How is wastewater managed/treated throughout
Southern California? How does the water reclamation
process work?
MC: In my past I did a few projects for the Orange
and Ventura County Sanitation Districts and this is my
understanding: after you flush the toilet, the water goes
into the sanitary sewer system, into pipes that take it to
the treatment plant. They have screens that separate
large debris from the water. Grit is removed and then the
solids are coagulated (clumped together) and settled
out. Once the solids are removed from the wastewater,
it can be treated at the plant and sent back into the
aquifers. The water must meet a certain minimum quality
before it can go back into the ground and is very close
to potable (drinkable) water quality but lacks the level of
disinfection.
You’re a member of the Southern California Water
Utilities Association and the American Water Works
Association. What can you tell us about these
organizations?
MC: I’ve been a member, on and off, of the Southern
California Water Utilities Association for 25 years. We
have monthly meetings where speakers talk about
current topics and provide information for continuing
education. It’s about meeting other people in the industry
and raising awareness of water quality issues. The
best part is that everyone shares information, they’re
not secretive or possessive. For example, if the City of
Monterey Park was having water quality issues, and the
City of Alhambra had encountered those same issues
before and had a solution, they would willingly share
that information. I love that openness about the industry.
At first, I couldn’t believe it: they want everyone to be
successful.
I go to these meetings now, no longer as a water utility
operator, but as a vendor. I’m there to spread awareness
of P2S and the services we can provide. My goal is to
gain the trust of the various participating utilities and
to become their trusted advisor. Although I’m a member
of the American Water Works Association (AWWA), I
just haven’t had the time to get involved at the levels I
really want to. The AWWA is an organization dedicated
to providing total water solutions assuring the effective
management of water. I’m interested in participating in
their construction standards writing committee, but it will
have to wait for now.
What are some noteworthy projects that you’ve
completed in the water/wastewater sector?
MC: At P2S, we’ve been very successful at providing
Arc Flash analyses for water utilities, which is a
niche market within the water/wastewater sector. We
have a strong track record of providing that service
in all market segments. We’re also doing several air
conditioning assessments at water facilities that are
struggling with the effects of aging equipment and
infrastructure. Without working facilities, water treatment
and distribution operators can’t do their jobs. We can
help them with our expertise. Recently, we’ve been
successful at winning projects with the Long Beach Water
Department and Eastern Municipal Water District.
One of my favorite projects was the Miramar Water
Treatment Plant expansion. It was a massive project with
tons of electrical infrastructure and instrumentation. I
really enjoy working on big projects like that. I’ve also
worked on a lot of booster stations and well sites. They
require everything the bigger projects do, just on a
smaller scale.
What are some special considerations that need to be
taken when working on water facilities?
MC: On water projects, as with all projects, it’s important
to understand our clients’ business and the people
who operate the systems. P2S is great at that in all our
market segments and it’s one of our differentiators.
Understanding their business and their people, helps us
design a better system. Knowing what water operators
do on a day-to-day basis and then designing a controls
system that’s easy for them to interface with is a critical
success factor. Specifying equipment that’s easy
for them to maintain and operate is also extremely
important. Those are really the same considerations we
have for projects in all P2S market segments.
Is there anything else you’d like to add about your work
in the water/wastewater market?
MC: The water and wastewater sector are about public
health and public service. Water is our most precious
natural resource and water facility operators are serving
the community every day. Our work in the water/
wastewater market isn’t just helping somebody turn a
profit, we’re helping the public by designing reliable
systems. Our designs fulfill an important societal need.
This is something I believe in and it’s why I like working in
this industry.
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