Functional Area: Research and Laboratory Services
*The following action items will be addressed by one team.
Action Item 32*
Determine where opportunities exist for use of federal and non-federal lab services.Action Item 33*
Determine where opportunities exist for retaining, consolidating and/or eliminating lab services within the TSC and regions.Team Lead: Cliff Pugh, Manager, Hydraulic Services (WRRL), Technical Service Center
Team Members:
- Monte McClendon, Ecosystems Analysis Program Manager, Pacific Northwest Region
- Pablo Arroyave, Deputy Area Manager, Lahontan Basin Area Office, Mid-Pacific Region
- Mike Norris, Research Coordinator, Yuma Area Office, Lower Colorado Region
- Angela Adams, Yuma Area Office, Lower Colorado Region
- Tom Luebke, Business Manager, Technical Service Center
- Nathan Myers, Electrical Engineer, Hydroelectric Research and Technical Services Group, Technical Service Center
- Bill Kepler, Materials Engineering and Research Laboratory Group, Technical Service Center
- Tony Wahl (support), Hydraulic Engineer, Water Resources Research Laboratory, Technical Service Center
- John LaBoon, Manager, Waterways and Concrete Dams Group, Technical Service Center
Objectives:
- Identify existing Reclamation lab services, the scope of current lab services being performed, and clients for those services.
- Propose opportunities for retaining, consolidating, eliminating, and or outsourcing lab services in a manner that most effectively supports the design, research, planning, cost estimating and construction management activities critical to the success of Reclamation’s mission. An implementation plan will be developed to achieve the appropriate resource staffing levels and distribution of lab services within Reclamation.
Tasks:
- Depict the current array of lab services in terms of:
- Purpose - Design support, Infrastructure O&M Support, Applied Research, Operational Decision Support
- Capability - (e.g. hydraulic modeling, environmental services, rock mechanics, water quality analysis, GIS, electrical infrastructure services, material engineering services)
- Infrastructure costs
- Location of lab service provider (e.g. UC Region, Great Plains Region, TSC, IDIQ contract, etc.)
- Depict the current workload profile (based on past 3 years) for each lab service identified above:
- Customer (e.g. UC Power Program, Dam Safety Program, Research Program, Area Office, Regional Office, Non-Reclamation, etc.)
- Activity Based Costing category
- Adjust the workload profile to depict the future anticipated workload
- Identify potential non-Reclamation sources for each lab service
- Estimate the number of technical staff required to maintain each core capability to provide/obtain lab services
- Determine the most effective combination of in-house lab services (additional to that required to maintain core capabilities) and outsourcing to accomplish projected workload
- Propose alternatives for the most effective distribution of in-house lab services within Reclamation
- Propose an implementation plan to achieve the appropriate resource staffing levels and distribution of lab services within the agency
Milestones:
- July 2006: Interface with the stakeholders at this point in the process to give them the opportunity to identify whether or not the data are appropriate from their perspective.
- Aug 2006: Inventory of potential non-Reclamation laboratory service providers.
- Sept. 2006: Interface with the stakeholders to give them the opportunity to provide input to the team prior to firming up recommendations.
- Nov 2006: Develop implementation plan
- Dec 2006: Release of implementation plan.
Products: (If you would like to provide comments on any draft products, visit the Draft Products page.)
No products available at this time.
Last Updated:
January 10, 2007