Virginia Tech Survey Participation Decision Documents - State and Local Governments

[TO BE SENT VIA EMAIL]

From: Virginia Tech

To: <Name & Email Address>

Subject: Collection and Compilation of Water Pipeline Field Performance Data

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Dear <First Name> <Last Name>,

Virginia Tech would like to invite you to participate in this very important national survey titled “Collection and Compilation of Water Pipeline Field Performance Data.” This research is being conducted on behalf of the United States Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) to collect field performance data of water pipelines (potable, raw, and reuse water) of different materials, including cast iron, ductile iron, pretensioned concrete, reinforced concrete, steel, thermoplastic, and prestressed concrete. This project will aid in the development of a national water Pipeline Infrastructure Database (PIPEiD) capable of efficiently and securely storing the collected data, conducting performance analysis, and conducting life-cycle economic analysis of water pipeline infrastructure systems. PIPEiD will help advance the understanding of water pipeline performance parameters as well as the development of reliable models and tools.

The ultimate project objective of this federally supported research (OMB Control Number: 1006-XXXX, expires MM/DD/YYYY) is to collect high-quality field data on the performance of water pipelines of different materials.

Your participation is completely voluntary. We would like to have an introductory webinar (30 min) with all related personnel from your utility/facility (asset management, engineering, GIS, or any other related department) to discuss your collaboration for this project. We would greatly appreciate your response to this matter at your earliest possible convenience.

Following the conference call, the data and information collection invitation will be sent to you via email with a link to the PIPEiD Database and data upload instructions. There are some portions of the data upload that you may want to complete yourself, but you may also forward the data upload request to others in your facility if you would like someone else to complete it. We estimate that the data collection and upload could take 110 minutes and we anticipate that many facilities will have a data analyst perform this activity.

If you have any questions regarding this study, please contact Dr. Sunil Sinha, ssinha@vt.ed, (540) 231-9420.

Thank you in advance for your time and participation in this very important national initiative.

Sincerely,

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dr. Sunil Sinha

Professor and Director

The Charles E. Via Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Sustainable Water Infrastructure Management (SWIM) Center

VIRGINIA TECH

200 Patton Hall, Mail Code: 0105

750 Drillfield Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24061

Phone: 540-231-9420 | Fax: 540-231-7532 | Email: ssinha@vt.edu

Paperwork Reduction Act: The purpose of this survey is to collect high-quality field data on the performance of water pipelines of different materials. The reporting burden for this survey is estimated to average 150 minutes, which includes the time for initial decision, introductory webinar, reviewing instructions and completing and uploading the data. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. Please direct comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this survey to the Principal Investigator, Dr. Sunil Sinha, Professor and Director, 200 Patton Hall, 750 Drillfield Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24060.

Privacy Act Statement: No Privacy Act information is being collected.