Matthew Wirtz, P.E., deputy director/chief engineer Fort Wayne City Utilities, Fort Wayne, Indiana (center) receives the Municipal Advisory Board (MAB) Certificate of Appreciation Award from MAB co-chairs Camille George Rubeiz (left) and Luis Aguiar (right).

IRVING, Texas - June 17, 2026 - The Municipal Advisory Board (MAB) has presented its Certificate of Appreciation Award to Matthew Wirtz, P.E., the deputy director/chief engineer at Fort Wayne City Utilities, Fort Wayne, Indiana.  The award recognizes Wirtz’s contributions to his and other utility and water systems throughout North America by developing and sharing best practices for the use of resilient and sustainable high-density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe.  The award was presented by MAB co-chairs Luis Aguiar and Camille George Rubeiz.  The MAB serves as an independent, non-commercial adviser to the Municipal & Industrial Division of PPI, the major North American trade association representing the plastic pipe industry.

Wirtz has been with the utility for more than 27 years and has been instrumental in the development of its program to update more than 2,700 miles of the city’s water, wastewater and sewer pipes using trenchless methods such as horizontal directional drilling and pipe bursting along with open cut, as detailed in the AWWA M55 Manual, and using stick pipe and pipe on reel.

“Matthew and his team have volunteered their time and provided their expertise and knowledge to many of our committees and task groups for many years,” stated Rubeiz, P.E.,         F. ASCE, co-chair, HDPE Municipal Advisory Board (MAB), and vice president for the Plastics Pipe Institute’s (PPI) Municipal & Industrial Division.  “Fort Wayne itself has developed and embarked on major programs to rehabilitate and install new potable and wastewater services using HDPE pipe as the material of choice due to its toughness, flexibility, corrosion resistance, and leak-free fused joints.  Matthew and Fort Wayne City Utilities have openly shared this information and best practices with other utilities with the goal of helping communities with their water systems.  We thank Matthew and his team for their consistent and valuable contributions.”

Fort Wayne City Utilities, which serves on the Municipal Advisory Board and on the AWWA 263 Committee, is the largest municipally-owned utility in Indiana, with some 106,000 services and providing water to more than 300,000 residents in three counties.

More information, including the recently updated Plastics Pipe Institute PE Handbook, can be found at www: plasticpipe.org/mabpubs

About the Municipal Advisory Board:

The mission of the Municipal Advisory Board (MAB) is to improve the design, installation, and operation of municipal HDPE water piping systems through the creation of partnerships among utilities, researchers, designers, contractors, and the HDPE industry.  MAB serves as an independent, non-commercial adviser to the Municipal & Industrial Division of the Plastics Pipe Institute, Inc.

About PPI:
The Plastics Pipe Institute, Inc. (PPI) is the major North American trade association representing the plastic pipe industry and is dedicated to promoting plastic as the materials of choice for pipe and conduit applications.  PPI is the premier technical, engineering and industry knowledge resource publishing data for use in the development and design of plastic pipe and conduit systems.  Additionally, PPI collaborates with industry organizations that set standards for manufacturing practices and installation methods.