Pre-event: Afternoon – Monday, February 25

Towards Zero Leakage

A half-day, in-depth seminar and workshop programme developed in partnership with the UK Department for International Trade and Northumbrian Water exploring the question: How can the global water industry realistically achieve the ambitious target of zero leakage?
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Pre-event: Evening – Monday, February 25

The World Water-Tech Thames River Cruise

The World Water-Tech Thames River Cruise, setting off from Tower Pier, will be an evening of informal networking, a water quiz and a classic British ‘pub grub’ supper. Open to all delegates and strictly limited to max. 80 guests.
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Day One — February 26 Morning

8.55

Welcome Remarks

9.00

Keynote Address

Speaker:
Richard Benyon MP, Chair, UK Water Partnership (UKWP), UK

9.15

Policy, Regulation and Technology: Driving Forward Collaborative Innovation

– What are the successful regulatory drivers that support utilities to deploy advanced technologies?
– How can governments support technology acceleration and help to mitigate risk? What more can policy makers be doing to move the dial and lead the industry forwards?
– Where has innovative or challenging policy / regulation been effectively deployed to create new markets? E.g. phosphorous removal, tough leakage targets. What are the lessons that can be applied to the future?
– How are utilities collaborating and co-creating innovation models?

Session Chair:
George Gerring, Partnerships Manager, ENVIRONMENT AGENCY, UK
Speakers:
David Black, Executive Director, OFWAT, UK
Kitila Mkumbo, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Water, GOVERNMENT OF TANZANIA, Tanzania
Newsha Ajami, Director of Urban Water Policy, STANFORD UNIVERSITY, USA
Fatih Turan, General Manager, ISTANBUL WATER AND SEWERAGE ADMINISTRATION, Turkey

10.00

Evolving From The Outside: Transformative Acquisitions

– What are the critical success factors for a transformative collaboration, investment or a merger and acquisition? At what stage of the lifecycle is this likely to happen?
– Companies advance myriad strategies for creating value with acquisitions—but only a handful are likely to do so. Why is that?
– Which deals over the past 12-24 months have specific, well-articulated value creation ideas going in? What can we learn from the outcomes?
– To what extent do long-term wins depend on the talent and experience of the team vs exceptional technological brilliance?
Session Chair:
Mike Rosenfeld, Vice Consul – Senior Advisor, Energy, Environment & Infrastructure, UK DEPARTMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL TRADE, USA
Speakers:
Eytan Levy, Owner, LEVY VENTURES, Israel
David Smith, Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy, STANTEC, UK
Jean-Luc Ventura, CEO, SUEZ VENTURES, France
David Rose, Founder, H20 INSIGHTS, USA

10:45

Networking Tea and Coffee Break

Hosted by

11.15

Lightning Talks: Emergent Opportunity and Progress for the Circular Economy in Latin America

Speaker:
Julián Suárez Migliozzi, Vice President Sustainable Development, CAF (DEVELOPMENT BANK OF LATIN AMERICA)
Dante Pauli, Superintendent of Integrated Planning, SABESP, Brazil

11.45

Technology Showcase

Four start-ups pitch their technology and business models to a panel of three ‘dragons’, with questions from the audience.
Presenters:
Hervé Suty, President, TERGYS
Michael Gardner, Founder & CEO, AQAIX
Philip Briscoe, COO, REZATEC
Wolfgang Vogl, Founder & General Manager, VIENNA WATER MONITORING SOLUTIONS
In the ‘dragon’ chairs:
Abhirabh Basu, Practice Lead for Water, LUX RESEARCH, Global
Henri Lambert, Founder, APSARA CAPITAL, UK
Eytan Levy, Founder, LEVY VENTURES, Israel

12.30

Investments with Impact: Deals of the Year 2018

Investors in water technology companies come together to discuss the hottest deals and investments of 2018 / 19 and share their insight into what the most exciting opportunities and challenges may be over the coming year.
Session Chair:
Brian Iversen, Managing Partner & Co-Founder, CIMBRIA CAPITAL, USA
Speakers:
Helge Daebel, Investment Director, EMERALD TECHNOLOGY VENTURES, Switzerland
Reinhard Hübner, Investment Manager, SKION GMBH, Germany
Jeroen Tielman, Founder & Managing Partner, QSTONE CAPITAL, Netherlands
Maarten ter Keurst, Director of Investments, PURETERRA VENTURES, China
Khalil Maalouf, Partner, XPV WATER PARTNERS, Canada

13.15

Networking Lunch Break

Day One — February 26 Afternoon

14.15

Case Studies of Pioneering Partnerships

Two joint presentations from service providers and their clients telling real world stories of where ground-breaking technology has been deployed to great effect. Beyond theory, hear about what is excelling in practice in terms of building capacity, reducing expenditure and boosting efficiency.

