Delivering water with Denver Water’s chess masters

How operators distribute a reliable and efficient supply to one-quarter of the state’s population

photo depicts Phil Malone, one of the team of system operators at Denver Water.

Like playing a geographically dispersed game of chess with nearly 7,500 pieces, system operators like Phil Malone spend their days monitoring dozens of computer screens, making adjustments and decisions that run Denver Water’s entire water distribution system — one that requires strategy, analysis, and forethought with every move.

Operators scan a wall tiled with computer screens to make sure 30 underground treated water storage tanks, more than 3,000 miles of pipe, 140 pressure zones and 23 pump stations are running efficiently. After more than 20 years operating Denver Water’s complex distribution system, Malone has mastered this chess match.

Phil Malone has been a Denver Water system operator for more than 20 years. During that time, he has seen the complexity of the system, and his responsibilities, grow. “Our responsibility is to make sure our water system is ready to meet customer water demands without fail each day, while also making sure water quality remains high and we’re being fiscally responsible. We know we’ve done our jobs well when customers turn on their faucets and our high-quality water flows out,” said Malone. When Malone first […]

Full article: Delivering water with Denver’s chess masters