[WATER-UTILITY] From www.garynorth.com
'Category:
Programmers'_Views
Date:
1998-05-07 12:01:44
Subject:
Water in Colorado Springs
Comment:
Colorado Springs. It has such a nice sound to it. Springs. As in water.
They'll need it.
The thing that pushed me into high gear on y2k was a posting on Peter
de Jager's forum on December 6, 1996. Martyn Emery reported on a
visit he had made to an unnamed English city. He had asked a local
manufacturer how many of the factory's processes depended on
water. At least 50, he was told. Then he visited the local water utility.
He asked: "Are you Year 2000 compliant?" They had not begun the
repair.
In January, 1997, I put up this site. I have donated 20 to 30 hours a
week to it ever since.
Here is a recent posting on de Jager's site. It confirms Emery's
observation, except that it is now 18 months later.
* * * * * * * *
Date: Wed, 06 May 1998
I'm scared. When I read Yourdon and other experts who are
predicting dire consequences in the year 2000, I thought that they were
overstating the issue for dramatic effect, and to sell books. After just
completing a tour of the city of Colorado Springs water treatment
plant, I do not think that the problem has been overstated.
We have an amazing water treatment plant here. They have
modernized and improved it over the last thirty years till it is considered
one of the best in the country. Where all controls and functions were
performed by hand in the past, almost all of it is controlled by
computers. They have weather satellite access to monitor incoming
storms (which effect demand and supply), stream level sensors
relayed back via satellite, and computer monitored and controlled
pumps and pressure sensors throughout the 2,000+ miles of water
supply pipe. Runs very efficiently. Today.
At the end of their presentation, I asked about their Year 2000
preparations. They had little to offer, except that their main computer
was a VAX running VMS, and that they were going to upgrade the
OS to level 8 at some point which they had been told would make
them Y2K compliant. They have done no other work on the issue!
But, "they had a committee which will meet tomorrow for the first time
to begin planning." With all the computers I saw in every lab and
office, all the sensors and embedded systems, all the radio, microwave,
telephone and satellite communications, all the pump and valve controls
and sensors they bragged about, I have little hope that a committee
meeting for the first time tomorrow will complete all of its work in a
year and a half. Drinking water may become a valuable commodity in
the year 2000.
After asking about the Y2K problem, the four other people on the tour
asked what I was referring to. None of them had heard of it. When I
very briefly explained, only one of the four paid attention, the others
quickly went on to chatting about other things. I take two lessons from
this: each of us on this list must go out and find out if "our suppliers"
are doing their Y2K work. We must also work to inform the rest of
our communities if we want to have any hope of averting disaster.
-- Opinions are my own and not those of my employer. --
Richard T. Blackburn, Sr. Prog. Analyst
Federal Express Corp., SMS/USC
rtblackb@fedex.com, (719)262-1830
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