At the awards and luncheon closing finale for HydroVision International 2013 in Denver last week, the winners of the Best Technical Papers awards were announced by Hydro Review Senior Editor Elizabeth Ingram.
These awards are given to the strongest technical papers presented over the three days of the conference program. The winners were chosen by the HydroVision International 2013 technical papers committee. Committee members reviewed all technical papers and poster gallery presentations received in five categories:
- Environmental & Social
- Equipment & Technology
- Market Trends & Strategies
- Project Management & Operations
- Water Management & Movement
Awards were announced for the first, second and third place winners in each of these categories.
For Environmental & Social, the winners were:
- First place, Innovative Fish Passage: A Cost-Effective Solution for High-Head Hydro by Ryan Greif with Mead & Hunt, Kai Steimle and Newhalen Associates, Richard Brown with Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and Dan Gessler with Alden Research Laboratory
- Second place, Development and Application of a Mechanistic Model to Predict Juvenile Salmon Swim Paths by Antonio Arenas Amado, Marcela Politano, Larry Weber and Santiago Lopez, all with IIHR Hydroscience & Engineering at the University of Iowa, and Mark Timko with Blue Leaf Environmental.
- Third place, Endangered Species Consultation — Why Does It Take So Long and What Can Be Done to Shorten the Process? by Alan D. Mitchnick with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
For Equipment & Technology, the winners were:
- First place, Upgrading an Existing Pumped Storage Power Plant into a Variable Speed by J.M. Henry and F. Maurer with Alstom and J.L. Drommi and T. Sautereau with EDF
- Second place, Improved Governor Response at the Dinorwig Power Station by Greg Yohe with American Governor Company and Toni Jones with GDF Suez/Mitsui
- Third place, A Support System for Real-Time Performance Evaluation and Production Optimization in a Hydro Power Plant in the Brazilian System by Marcelo Marcel Cordova, Erlon Cristian Finardi and Murilo Reolon Scuzziato with LabPlan; Fernando Antonio Camargo Ribas and Christiano Daolosto Pase with Tractebel Energy; Vitor Luiz de Matos with Plan4 Engenharia; and Fabio Renato Martins and Felipe Azevedo Brown do Coutto with M&D Monitoracao e Diagnose
For Market Trends & Strategies, the winners were:
- First place, Risk-Based Asset Management Plan of the Exploits River Hydroelectric System by Satish Bhan, Francois Welt, Andrew Bridgeman and Richard Donnelly with Hatch Ltd. and Jason King with Nalcor Energy
- Second place, Hardfill on the Ohio River, Optimizing the Use of Construction Materials by Brandi Antal, Terry Arnold, Christ Konstantellos and Stefano Truschke with MWH Americas and Phil Meier with American Municipal Power
- Third place, A Case Study in Expediting Capital Decisions Using Cross-Functional Teams by David Schwall with Avista Utilities and Kirsten Gable with Sapere Consulting
For Project Management & Operations, the winners were:
- First place, Lower Baker Hydroelectric Project Facility Control System Design — Effectively Combining Licensing and Operational Requirements by Ryan Murphy with Puget Sound Energy and Bruce Benson with Black & Veatch
- Second place, Dam Safety Alternatives Analysis Using Optimized Hydropower Simulations by Nicholas Miller with GEI Consultants and Jake Eymann with El Dorado Irrigation District
- Third place, Optimization of the Hydro Power Generation System at TransAlta by German Mojica with TransAlta, Massimiliano Parissi with Kisters North America and Alexander Schwaigkofler with Kisters AG
For Water Management & Movement, the winners were:
- First place, Alkali-Silica Reactivity at Roanoke Rapids Dam — Investigation, Design, Remedial Construction and Safely Managing Concrete Growth by John Cima with Dominion Resources Services and Brian Reinicker with HDR Engineering
- Second place, Crucial Role of Physical Modeling in Developing the Configuration of the Intake Headwork Structures by Nancy Sims and Brian Hughes with Northwest Hydraulic Consultants and Don Murray and Amir Alavi with Hatch Ltd.
- Third place, Hydraulic Analysis of a Pumped Storage Pond Using Complementary Methods by Timothy Sassaman, Andrew Johansson and Ryan Jones with Alden Research Laboratory and Marianne Walter with Consumers Energy
The winners of this award were presented with plaques and certificates at the event.
The closing luncheon also featured presentation of the Hydro Hall of Fame inductees for 2013 and the Attendees’ Choice Awards for best panel presentation sessions.
For more on HydroVision International, which will be held in Nashville, Tenn., in 2014, visit www.hydroevent.com.
