2020 Agenda

Flood-Tech Workshop: Prevention, Prediction, Mitigation

A half-day, in-depth seminar and workshop programme exploring the question: How can the global water industry best meet the challenges of extreme flooding events?

VIEW AGENDA

James Bevan, CEO, UK ENVIRONMENT AGENCY, UK

• Which innovative ways of working are driving the evolution of a responsive, dynamic 21st Century water utility?
• What measures should water utilities be adopting to thrive in a digital world?
• Should water stewards be sharing learning and data across borders to better facilitate innovation and projects, and if so – how?
• What are the successful regulatory drivers that support utilities to deploy advanced technologies?
• Which measures need to be taken to avoid looming ‘Day Zero’ scenarios?
• What keeps you up at night?

Session Chair:
George Hawkins, Founder, MOONSHOT MISSIONS, USA
Speakers:
Mads Leth, CEO, VCS DENMARK, DENMARK
Frederico Fernandes, CEO, AGUAS DO PORTO, PORTUGAL
Mel Karam, CEO, BRISTOL WATER, UK
Narkisos Georgiadis, CEO, EYATH, GREECE

• Comparing the reality with where cities need to be, how are watersheds currently managed and what should be the end goal?
• What risks are cities currently exposed to (e.g. Flooding/Day Zero Scenarios) and how can resiliency be built against them?
• How can the transfer of best practice and technology be better facilitated between international cities?
• How can solutions be made deliverable and affordable?

Session Chair:
Terry Fuller, CEO, THE CHARTERED INSTITUTION OF WATER AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, UK
Speakers:
Muminu Badmus, Managing Director & CEO, LAGOS WATER CORPORATION, NIGERIA 
Anusha Shah, Director – Resilient Cities, ARCADIS, UK
Matt Ellis, Climate Resilience Officer, GREATER MANCHESTER COMBINED AUTHORITY, UK

Hosted by:

• When we talk about resilience, what do we really mean? What are the varying regional perspectives?
• From digital solutions, smart pumps and infrastructure to storm management, health + safety and compliance – where are the biggest opportunities emerging?
• How is resiliency being prioritised across people, processes and technology?
• There are new funds emerging that focus on P3 and “green infrastructure” related projects around the resiliency theme that are struggling to get into the market, why is that?
• How can the industry free up resources to accelerate projects?

Session Chair:
Fiona Griffith, Group Director, ISLE UTILITIES, UK
Speakers:
Mark Fletcher, Global Water Business Leader, ARUP, UK
Gordon Reid, General Manager – Zero Emissions, SCOTTISH WATER, UK
Marjoleine Weemaes, R&D Manager, AQUAFIN, BELGIUM

Innovators pitch their technology and business models with questions from the audience.

Presenters:
Victoria Edwards, CEO and Co-Founder, FIDO, UK
Hanan Itzkovitch, VP Business Development, WATERSIGN, ISRAEL
Paul Egan, CEO, 8POWER, UK

Dragon Panellists:
David Rose, Founder, H2O INSIGHTS, USA
Reinhard Hübner, Investment Manager, SKION GMBH, GERMANY

Speaker:
John Russell, Senior Director of Strategy and Planning, OFWAT, UK

• What is the role of the private sector in solving the critical challenges of reducing water use and improving quality across watersheds?
• How are water stewardship strategies evolving to incorporate new technologies including reuse and closed water systems?
• To what extent is industry actively making direct investments in technology deployment across the supply chain? Where does private sector engagement in water stewardship need to be by 2025?
• Where can synergies and efficiencies be developed between private stewards and public utilities?

Session Chair:
Eliane Algaard, Water Director, NORTHUMBRIAN WATER, UK
Speakers:
Jan-Willem Vosmeer, Senior Global Lead Corporate Social Responsibility, HEINEKEN, NETHERLANDS
Michael Alexander, Head of Water, Agriculture & Environmental Sustainability, DIAGEO, UK
Conor Linstead, Freshwater Specialist, WWF, UK
Marian Evans, Head of Technical & Performance – Industrial Water, VEOLIA UK, UK

How can we best reduce energy expenditure and utilise technology to capture maximum value from wastewater? Bringing together utilities, technology providers and engineers this panel will discuss the key innovations in the market, from reducing energy use in treatment, and utilising grey water in new developments, to capturing energy and resources, and ultimately making potable reuse a viable product.

