Developing an integrated control system that provides staff with the information necessary to evaluate plant and distribution system operation and performance is of paramount importance for successful functioning of many of today's water treatment facilities. For the City of Arlington, Texas, early and continued involvement of the City's staff during system design and construction was the key to successfully integrating control system hardware and software from multiple vendors and contractors into a single system. This paper discusses the effectiveness of this approach and provides specific recommendations for its implementation. This paper will: provide a case history highlighting the lessons learned in integrating multiple products from multiple contractors into an integrated system, discuss the benefits of user involvement, and give specific recommendations for other utilities contemplating the addition of a new central control system or retrofitting an existing system.