relocated more than 30km of overhead powerlines underground and replaced more than five kilometres of ABC powerlines within the Dandenong Ranges.

“This progress has been made possible through collaboration with local stakeholders, including the council, and a new innovative ‘hybrid’ underground cable system we specifically developed for the unique

challenges of this project,” he said.

Under the company’s ‘hybrid’ system, cables are buried along roadways, only rising out of the ground to connect to existing power poles to deliver electricity into homes via existing overhead low-voltage powerlines. This removes the common use of large cabinets connected to the underground cables, which weren’t an option due to the lack of available, flat ground space.

“This approach utilises the footprint of the existing power poles, therefore reducing the impact to the environment that other methods may otherwise place at risk,” Mr Emmerich said.

“Importantly, the upgrades are already improving the reliability of supply for residents and businesses by reducing the interference from vegetation and animals,” he said.

While this project is expected to finish in April 2016, AusNet Services has completed and will be undertaking new projects in the broader Dandenong Ranges that involve installing insulated cable and undergrounding powerlines.

FOR INSURA BANDING

The Victorian Water Industry

Joint Procurement Insurance Review has saved the industry an estimated $6.9 million in insurance costs, while improving the quality of policy coverage.

Led by a Steering Committee made up of risk managers across the water corporations, including Yarra Valley Water, Melbourne Water, South East Water, Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water, Western Water and East Gippsland Water, the initiative is an example of how working together can equate to substantial savings across

the total industry.

The three-year agreement with insurance broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT) was secured through a conceptual tender process, requiring the 19 water organisations to work together and develop a comprehensive underwriting submission to submit, via an open expression of interest (EOI), to insurance brokerage firms.

The EOI required the group to develop common best practice policy wordings, attend presentations from potential brokers and liaise with industry experts on effective strategies for marketing the

19 individual insurance programs as a combined premium pool.

Yarra Valley Water’s Safety & Risk Manager and Steering Committee Chairman, Frank Portelli, believes this industry collaboration was a first for the water sector and meant the savings achieved would ultimately help benefit customers.

“We’ve seen water organisations work together in the past on joint procurement projects; however, this is the first time the whole industry has come together to really benefit,” Mr Portelli said.

NCE SAVINGS TOGETHER

“The saving far exceeded our initial expectations and is a great example of not only industry collaboration but also leveraging off market conditions approach made us really look for innovative ideas, and in this case we were able to secure the best outcome for both business efficiency and cost,” he added.

Damian Schinck, Managing Director, JLT Corporate Specialty, said “Offering an industry-wide approach created the unique opportunity to design an insurance program through analysis of

UNIFIED INSURANCE THE BEST POLICY

the risk profiles and existing coverages of each individual corporation.

“The end result was a uniform ‘industry best practice’ program, created in a highly cost effective and administratively efficient manner,” Mr Schinck said.

“The role of the Steering Committee was extremely important in the success of the delivery of the program. The committee greatly assisted in analysing issues and options then facilitating speedy decision-making by all 19 corporations at critical times during complex and time constrained phases of the process,” he added.

Industry expert firm Inscon was also engaged to assist in the administration of the tender, to bring industry insights and market knowledge to the table.

The Victorian Water Industry Joint Procurement Insurance Review is an initiative driven by the water industry’s commitment to produce lower water bills for Victorian water consumers.

In 2010, as part of the Victorian Competition & Efficiency Commission (VCEC) Shared Services Project, cost savings from joint procurement of insurance brokerage and claims management services across the Melbourne metro water corporations was identified. A shared services tender involving Barwon Water, City West Water, South East Water and Yarra Valley Water resulted in significant premium savings for these organisations. Following this success, all Victorian water corporations planned the extensions of their individual policies, so that by 30 June 2015, renewals of expiring policies and

OPERATIONAL BENEFITS

On average, a saving of 50 per cent was made from the expiring premiums and associated services, which equates to $6.9million per year across all 19 corporations. For example, for Melbourne Water, the total forecast insurance premium cost saving compared to last year is approximately $1.5million, which has been realised and recognised by the finance and procurement team.

Importantly, the financial savings were achieved whilst also improving the quality of policy coverage; for example, improved limits and sublimits, lower deductibles, and long-term policies and agreements are now in place. Consolidation of smaller policies have also added to the value generated to the corporations.

associated services would fall at the same time. The review led to a significant reduction in the cost of insurance attributable to very competitive insurance conditions and the restructure of policies, coupled with the increased buying power delivered through the shared services model.

