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Speaking

May 1 - 4, 2023

Hampton Roads Convention Center Hampton, Virginia Visit Event Website

Wednesday, May 3
3:00 pm

Gone are the days of spending countless hours (and dollars) combing through CCTV footage. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a tool incorporating machine learning algorithms that capture and recreate a person's workflow and thought process in coding and performing the QA/QC of sewer inspections.

With this technology, the time required in the field to obtain and review inspection data is substantially reduced, and the accuracy of defects identified and coded is increased. Removing the burden of coding all defects from the contractor allows them to inspect more footage in a day and reduce the cost-per-foot for the owner.

The AI platform developed by Burgess & Niple also incorporates GIS into the reporting by creating a digital twin of the collection system. This shows the condition of sewer assets and geospatially locates each defect and construction feature along a pipe. The digital twin allows utility providers a more effective way to maintain their system by creating a central hub to quickly visualize the condition of each pipe.

This presentation will focus on a case study of a municipality in Ohio. The municipality budgeted multiple years and hundreds of thousands of dollars to inspect their sewers. AI cut the project timeline and cost in half while providing more accurate and detailed data.

Join Josh and Chris as they demonstrate the benefits of using AI as a low-cost way to evaluate systems and better maintain assets to prioritize rehabilitation and coordinate with other capital improvement projects. 

B&N Presenters:

Joshua Ford, PE

Chris Dommert, PE

Thursday, May 4
10:00 am

In the context of an organization, culture is defined as the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization. It should be no surprise that organizational culture plays a significant role in attracting and retaining staff. A recent Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) study analyzed employee resignations between April and September 2021, when more than 24 million Americans left their jobs. While it’s impossible to ignore compensation as a factor of attrition, the MIT study found that organizational culture can have up to ten times (10x) the impact that compensation has in relation to employee resignations. Key cultural drivers identified in the study included:

  • No or Toxic Culture – failure to promote diversity, equity and inclusion; feeling disrespected or unethical behavior.
  • Job Insecurity – negative assessment of the future organizational outlook.
  • Failure to recognize employee performance – either failure to reward strong performers or tolerating underperformers.
  • Poor response to Covid-19 – Poor communication or consideration of employee wellbeing.

While B&N has always valued our organizational culture, developing our 2021-2024 strategic plan brought culture to the forefront of our conversations. It started with clearly defining our purpose and our core values. With these key elements defined, our team moved forward to specify action items to reinforce these values and continue to shape our culture. A key item was the formation of a culture committee to bring together different parts of the organization that may otherwise have limited interaction. This provides two key benefits: obtaining different perspectives throughout the organization and allowing those individuals to return to their respective parts of the organization and share the information they’ve gathered.

The purpose of the paper and presentation will be to:

  • Discuss what organizational culture is and how it impacts employee retention.
  • Identify keys to defining and establishing your organizational culture.
  • Examine action items to shape your organizational culture and build a cohesive team.
B&N Presenters:

Chris Dommert, PE

Justin Hunt, PE, LEED AP, CEM

Joshua Ford, PE, Project Engineer

JOSHUA FORD, PE
Project Engineer

Chris Dommert, PE, Project Manager

CHRIS DOMMERT, PE
Project Manager

Justin Hunt, PE, LEED AP, CEM, Mechanical Engineer

JUSTIN HUNT, PE, LEED AP, CEM
Mechanical Engineer