The research objective of this Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program project is to enrich the state of decision-making as it applies to pipe infrastructure asset management and renewal programs. Developing an efficient infrastructure management system can provide fast and reliable decision-making tools that are needed to handle the large volume of deteriorating buried pipeline infrastructure systems, particularly drinking water and wastewater pipelines, which pose serious threats to the environment if they fail. The multidisciplinary initiative integrates research and education while unifying the activities associated with sustainable water infrastructure management systems. The SWIMS research investigates how an innovative evaluation system, renewal engineering, and visualization system can be integrated for efficient water and wastewater pipeline management, and evaluates this approach in a real-world project. SWIMS, an engineered management system, is equipping engineers with the decision support tools needed to decide, when, where and how to best maintain pipeline systems.
Education is critically needed in the areas of civil infrastructure failure, sensor technology and rehabilitation to give both students and the engineering workforce the skills needed to revitalize and preserve our nations civil infrastructure system. This research program benefits the overall education of undergraduate, graduate and extension students in a number of ways, including research infrastructure developments, incorporation of new knowledge in teaching and research, continuous training and education of professional engineers and scientists, and public education in sustainable resource development and operations. Strong emphasis is placed on the recruiting, mentoring and retention of students from minority institutions. K-12 students and their parents are educated about the challenges of civil infrastructure renewal and the opportunities that co-exist in allied engineering disciplines through a hands-on educational experience. The SWIMS program is envisioned as a model system that can be implemented by municipalities and institutions across the country, and possibly worldwide.
