The Board Of Water Commissioners
Denver Water

Engineering Standards
Appendix A: Procedure For Evaluation Of Materials

A-1 General:

New products or materials related to the water industry will be evaluated by Denver Water. Sales representatives may petition for consideration and evaluation under the procedures of this Appendix.

A-2 Review Committee:

Initial application for consideration shall be made by contacting the Director of Engineering or appointed representative. If determined appropriate, the evaluation of products and materials shall be made by an ad hoc committee called by the Director of Engineering or appointed representative. The committee shall be composed of three or more Denver Water employees. The Chief of Distribution will act as chairman and the remaining committee members shall reflect Denver Water divisions affected by the proposed products.

A-3 Evaluation:

The review committee will give careful consideration to the products based upon their collective experience and opinions. They will assure themselves that proper criteria exists or will develop criteria by which the products can be evaluated. They will seek out other knowledgeable persons both within and without Denver Water and attempt to determine by this means whether the product falls clearly into one of the following categories:

1. Definitely acceptable.

2. Definitely not acceptable.

3. Borderline.

Should the product be found in Category 1 or 2, the committee will advise the Director of Engineering or appointed representative who will, in turn, advise the sales representative in writing of the findings. Should the product fall under the Category 3 (Borderline), the committee chairman will contact the sales representative for additional data, for product samples, and to arrange for testing.

A-4 Testing:

If the product has some promise but is not clearly acceptable, a testing program may be undertaken with the concurrence of the sales representative. The review committee will arrange actual field testing procedures. The sales representative shall furnish samples to be tested, any special test equipment not already available to the review committee, any necessary appurtenant materials, pipe, gauges, charts, recording equipment, and, when necessary, a location to conduct the tests. In some instances, testing may consist of trial installations into Denver Water system. Determination of the nature of the testing shall rest with Denver Water, and Denver Water reserves the right to require full reimbursement for test and evaluation expense.

Testing shall be undertaken with the object of clearly determining the acceptability of the product. For some products where durability is in question, the test period may necessarily last for several years. Denver Water's goal will be to make an adequate determination within the minimum necessary time.

Following completion of tests, the committee will meet with the sales representative to discuss results and any further testing or consideration. The committee will then meet with the Director of Engineering or appointed representative to discuss the product and to reach a decision.

A-5 Notification:

The Director of Engineering or appointed representative will notify the sales representative in writing of his decision to either accept the product and include it into Denver Water's Engineering Standards or to reject the product as not acceptable.

A-6 Appeal:

If the product is rejected and if the sales representative has good reason to feel that his product did not receive an adequate or fair test, he may appeal in writing to the Director of Engineering. The sales representative shall fully document his allegations and ask for reconsideration based upon new facts, testing, late results, or some such factual basis. If the Director of Engineering finds reason for further consideration, he will arrange for another meeting including himself, the sales representative, the Director of Engineering or appointed representative and any other Denver Water employee who might contribute, to consider further testing or evaluation. A subsequent final decision will then be rendered in writing under the signature of the Director of Engineering or appointed representative.

If the Director of Engineering does not find sufficient cause to further investigate the matter, he shall so advise the sales representative in writing, and that decision shall be final.

A-7 Limitations on Reapplication:

If, after a product is rejected, significant changes are incorporated into its manufacture such as would render it now acceptable, the sales representative may reapply to the Director of Engineering or appointed representative for reconsideration. In the absence of changed conditions, the product will not be reconsidered for inclusion into the Engineering Standards for a period of 3 years after having been rejected.