Unlocking the New Horizons of Buried Asset Management
Global Buried Asset Management Congress 2024
Join leading experts and professionals in the field of buried asset management for an insightful and transformative event.
Meet Our Thought Leaders
speakers subject to change
James H. Anspach, PG(r), Dist.M.ASCE, NAC
Affiliate Assistant Professor, Iowa State University
Jim Anspach is one of the original developers of subsurface utility engineering. He chaired ASCE 38, the standard for how to investigate and document utilities on project development plans. He was a prime developer of ASCE’s Utility Engineering and Surveying Institute, and served as the 2018 President for its first year of stand-alone operation. Jim jointly developed the concepts and curriculum for the BAMI-I Utility Investigation School, now give 23 times across the country. Jim currently serves as the Chair of the UES Certification Board for Pipeline Engineers (Water), Project Utility Engineers, and Surveying Engineers.
Steven L. Barfuss
Research Professor at Utah State University, Associate Director at the Utah Water Research Laboratory
Steve has been employed full time at USU since 1987. He performs hydraulic research in the UWRL hydraulics laboratory and supports graduate students in their research.His research focus on Hydraulic structures, physical modeling, flow meter, pipe and valve testing.
Glenn Barnes
Director, Water Finance Assistance
Glenn Barnes is the Director of Water Finance Assistance, a training and technical assistance organization dedicated to building the financial and managerial skills of drinking water and wastewater utility employees. He has worked for more than 15 years with utilities of all sizes across the country. Glenn’s work focuses on rate setting, asset management, affordability, increasing bill payments, accessing infrastructure funding, water loss and conservation, and workforce retention. All the work of Water Finance Assistance is rooted in data analysis, allowing utility staff to make informed and objective decisions to improve their sustainability and to serve their communities for years to come. Glenn is based in North Carolina.
Michelle D. Beason, PE
Regional Manager/Principal Engineer, National Plant Services, Inc.
Michelle received a BS in Civil Engineering from Purdue University, and is a registered Professional Engineer in California, Nevada, Oregon, and Arizona; with over 30 years of water and wastewater asset management and construction experience.
She has worked as a Project Engineer for Capitol Engineering (Indianapolis) and Black &Veatch (Kansas City), as an Asset Management Engineer with the East Bay Municipal Utility District, she owned her own Engineering & Construction firm for 5 years, and for the last 14 years has specialized in multi-sensor inspections and trenchless rehabilitation of sewer, storm, and water assets. She is currently the Regional Manager for National Plant Services, Inc., covering the 12 Western States, including Hawaii and Alaska.
Michelle is also active in many industry organizations. In addition to serving as a Board Member of the Western Chapter of the North American Society for Trenchless Technologies, she is a Board Member of NASSCO, and is Chair of the NASSCO Infrastructure Assessment Committee which manages all revisions to the US standard language for pipe and manhole defect codes (NASSCO’s PACP/MACP/LACP).
Bill Blomquist
Consultant, Author, Researcher, Instructor.
Bill Blomquist began working at White River Alliance in 2022, having previously been a member of the Alliance’s board of directors representing IUPUI. Bill’s work with the Alliance focuses mainly on the Indiana Water Summit and Summit-related activities such as the Water Summit Working Group and our pre- and post-Summit online Science & Policy forums. Bill also follows the legislative process during the sessions of the Indiana General Assembly. Bill is also a Professor Emeritus of Political Science at IU-Indianapolis, a Senior Research Fellow at the IU Ostrom Workshop, and an adjunct instructor of Political Science at Butler University.