By engaging an industry expert and an independent probity adviser, the team has successfully delivered a robust procurement process with high probity standards to ensure transparency and fairness, which was extremely challenging in the case of such a high number of stakeholders.

A key success factor was the energy, drive and leadership of the Steering Committee to do the legwork and make fact-based recommendations to the wider group.

WOMEN IN UTILITIES

BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS

YVONNE SINANOVIC

Yvonne Sinanovic, Plant Manager at Rouse Hill Water Recycling Plant, is breaking down barriers within the water utilities industry. Ms Sinanovic proudly manages a team that is 50 per cent female, but said she has seen “too few females in the water industry”.

“One of the big myths I’d like to bust about the water industry is – it’s not a man’s world,” said Ms Sinanovic.

Ms Sinanovic’s journey with Sydney Water began 20 years ago. When Ms Sinanovic graduated from a Bachelor of Science, she gained experience in the labs of different wastewater treatment plants where she worked alongside operators. She really enjoyed the operational side of this work and was inspired to apply for a Production Officer role at Sydney Water.

After some time working as a Production Officer, Ms Sinanovic’s role progressed to her current role, a Plant Manager.

“My area of expertise has changed over time,” said Ms Sinanovic. “It started with wastewater process control and has now grown to people

management. I love being a Plant Manager as I deal with process issues and I manage people.”

Each day in her role is different. It involves catching up with her team on any potential issues, walking around the plant to look for any potential safety issues, undertaking safety audits and attending meetings. Ms Sinanovic loves being an influencer of the business; and said the best part of her role is “ensuring that my team understands the direction that the business is going, and helping them align to it”.

Ms Sinanovic shows her enthusiasm for female representation in the water industry through her involvement in the Western Sydney University’s Women in Science & Engineering program. Being a mentor in this program gives her the opportunity to influence the future generation of water professionals.

The advice Ms Sinanovic would give to someone aspiring to manage people one day is to listen. “Listening is a skill that’s important in my role. It does not just mean listening to what people are saying, but to try and understand their message.”

FIONA COPEMAN

Fiona Copeman is a Chemical Engineer kicking goals for women in engineering.

Ms Copeman, who works as a Production Officer at the Malabar Wastewater Treatment Plant, believes that historically, treatment plants were a ‘blokey’ place to work, so therefore the proportion of men to women is higher. However, recently she has seen a shift in this trend. Recruitment of women is balancing this out and boosting the numbers of women in treatment.

“My job is great because it is different every day. I get to make changes and see the result of those changes. There is a lot of job satisfaction in that,” said Ms Copeman.

When she graduated from her university degree, Ms Copeman knew she wanted to work somewhere where she could make a difference for people and the environment. Ms Copeman could see that diversity, character and high achievement are all valued concepts to Sydney Water. This highly appealed to her and she was inspired to apply for a position.

In this latest installment in our regular ‘Women in Utilities’ feature series, we look at the work three women are doing at Sydney Water, breaking down the barriers that still exist about the role women play in the utilities sector.

Working as a Production Officer has turned Ms Copeman into an ‘all-rounder’ as her job presents different aspects to her every day. Her day-to-day role may involve checking that equipment on the plant is working to acceptable standards, organising projects, engaging contractors, reviewing safety procedures and checking the laboratory processes.

There is no denying that sometimes it can be a dirty job. At times Ms Copeman is required to shovel screenings and sludge when the wastewater system chokes up, however, she loves the variability of her work. Her work can depend on the weather or what customers put down the sewer. “Different things are happening in this process every day and you can see the results and the benefits of your work.”

Ms Copeman says being a Production Officer at a treatment plant is a fantastic role. “This job is rewarding. It has a great work-life balance and you get to meet and work with really interesting people.”

SALLY REWELL

Sally Rewell is a Production Officer at Sydney Water’s Rouse Hill and Castle Hill Water Recycling Plants. She graduated from the University of Sydney with a Chemical Engineering degree, and in 2010, she earned a graduate position at Sydney Water.

Ms Rewell loves that every day she is breaking down the barriers and preconceived ideas that women can’t work out on the field. She was inspired to apply for a position at Sydney Water as she saw a reflection of her values in the job description, helping the community and environment.

Ms Rewell’s first placement in the graduate program was in Strategic Asset Management located at the head office. In this role she gained valuable experience working in a corporate environment, but felt the field was where she truly belonged, describing her working style as practical and hands on.

Ms Rewell’s day-to-day role involves monitoring the plant processes to ensure operating licences and recycled water guidelines are met, helping

colleagues out in their roles, coaching and training new staff, and working on new projects.

