Meet the people of TMWA whose commitment to serve our community ensures our water quality is among the best in the country.
Cameron Shultz, Power & Generation Technician
What brought you to TMWA and where did you work before?
I worked for 15 years at a local generator business and installed and repaired gas and diesel generators all over California and Nevada. I did a lot of travelling. Sometimes I’d drive 8 hours in a day—a lot of windshield time. I have worked at TMWA for almost 4 years.
How does your job at TMWA differ from other jobs you’ve had and other places you’ve worked?
Coming over to TMWA it was nice to have the stability of being home every night. When I was younger I liked the travel and going to different places, but after awhile that gets old. At my previous job I almost always worked alone. At TMWA, I still work alone at times, but I also work with a team of co-workers including operators, hydro foreman, and SCADA techs.
How did you hear about TMWA’s opening?
I had been doing diesel generator maintenance for the power company since about 1995, so when TMWA was formed I was already familiar with most of the sites and facilities that had generators. When TMWA started their own maintenance program and a position came open I applied.
What do you love most about your job?
Probably the diversity—doing something different every day. One day I might be working on a forebay gate at the Verdi facility and the next day I might be changing oil on a 1500 horsepower diesel engine or I might be assisting an operator with a project. There’s always something going on.
When did your interest in being a Power and Generation Tech begin?
As a kid I was always doing something mechanical. When the kids next door were out throwing the football around I was in the garage tearing the lawnmower apart.
What is unique about your job at TMWA?
I hold the only Power and Generation Tech position at TMWA.
What have you learned working at TMWA?
I’ve learned a lot about the 100+ year old hydroelectric plants. It’s fun to learn how to add the new technology to the existing technology in the old structures.
What do you do on a typical day on the job?
I come in at 6:30 a.m. and check in with our Glendale plant to see if any diesel generators ran the night before due to a power outage. Then I start checking emails and planning what we’re going to do that day. On Mondays I usually make my rounds to the three hydro plants: Washoe, Verdi and Fleish. I go and do mechanical checks of the bearings, battery systems, and collector rings. In the summertime, I check all the swamp coolers, fans, and belts. Sometimes I’ll come in and find a swamp cooler not working properly and it may have a bad motor or a belt needs to be replaced. Other times I come in and I have an alarm going off on one of the hydros and I have to go in and find out what’s going on electrically or mechanically.
Do you have a favorite piece of equipment that you use at TMWA?
The one thing we couldn’t do without is our 20-ton travelling cranes. Those are the big cranes that run the span of the plants—they’re original to the plants and we still use them. Basically, we maneuver them around the plants so we can pull bearings apart or lift heavy objects. Without those we’d have to back in crane trucks to move heavy objects.
How has TMWA invested in your professional development?
In the past, we’ve gone to the Water Power Conference and completed their hydro training course. The conference and the course keeps us current and up-to-date on new ideas and what’s happening in the hydro industry.
What is your best memory working at TMWA?
When I first started they were coming to completion of the Fleish hydro rebuild and my best memory is being a part of doing the startup and seeing all the new equipment come online. The plant was completely stripped and only had the turbine and the generator in it with no controls. All new controls, circuit breakers and a hydraulic governor were installed and I got to be a part of that. That was really neat.
What is your proudest professional accomplishment while working at TMWA?
Surviving the summer of 2008. I started in January and by April we had the 4.7 magnitude earthquake which knocked down the TMWA Flume #14. Everybody came together and we added generators at the Chalk Bluff Treatment Plant for backup and installed pumps at Orr Ditch.
What does TMWA’s new Quality. Delivered. tagline mean to you?
I believe that the Quality comes from the fact that TMWA has the most highly skilled and qualified people in their relative jobs. The word Delivered comes from a team and a management team that knows the importance of our jobs and gives us the tools to do our jobs—everything comes together so we can deliver quality water to our customers.
How does your role help ensure that TMWA delivers its Quality. Delivered. tagline?
Commitment to excellent preventative maintenance on equipment. Providing preventative maintenance really is the key to making sure the system runs the way it should at all times. We take care of 39 diesel standby generators in the system at critical pump stations, treatment plants and wells. If there’s a power failure we have the ability to still provide power to our electric pumps to provide water pressure.
What encouragement would you give young professionals entering into this field?
Get in the field doing service or changing oil and work your way up into the more technical aspects of the job. Start young and get a lot of hands on experience.
What do you enjoy doing outside of TMWA?
In the wintertime, I enjoy working on classic cars—I have three; an older Pontiac, an older Buick and a ‘59 Chevy pickup. In the summertime, it’s fishing on the river, camping with the family, and archery bow hunting in August.