Session Chair:
Mark Lane, Consultant, THE UK WATER PARTNERSHIP, UK
Speakers:
Keith Haslett, Director of Wastewater, UNITED UTILITIES, UK
Muhammed Ercan, Head of Planning, Project and Expropriation, ANKARA WATER AND SEWERAGE ADMINISTRATION, TURKEY
Pathan Banjongproo, Chief of Project and Sludge Management, BANGKOK METROPOLITAN ADMINISTRATION, THAILAND
Miguel Angel Sanz, Director of Strategic Development, SUEZ, FRANCE

Drill down into featured topics and share your insight and expertise with a small group of delegates. Come prepared for lively discussion and diverse debate! Two session rotations of 25 minutes each.

• 1. Wastewater Reuse: What Are the Challenges Beyond Technology? – Host: Miguel Angel Sanz, Director of Strategic Development, SUEZ, FRANCE
• 2. The Solution is out There: Implementation Is The Challenge – Host: George Hawkins, Founder & President, MOONSHOT MISSIONS, USA
• 3. Zero Emissions by 2030: How Can We Make It Happen? – Host: Gordon Reid, General Manager – Zero Emissions, SCOTTISH WATER, UK
• 4. Resource Recovery: Understanding the Potential of a Growing Industry – Host: Lydia Whyatt, Managing Director for Water Investments, RESONANCE ASSET MANAGEMENT, UK
• 5. Digital Solutions to Monitoring Water Quality – Host: David Kay, Professor of Environment and Health, ABERYSTWYTH UNIVERSITY, UK
• 6. Smart Infrastructure: From Research to Reality – Host: Oliver Hawes, General Manager – Smart Infrastructure, MOTT MACDONALD, UK
• 7. From Boardroom to Control Room: Implementing Effective Asset Management in Tomorrow’s Water Utility – Host: Mark Kaney, Director – Asset Management, BLACK & VEATCH, UK
• 8. An Investment Checklist: What do Entrepreneurs and Investors Need to Consider? – Host: Helge Daebel, Investment Director, EMERALD TECHNOLOGY VENTURES, SWITZERLAND
• 9. Water Engineering: What Does the Future Look Like? – Host: Matt Crabtree, Director of Engineering, SOUTH WEST WATER, UK
• 10. Digital Twins: The Transformation of Water Infrastructure Management – Host: Luis Montestruque, Vice President of Digital Solutions, XYLEM, USA
• 11. Internet of Things: Exploring Opportunities in the Water Sector – Host: Miriam Berhane Russom, Senior Program Manager – Azure IoT, MICROSOFT, USA
• 12. Drought and Floods: How to Build Resiliency in Urban Water – Host: Adam Lovell, Executive Director, WATER SERVICES ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA

Case Study 1: The Danube River Basin: Transboundary Cooperation, Challenges and Opportunities
Petér Kovács, President, INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE DANUBE RIVER, HUNGARY

Case Study 2: Siarzewo Barrage – An Environmentally Rational Project in the Context of the European New Green Deal
Anna Łukaszewska-Trzeciakowska, Head of Water Barrage Development, MINISTRY OF MARITIME ECONOMY AND INLAND NAVIGATION, POLAND

This session we will feature a collection of the best examples of how technology is being deployed to tackle leakage.

• How are the barriers to reducing leakage being overcome?
• Who is leading the way in cutting-edge leak discovery? What does best practice look like?
• How achievable is ‘zero leakage’ and who can we learn from?

Session Chair:
Adam Lovell, Executive Director, WATER SERVICES ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA
Speakers:
Dave Collins, Asset Operations and Leakage Technical Director, ATKINS, MEMBER OF THE SNC-LAVALIN GROUP, UK
Tamás Bencze, International Business Development Director, BUDAPEST WATERWORKS, HUNGARY
Anthony Sanga, Deputy Permanent Secretary, MINISTRY OF WATER, TANZANIA

Speakers:
Franz Rojas, Coordinator of the Water Agenda, DEVELOPMENT BANK OF LATIN AMERICA, LATAC
Francisco Dumler, President, SEDAPAL, Peru
Jorge Meza, Advisor to the Director General, CONAGUA, Mexico

• Which innovations in data analytics are utilities looking for right now and how can we best leverage these solutions to optimise operations?
• How are developments in the cloud impacting the water industry? Who is leading the way?
• How are stakeholders within the supply chain successfully adapting to and transforming their approach to support digital integration across utility networks?
• What are the leading digital trends coming through in 2020 and what do the next five years look like?