“This line of work is challenging at times, but that’s what makes it fun. There are always problems to solve in a very short time frame, so I’m always kept busy,” said Ms Rewell.

Looking ahead, Ms Rewell hopes to continue her career at Sydney Water. “I love working with and mentoring people, so I look forward to the opportunity to manage people one day.”

While Ms Rewell does note that the smell of screenings at the treatment plants can linger in your clothes and shoes, she advises other women considering a career in the water industry not to listen to people who believe it’s too dirty for women in a treatment plant. “It’s quite a technical role,” she added.

Ms Rewell is now furthering her knowledge by studying a Masters of Engineering Management at UTS.

The utility industry is regularly required to call on an enormous and varied range of specialists; from mapping, to drilling, to wastewater treatment, to asset management, to pipe relining, to pipeline integrity, to land access, to risk management, and the list goes on. To make the process a little easier, Utility magazine is bringing together experts from various fields to answer your questions.

MICROTUNNELLING

HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH GROUND CONDITIONS THAT ARE DIFFERENT ON SITE TO THE TECHNICAL INFORMATION ORIGINALLY PROVIDED?

How many times on jobs do we find that the geotechnical information provided did not reflect the actual ground conditions encountered? No one wants to hear the ‘latent ground condition’ phase used either, because these would be grounds to create an ‘extra situation’ on a contract.

If we are lucky, the difference in the geotech is picked up at the earliest stage, when excavating the shafts. If we are unlucky, it is established during a microtunnelling crossing and according to Murphy’s Law, it will be directly under the very asset that prompted the use of a microtunnel to begin with.

Traditional microtunnelling techniques rely on the jacking of a product pipe to propel the microtunnel head. In this instance, when the ground substantially changes to the point where the contractor can no longer proceed with the line, inevitability there will be a need to dig up the head.

For this reason, there is a lot to be said for installing a pilot line that can be retracted prior to jacking. This gives the contractor the ability to test the ground

conditions before they are committed to jacking pipe, which is essentially the point of no return.

In the past, pilot installations were predominantly installed via a displacement method. For this method to be successful, the ground must be displaceable. Contractors also need to be wary of the effect of the displacement of the ground on the surrounding assets.

AXIS PILOT ADVANTAGE

The Vermeer AXIS machine has a distinct advantage in the way it installs its pilot line. The system is designed to cut and extract the ground as it proceeds, and in doing so, has little to no influence on the ground directly surrounding the installation. By extracting the ground, rather than displacing the ground, microtunnellers can visually inspect the condition that is being excavated at the face.

ABOUT STUART HARRISON

Because the pilot line can be retracted, it allows for different bits to be effectively trialled during the pilot stage. This allows the contractor to assess the best bit for the prevailing ground conditions. With the pilot now complete, the contractor can commence jacking the final product pipe with a far greater likelihood of a successful final installation as the ground conditions are now predominantly known.

RISK MINIMISATION

When it’s all said and done, we are all looking to reduce the risk on our trenchless projects. Before your next microtunnelling project, please consider the use of a pilot shot to confirm the ground and minimise your risk.

Stuart Harrison is the Managing Director of Edge Underground, where he specialises in on-grade microtunnelling installations with millimetre accuracy. He is also the inventor of the AXIS guided boring system, and he is constantly working to improve the effectiveness of this and other trenchless systems used in the installation of gravity sewers.

Join us at one of our 2016 Water Industry Operations Conference and Exhibitions

WIOA stages annual conferences in NSW, Queensland and Victoria, providing a forum for individuals involved in water operations to:

• Listen to the experience of others through the latest “operational” technical and research based information through platform and poster presentations.

• View and discuss the latest advances in technical equipment, products and services with suppliers and trade consultants

• Update their knowledge and skills through interaction with fellow water industry employees.

NSW

Newcastle

Rockhampton

April 6 & 7 VIC

June 2 & 3

Sept 7 & 8 QLD

Bendigo

All water industry personnel involved in the operation and maintenance of urban, rural and industrial water related infrastructure for the management, conveyance, treatment, discharge and reuse of water and trade wastes should attend this conference.

Water Industry Operators Association of Australia (WIOA)

WIOA is a national association with a primary role of facilitating the collection, development and exchange of quality information between people undertaking operational roles in the water industry.

Sponsorship Opportunities Available

Take advantage of the opportunity to position your company as a leader in water management by aligning your company as a supporter of the leading non-profit organisation serving the needs of operators in the water industry. For more information on exhibiting or sponsorship, visit the conference website.

EDITORIAL SCHEDULE

FEBRUARY 2016

MAY 2016

AUGUST 2016

NOVEMBER 2016