Environmental Engineering Case Study: Brown and Caldwell

Brown and Caldwell, an environmental firm, works with water and wastewater agencies across the United States. They were seeking advanced technologies and tools to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and increase accuracy to meet clients’ most pressing needs. As utilities look to create more comprehensive inventories of their water and wastewater systems, mobile apps and tablet devices are being used to collect data and help build the foundation for robust asset management systems. In particular, the use of mobile apps and smart devices has proven to improve productivity for the geographical location, inspection, and assessment of wastewater collection systems. However, before the switch to mobile technology, the Brown and Caldwell team gathered historical data from record drawings into GIS and exported them to paper map books. Inspection crews would attempt to locate these structures. Paper forms were used to get collection condition information. More than 60,000 photos were taken using digital cameras. Another team of surveyors, both conventional and GPS-equipped, would follow to get to precise location and rim elevation of these structures. Areas that had been redeveloped or which contained new structures proved problematic for the two crews. Overall, project workflows were prone to disruption, and were large, complicated, and had intersecting tasks.

Brown and Caldwell is an employee-owned, 100-percent environmental firm serving clients locally and globally. With a history rooted in water and wastewater engineering, the firm provides full-service delivery of engineering, scientific, consulting and construction services and all the essential ingredients® for a successful project and a standout experience. They work with water and wastewater agencies across the United States, and continue to seek out and use advanced technologies and cutting-edge tools to improve efficiency, reduce costs and increase accuracy to meet clients’ most pressing needs.