The city of Golden, Colo., was recently honored by the American Public Works Association Colorado Chapter with the Public Works Project Award for its Asset Management System for General Public Works in a Small Community.
"The recognition that we have received from this program is beneficial not only for us as employees, but to our peers," said Carrie Vogt, administrative technician for the city of Golden. "It also shows other communities that we are taking a proactive approach and we are happy to share what we have done with them."
In 1999, the city implemented the CartêGraph software in an effort to better understand the condition and location of their infrastructure. The software allows them to accurately and efficiently track field assets, along with determining what work has been completed and future work to be scheduled. The city has continued as a leader in implementing technology to improve their processes and communication.
Using GPS units, the city has accurately tracked the location of assets including fire hydrants, water valves, water meters, sanitary and storm manholes, storm inlets and outfall, detention ponds and street signs. In addition, it has set up maintenance schedules to ensure the assets are functioning properly and the database information can be viewed graphically on a map in conjunction with ESRI’s ArcGIS.
Another innovation that Golden is implementing is a citywide project of videotaping all of the sanitary sewer lines. It will allow the city to see where the potential problems are and to more efficiently plan repairs, rather than replacing the entire pipe. Finally, the CartêGraph software can be used to plan for projects in the budget with a more accurate cost.
Source: ESRI