The program committee is pleased to announce the Guest Speakers for this year’s 2018 ISA Water/Wastewater and Automatic Controls Symposium:
(see also program schedule)
The 2018 LIFT Intelligent Water Challenge: Using a Challenge Prize to Drive Adoption of Intelligent Water Technology
Tad Slawecki and Barry Liner will discuss the LIFT Intelligent Water Challenge. The Leaders Innovation Forum for Technology (LIFT), a joint effort of The Water Research Foundation and the Water Environment Federation (WEF), is holding its first-ever Intelligent Water Challenge to demonstrate the value of intelligent water systems to utilities and thereby foster the adoption of smart water technologies. The Challenge will be supported by American Water Works Association (AWWA), Smart Water Networks Forum (SWAN), and the International Society of Automation’s (ISA) Water and Wastewater Division. The intent of the Challenge is to give students, professionals and technology aficionados the opportunity to showcase their talents and innovation, with a focus on leveraging data using the best available tools to help utilities better understand the dynamics of complex systems for making better decisions. The Challenge, which will run from March to August 2018, will provide general problem statements and example datasets for participants, along with a series of informational webinars to introduce them to the datasets and underlying systems. Possible problem categories are Collection Systems, Wastewater Treatment Systems, Drinking Water Treatment Systems, Source Water/Watershed, and Distribution Networks. – view abstract
AWWA Current News and Trends
Kevin Morley will cover a variety of topics of regional and national interest to the water industry, including cybersecurity.
WEF Current News and Trends
Barry Liner will cover how WEF is addressing the many concerns around our industry including water conservation monitoring and performance, and the growing need for intelligent water systems.
About the Speakers:
Kevin Morley, WWAC2018 Guest Speaker
Kevin Morley, Ph.D. is the Security & Preparedness Program Manager at the American Water Works Association (AWWA). In this role, he works closely with a variety of organizations (such as DHS/FEMA, EPA, USACE, CDC and the Water Sector Coordinating Council) to advance the security and preparedness of the nation’s critical infrastructure. These efforts include expanding mutual aid and assistance through the Water/Wastewater Agency Response Network (WARN).
In addition, Dr. Morley supports the development of water sector standards and guidance for security and preparedness. Most recently, he helped develop a resource guide, Process Control System Security Guidance for the Water Sector, and a use-case tool that provides a water sector-specific approach to the NIST Cybersecurity Framework.
Dr. Morley received a doctorate degree from George Mason University for his research assessing the resilience of the water sector through the development of the Utility Resilience Index (URI). He holds a master of science degree from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry and a bachelor of arts degree from Syracuse University.
Barry Liner, WWAC2018 Guest Speaker
Barry Liner, Ph.D., P.E., BCEE is the director of WEF’s Water Science & Engineering Center. Since joining WEF in 2010, he has been responsible for leading WEF’s innovation initiative, including the Innovation Pavilion at WEFTEC, the world’s largest water quality conference. He also represents the water sector on the development of the ISA certification, Certified Mission Critical Professional (CMCP).
Before WEF, Liner served as Assistant Professor and Director of International Engineering Programs at George Mason University, where he founded Engineers for International Development and also helped develop and deliver a groundbreaking Public Sector Entrepreneurship graduate program for the US Army Corps of Engineers. A licensed Lead Appraiser by the CMMI Institute, he has led nearly 50 CMMI appraisals, including the world’s first CMMI for Services appraisal to be quality approved by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI). Previously, he led change management efforts at AEM Corporation and managed support regulatory support projects for the USEPA’s Office of Water and IT projects for both public and private sector clients.
Liner also worked at Black & Veatch, where he delivered management consulting services focusing on operational efficiency, public private partnerships, benchmarking and strategic finance to over 30 water and wastewater utilities and research organizations throughout the US, Canada, Mexico, and Peru. He also served at the World Bank, developing a protocol to monitor and evaluate progress towards the water and sanitation targets of the Millennium Development Goals. Liner began his professional career as a product manager for a water quality instrumentation manufacturer.
Barry earned his Ph.D. in IT & Civil Engineering from George Mason University. He received a graduate certificate in business administration from Georgetown University, an MS in urban systems engineering from George Mason University, and graduated with BA in economics from Virginia Tech. He is a licensed professional engineer (PE) and board certified environmental engineer (BCEE).