The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) is requesting submittals for public water supply system infrastructure improvements to be considered for loan financing through the Kansas Public Water Supply Loan Fund (KPWSLF) http://www.kdheks.gov/pws/loan/loanfund.htm.  There is approximately $60 million available for new projects.

Proposed projects may be submitted using the KPWSLF project submission form http://www.kdheks.gov/pws/loan/submital.pdf . These forms must be submitted to KDHE by May 31, 2012 to be considered for funding after July 1, 2012!

Tri-State Engineering is prepared to assist Kansas municipalities and rural water districts in competing for these loan funds for water system improvements. These project proposal applications require an engineering study and report, design/build or design/bid/build project delivery and a designated Project Manager with a Kansas License for Professional Engineering. We desire to help in any way we can to secure funding for needed water system improvements for your community.

Contacts:

Linda White 785-296-5514 (for paper copies of necessary forms)

William J. Carr 785-296-0735 (KPWSLF Program Coordinator)

Gabe Lett 417-781-0643 (Tri-State Engineering)

Congratulations to Jared Carey, TSE’s Director of Emerging Technologies! Jared recently completed all coursework to receive his Certificate in Geographic Information Science from the University of West Florida. This certification allows Jared to pursue the next level of professional recognition in the practice of GIS mapping the Geographic Information Systems Professional (GISP).

GIS is both a science and a tool used by many industries to observe, analyze, and interact with various information pertaining to geography.  It essentially ties databases to geographic features and allows for much more visual knowledge to be assessed using a spatially-oriented computer program.

Jared is using these skills and technology to benefit TSE’s engineering and surveying services as a value-added benefit to TSE’s clientele. Many clients have already experienced these benefits and are making more efficient and accurate decisions for their companies and organizations.

We’ve officially entered into a new calendar year. TSE has made no New Year’s resolutions and we are not going to pretend to turn over a new leaf. Why you ask? Reviewing our performance and making improvements is an everyday effort, not just a once a year effort.

So rather than using a clichéd opportunity to tell our clients, fans, business partners and friends how we intend to approach 2012, we rather turn our attention to the process of an engineer’s performance. In other words, when you hire TSE, what should you expect?  

“Our past performance is the best indicator of our future success.”
(I have no idea who said that first, but I cannot take credit for it.)

In 2011, TSE continued providing efficient, cost-sensitive, quality engineering for our public and private clients. I wish to unpack this statement;

    *Efficient – We respond to our clients’ deadlines and timeframes for design plans early, on time or rarely late. TSE works the necessary hours to get it done!

    *Cost-Sensitive – We are cognizant of the owner’s budgeted costs and will find a way to make it work. TSE has an excellent track record of estimating construction costs accurately to provide a competitive bidding environment.

    *Quality – The technical specifications of a design must be accurate, but also must display common sense. TSE has a nose for creating designs the accurate common sense way.

In 2011, TSE made new friends and took on some new challenges. 

    *We worked with a government contractor to develop quick site development plans for hundreds of temporary housing units for displaced families in Joplin, MO after the May 22 tornado.

    *Several private residential developers chose TSE to assist in platting subdivisions and designing utilities, streets, and drainage for new homes in the Joplin area.

    *Many new clients showed an interest in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping and TSE grew in our ability to perform these services.

TSE is entering its 33rd year of business. Our track record demonstrates our ability to continue on a path of helping clients get their projects completed successfully. We have made many friends along the way and look forward to new friends to serve.

Have you ever hired a civil engineer only to discover that you really hired a politician? What do I mean by this question?

While the debates and campaigns heat up for the 2012 Elections, everyone who’s paying any attention will notice more talking points dribble, increased sound bite statements and broken record answers. We all tire very quickly of candidate-speak which aims for media attention and easy answers to complex problems. We elect Presidents and other public “servants” hearing only polished and market-friendly phrases completely devoid of real solutions.

Unfortunately, civil engineers can sometimes fall into the same lazy habits of offering simplistic superficial answers. For example, when was the last time you heard a civil engineer tell you, “We have a track record of success in performing on time and within budget. Our Project Managers will listen to your needs and devise a plan to deliver results.” So what’s the problem with such a statement? It’s what they are not telling you that matters.

What you are not hearing is that they perform on time and within budget by delivering incomplete plans, shoddy details, and calculation mistakes. The plans that delivered results were fixed with multiple change orders by the contractor to “make it work.” In the end, the client pays more construction costs, gets little to no construction phase services and is frustrated with the engineer’s unresponsiveness after getting their design fees paid.

We all discover the same kind of results from elected officials after the campaign smoke clears. What they say to get elected ends up being quite different from what actually gets done. Some engineering firms will use the same tricks to get you to “elect” them for your project only to deliver service that is quite different when the project dust settles. Do not allow yourself to be an uninformed prospect or voter.