Case Study 1: Solving the problem of managing engineering drawings with the cloud
Wayne Gerard, Co-founder & CEO, REDEYE, Australia
Nathan Allen, Chief Executive, WATERSTART, USA

Case Study 2: Energy Saving/Biosolid Reduction/Odor Control in Wastewater Treatment: A Proven Cost Effective Approach
Derk Maat, Chairman & CEO, SCICORP INTERNATIONAL CORP, Canada
Short Documentary Film, CITY OF KANSAS, USA

14:45

DIT Country Focus: Water Management Challenges and Opportunities in Kenya

Hear the latest government-level insight into water management challenges, partnership potential and investment opportunities in Kenya.
Joseph Irungu, Principal Secretary, Ministry Of Water and Sanitation, GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA
Michael Thuita, Chief Executive Officer, ATHI WATER
Enoch Mwita, Trade Development Manager, DIT KENYA

15.05

Case Study Plenary: Breaking New Ground in the Water, Energy and Waste Nexus

This session will feature a collection of the best examples of technological optimisation across the water, energy and waste nexus.
– How are the barriers to adoption of a closed loop being overcome?
– Who is leading the way in cutting-edge energy recovery? How achievable is energy neutrality and who can we learn from?
– To what extent is the need to reduce expenditure on energy driving us towards decentralised models?
Session Chair:
Fiona Griffith, Group Director, ISLE UTILITIES, Global
Speakers:
Christian Loderer, Project and Innovation Manager, KOMPETENZZENTRUM WASSER BERLIN, Germany
Jose Vazquez, Innovation Department Manager, FCC AQUALIA, Spain
Mogan Padayachee, Technology and Innovation Group Strategy Manager, RAND WATER, South Africa
Andrea Gysin, Head of Research, Development and Innovation, THAMES WATER, UK

15:50

Networking Tea and Coffee Break

16.20

Fireside Chat: Exploring the Role of Digital in Transforming Customer Experience

As the water industry gets smarter and smarter, we hear about where technological advancement is successfully meeting customer service demands and what the future looks like as the water industry attempts to catch up with online retailers.
– How is this adoption driving efficiency and savings?
– Who is communicating excellently to stakeholders and how are they doing it?
– What do proactive communication plans look like that help conserve water to ensure there’s enough to meet growing demand?
– Are there any game changing technologies on the horizon?
Session Chair:
Tony Smith, Chief Executive, THE CONSUMER COUNCIL FOR WATER, UK
Speakers:
Nigel Watson, Chief Information Officer, NORTHUMBRIAN WATER GROUP, UK
Alex Russell-Rutherford, Customer Experience Manager, WESSEX WATER, UK

16.45

Circular Industry: End Users and Water Reuse

– Year on year, industrial end users continue to be met with ever-louder calls for diversifying water resources and cleaning up at source. How are leading end users approaching wastewater reuse and recycling within their businesses?
– What are the biggest hurdles to water reuse and recycling? How can we get buy-in from stakeholders?
– How can these projects be financed and what could the model look like?
– What areas of innovation are delivering most value to industrial end-users? Is there room for improvement?
– What are the opportunities for cloud-based asset management efficiencies in industrial water reuse?
– What other innovative methods of producing alternative water supplies are emerging?
Session Chair:
Mark Lane, Consultant, THE UK WATER PARTNERSHIP, UK
Speakers:
José De Pierola Canales, Manager of Water Resources, SOUTHERN PERU COPPER CORP, Peru
Alex Money, Programme Director – Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD, UK

17.15

Roundtable Discussions

One of the most interactive sessions of the programme. The roundtable discussion groups are hosted by an industry expert and offer you a valuable opportunity to network, brainstorm solutions and share ideas with your peers on similar topics and issues.

