Examine instructions that are given to operators, and modify them if needed.
A classic example is many Asian projects in which the objective of cross regulators is to maintain an upstream water level, but the gate operators must move the cross regulators in strict accordance with instructions (of specific gate movements) from the office – based on computer programs or spreadsheets.
A simple check in the field will show that water levels are not maintained properly.
The instructions for the operators must be changed, and they are very simple: “Maintain the upstream water level within a specified tolerance of a defined target”.
The author has never found an operator who is incapable of determining how much to move the cross regulators to achieve this goal.