Organizational Development for Knowledge Management at Water ...

20 | Organizational Development for Knowledge Management at Water Utilities
Singapore Water Strategies: A Case Study on Integrating Technological Innovation
and Community Engagement
Singapore’s Water Agency Public Utilities Board has become a world leader in terms of
water supply and wastewater management. They oversee four national taps: local catchment water,
imported water, NEWater (water reclamation) and desalinated water. NEWater is an example of
Singapore’s continuous investment in research and technology. It is mainly used for wafer manufacturing
industries and air-conditioning cooling towers in commercial buildings, however, there
is an ongoing effort to educate the population of Singapore to accept NEWater as safe for drinking.
It has created a highly successful program to make all citizens aware and appreciative of the
importance of drinking water, its availability, processing and quality.
The ultimate goal of Singapore’s approach is to achieve self-sufficiency in water. By 2011,
together with water from its reservoirs, desalination, and recycling plant, Singapore expects to no
longer be considered water-stressed.
SUMMARY
It is clear from the benefits and costs collected for project studies internal to the drinking
water utility industry, and the external case examples and studies and the indicated benefits, that
there is a wide diversity of benefits and costs highly dependent on context and situation. The
Readiness Assessment Instrument and KM Toolkit developed during the 4003 Project research
study is provided to enable leaders, managers and knowledge workers to make an informed decision
regarding implementation of KM strategies and initiatives in their utility.
©2011 Water Research Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.