Engineering Excellence Award, 1st Place

Awarded By - Texas Council of Engineering Companies

Security in the Shadow of 9/11, Water Operations Center, Garland, Texas - After the devastation of September 11, 2001, the City of Garland conducted a vulnerability assessment of their water system. The results were sobering -- vulnerable tank and pump station sites, and an existing Water Operations Center, housed for 60 years in a converted firehouse, that had limited security which relied upon unsecure telephone lines. The city’s reaction was decisive -- they retained CP&Y, Inc. to design/build a state-of-the-art Water Operations Center.

Innovation
• CP&Y designed and built the Water Operations Center improving security and control at pump stations and other remote sites using CCTV, a fiber-optic network, and a customized Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system.

Engineering Value
• Due to the design/build strategy, the city secured project documents -- making the project’s security top priority.
• Advanced technology was included into the project with schedule and budget accommodations.

Exceeding Client Needs
• The design/build provided close control and security for contract documents and single secured responsibility for budget and schedule.
• The new Control Center provides:
– 24/7 real-time video monitoring of all facilities is also part of the secure Center.
– monitoring and control of remote sites.
– serves as the city’s auxiliary emergency operations center.