The annual Water Utility Infrastructure Management (UIM) Asset Management Conference was held Dec. 14-15 in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Buried Asset Management Institute-International (BAMI-I) on the campus of Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI).
The BAMI-I meeting was the first day and was chaired by Dr. Tom Iseley, BAMI-I?s chairman and professor at IUPUI. The afternoon was a workshop that included a presentation on the nationwide launch of the Certification of Training in Asset Management online training program. Workshop topics included a presentation on ?What?s Happening in Buried Pipe Deterioration Research? by Duncan Rose, GHD Consultants; ?Establishing an Asset Management Program for Small Communities? by Jim Raulston and Brian Norwood, Buried Asset Management Group; and ?Asset Management Approach for Drinking Water Systems? by Tim Ball, Jordan Jones & Goulding. The first day concluded with a joint networking reception of BAMI-I and UIM Asset Management Conference attendees.
Day 2 was the Asset Management Conference. Sponsorship was provided by ConShield. A selection of the topics included: ?Asset Management-GIS? presented by Karol Giokas, RJN; ?Contracting – Private Public Partnerships for Water/Wastewater Infrastructure,? Adam McDonough, American Water; ?Contracting – Performance Based Approach to Sewer Rehab,? Denise McClanahan, Reynolds Inc.; ?Contracting -? Design-Build,? Tom Neff, Ockham Konsult; and the ?Water-Energy Nexus,? Chris Barron, Veloia Water. A keynote address by Dr. William Blomquist, Dean of the School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI on ?Politics of Watershed Management? was most thought provoking.
The conference closed with a roundtable on financing and funding. Participants included John Seever, Umbaugh & Associates; Justin Brugger, City of Fort Wayne; Kathleen Weissenberger, Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs; Greg Delp, USDA,? Rural Development; and Richard Splete, MWH. Bill Shook of ConShield commented that the conference was the best he ever attended.
