Seizing the opportunity of public service system reform: exploring the path of water outsourcing

Excerpted from: Zhejiang Daily, December 9, 2015, 00010: Economy·New Zhejiang Businessmen

 One water plant, one team - the configuration of large and comprehensive operation and maintenance systems, which makes water supply enterprises bear high operation costs and low operation efficiency. "When there is a failure, we are too busy to handle it, and there is nothing to do for daily operations." This is the embarrassment encountered by many water supply enterprises.

Water companies such as water plants have both public welfare and safety, which constrains the supply-side reform of the water industry. How to reduce corporate operating costs and improve efficiency? Many companies are exploring the socialization of services to improve water operation efficiency. Zhejiang Tianxingjian Water Co., Ltd. is one of them. The company has innovated the water operation and maintenance model and water material supply chain management, built a networked technical service virtual water platform in the fields of municipal water supply, municipal sewage, industrial wastewater, etc., and implemented a 24-hour "nanny-style" service.

At present, Tianjian Water's service area has expanded from within the province to outside the province. It provides modern water operation and maintenance for more than 300 water companies, enabling water facilities to achieve the benign operation of "someone to manage, repairs when broken, and excellent water quality", helping water treatment companies with a strong administrative color to unload their burdens and improve efficiency.

　Ensure water supply and be a good "water nanny"

Not long ago, due to continuous rain, the soil in the water source area of ​​Changshan No. 1 Water Plant was affected by rain erosion, the water quality of the reservoir became turbid, and some indicators exceeded the standard, affecting the water quality of the water supply. "Is this Tianjian Water? Can you come over right away to help deal with the yellow water problem?" A few days ago, the person in charge of a water plant from another place anxiously called Tianxingjian Water Company far away in Hangzhou. Customer demand is an order. The general manager of the company, Chen Feng, immediately contacted the relevant technical personnel, negotiated a solution, and set off immediately. The water consumption is low at night, which is the best time for construction. The technicians raced against time to work overnight. "From the installation and commissioning of the equipment to the successful operation of the feeding system, it lasted until the early morning of the next day." The relevant person in charge of the water plant said with emotion, "During the construction project, they didn't even have time to eat the instant noodles prepared for them."

Continuous operations and all-weather work are commonplace for Tianxingjian technicians who promise "nanny-style" service. The dosing system project of Hangzhou Jiuxi Water Plant, which worked continuously for 72 hours, went to Jieyang, Guangdong, more than 1,200 kilometers away, to deal with water pollution at night, and repaired a burst water main in a certain place... Because of the timely, professional and caring "water nanny" service, more than 300 service companies think of Tianjian Water first when they have water problems.

In addition to participating in "guaranteeing water supply", Tianjian Water Company also uses "water nanny" as a link to promote the extension of water services to "sewage treatment": it undertook the water reuse project of Haining Jianshan Sewage Treatment Plant; and contracted to operate the sewage treatment plant of General Electric Shanghai Industrial Park. The US has very high requirements for water quality treatment. Tianjian Water proposed to raise the US standard by one level from reliability research to the operation of the entire water treatment system, so that the discharged water can smoothly meet the US requirements.

The complexity of water sources has forced my country to improve its water treatment technology. At present, my country's water treatment capacity is already at the forefront of the world, but the shortcomings are management systems and market-oriented service concepts. "Tianjian Water's innovation in water outsourcing services is aimed at aligning with international water management," said Chen Feng.

New system improves water quality

The sodium dosing system of Tongxiang Guoyuanqiao Water Plant was successfully completed and put into operation recently, which made the management of Tongxiang Guoyuanqiao Water Plant breathe a sigh of relief. With this system, Guoyuanqiao Water Plant, one of the main water supply plants in Tongxiang, will bid farewell to the disinfection process of adding a certain amount of chlorine every day. "Although chlorine is a common disinfectant in water plants, it is also a hazardous gas. Once it leaks, the consequences will be disastrous." The person in charge of the water plant explained.

This new hyposodium dosing system is a water service product provided by Tianjian Water Company, which has changed the traditional treatment method. The system transforms the chlorine disinfection process into sodium hypochlorite disinfection, avoiding the safety hazards of chlorine. Since hyposodium is weakly alkaline, the commissioning of the new system also has a significant effect on improving water quality and taste. At present, the company has also developed a hyposodium generator. The system uses ordinary table salt as raw material and generates hyposodium through electrolysis, which not only reduces transportation safety issues, but also further improves the quality of water treatment.

In response to the frequent occurrence of yellow water in the tap water network in many places in the province, Tianjian Water Company was the first in the country to actively promote the lime-adding process. Tianjian Water Company's technical staff said that as people's living standards improve, the requirements for water quality are getting higher and higher. Using new products and new technologies to break the traditional water treatment method is the only way to improve water quality.

"Traditional treatment methods are prone to overdosing or underdosing. Overdosing can lead to problems such as residual chlorine, residual aluminum, and high pH, ​​while underdosing can result in inadequate treatment and water quality that does not meet standards," said Hong Juemin, a water treatment expert and former secretary general of the Zhejiang Water Industry Association. "The development and use of equipment-based, modular, standardized, and automated water treatment dosing systems have changed the original manual dosing method, making the input of treatment raw materials more precise, and ensuring that the quality of drinking water is safe."

At present, the water treatment system built by Tianjian Water has also been used in remote rural areas, including a number of aid projects in Xinjiang by Zhejiang Province, improving the drinking water problem of people in border areas.

Outsourcing services leverage new markets

Under the current trend of public service system reform, Tianjian Water Company uses "water nanny" as a link to promote water service outsourcing and promote water system reform through innovation.

Huangyan Water Supply Company is the first unit to realize the reform of water management system through service outsourcing. Huangyan Water Supply Company outsourced the operation and maintenance of water quality analysis instruments in water plants and pipe networks to Tianjian Water Company, realizing real-time and accurate online monitoring of water quality around the clock. On this basis, the company also outsourced the emergency repair tasks of the pipe network in the area, achieving the goal of reducing staff and increasing efficiency, speeding up the time of emergency repairs, and ensuring that the people can use high-quality tap water. Recently, it signed a 3-year operation and maintenance contract for equipment with Shaoxing Water Treatment Development Co., Ltd., providing a more reliable guarantee for the normal operation of the sewage treatment plant.

In addition to online water quality testing instrument services, water treatment equipment maintenance and water supply network emergency repairs, Tianjian Water Company is also the first in the country to build a networked virtual water platform for water supply material supply chain management and technical services in the fields of municipal water supply and municipal sewage. It integrates the material supply, warehousing management, supply chain management, enterprise management, technical services, hardware maintenance, and human resource outsourcing of water companies, establishes a water management and operation expert group, and implements a full network pulse management that combines remote and on-site management, which effectively improves the quality of water operation, reduces water operation costs, and ensures the safety of water operation.

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