The Operations Challenge Competition at WEFTEC convention in New Orleans, LA proved to be the highlight of the year. While it’s usually the main event of the year, this time it outdid itself. We had a record 56 teams attend, the highest all-time scores in Process (1st place was 2,810), 19 different teams walked the stage for events and overall awards, and we even had teams from Finland, Brazil, Columbia, and the United Kingdom. This was an incredible showing!
The competition was one of the most competitive we’ve seen in history with the margin of error between first and second place overall in Division 1 being only 3.3 points. Division 1’s North Texas Centrifugal Force was sweeping the day with three first place finishes, and they looked like the favorites to win, but then the Collections Event came, and they had a rough run. This particular event was a challenge for several teams, with only one top three overall team placing in the event – Colorado’s Metro Water Recovery Team Elevated Ops.
Most attendees expected to see a showdown between Centrifugal Force and South Carolina’s Controlled Chaos, the reigning champion from last year. However, with both teams having a tough Collections Event showing, the field opened up a bit. Consistency proved to be the key to winning overall first place in Division 1 because Elevated Ops took first overall due to consistent finishes with first place in Process and second place in Safety, Maintenance, and Collections. Congratulations to Elevated Ops for a consistent run and amazing win overall!
But let’s not forget all the teams who placed at WEFTEC’s Operations Challenge this year.
Division 1 Overall
- 1st – Rocky Mountain WEA Elevated Ops
- 2nd – WEA of Texas Centrifugal Force
- 3rd – WEA of South Carolina Controlled Chaos
Division 2 Overall
- 1st – New York WEA Bowery Bay Coyotes
- 2nd – Illinois WEA Second City Sewer Crew
- 3rd – Pacific Northwest Clean Water Association Poopa Troopa
Division 3 Overall
- 1st – Central States WEA Pumpers
- 2nd – WEA of Ontario York Weir Wolves
- 3rd – New York WEA 26th Ward Notorious BOD
Division 1 Individual Event First Place Finishes
- Lab – WEA of Texas Centrifugal Force
- Safety – WEA of Texas Centrifugal Force
- Process – Rocky Mountain WEA Elevated Ops
- Maintenance – WEA of Texas Centrifugal Force
- Collections – Nc One Water Smooth Operators
Spirit Awards
- Best Hard Hat – Ohio WEA Nightmare on High Street
- Best Team Uniform – Pacific Northwest CWA Poopa Troopa
- Most Creative Team Photo – New York WEA Bowery Bay Coyotes
- Team Congeniality – WEA of Texas TRAilblazers
As Chair of the Operations Challenge for 2024, this was an incredible year for me. The competitions were intense, the number of teams competing was staggering, and it even went international with several American teams competing at IFAT in Munich, Germany – impressive!
With the year wrapped up, I’ll be handing over position as Operations Challenge Chair to Kim Furry who will do an amazing job supporting the Operations Challenge in 2025. I look forward to continuing my involvement as Past-Chair and seeing what comes next for this amazing competition and the incredibly passionate teams involved.
