Start-Up Showcase: Water Innovators Shaping the Future

As the global challenges of climate change, population growth, urbanisation, flooding and drought ramp up the pressure on water utilities to secure future supply, how can these huge corporates unlock the agility required to implement swift change?

Driven by this urgent need for breakthrough solutions in water efficiency, resiliency and sustainability, start-ups are rising to the challenge, tackling the issues with exciting and emerging technologies, and ready to partner with utilities to resolve their most pressing challenges.

The World Water-Tech Innovation Summit team has hand-picked 10 water-tech companies offering innovative solutions in leak detection, water quality enhancement, energy efficiency, water reuse, continuous sensing and real-time network management.

Exciting innovators in the spotlight at the World Water-Tech Innovation Summit in London include:

8Power (UK) is a Cambridge-based start-up focused on providing ‘fit & forget’ wireless condition monitoring for industrial assets found in the water industry.  Its self-powered wireless sensors send regular asset health data such as vibration and temperature to the cloud platform for aggregation, alerts, alarms and trending. Its differentiation is using vibration energy harvesting (VEH) to power the sensors and eliminate battery changes and wiring. This offers up to 10 years maintenance free, low cost sensor operations. 8power have deployed systems with many of the top UK utilities.

Blue Boson (UK) is an energy saving, environmental, patent protected and revolutionary solution. After twenty years of research and development, and numerous successful installations in industry, Blue Boson introduces its flow-through technology that treats water, other liquid and gaseous media on supramolecular level with no chemicals used. The technology is capable of bringing double-digit savings in power, heating and cooling production.

Cascade Water Products (UK) is a purpose driven enterprise with a mission to help the world be more water efficient through the development and commercialisation of domestic micro-greywater reuse technology. Sustainable Water SDG 6 and Affordable Clean Energy SDG 7 are challenges facing water companies and the world’s population. Cascade’s Aqua Gratis with SMART meter is low energy, cost effective, easy to fit, use and maintain and reduces domestic water consumption by up to 45%.

DeepWaters AI locates underground drinking water sources and underground pipe leaks, using satellite data and artificial intelligence. It is currently working with a number of space agencies and international aid agencies. It is a member of Nvidia’s AI Inception accelerator and Amazon Web Services Activate programme.

Dispel (USA) is an American cyber defence firm based in New York. The company specialises in providing high-speed, secure remote access channels to industrial control systems and other critical assets for vendors and operators. At a technical level, Dispel provides single-tenant, Moving Target Defense SD-WANs as a service, and holds the patents on being able to build and maintain these networks automatically. Water utility customers include Connecticut Water, Maine Water, and Las Vegas Valley Water.

FIDO (UK) enables safe, efficient and accurate leak detection through free floating in-pipe and on-pipe patented technology. FIDO offers a daily diagnostic tool kit. Its in-pipe collects data then analyses on extraction in real time giving leak location to less than 1 metre direct to the engineer. FIDO’s instant acoustic logger audio file analysis gives probability of a leak and its size, while FIDO listening stick detects and analyses both vibration and audio to give instant detection of a leak.

Pontic Technology (USA) provides two novel separate patented technologies, a water and fluid sterilisation system and a chemical fluid decontamination system. Neither technologies use filters, membranes or require chemical additives, and both have the benefit of providing a 100% product with zero waste. Pontic Technology’s team is made up of a multidisciplinary group of scientists, engineers and technologists from The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California.

Rheticus Network Alert (Italy) currently monitors more than 40,000 km of sewer and water pipelines managed by utility companies and was awarded the World Smart City Award as the most revolutionary service enabling predictive maintenance of pipeline networks. Using satellite monitoring combined with operational data, Rheticus Network Alert reduces the cost of sewer and water system maintenance by monitoring potential breakdowns of the pipes caused by subsidence or human-induced ground instability.

SwiftComply (UK) are innovators in fat, oil and grease (FOG) management. Working collaboratively with water companies, governments and local partners, the company is on a mission to protect the environment and human health around the world. SwiftComply provides a digital ecosystem that connects water companies, food service establishments and service providers. The company’s combined approach to data management, innovation and education aims to stop FOG at source, preventing sewer blockages and floods.

SouthWestSensor (UK) has developed a disruptive proprietary platform technology for continuous sensing of water nutrients and pollutants. Using liquid reagent based test chemistries in a compact microfluidic format, the company aims to ‘bring the lab to the water’. The low-cost, low-maintenance DropletSens probes are perfectly suited for a wide range of customers ranging from environmental agencies to water utility companies. Its first product is DropletSens-NO3, with phosphate and ammonia sensors to follow.

WaterSign (Israel) patented technology enables real-time management of water usage for multiple users with a single sensor (water/pressure meter) located at the main inlet. The technology is unique because the water itself is used as the medium to transfer data. It is simple and economical with no need for radio or cellular devices. The system analyses water consumption patterns and alerts in case of irregular behaviour. The company targets main water users: water supply and irrigation, accounting for 80% of water usage.

Full information on the summit programme, speakers and delegate registration is available at worldwatertechinnovation.com

 

Previously showcased innovators include:

120WaterAudit, Advizzo, Aqaix, Aquacycl, Aquagga, Aquanty, Blue-Value, Clearwater Controls, Customem, Drylet, Enging, Forward Water Technologies, Foundry Spatial, GeoEnvironment Technologies, HPNow, Island Water Technologies, Kando, KMX Membrane Technologies, HIAS, Maia Analytica, NuLeaf, Pharem Biotech, PowerTech Water, RWEDI Solutions, SHARC Energy Systems, Storm Pal, Swirltex, TERGYS, Utilis, Vienna Water Monitoring Solutions, Water Harvesting Inc and Water Pigeon.