Fire Hydrant and Valve Inspection Program

In 2013, CAW's GIS department created a valve inspection program.

We piloted it against a third-party vendor who would do similar work. We concluded that over the course of five years, we could inspect all valves in the system for about $468,000. Alternatively, the third party would charge more than $1.6 million for the same work over the same time period.

"The GIS technician wasn't solely responsible for the savings, but they enabled us to successfully perform inspections with in-house staff, which saves CAW more than $1 million every five years by performing our own valve inspection versus using outside contractors," Weindorf said.

Also, in 2013 GIS staff created a fire hydrant inspection layer for our system maps. Before this, our distribution department inspected hydrants when repairing others nearby or responding to a customer complaint.

We symbolized the map layer based on inspection status, allowing fieldworkers to use the map to quickly assess hydrant inspection needs within an area. Every three years, all hydrants automatically revert back to being symbolized as uninspected. Now we know every hydrant has been inspected and is in good shape. Consumers often overlook the fact that fire protection is a huge part of a water utility's responsibilities, and GIS helps us ensure that the communities we serve are protected.

The map layer also allows us to draw a polygon to select all hydrants in a geographic area to include on a work order for a crew. Previously every hydrant had to have its own work order. Enabling our crews to do work in the most efficient way empowers them to provide a high level of service and take pride in their work.