Heather Himmelberger
Director, Southwest Environmental Finance Center, University of New Mexico
Heather Himmelberger, P.E. is a registered professional engineer with over 35 years of experience working with water and wastewater utilities all across the U.S. She has a BS from Penn State University and an MS from Johns Hopkins University both in Environmental Engineering. As Director of the SW EFC, Heather has been a staunch advocate and promoter of asset management practice for over 20 years. She has provided hundreds of asset management trainings and directly assisted systems of all sizes and types with understanding and implementing asset management. She has presented asset management presentations at regional, national, and international conferences. She has created guidance materials and documents
Jill Hoffmann
Executive Director, White River Alliance
Jill Hoffmann is Executive Director of the White River Alliance, and President and Principal Owner of Empower Results, LLC, an environmental consulting company focused primarily on environmental education, outreach, and various public involvement services. Her work as the Executive Director for the White River Alliance is gaining national recognition as a model for water partnerships and programs. Jill has been recognized with several state and local awards for her work. Jill is experienced in technical disciplines such as water quality assessment, stormwater management, and nonpoint-source pollution prevention strategies, and in policy areas such as zoning, ordinance development, and public information.
Steven Kramer, PE
Senior Vice President, COWI
Steven Kramer, PE, FASCE is a Senior Vice President at COWI. He has 40 years of experience in engineering firms serving the infrastructure industry. Steve led the design, management and construction of over 75 underground projects around the globe with construction values up to $1 billion.
A frequent speaker and active participant at industry conferences and in technical societies, Kramer has published more than 90 technical and management papers. Kramer served as the 2023 President of the ASCE Utility Engineering and Surveying Institute (UESI). In recognition of his significant accomplishments and contributions to the industry, Kramer was named the recipient of the 2004 Trenchless Technology Person of the Year award, received a 2016 Engineering Alumni Achievement Award from Washington University in St. Louis, elected to the Moles in 2020 and inducted into the Trenchless Hall of Fame in 2023.
George E. Kurz, P.E., DEE
Consulting Engineer & Researcher, Sewer Capacity Management
George has 46 years of experience as a government and private engineering consultant focused on improving effectiveness and efficiency in municipal sewer systems. He believes that I/I is the most significant problem facing most operators, but that the true magnitude of the problem is underestimated and has been largely overlooked. He is a specialist in detecting, measuring, and stopping I/I in sewage collection systems. George developed standard methods for measuring effectiveness of rehabilitation using flow monitoring and existing treatment plant data.
Cory Kreutzer
Technical director for IQ4H2, a subsidiary of Braindrip, LLC
Cory is a subject matter expert (SME) in hydrogen systems integration and has diverse background in mechanical engineering, chemistry, computational science, and business. Cory has an extensive history in applied research and development on energy systems including system design, safety assessment, product development and optimization, and control system design, with an emphasis on renewable energy systems. His role at IQ4H2 is focused on safety, optimization, and acceleration of hydrogen systems with an emphasis on the advancement of Braindrip’s novel composite pipeline technology. This includes the incorporation and advancement of pipeline health monitoring through advanced sensor systems. Prior to working at IQ4H2, Cory worked at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory as a group manager and research engineer for the hydrogen infrastructure team. Prior to that, he worked professionally on a range of topics including electric vehicle climate control technologies, biomass cookstove development and manufacturing, and natural gas internal combustion engine performance. Cory holds a bachelors degree in chemistry from the Colorado School of Mines and masters degree in mechanical engineering from Colorado State University.
Dr. John C. Matthews
Director, Trenchless Technology Center (TTC)
Dr. John C. Matthews has over 20 years of experience in the rehabilitation, installation, and inspection of infrastructure systems. He is the Director of the Trenchless Technology Center (TTC) and Eminent Scholar Chair in Construction at Louisiana Tech University. He previously served as Pipe Renewal Service Line Manager at Pure Technologies, Water Infrastructure Lead at Battelle Memorial Institute, and Research Associate at the TTC. He has given more than 200 conference and workshop presentations and authored more than 300 technical publications. He is very active in NASTT, ASCE, AWWA, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the ISTT.
Justin Nolan
project director, UNC Environmental Finance Center
Justin Nolan is a project director for the UNC Environmental Finance Center. He has been with the organization for going on two years now doing work on a variety of projects including EPA P2, the 2024 Appalachian Regional Commission study, C2 Technical Assistance for Communities, and providing learning opportunities for water utility staff across the EPA Region 4.
Justin graduated from UNC with his master’s degree in City and Regional Planning and immediately went to work with the Environmental Finance Center. He continues to apply the skills from his origins in the NC education system to the work he does engaging with NC citizens around the state.
