When you think of your cross-connection control program, what comes to mind? The on-site surveys (or “hazard assessments”)? Backflow preventer test tracking? Public awareness efforts? Customer communication? Data entry and record keeping? The list goes on and on—and virtually every aspect of a cross-connection control program has an administrative component. That means you need staff time and resources beyond the field work involved. But your administrative team has more on their plate across the water utility’s operations, with far more responsibilities outside of managing your cross-connection control program.
Administrative Tasks & Asks
Because successful cross-connection control programs necessitate many complex and moving parts, operating your program requires significant administrative lift. Your office staff might engage in activities like:
- Scheduling and rescheduling appointments
- Sending and tracking postal notifications
- Entering backflow test and survey data
- Confirming and approving backflow testers
- Following up on non-compliance
- Engaging your water customer base
That’s a lot of responsibilities—and a lot of time and resources. Especially when you consider that cross-connection control isn’t the full-time job of your administrative staff. Let’s take a mid-sized water utility as an example—a system with anywhere between 1,000 and 10,000 service connections.
Customer Support
The more service connections your utility has, the greater your need for customer support. From creating and rescheduling appointments to fielding requests for additional information to handling complaints, customer service is a big part of any successful cross-connection control program.
- 5-10% of water customers reach out with questions when you establish a new program
- 2-5% of water customers reach out with questions when you implement a significant change to your program
- The average customer call or email follow-up takes about 3 minutes
For a mid-sized water system, this can mean 25 to 50 administrative hours a month spent solely answering questions and providing customer support pertaining to your cross-connection control program. (And remember, this doesn’t include customer support for other areas of your utility’s operations like billing!)
No matter how much you automate processes, you will always need to devote staff time to answering questions and providing support for water customers. That means office staff need to have at least some technical training and the availability to take calls and answer emails about your program on an ongoing basis.
Postal Notifications
Cross-connection control programs require notifications at virtually every stage—for scheduling, testing, and both compliance and non-compliance. A system with 10,000 residential connections may send 30,000 notices (or more!) per year, depending on how responsive and engaged your customers are.
Per mailing cycle, mid-sized public water systems can spend 15-40 hours manually sending postal notifications. Software reduces that time, but preparing and mailing postal notifications can still take up to 15 hours each cycle, with manual staff time needed to:
- Sort and upload data into notice templates
- Print, fold, stuff, and mail notices
- Document notices that have been sent and when
Data Entry
Cross-connection control programs collect a serious amount of data. Someone has to input, track, analyze, and record all this data somehow. Manual data entry can consume up to 50 hours a month for a mid-sized public water system. Once again, software can cut down the number of hours you spend on data entry, but your team can still spend 10-20 hours monthly on data entry and management. These tasks include:
- Entering test forms and survey information
- Generating and tracking notices
- Keeping up with compliance documentation
Even though it’s tedious, precise data entry (and accurate data in general) is essential to any effective and compliant cross-connection control program, though it does require significant time investment.
Backflow Assembly & Tester Approvals
Finally, your utility needs to manage each step of the backflow preventer testing process. This includes maintaining records regarding tester certifications, as well reviewing and approving test results when they come in. Mid-sized water systems can spend up to 20 hours a month on device and tester approvals, completing tasks like:
- Accepting new testers into the system
- Reviewing and approving tester credentials
- Reviewing and approving submissions for new devices, replacements, and removals
Time, Money, & Other Limited Resources
Bringing everything together—just for administrative work—your office staff can easily spend 70 to 100 hours a month on cross-connection control, even with digital tools and efficient processes. At a salary of $75,000/year, you could be spending more than $2,500 to $3,600 every single month purely on administrative labor for your program.
Not to mention, these tasks often take away from other critical work, resulting in deferred maintenance and increased liability risk. Plus, we haven’t even mentioned the time, training, and dollars it takes to send certified surveyors on-site to each connection in your water system.
Depending on your water system, your community, and your cross-connection control needs, it may be time to consider whether your administrative staff’s time could be better used in service of their core responsibilities—rather than splitting their time and getting less of your system and your customer’s needs met on all sides.
Outsourcing cross-connection control program activities—including on the administrative side—can reduce the burden on your staff, while saving your utility money. HydroCorp, with our ASSE-certified customer support, managed postal notifications, and proprietary software designed for cross-connection control, virtually eliminates the administrative burden on water system staff, freeing up their time and allowing them to focus on their core responsibilities.
Ready to learn more about how HydroCorp can support your public water systems cross-connection control efforts?