Spot the politician engineers calling on you for your business and put them to the test. Ask specific and tough questions and see what you get. Some of the sound bite responses that are regurgitated over and over have the following phrases;

1. We’ll work hard to deliver results.
2. We’ll be on time and within budget.
3. We’re nationally recognized and awarded.
4. We design solutions specifically to meet your needs.
5. Our engineers and technical personnel have extensive experience.
6. Our expert staff will listen and understand your challenges and provide solutions.

You get the picture! What you really need to hear is someone who will ask a lot of questions and listen more than they speak. Only when a thorough understanding of your project needs and challenges is achieved will the right professional engineer be able to perform the right solutions. While this approach is more laborious and time intensive, it gets to the deeper issues which require more than sound bite solutions. Do not be fooled by slick marketing and idealistic distortions. Be a savvy buyer cutting through the fluff and discovering what a professional engineer can actually do for you.

Link: http://www.ksdot.org:9080/burl​ocalproj/Forms/Off-System_Brid​ge_Program_FFY2013.pdf

KDOT's Off System Bridge Program can provide funding for your bridge project in FY 2013. Please follow the link to learn more about the application process. We can help you with the necessary engineering requirements to make your application competitive. Let us know how we can help.

Link: http://www.dnr.mo.gov/transform/energizemissouriwater.htm

The department has made Energize Missouri Water loans available through funding received from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

The Water and Wastewater Energy Loan program will provide low-interest loans for Missouri municipalities and entities to implement energy efficiency retrofits and upgrades water and wastewater facilities. The department is offering up to $10 million in financing with a 3 percent annual interest rate for eligible projects.

Loans funds will provide Missouri's water and wastewater facilities with the opportunity to realize measurable energy savings that will result in reduced energy costs. The department will issue loans from $100,000 to $1.5 million per applicant. The department will pay 75 percent of the loan amount upfront. The remaining 25 percent will be paid upon completion of the project.

Tri-State Engineering recently obtained certification as a HUBZone Small Business. The federal government creates “set aside” goals on certain contracts to be performed by HUBZone businesses. TSE is a 31-year quality provider of civil engineering and land surveying services positioned to serve as a prime consultant or sub-consultant.

If you are a federal contracting officer, a federal prime consultant or a federal contractor in need of professional civil engineering or surveying services, we are interested in hearing from you. TSE is ready to perform!

Link: http://bit.ly/eO5NHJ

KDOT is renewing its Transportation Revolving Fund (TRF) loan program. TSE can design it while KDOT helps you fund it. http://bit.ly/eO5NHJ

Do you really understand what we need?

Cities and towns need public infrastructure to be built and maintained with the least amount of disruption and cost. These municipal clients look for engineers who understand that the shortest disruption time and the lowest cost drive the decisions of nearly every city council. These decision-makers also want the truth, even if it means a longer schedule or greater cost.

1. Don’t design a Cadillac when a Chevrolet will do.
2. Keep ALL decision-makers informed of project status regularly.
3. Educate clients on infrastructure design options to empower their decision-making abilities.

Can you do what you claim?

Promote accurate qualifications in the areas of our experience, proven by a track-record of success and referenced by satisfied clients. Conversely, know who to refer a client to when their need exceeds our level of expertise and follow through to insure a secure handoff to another professional.

Will you work well with us?

Know TSE’s sweet spot when it comes to client demographic. Small to mid-sized towns and cities that have Midwestern natives as decision-makers tend to be our best and longest lasting clients. TSE also works best with private sector clients such as residential and commercial developers who fit the Midwestern native demographic.

These folks expect diligent hard work accompanied by honesty and integrity. They expect this because they display the same values. On the contrary, TSE does not traditionally do well with clients that have a “coastal” mentality of hurry, hurry obnoxious directives that just want the work done, even if it means harming relationships along the way, ignoring ethical practices, or cutting corners.

Across Missouri thousands of abandoned drinking water wells pose a significant threat to the quality of groundwater upon which public water systems and private well owners rely for safe, dependable drinking water. The total number of abandoned drinking water wells in Missouri is unknown, but estimates suggest that as many as 500,000 or more of these potential hazards dot our landscape, In addition to posting a physical hazard to humans and wildlife, alike, these abandoned wells constitute a serious threat for the contamination and impairment of our subsurface waters.

MDNR recognizes the value in protecting these underground reserves and has a mission to protect them for the use and enjoyment of Missourians for generations to come. Remediation of a contaminated aquifer can cost millions of dollars to a community or region that depends on groundwater for drinking water and other uses such as industrial, agricultural, or recreational applications. Preventing an aquifer from becoming contaminated is more efficient and much less constantly than having to remediate a contaminated groundwater source.

The department is pleased to announce that it is developing an opportunity to provide community public water systems in Missouri that utilize groundwater as their primary water source funding to properly plug abandoned water wells that occur within or near their source water areas.

For general questions about source water protection or additional information about this opportunity please contact Kenneth P. Tomlin of the Public Drinking Water Branch, Water Protection Program, Division of Environmental Quality, MDNR at 573-526-0269 or via email at ken.tomlin@dnr.mo.gov.

(Missouri Department of Natural Resources Staff, Missouri Water Lines, July 2010, pg.13)