In an Expert Focus article for Waterbriefing, Steve Morris, Managing Director of Huber Technology UK examines how the extended supply chain is looking to meet the requirements of both the water companies and their Tier 1 alliance contractors in the upcoming AMP6 investment programme.

Steve Morris: Most of the UK water companies have now announced details of the Tier 1 contractors and alliances who will be working with them to deliver the upcoming programme of AMP 6 work which kicks off on 1st April.

Anglian Water’s recent announcement of the final members of its alliance partners brings its Tier 1 AMP6 procurement process to an end and the water company will now start running procurement processes to appoint its Tier 2 partners to service the four alliances.

For Tier 2 companies like Huber, this next stage of AMP6 is a particularly important period for us. 

As a Tier 2 company which already works for a number of the UK water companies on the current AMP5 frameworks, we’ve made it a priority to keep up to speed with the changes brought about by the PR14 Price Review. We’re particularly aware that the change to Totex has changed the approach for the water sector as a whole and that we’re likely to see a significant shift in emphasis in AMP6 towards a more maintenance-led approach. And we also understand that a move towards outcomes rather than outputs means that the industry is now adopting a different mindset.

Any supplier who is committed to working in the sector in the long term will know that this is a game changer and put real thought into how the products and services they provide can help the water companies deliver on their outcomes.

It might only be the start of AMP6 but it is likely to be characterised throughout by a focus on maintenance as opposed to capital-intensive solutions we’ve seen in the past. This means the water companies will be looking in particular in maintaining their existing assets to keep them operating at optimum performance levels.  Which is where organisations like Huber have been making a real effort to understand what this means in how they can really help in terms of delivering operational performance and resilience of equipment.

We know that partnering and collaborative delivery models will be key to helping the water companies meet customer expectations and keep costs under control. Like the Tier 1 Alliances, the Tier 2 companies would welcome the opportunity in AMP6 for early stage involvement in the many projects which will be undertaken during the next five years. Tapping into the expertise and skill sets of specialist technology and service providers will yield innovative approaches and solutions to a range of different problems and challenges which we can also see in context.

For instance, in our own particular field, we are well aware that a fall-away in performance in an operational process will probably be accompanied by deterioration in terms of energy use and carbon emissions.  Associated failures at sewage or water treatment works with plant outages and downtime can frequently entail significant and unplanned for costs - not forgetting inconvenience to customers and a worst case scenario can lead to legal action by regulators and the courts.

We know that AMP6 will see a greatly increased focus on increased levels of maintenance to optimise and enhance the performance of existing assets and we see a clear need for suppliers of technology to bring added value to their customers above and beyond selling them equipment.

At Huber we’ve already taken steps to put measures in place for example by providing a dedicated after sales service – including the provision of emergency hire equipment – to ensure that sites and plant are kept operational 24/7.

They can also  bring additional value by providing invaluable input into how day-to-day processes can be used to best effect – quite apart from reacting quickly to emergency problems, plant failures etc.

Even at Tier 2 level, the ongoing involvement of an experienced team with a thorough understanding of key issues can yield innovative solutions to problems. Collaboration in the supply chain doesn’t stop with the Tier 1 alliances – water companies looking to deliver the best service to their customers will be actively seeking to drive it at every level of the process.

While the Tier 1s are already well under way with their AMP6 procedures it’s still early days for the Tier 2s. So what would Tier 2 companies like to see more of in AMP6 to help them demonstrate what they can bring to the party?

Good visibility still remains an issue, and the opportunity to talk regularly to the decision makers and specifiers about what’s coming down the line and more specific timelines for upcoming investment plans would be invaluable. We can see the overall picture in the AMP6 Business Plans but knowing what’s planned and when would really make a difference. For companies like ourselves with such a wide range of products, supplying small and large treatment works, initiatives like the innovation days held by the water companies, as well as the Alliances’ own events for their extended supply chain are particularly important as they offer us a real opportunity to explain how we can help.

Like any Tier 2 company committed to working within the water companies in AMP6 we’re already putting our own plans in place on how we can best deliver.  The upside of having involvement further down the supply chain at an early stage of the proceedings means organisations with specialist skill sets, knowledge and expertise can often bring new insights and innovative approaches to existing processes and problems. Understanding and addressing the priorities of our customers’ AMP6 objectives is essential.

To mention just a couple of Huber’s own initiatives, we are busy developing template solutions and packaged plant designs to help customers at the initial design stage and will ultimately lead to an increase in off-site build and consequently a reduction in site installation time. Over the last AMP period Huber has opened regional service depots in Rotherham, Perth, and Portadown, along with a regional sales office in Huddersfield to supplement our head office facility in Chippenham. We have a team of dedicated area managers based at these centres as a first port of call for the twelve water companies we already work with. This ensures we can respond quickly to any queries or problems.

We also provide a dedicated hire and trials service for an extensive range of waste water treatment machines which can be installed into service rapidly and ensure that sites are kept at full working capacity. We know that this is invaluable to our customers – whether their works are being refurbished and they need a temporary solution, they want to supplement their existing processing capacity or they have an operational problem which needs sorting out urgently. We have developed preventive maintenance plans for many of our customers and we are seeing an increasing uptake in these programmes, further demonstrating the growing importance of extending asset life and maintaining performance.  

Last but not least, the water companies are facing ongoing challenges during AMP6 and beyond to contain costs and manage their energy use and carbon emissions. In an investment programme where the water companies will be looking to maintain and get the best out of their existing assets, Tier 2 companies like Huber that will really work with customers to provide life-long assistance to ensure the optimal operation, functionality and performance of their equipment are keen to have as many opportunities as possible to show how they can help.