John W. Norton, Jr., PhD., PE
Director of Energy, Research, & InnovationGreat Lakes Water Authority
Dr. John Norton is Director of Energy, Research, and Innovation for GLWA, a combined water/wastewater utility in Southeast Michigan. GLWA treats more than 40% of the water, and 30% of the wastewater, for the state of Michigan. Norton leads GLWA's research efforts to understand, extend, and enhance its linear and process infrastructure and directs projects ranging from source water monitoring and distribution system water quality, through to energy extraction from biosolids. GLWA owns over 388 miles of PCCP, and over 800 miles of transmission main, 4 ft diameter or greater.
MIKE PETERS
Member and Team Principal, Braindrip & IQ4H2
Mike is a Member and Team Principal at IQ4H2. He is a leading subject matter expert (SME) in hydrogen systems integration, safety, and optimization. At IQ4H2 he leads tasks related to quality assurance, data management, safety, test programs, and product compliance for BrainDrip’s Innervated Tubular Composite (ITC). In his previous role, he worked for over a decade as an applied researcher at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). While at NREL, he gained expertise on projects from hydrogen production to end-use and everything in-between. His previous roles have led to numerous advances of hydrogen technologies including demonstrating electrolyzers as distributed energy resources (DERs) within the grid, leading a medium-/heavy-duty modeling and hardware test program for Class 8 trucks, and leading a 30+ partner hydrogen blending project for the U.S. Department of Energy. Mike and his IQ4H2 team will be exponentially extending BrainDrip’s market lead as designers, engineers, developers, and implementors of innovative products for the safe and effectual distribution and storage of highly compressed hydrogen.
Anna Pridmore, PhD, PE, DBIA
Senior Vice President, Structural Technologies
Anna Pridmore, PhD, PE, DBIA is a Senior Vice President for Structural Technologies, leading the company’s efforts in the Water/Wastewater market with a focus on design-build rehabilitation of civil infrastructure. Anna delivers pursuit, startup, and executive oversight for large design-build projects across the United States and Canada. She received her PhD in Structural Engineering, is a licensed professional engineer in California, and has over 20 years of interdisciplinary experience specializing in large diameter pipeline asset management and renewal, with over 500 inspection and rehabilitation projects implemented to date.
Anna is a Vice-Chair of DBIA’s Water/Wastewater Committee and committee member for Water Collaborative Delivery Association. She was the past chair of the Pipelines Division of American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and has served as secretary for the development of the AWWA C305 subcommittee. She serves as an instructor for ASCE and EUCI, teaching both technical content related to civil infrastructure renewal as well as courses on engineering ethics and diversity in engineering.
Matthew Rushing, E.I.
Project Engineer, North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality
Matthew Rushing, E.I., manages the Asset Inventory and Assessment grant and Merger/Regionalization Feasibility Study grant programs at North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality which directly support North Carolina’s Statewide Water and Wastewater Master Plan, “The Road to Viability”.
Since graduating from Ole Miss with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering in 2011, Matthew has managed over 450 construction and planning projects for drinking water and wastewater utilities.
His passion to confront complex challenges with a combination of best practices and unique solutions has resulted in a wealth of experience engaging with all levels of the regulated community and supporting their efforts to provide reliable and affordable water and wastewater services
Chad Reynolds
Water Circuit Rider, Alliance of Indiana Rural Water
Chad started his water and wastewater career in 2001. He holds a DSS, WT3 and Class 1 license, and he is a validator for water audits. He holds a Level 2 license and is the RD Apply for USDA to assist in filling out loan applications. Chad also holds a Category 8 license for mosquito spraying. He sits on a committee with IFA and AWWA overseeing water audits, as well as the IDEM Water Exams Committee. In his free time, Chad loves to be involved with his two boys, deer hunt and fish.
Boston Snyder
Asset Manager, City of Goshen, IN
Boston started his municipal utility career in 2008 performing construction on sewer systems. He worked construction for a few years before taking a role in 2014 where he focused primarily on geographic information systems and construction inspection. After joining the Goshen team in 2022, he assumed the role as the city’s first Asset Manager in March of 2024. He is currently enrolled at Indiana University – South Bend where he is obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Business with a concentration in Management Information Systems and a minor in Business Analytics where he is set to graduate in 2024.
