Utility Week

26 | 5TH - 11TH APRIL 2019 | UTILITY WEEK Customers Market views A s the clock ticks down on another AMP cycle, the weather turns colder and political uncertainty continues to dominate news headlines, it is hard to think positively about future business prospects. For the water industry though, it is time to look beyond their own company walls. It is hard to truly catapult a business forward if the whole company is caught up in "AMP thinking", making incremental changes year-on-year to stay within the all constraining regulation. Where is the space for innovation when budgets are tight and margin trimming is the order of the day? There is one beacon of light in the indus- try, however, where looking a different way at an age-old problem has propelled water and water consumption up the social agenda. Harnessing the might of global organisations and funding partners as well as mobilising the local community through education and volunteering organisations. Step forward the Hull Living With Water Partnership. Despite achieving the highest recent economic growth in Yorkshire a„er it was nominated as the UK's City of Culture in 2017 – and Hull City Council's investment in the public realms – Hull remains the second big- gest flood risk in the UK outside the Thames estuary area. The Living with Water Partner- ship was set up to tackle Hull's unique flood- ing challenges and is the perfect example of how extending beyond geographical borders can bring real benefits close to home. Early in the project, the team won their ambitious bid to become part of the City Water Resilience Framework project. This is a pilot run by the Rockefeller Foundation led by Arup, with support from the World Bank, the University of Massachusetts and the Stockholm International Water Institute. Hull is the only European city and one of only five globally working on this pioneering pro- ject. The team draws on the knowledge and experiences of the partner cities (Mexico City, Miami, Amman, and Cape Town). By work- ing collaboratively they recognise that Hull's problems are the same as those faced by major cities around the world. By linking up and sharing common problems, it is possible to come up with solutions on a global scale. Lee Pitcher, Yorkshire Water's head of resilience, is the general manager of the part- nership. He says its success is the result of the bravery of the vision and the open mind- set of the team. "Resilience is about helping our customers understand how they can help themselves and be part of a more inclu- sive solution." With this is mind, the partnership cre- ated the HULL-TIMATE Challenge, an urban obstacle course in Hull that taught partici- pants about flood warnings and planning for flood resistance. In the run-up to the main event, the team worked with schools, the National Citizen Service and their youth projects as well as mobilising 200 City of Cul- ture volunteers to help run the day. The pro- ject touched more than 10,000 residents and 1,200 children from 21 schools. Success depended on collaboration between City and County councils, the Envi- ronment Agency and, in this case, Yorkshire Water. If we are serious about tackling the water industry's challenges, then it is only sensible to engage the wider community. The Living with Water Partnership is a blueprint for what is achievable when a water company collaborates with external agencies to solve an urgent problem. Ofwat stresses that resilience and innovation are essential for the industry – it's time to think bigger and be braver about where future growth lies. AMP thinking will only take you so far. Alex Graham and Jamie Harrison, Egremont Group Stop, collaborate and listen… Alex Graham and Jamie Harrison report on a project in Hull that has brought together the water industry and the wider community to tackle water resilience. Painless procurement James Harrison and Warsha Kale reveal how to avoid procurement litigation. I n a world of ever-decreasing budgets, challenges to regulated procurements are, unsurprisingly, on the rise. Here are ten ideas to minimise the risk of procurement challenges in the courts. Choose your tender procedure carefully Carefully consider which procedure is most appropriate. Although the negotiated proce- dure (with prior call for competition) offers significant flexibility, it is not necessarily a default option. An innovation partnership may be more suitable and avoid embarrassing and potentially risky backtracking later on. A stitch in time saves nine Similarly, carefully thinking through, and documenting, the procurement requirement and the process at the beginning, and work- ing backwards, can help prevent future sur- prises. In a negotiated procedure, it is vital to consider, and set out in the procurement documentation, how o„en and how many candidates might be excluded earlier in the tender process, potentially before final offers. Word your Alcatel letter precisely The point of maximum risk to a procure- ment process is a„er the Alcatel letter has been issued, informing disappointed tender- ers that they have not won and giving them information to challenge the award, should they so wish. Although it is tempting to keep detail to a minimum, the time limits for a challenge may not apply if the letter does not contain all the necessary information. Foresee flexibility going forward And don't forget that the procurement rules continue to apply a„er a contract has been awarded, and any material changes to the contract could mean a fresh procurement process. Clearly providing in the contract for foreseeable changes can help reduce this risk. Keep a consistent record of "wash-ups" and other internal discussions The same, familiar, standards of trans- parency and equal treatment apply to the moderation stage. Internal notes must be

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