Water management plays a pivotal role in maintaining the safety and efficiency of our buildings. As engineers and plumbing professionals, understanding the intricacies of water management best practices can guide our designs and ensure they meet industry standards.
Understanding water management programs
Water management programs are designed to identify and control risks in water systems that can lead to the growth of waterborne pathogens such as Legionella. High-risk conditions like water stagnation, elevated cold-water temperatures, and sediment accumulation are often the focus of these programs.
Water management programs are now an industry standard for many buildings in the United States and are necessary to meet ASHRAE Standards 188 and 514, The Joint Commission, and other regulatory agencies.
Developing a water management program
Water management programs are site-specific and tailored to each building’s unique risks, needs, and water quality goals, and should be developed by an ASSE 12080-Certified Legionella Water Safety Specialist.
The steps to developing a water management program include:
- System walkthrough: An experienced water management professional conducts an on-site walkthrough (or reviews plumbing schematics for planned systems) to assess water system components and identify potential areas at risk for Legionella growth. Building usage and occupant risk are also evaluated.
- Plan and team development: Information from the walkthrough is used to identify control measures, corrective actions, and procedures. The plan should be specific to the site’s unique risks and needs while leveraging best practice resources from ASHRAE, the American Society of Plumbing Engineers (ASPE), CDC, EPA, etc.
- Implementation: A team of internal staff and those involved with the plumbing design, maintenance, and operation of the building water systems execute the plan. The design process should factor in water management, and engineers should coordinate design methods and technology with water management compliance and practices. All actions and observations should be thoroughly documented.
Water management design considerations for engineers
When designing a building water system, there are several ways that plumbing engineers and designers can incorporate water management.
Here are the seven key elements of a water management program and examples of what plumbing engineers should consider for each one.
- Program team: Determine who will be responsible for program development and implementation. It should include internal personnel like facility managers and infection prevention, and external personnel like water treatment providers and plumbing engineers.
- Water systems description: Provide a comprehensive description of the water systems within the building and develop water system schematics. This could include water treatment systems, backflow prevention, softeners, etc.
- Water systems analysis: Conduct a systematic evaluation of hazardous conditions of all building water systems. This could include usage points, pumps, cooling towers, water heaters, etc.
- Control measures: Determine where control measures must be applied and make sure they are maintained within established limits. This could include maintaining established hot water temperatures from generation, storage distribution, and return, flushing programs, balancing, etc.
- Monitoring/corrective actions: Establish procedures for monitoring whether control measures operate within established limits and, if not, take corrective actions. This could include inline probes, sensors, automatic flushing, automatic balancing, etc.
- Confirmation: Establish procedures to confirm that the program is being implemented as designed and controls hazardous conditions. This could include automatic alerts and data trending.
- Documentation: Establish documentation and communication procedures for all activities of the program. This could include automatic data logging, cloud-based monitoring, and automatic alarm.
Understanding and implementing these considerations in your designs ensures optimal water management and compliance with industry standards, contributing to safer buildings.
Download: Water Management Guide for Plumbing Engineers
Fill out the form below to download our Water Management Guide for Plumbing Engineers that includes:
- Steps to developing a water management program
- Water management practices to consider when designing building water systems
