The Birmingham Water Works Board (BWWB) provides a vital service that requires the knowledge and dedication of the professional and trained individuals in its Engineering and Maintenance (E&M) Division, which works daily to ensure that customers receive the best service that the BWW can provide. Division Manager and Assistant General Manager, TM Sonny Jones, credits this dedication to the BWWB’s mission statement, which vows, “The Birmingham Water Works Board is committed to providing the highest quality water and service to our customers and future generations.” In line with the company’s mission statement, the E&M Division’s vision statement is, “To be the most efficient, effective and dependable water delivery system in the United States.”
“We grant you that this is a very broad and extensive mission and vision to accomplish,” Jones said. “It consumes the attention of the E&M Division’s large and professional staff on [a] 24 hour, 7 day-a-week basis. The design, construction, maintenance and repair of the water system’s infrastructure does not conform to a standard 40-hour a week schedule. Problems do not seem to care if it is a holiday, or if it is in the small hours of a weekend morning.”
As a water service provider that meets the goals set out in its mission, BWWB is experienced at addressing the needs of its customers and makes them top priority when problems arise.
“The E&M Department’s staff is extraordinary at handling all types of problems,” Jones said. “From small problems like a main break on a residential street on a warm summer afternoon, to large crises such as an outbreak of tornadoes in the middle of a cold and rainy night. Our staff is dedicated to solving any customer’s potable water problems as quickly and efficiently as possible, at all hours of the day.”
The Engineering and Maintenance Division encompasses more than 300 employees in its seven departments. The departments include Engineering, Mapping and Records, System Development, Revenue Water, Environmental Services, Distribution and Electrical, and Mechanical. The tasks of these departments include maintaining and installing assets valued at $1 billion at the time of their installation; changing 15,000 of the company’s 200,000 meters; maintaining 15,000 hydrants; 4,000 miles of pipe; and inspecting water shed construction to ensure water purity.
Distribution
Of the seven departments, the Distribution Department, is the largest, and managed by Reginald Nall.
“If the public is our eyes and ears in finding leaks and other problems, Distribution is our arms and feet in fixing them,” Jones said.
This department is staffed with employees that maintain and repair the distribution system, overseeing 4,000 miles of pipe as well as 1,500 miles of service line. The employees are also responsible for the repair and maintenance of 15,000 fire hydrants and 49,000 valves. Annually, the department repairs more than 7,000 leaks and related problems.
“Leaks do not respect holidays nor convenient times of the day,” Jones said. “The motto of this department is that we never leave a customer without water if it can be avoided at all costs. Our crews work at all hours of the day and night to get this job done and done right. Fourteen leak crews are backed up by seven valve crews and fourteen dump truck crews in fixing leaks; in addition to cleaning up the repair debris and eventually leaving the repair site better than they found it.”
By visiting www.bwwb.org, and clicking ‘Report a Problem’ customers are able to compose a message stating the problem, as well as its location. In doing so it better assists the organization in reporting a leak or related issues in the Distribution Department.
To Learn more about what occurs in the BWWB’s Maintenance and Engineering Division, visit www.bwwb.org.
