Water & Wastewater Treatment Magazine
Issue link: https://fhpublishing.uberflip.com/i/670657
10 | Book your free ckets today www.u lityweeklive.co.uk Water "The market will open on me. The assurance process is about building confi dence… I don't see us ge ng to spring 2017 without people knowing where the process is at." Ben Jeff s, Chief execu ve, MOSL " The arrival of AMP6 in April 2015 was meant to herald a new era for the water sector, with the peaks and troughs tradi onally associated with the fi ve-yearly regulatory cycle fi nally consigned to the scrapheap as a result of early contractor involvement and advanced investment by the water companies. Just over a year later and the reality is very diff erent, with reports of slow project start-ups, and complaints by the sector's supply chain of a long drawn-out and ineffi cient framework procurement process. The problem, it would seem, is that the sector is struggling to cope with the host of new challenges that came with AMP6 – namely adop ng a Totex culture as well as Outcome Delivery Incen ves (ODIs). Throw in the introduc on of non-domes c retail compe on in England as well as the transfer of private pumping sta ons to the water companies next year, and the industry is facing some major challenges. The U lity Week Live water theatre will be shining a light on some of these key opera onal and strategic challenges in a series of thought- provoking sessions. Take Totex, for instance. This will the subject of a session on the fi rst day (May 17) where Ynon Gablinger, Ofwat principal, analy cs, and Arcadis head of asset management Luke Dirou will focus on the sector's drive for greater cost-effi ciency and improved customer service during AMP6. The discussion will address the challenges that this new culture brings for water companies and their contractors. The introduc on of compe on in the non- domes c market in England will be among the historic moments of the water industry since priva sa on nearly 30 years ago. Helping to shed some light on whether the sector is prepared and the opportuni es to be gained from compe on will be MOSL chief execu ve Ben Jeff s; Graham Southall, Thames Water Commercial Services commercial director; CGI water sector client director Stuart Brand; and Gemserv chief opera ons offi cer Ken McRae. There will be no be er place to keep abreast of water industry developments than in the U lity Week Live Water Theatre.