So you found a $5,000 fix for an odor problem that an engineer said would cost $50,000 to correct. Or you corrected a pesky chemical feed problem with a few dollars’ worth of fasteners and a length of PVC pipe.
If you’ve ever worked this kind of miracle, the Water Environment Federation would like to recognize you. WEFTEC 2014 in New Orleans Sept. 27-
Oct. 1 will include the third annual Ingenuity Contest.
It’s a fun competition that recognizes innovations that come not from research labs, but from the minds of clean-water operators and teams. The contest will showcase ways in which operators used their imaginations to make changes in their facilities that save money, improve plant performance, eliminate wasted labor, avoid safety issues, and more.
The competition is open to clever ideas from all areas of a clean-water agency: treatment processes, collection systems, laboratory practices, stormwater management, and even administration and human resources. Selected inventors will be invited to give 10-minute presentations about their ideas.
Need a few examples to get your brain working? Here are some award winners from a previous ingenuity contest:
- Safety. A ladder extension pole quickly attaches to the rungs inside a manhole, helping operators be safer and meet safety requirements.
- Process control. A foot-operated sample collector pumps mixed liquor samples from beneath a foam-covered surface, eliminating heavy lifting and contamination from passing the sample through the foam.
- Maintenance. A PVC pipe cover for a pump’s lifting chain protects the chain from being tangled with rags and other debris and enables a chain follower to operate better when the pump has to be removed.
- Work environment. Color-coded buildings beautify a facility and add a quick, easy way for visitors and contractors to navigate to the right spot.
- Resourcefulness. Compost heat prevents freezing of sludge lines leading to a temporary trailer-mounted dewatering unit.
- Walking the talk. A stormwater filter best management practice reduces TSS in the runoff leaving a facility’s yard.
Do you have an idea along these general lines? Even if you’re not sure it’s a winner, and even if you can’t make it to WEFTEC, submit it. The WEFTEC team will share your idea with many of your peers.
Put together a one-page description of the problem you faced and the fix you found. If you can send a picture of your idea, that’s a plus. Submit your idea online at www.wefnet.org/onlineform/weftec/ingenuity. The portal is open until June 6. If you have questions, email to innovation@wef.org.
