Symposium chair announced,

Don Dickinson of Phoenix Contact has been named as General Symposium Chair for the upcoming 2018 ISA Water/Wastewater and Automatic Controls (WWAC) Symposium.

Don Dickinson

Taking place at the Hyatt Regency Bethesda (USA) on 7-9 August 2018—only 15 minutes from the USA capital—the WWAC Symposium will feature two days of technical speakers, an exhibitor hall, a tour of a local water plant, and technical training courses on a variety of topics. The event, now in its fifteenth year, brings together automation professionals in the municipal water/wastewater sector from around the world.

“The ISA Water/Wastewater and Automatic Controls Symposium, also known as WWAC, is unique in its focus,” says Graham Nasby, Chair of the ISA-112 SCADA systems standards committee. “It is the only symposium in North America that is entirely devoted to the needs of automation professionals in the municipal water/wastewater sector. We are delighted to have Don Dickinson head up this important event for us in 2018.”

Dickinson and Phoenix Contact, a global leader in electrical engineering, electronics and automation, have been involved with the WWAC Symposium for many years. In 2012, when the event was rebooted as a modern conference, Phoenix Contact was one of the key sponsors of the event, a role it has held ever since. Over the years, Dickinson has served as a presenter, a member of the program committee, and Assistant Symposium Chair.

“I look forward to continuing to lead what has been a very successful symposium for the ISA,” remarked Dickinson in a recent interview. “Automation plays an integral role in addressing the significant challenges that we face in our industry, such as modernizing an aging infrastructure. The WWAC Symposium is focused on ensuring that the automation workforce is equipped to deal with these challenges and continues to benefit from advances in technology.”

Each year the symposium boasts an attendance of 200-300 water professionals, which includes plant managers, operators, engineers, and system integration personnel. With its focus on SCADA, instrumentation and automation, the gathering offers targeted training and knowledge-sharing that is not available at other conferences.

The WWAC Symposium partners with local sections of the AWWA (American Water Works Association) and the WEF (Water Environment Federation), in order to offer MDE/state-approved Continuing Education Credits (CEU), which can be used by state-licensed water operators for their annual license renewals. The event also offers PDH (professional developments hours) that can be used by both engineers and Certified Automation Professionals® (CAP®) to meet their continuing education requirements.

Abstracts are currently being solicited for the symposium. Potential authors and speakers are encouraged to submit a 250-word entry summarizing proposed presentations and papers for the 2018 conference. Submissions are due on 31 January 2018. The complete Call for Papers, author information kit, and a list of suggested topics of interest can be found on the website. Announcements about invited and guest speakers will be made in the new year and updates will be listed on the website as well.

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