You’ll read below some ongoing activities of the UDAM working group (Urban Drainage Asset Management). Please keep in mind that UDAM is above all an opportunity for all of us to gather, work together and increase the visibility of asset management within the urban drainage community. We are more than open to new ideas, propositions and initiatives related to urban drainage asset management, so don’t wait to contact us!
By the way, if you are not an official member of UDAM yet, please take one minute and register freely on our website. You will join our mailing list, receive regular updates on the activities of the community and be fully part of the global network of urban drainage asset management researchers and aficionados.
What’s on? The UDAM committee is looking for a young researcher New COST action: do you want to join? New German project in preparation: change in condition of sewers over time Interdependencies in multi-infrastructure asset management 7th EURO-SAM workshop in June 2021 in Lulea, Sweden Next LESAM in May 2022 in Bordeaux, France New IWA conference on Asset Management in September 2021 UDAM @ World Water Congress in May 2021 in Copenhagen, Denmark Feel free to join our working group!
The UDAM committee is looking for a young researcher to participate to the group communication, activities and decisions
Following a very good suggestion during the last EURO-SAM workshop, the UDAM committee would like to welcome a young researcher willing to be involved in the decision and the actions. Anyone young and interested in working with / for our research community (we would suggest below 35 years old even if we are already much older but feeling still very young!) can contact us!
New COST action in preparation: Drainfit, do you want to join?
Franz is coordinating a proposal (with more than 40 partners from 29 different countries) to build a collaborative network on sewer asset management and its relationship with other urban infrastructure. The main aim of this COST Action is to outline an asset management approach, able to guide transition and integrating multi-perspective views while enabling a resilient and sustainable operation and maintenance of urban wastewater systems in a long-term perspective. If you want to be part of this COST (https://www.cost.eu/) action, please contact Franz as soon as possible (Deadline is 29th of October 2020).
New German research project in preparation: assessing change in condition of sewers over time
The main focus of the project will be to use the multiple repeated inspections of German sewers done in the last 30 years to model the change in condition of sewers of time, in association with 20 wastewater utilities. The research project has been proposed by Gelsenkanal to the Environment Ministry NRW for funding. This project is open for international partner and exchange of knowledge. Please contact Mirko from IKT if you are interested and would like more information.
Contact: Mirko Salomon, M.Sc. Phone: +49 209 17806 25 E-mail: salomon (at) ikt.de
New PhD project on interdependencies in multi-infrastructure asset management
Urban water infrastructure is but one of manifold different subsystems sharing the same limited public space in urban areas. Those systems are hardly replaceable at once, but instead it is a gradually process over decades. The customary way of viewing things separately by only focusing on domain specific problems (e.g. water supply, sewage, storm water) does not account for the interaction and potential synergies between these subsystems.
A new Phd thesis recently started at NTNU and will investigate the following questions:
- What are those connections and interdependencies between the different infrastructures (with a focus on condition) and how important are they for rehabilitation management in contrast to other influences?
- How big are the benefits of multi-infrastructure rehabilitation compared to the costs of coordination?
- How and how far can rehabilitation assist in the adaptation of our infrastructure to future challenges. Is the rehabilitation of our networks overtaken by the need to adapt to a changing environment?
Interested in those topics? Willing to share data and experiences? Please contact Franz for more information.
Contact: Franz Tscheikner-Gratl (Franz.Tscheikner-Gratl@ntnu.no)
7th EURO-SAM workshop in June 2021 in Lulea, Sweden
Stay tuned, we will launch a first call in the beginning of 2021. As always, the EURO-SAM (European research workshop on Sewer Asset Management) is free of charge and open to anyone but with a limited number of participants. The next EURO-SAM workshop will be organized by the University of Technology of Lulea in Sweden. Check our website for update: https://udam.home.blog/.
Next LESAM in May 2022 in Bordeaux, France
The next Leading Edge Strategic Asset Management (LESAM) conference will take place in Bordeaux, France, and is planned for May 2022. The LESAMs, the 3-days key event of the IWA Strategic Asset Management Specialist Group, have established a consolidated leading-edge forum where utilities, consultants, regulators, researchers and asset managers identify and discuss the main challenges, new solutions and trends in strategic asset management for the water sector.
New IWA conference on Asset Management on 22- 24 September 2021
The IWA International Conference on Rethinking Treatment with Asset Management (RTAM, 22nd – 24th September 2021) focuses on Asset Management for effective water treatment and reuse, emphasizing the need to rethink first before planning for the medium and long term. Facing increasing problems, from climate changes to emerging pollutants, water reuse, untreated wastewater discharges and resource recovery, utilities must pursue sustainability, along with long-term planning, human resources empowerment, mastering performance indicators, risk management and decision making tools. Also, an integrated approach is required, by considering the whole water or wastewater systems: integrating also the networks and the receiving waters in the decision, besides the treatment facilities.
RTAM will address these issues and will take place in the city of Porto, where old-fashion houses merge with modern look spots, leaning between the shorelines of Douro’s River mouth and the sea, in the north of Portugal. It will be held in parallel with the 5th International Conference on Water Economics, Statistics and Finance, and is jointly organized by the IWA Specialist Groups on Strategic Asset Management and on Statistics and Economic.
The conference website is here. We hope to see you there!
UDAM @ World Water Congress on 9-14 May 2021 in Copenhagen, Denmark
UDAM will be present at the next World Water Congress on 9-14 May 2021. For now, UDAM has submitted two abstracts.
Following the submitted review paper on sewer asset management, Franz has coordinated the submission of an abstract on the subject. “It came from the sewers – what about asset management?” abstract, gathering many members of UDAM. It will be presented as a poster at the venue.
Jeroen has proposed and coordinated the submission of another abstract entitled “Urban drainage asset management – also for blue-green infrastructures!”. This is the start of a main objective of the UDAM working group: to gather the sewer asset management communities and the Stormwater Control Measure community in order to tackle the growing problem of aging of Stormwater Control Measure. It will be presented at the WWC as an oral presentation. Stay tuned and do not hesitate to contact us if you want to be part of the adventure.
Join our working group!
Since the start of the group (end of 2018), the UDAM working group has already >30 members all over the world! If you are not a member still, please take one minute and register freely and easily on our website. You will be in our mailing list and receive regular updates on the activities of the urban drainage asset management community.
Chairman: Nico Caradot, KWB Berlin, Email: nicolas.caradot@kompetenz-wasser.de
Vice-chair: Frédéric Cherqui, INSA Lyon/Melbourne University, Email: fcherqui@gmail.com
Secretary: Franz Tscheikner-Gratl, NTNU; Email: franz.tscheikner-gratl@ntnu.no
Website: https://udam.home.blog/
Urban Drainage Asset Management 
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