Mark G. Wade, P.E.
President, BlueWater Solutions Group, Inc.
Mark is President and a Senior Pipeline Technologist for BlueWater Solutions Group. This includes a wide range of buried pipeline infrastructure for municipal, commercial, federal, and industrial clients. Throughout his 46 years of experience in consulting engineering he has accumulated a broad range of experience for the improvement and management of water, wastewater, and stormwater conveyance systems. This includes planning, modeling, design, and asset management services. He has managed more than 1,100 projects and programs related to buried pipeline systems in North America, Southeast Asia, New Zealand, and Europe. Mark has also authored and presented nearly 100 technical papers related to conveyance system evaluation and rehabilitation. Several have been published in trade magazines, journals, manuals-of-practice, and books. He currently provides senior-level technology and project management oversight for several sewer assessment and rehabilitation projects, particularly large-diameter conveyance systems, in Colorado, Texas, Missouri, Mississippi, Florida, Kansas, and Iowa.
Ross Waugh
Director, Waugh Infrastructure Management
Ross is the founder of Waugh Infrastructure Management and is an Asset Management and systems integration specialist with 40 years experience in local government asset management and engineering. Ross has been consulting in asset management practices for 24 years.
Ross is passionate about assisting people to practice Asset Management holistically and comprehensively yet practically. His strategic analysis of client practices is balanced with a strong practical background that always ensures results not theory. Ross has experience of eight cycles of integrating asset management planning with long term Council financial planning within the New Zealand context.
Adam Hershberger
EPA Water Specialist, Alliance of Indiana Rural Water
Adam has a background in water and wastewater operations management, including treatment, distribution and collection systems. He currently holds WT4, DSM, and Wastewater Class II certifications along with having a Loss Audit Validator Adam spent time as a Utility Asset Management Consultant prior to joining the Alliance in August 2023.
Kurt Wright
Owner/President, SDG Engineering, Inc
Mr. Wright established his own professional engineering firm in 2002 based in Rutherford County, North Carolina. The corporate mission is to meet client’s requirements by providing quality professional water and wastewater engineering services with solutions for a sustainable environment. Mr. Wright has 36 years of experience in engineering planning, design, project financing (grantsmanship), advertisement/bidding, contract administration, construction management, and startup services for numerous types of projects. Most of Mr. Wright’s experience is with municipal water and wastewater infrastructure.
Mr. Wright’s experience with Asset Management began in 2012 with his membership in BAMI-I (Buried Asset Management Institute – International). Mr. Wright was the chief author of the Asset Management Plan for the town of Spindale, NC, which was approved by the state of North Carolina in 2013. He holds a certificate of completion for CTAM 100, 200, 300 & 400, is a Professional Water Asset Manager (PWAM), and contributed to the development of the CTAM 200 and 400 training manuals.
Calvin Clifton
Calvin D. Clifton， Business Development & Recruiting Manager， Mattern & Craig, Inc.
Calvin Clifton has over 30 years of experience in public works and utilities in the southeast. His business, Mattern & Craig, Inc., works with many small-medium municipalities, as well as rural utility districts.
Clifton has a very diverse background, in both the public and private sectors. He spent the early years of his career in the public works field serving in management positions with both the cities of Kingsport and Athens, Tennessee. Since 2004, Clifton has worked in the consulting engineering field in the role of project manager, asset management consultant, and business development & recruiting manager. He works primarily in east TN, North & South Carolina, and southwest VA.
As a former utilities and public works director, he approaches clients and projects from the standpoint of the owner, manager, and maintainer. His experience includes design oversight and management of water/wastewater, stormwater, streets, and traffic signs/signals.
A graduate of East Tennessee State University and Northeast State Community College, Clifton received his Municipal Specialist Certification in Public Works/Utilities from the University of Tennessee Center for Government and received his Professional Water Asset Manager (PWAM) certification in 2017.
