피츠버그 상·하수 관리 당국(Pittsburgh Water & Sewer Authority) 이사회는 상·하수 기술 개발 및 서비스 제공 전문업체인 베올리아(Veolia) 사로 하여금 2014년 12월까지 중간 총괄 운영관리 서비스를 계속 제공할 수 있도록 혁신 파트너십 계약을 만장일치로 연장하는데 합의하였다고 발표했다. 이번 18개월 연장 결정은 첫 계약의 조건부 성공에 기인한 것으로 알려졌으며 지역적으로 수질, 활용성 관리 및 주주 책임에 있어서 전문가가 되려는 이상회의 목적에 부합하기도 한다.

파트너십 시행 초년에 베올리아 워터 사는 PWSA를 도와 기관의 고객 서비스와 업무 처리 성과를 높일 수 있게 노력하였다. 이를 위해 베올리아 사는 현행 기관운영에 대한 심층적인 분석을 진행, 세부적인 개선 방안을 제시하였으며 새로운 업무 성과 기준에 맞춰진 PWSA 직원의 성과 계획을 지원하였다. 위의 분석과 그에 따른 운영 관리와 관련한 변화는 PWSA로 하여금 큰 규모의 상업적 고객을 재확보할 수 있도록 도움으로써 기관 수익 증대와 운영 비용 절감을 달성하였다. 총 변화 수익은 매년 240만 달러에 달했다. 본 파트너십은 또한 고객 대기 시간을 50% 가량 단축시키며 관리 당국이 물 사용량의 특정한 증가 없이 예산 승인을 진행할 수 있도록 하였다.

CHICAGO, IL, Aug. 14, 2013 -- The Pittsburgh Water & Sewer Authority (PWSA) Board of Directors has unanimously extended an innovative partnership with Veolia Water, a company specializing in water and wastewater services and technology, to continue providing interim executive management services through December 2014. The 18-month extension builds on the successes and momentum established during the initial term of the contract and supports the Board's goal to become the regionally recognized expert on water quality, utility management and stakeholder responsiveness.

During the partnership's first year, a team of water and wastewater experts from Veolia helped PWSA improve the utility's customer service and performance levels by conducting in-depth diagnostics of current operations, developing specific recommendations for improvement, and supporting PWSA employees in implementing initiatives aimed at reaching new performance metrics. The analysis and resulting operational changes helped PWSA reduce its cost of operations and increase the utility's revenue by, among other things, re-securing a large commercial customer. The  total impact of these changes is nearly $2.4 million annually. The partnership also reduced customer hold times by 50 percent and enabled the Authority to approve an annual budget without the need for a water rate increase.

"Over the past year we've made many strides with Veolia," said Dan Deasy, PWSA Chairman. "The Board challenged Veolia to help the city find new sources of revenue and reduce its costs so that we could pass the 2013 budget with no rate increase, no layoffs and improved customer service. Veolia not only met our challenges, but they greatly exceeded our expectations. Their work directly benefits city employees and ratepayers."

As part of the initial review of utility operations, Veolia Water executive Jim Good led PWSA as interim executive director and will continue to do so, supported by PWSA managers and employees, along with Veolia Water specialists who will share industry best practices and mentor PWSA staff. The Veolia team will continue working collaboratively with PWSA employees and be accountable to the Board of Directors. A joint steering committee will establish new Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and oversee the implementation of agreed upon initiatives to continue service improvements as well as items that will provide services more efficiently or enhance revenues.

"PWSA, like many municipal water utilities, faces rising operating and capital costs -- that makes it harder to grow and provide quality services in a sustainable manner," said Terry Mah, president and CEO of Veolia Environnement North America. "We're pleased to continue to support PWSA's goal to be a recognized regional water expert by sharing Veolia Water's cumulative technical and operational knowledge of 100,000 employees and the water industry's best practices."

The partnership is part of Veolia Water's Peer Performance Solutions model, enabling municipal water utilities to benchmark against other leading utilities while preserving public governance and a public workforce that benefits from specialized private-sector expertise. Veolia Water will continue to apply best practices developed through its management of more than 8,500 water and wastewater facilities and systems around the world.

The Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority provides water and sewer services to more than 300,000 consumers throughout the City of Pittsburgh and surrounding areas.

[원문출처 : Waterworld / 2013년 8월 14일]