RISN is a partnership between the City of Phoenix and Arizona State University to bring together government, university, and non-governmental entities to create a resource-focused Sustainable Urban Metabolism (SUM) platform that supports trash as a resource for economic development opportunity. RISN provides a bridge for researchers to connect their outputs with the entrepreneurs best positioned to translate them into social and economic outcomes. Don’t miss this discussion of RISN’s incubator, a niche business accelerator for entrepreneurs in the early stages of waste-to-product innovation.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, you will be better able to: 

• Examine the next steps for Phoenix’s implementation of a circular economy using waste resources as an economic driver.
• Discover how Phoenix has established regional economic opportunities for recycling and waste diversion options.
• Determine if your city can replicate the RISN incubator model for promoting opportunities for entrepreneurs in the early stages of waste-to-product innovation.

The APWA Kansas City Metro Chapter’s Sustainable Infrastructure Committee is hosting this forum of experienced Envision project managers who will share their best practices and useful tips for using the Envision® rating system for infrastructure projects. They will talk about internal practices they have developed after implementing Envision® projects, ways to improve participation in projects and increase efficiencies in planning, and what practices help reduce project costs and hours. Come prepared with your own Envision® stories and with your questions about how this system could be used for your projects.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, you will be better able to: 

• Share best management practices with your organization that will improve efficiencies and reduce costs.
• Discuss policies and procedures that can be implemented to improve Envision® project planning, reporting, and documentation.
• Raise the bar on the sustainability and success of your infrastructure projects by using Envision® principles.

APWA's Fleet Services Committee has identified the top ten performance measures critical to a fleet manager's success. Does your agency measure up?

APWA's Fleet Services Management Committee is planning several presentations designed to address challenges and share solutions for today's modern fleet professional. The morning session will be 9:45-11:00 a.m. Three presentations will be made in the afternoon between 2:00 - 4:50 p.m. Check back later for more details!

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, you will be better able to: 

• Identify the performance measures most commonly used by fleet operations.
• Explore how your agency can adapt these performance measures to meet current needs.
• Explain the value of measuring performance to managers and technicians.

The APWA Reporter Series “How Did They Do That?” comes to life in this fast-paced presentation where members of APWA’s Leadership and Management Committee and other authors of the series will share the projects and innovative approaches and technologies they have implemented in their organizations. We guarantee that you will be surprised and inspired and will take-away ideas that you can easily replicate in your operations.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, you will be better able to: 

• Discover innovative methods and exciting projects that will make your public works operations more effective.
• Explore why it is necessary to drive innovation into all aspects of public works services.
• Inspire staff to think creatively and innovate new solutions for existing practices and approaches.

Don’t miss this introduction to the use of liquids in winter maintenance. From the southern states to the northern-most provinces, liquids are part of the public works arsenal for fighting snow and ice. This presentation will provide the basics: what are winter maintenance liquids? When and where should liquids be used? How are liquids made?

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this presentation, participants will be better able to: 

• Educate staff, decision-makers, and the public on the merits of using liquids in winter maintenance.
• Decide if liquids can be utilized for specific conditions and situations.
• Prepare a plan to establish a liquids program.

Public works departments in small cities and rural communities are usually short on time and staff. Maybe your public works department would like to achieve APWA Accreditation as a hallmark of agency professionalism, but you don’t think you have the depth of staff or expertise to make it happen. In that case, don’t miss this presentation featuring small communities that have successfully navigated the accreditation process.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, you will be better able to: 

• Anticipate the realistic pros and cons of a small public works agency undertaking accreditation.
• Evaluate the experiences of others to organize and update procedures and best practices.
• Explore the highest and best uses of self-assessment and accreditation.

Much of the work that public works departments do is complex and hidden from sight. It is difficult for people to picture how sewers work, what systems exist and why they might fail, or what facilities will look like when completed. In response to flooding events in 2017, the City of Grandview, Missouri, developed 3-D models of flooded areas so engineers, local officials, and residents could get a better, more tactile picture of the local terrain and, thus, a better understanding of the mechanics of the flooding. The models were developed using terrain models and 3-D printers and helped refute false information and sped up the problem-solving process.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, you will be better able to: 

• Identify tools and technologies that can be used to solve common public works problems.
• Explore how 3-D printing can be used to create models of proposed public work projects.
• Speed problem-solving by better communicating with the citizens and elected officials.

The panel will discuss the concepts and goals of public works asset management by focusing on the initial development of a roadmap, governance model, asset data gathering, data cleaning, and the development of condition and risk scores.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, you will be better able to: 

• Define the concept and goals of public works asset management.
• Develop asset data gathering and inventory data confidence.
• Apply risk scores to assets based on their condition.

The City of Durham, North Carolina was faced with 50 subdivisions with infrastructure (streets, sidewalks, water, storm sewers, and sewers) in various stages of completion because of the Great Recession’s impact on developer corporations. The City was able to leverage various policies, partnerships, and relationships to complete work in 90% of the subdivisions with no cost to the city and residents and with profit to the new developers that stepped in to assist with the recovery. Attend this session and discover:

• how to anticipate economic conditions that could lead to failed developments,
  
• facilitate and negotiate public/private partnerships to complete unfinished infrastructure,
  
• develop policies and procedures to monitor and prevent future failed developments,
  
• anticipate and mitigate budgetary impacts of development plans.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, you will be better able to: 

• Identify trends, triggers, policies, and processes that can lead to failed developments
• Recognize and use the power of public/private partnerships for completing infrastructure projects
• Examine the costs of completing infrastructure and develop an assessment of the true value to a city for rescuing failed developments.

To switch from dry material (sand or salt) usage to pre-wet salt and liquid anti-icing applications, several factors need to be considered: the type of equipment needed for pre-wetting and liquids application; approaches for staff training regarding the benefits of liquids and overcoming the “we’ve always done it this way” attitude; and the environmental impacts and benefits of using liquids.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this presentation, participants will be better able to: 

• Identify the equipment required for liquid application.
• Discuss the environmental benefits and impacts associated with pre-wetting and liquids.
• Examine the steps for setting up a staff training program in the usage of liquids.