A native of the east Tennessee mountains, Clifton and his wife, Leslie, reside in Kingsport. They have two grown children and four grandchildren.
Savanna Speciale
Expert at managing commodity origination and cross-trade finance transactions
Savanna Speciale is an expert at managing commodity origination and cross-trade finance transactions across the supply chain for refined products, crude oil, hydrogen, hydrogen vectors, CCUS, RNG, waste circularity and decarbonization solutions. Savanna has over 13 years of experience in trading, operations, analytics, risk management, structured transactions and origination across energy markets at industry majors. Early career highlights include building supply chain logistics and trading at Motiva, the largest refinery in the United States for jet fuel and later crude oil. More recently, Savanna worked at bp as Director of Low Carbon and Cross-Commodity Origination identified project development and partnership opportunities to acquire assets, originate supply and offtake opportunities, and pilots within hard-to-abate sectors, utilities, and the maritime industry seeking to decarbonize. Savanna is currently the Principal of Carbon Solutions, LLC, where she works to bridge commercial gaps between traditional oil and gas and decarbonization in the evolving energy landscape. Savanna holds a Bachelor of Management in Legal Studies and Finance and Master of Energy Trading and Finance from Tulane University and her career spans roles at ConocoPhillips, Motiva Enterprises, bp and Gasology.
Josh Hawley
Utility Advocate | Solutions Consultant，Ziptility
Josh Hawley, a ten-year industry veteran, led Cordry-Sweetwater in Brown County, Indiana for seven years, pioneering advancements in asset management and technology. In the last three years at Ziptility he has emerged as a dedicated advocate for rural utilities nationwide. Josh utilizes the Ziptility platform to address real-world industry challenges, showcasing his commitment to innovation and sustainable solutions.
Irene McSweeney, PE
Director of Construction, Boston Water and Sewer Commission
Irene McSweeney, PE and Grade 4 Water Operator, has served the City of Boston for 34 years at the Boston Water and Sewer Commission as Director of Construction, Chief of Operations and Chief of Special Operations. Prior to joining the BWSC, she worked at Allen and Major Associates as a Senior Project Manager, overseeing site development projects and residential and commercial subdivisions. Irene earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering from Wentworth Institute of Technology and a Master’s in Environmental Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Her work spans all types of major infrastructure, from cleaning and lining of water mains, to major sewer separation projects to clean up Boston Harbor, as well as numerous trenchless projects. As COO, she oversaw the Commission’s emergency response and maintenance of the Commission’s 1500 miles of Sanitary and Storm Sewers and 1008 miles of water mains
Yamil Dominguez
CEO, Polymer Technologies USA, Inc
.With over 18 years of experience as a certified general contractor, I proudly lead Polymer Technologies USA, Inc., a company dedicated to advancing soil stabilization and trench-less technologies. Our flagship innovation, Deep Horizons Injection Grouting (DHIG), is a cutting- edge solution designed to address unstable subsoil conditions, effectively seal leaks, and stabilize critical infrastructure such as levees, dams, and abandoned orphan oil wells. Utilizing fast- reacting polyurethane material, DHIG is injected with precision at any depth achievable through drilling, forming a durable and impermeable barrier. This process eliminates the need for costly and time-consuming excavation and repairs, offering a more sustainable and eco-friendly alternative.Throughout my career, I have focused on enhancing soil stability, load-bearing capacity, and overall structural integrity in a range of applications, including foundation stabilization, infrastructure reinforcement, and flood control. Polymer Technologies has successfully expanded its intellectual property to 44+ countries, underscoring the global demand for DHIG’s capabilities and its proven effectiveness.My mission is to drive innovation in soil stabilization and trench-less technology, delivering practical and sustainable solutions to some of the most complex underground challenges. Whether sealing orphan oil wells or strengthening flood protection infrastructure, I am passionate about advancing geotechnical solutions that contribute to both environmental sustainability and long- term infrastructure resilience.I look forward to engaging with contractors, industry professionals, researchers, engineers, scientists, and the next generation of innovators as we collaborate to develop the technologies that will shape the future of infrastructure and environmental protection.
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