1. Which policies and market interventions can accelerate the deployment of water reuse schemes in new developments? – Host: Ben Earl, Water Efficiency Manager, SOUTHERN WATER
2. What can we learn from utilities already deploying digital technologies, and how do we get more utilities to start the digital journey? – Host: Randolf Webb, Director, Strategy & Marketing – Europe, XYLEM
3. Shifting water demands and fostering innovation in global markets – Host: Karolina Peret, International Manager, BRITISH WATER
4. Growing your business in the US: Exploring the benefits and risks – Host: Beverley Ferrara, European Representative, THE WATER COUNCIL
5. What do water companies need to do to encourage and support more innovation? – Host: Kieran Brocklebank, Head of Innovation, UNITED UTILITIES
6. What are going to be the most hot challenges of water utilities in the 2025? – Host: Yossi Yaacoby, Chief of Staff, MEKOROT
7. De-risking technology and innovation adoption – Host: Mogan Padayachee, Technology and Innovation Group Strategy Manager, RAND WATER
8. The art of sustainable and scalable fundraising for your start-up and SME – Host: Helge Daebel, Investment Director, EMERALD TECHNOLOGY VENTURES
9. Is the adoption of IoT a game changer in service level provision by utilities? – Host: Khalil Maalouf, Partner, XPV WATER PARTNERS
10. Fostering a culture of innovation: what are the attributes that can make this a reality for water companies? – Host: Andrea Gysin, Head of Research, Development and Innovation, THAMES WATER
11. Industrial water re-use – The future is not what it used to be – Co-Hosts: Alex Money, Programme Director, UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD and Mark Lane, Consultant, UK WATER PARTNERSHIP
12. What are the real opportunities water utilities can develop for and apply to a circular economy? – Host: Rik Thijssen, Manager Business Development, VITENS

18.00

Closing Remarks & Networking Drinks Reception

Day Two — February 27 Morning

7.45

Breakfast Briefing: Connecting With Women at the World Water-Tech Innovation Summit

Join Xylem leaders, including Senior Vice President and Chief Innovation and Technology Officer Jay Iyengar, and fellow conference colleagues for an informal discussion about inspiring and elevating women in the water technology sector. The discussion, along with time for networking, will bring participants new connections and provide a forum of inspiration and innovation for future leaders in the industry. A light breakfast will be provided.

8.55

Welcome Remarks

9.00

Making the Digital Difference: Big Data and the Analytics of Things

– How can we amplify the power of data to optimise decision making across water networks? Beyond raw data, how must utilities approach the Analytics of Things?
– What are the key challenges that arise with implementing cloud-based operations and artificial intelligence itself or is it the realignment of resources and operations that goes with it?
– What are the cast-iron examples of where employing IoT and AoT / AI has improved efficiency, resilience, predictive maintenance and / or driven down operational costs?
– What new business models are emerging as a result?
– What do we know now that we wish we’d known 5 years ago?
Session Chair:
Steve Kaye, Executive Director, UKWIR, UK
Speakers:
Jay Iyengar, Senior Vice President & Chief Innovation and Technology Officer, XYLEM, USA
David Fortune, Vice President Innovation, INNOVYZE, UK
Tertius Rust, Head of Digital, JACOBS UTILITIES, UK
Rik Thijssen, Manager Business Development, VITENS, Netherlands
Nicole Puhl, Business Unit Manager, Claros (SaaS), HACH, USA

9.45

Engineer 2.0: How Human and Artificial Intelligence can Reshape the Future of Asset Management

Maximising outcomes for utilities by combining institutional knowledge with machine learning and artificial intelligence.
Speakers:
Mark Kaney, Director of Assessment Management – Europe, BLACK & VEATCH, UK
Thouheed Gaffoor, CEO & Co-Founder, EMAGIN, USA

10.15

Technology Showcase

Four start-ups pitch their technology and business models to a panel of three ‘dragons’, with questions from the audience.
Presenters:
Martin Ryen, CEO, PHAREM BIOTECH
Gualter Sampaio, Business Development Manager, ENGING
Henrik Hagemann, CEO and Founder, CUSTOMEM
Ziv Gottesfeld, CEO and Co-Founder, HPNOW
In the ‘dragon’ chairs:
Abhirabh Basu, Practice Lead for Water, LUX RESEARCH, Global
Henri Lambert, Founder, APSARA CAPITAL, UK
Eytan Levy, Founder, LEVY VENTURES, Israel

11:00

Networking Brunch