Session Chair:
Tony Conway, Director, CONWAY STRATEGIC WATER CONSULTING, UK
Speakers:
Miriam Berhane Russom, Senior Program Manager – Azure IoT, MICROSOFT, USA
Greg Gomez, Vice President – Global Flow Instrumentation & International Utility, BADGER METER, USA
Matt Edwards, Head of Enterprise Data – Chief Data Officer, ANGLIAN WATER, UK
Philip Briscoe, Chief Operating Officer, REZATEC, UK
Luis Montestruque, Vice President of Digital Solutions, XYLEM, UK

Two presentations from a digital service provider and their clients telling real world stories of where ground-breaking technology has been deployed to great effect. Beyond theory, hear about best practice in building capacity, reducing expenditure and boosting efficiency.

Case Study 1: Transforming Network Operations Using Digital Twins
David Fortune, Vice President of Innovation, INNOVYZE, UK

Case Study 2: Leveraging Machine Learning to Predict Pipe Failure
Robert Berry, Chief Data Scientist, FRACTA, UK

Hosted by:

Produced in partnership with the World Water Innovation Fund, this session will focus on:

• How can successful innovation within the water sector be shared and replicated in similar contexts?
• Which organisations are leading the way in collaborating with technology providers?
• How are forward-thinking utilities developing innovation programmes to trial and assess new technologies?
• How can utilities be incentivised to collaborate with partner organisations to build innovation into the sector’s culture?

Session Chair:
Bob Stear, Chief Engineer, SEVERN TRENT, UK
Speakers:
Klaus Paz, Innovation Manager, AEGEA SANEAMENTO, BRAZIL
David Balsar, General Manager – Innovation & Ventures, MEKOROT, ISRAEL
Jan Peter van der Hoek, Chief Innovation Officer, WATERNET, NETHERLANDS

Innovators pitch their technology and business models.

Presenters:
Oliver Hofmann, Director, SOUTHWESTSENSOR, UK
Robert Zagozdzon, Director, BLUE BOSON, UK
Carolyn Hogg, Founder, CASCADE WATER PRODUCTS, UK

Dragon Panellists:
David Rose, Founder, H2O INSIGHTS, USA
Reinhard Hübner, Investment Manager, SKION GMBH, GERMANY

• What are organisations doing to capture the value of digital integration?
• It’s all about your people… what must be done to inspire and implement behaviour change from the bottom-up?
• How can resistance to change in the sector be overcome?
• Moving from proof of concept to full integration: how can utilities scale innovations into their day to day operations?

Session Chair:
Lila Thompson, CEO, BRITISH WATER, UK
Speakers:
Frédéric Renaut, Director of Digital Innovation, SAUR, FRANCE
Adam Street, Vice President Digital, JACOBS, UK
Matt Crabtree, Director of Engineering, SOUTH WEST WATER, UK
Nigel Watson, Chief Innovation Officer, NORTHUMBRIAN WATER, UK
Marie-Pierre Whaley, Chair of UK Board, INTERNATIONAL WATER ASSOCIATION, UK

Speaker:
Sourav Daspatnaik, Managing Director, SWACH ENVIRONMENT, INDIA

Leading institutional and private investors in water technology come together to discuss the future tools required to improve the way that money finds projects and vice-versa. Experts in water finance will share insight into the key investment opportunities and barriers that we must face to accelerate key investment into upgrading assets, circular economy initiatives and transformative water technologies that promote clean growth.

Session Chair:
Helge Daebel, Investment Director, EMERALD TECHNOLOGY VENTURES, SWITZERLAND
Speakers:
Reinhard Hübner, Investment Manager, SKION GMBH, GERMANY
Alex Money, Director of in3 Programme, Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, OXFORD UNIVERSITY, UK
Monica Altamirano, Program Manager Finance for Adaptative Planning, DELTARES, NETHERLANDS
Lydia Whyatt, Managing Director for Water Investments, RESONANCE ASSET MANAGEMENT, UK

Following feedback from our community, we are devoting the end of the summit to dedicated 1-1 meeting time, allowing you to connect with potential future partners without the worry of missing out on any of the action on stage.

Innovation in Action Tour

Back by popular demand, a tour of Anglian Water’s award-winning ‘Shop Window’ project will include:

• A visit to the Gazeley Water Treatment Plant, a ground-breaking Studlands Pressure Reducing Valve site
• Presentations from Anglian Water teams and their technology providers at the forefront of leakage and carbon reduction
• Valuable insight into Anglian Water’s approach to smart metering, behavioural change, catchment management, advanced wastewater treatment and anaerobic digestion

This initiative – an IWA Innovation Gold Award Winner – is a core component of Anglian Water’s ‘Love Every Drop’ strategy, transforming the business through collaboration across supply chain partners and customers, and supporting start-ups who need real-world conditions to test the viability of their products.