Four Things We Learned at BlueTech Forum 2023
Experts all over the globe are creating new technologies and solutions that solve complex water challenges. Many of the top minds in the industry gathered recently in Edinburgh, Scotland, for the annual BlueTech Forum.
This year’s theme was “Innovation with Impact,” and several of us at Veolia Water Technologies & Solutions experienced the thrill of these disruptive ideas balanced with the challenge of scale and implementation. It was great to see some of the advancements others are developing and hear from speakers offering unique insights and perspectives.
The action-oriented event was meant to spark more partnership and collaboration to fight against a global water crisis. Experts at BlueTech looked at how we could work together, pool resources, and start conversations that will, hopefully, lead to exciting new solutions.
Here are four key takeaways from my two days in Scotland, premises we continue to think about here at Veolia.
The audience is growing.
Seeing so many new faces among attendees at BlueTech Forum was a pleasant surprise. Various stakeholders are interested in entering this market — families and individuals looking to get involved in a space generally crowded with venture capitalists and fund managers. The event reported more than $1 billion of investment in the room.
These newcomers are interested in sustainability and want to put money into water technologies and recycling efforts. While it’s great to see the audience grow, we need to continue to educate on the space by introducing them to concepts like sustainable water reuse, wastewater treatment, and industry trends.
End-user challenges are more diverse than ever.
The innovation showcase included sixteen new tech startups and the variety among them showed how fragmented the water market can be. There are more challenges than ever facing end users — from municipalities to industrial facilities, large organizations to residential communities, a range of regulatory requirements, and the context of whatever region the end user is in. There is no shortage of wrinkles that make each issue unique.
No silver bullet exists to solve all these problems. Some of the companies at BlueTech have bright futures serving a specific market segment or solving a particular issue. Veolia has a comprehensive portfolio of equipment, systems, chemical treatment programs, and other services that serve many industries for many applications. Our experts are skillful in finding the right solution for even the most complex water challenges and partnering and creating hybrid solutions holds a lot of potential to accelerate implementation.
Distribution is the unsung hero of innovation.
One concept of conversation was the “Piloting Valley of Death.” Pilot programs may be part of the equation whenever you develop new technology, but piloting to death stifles innovation. To have a faster timeline for tech adoption, we need distribution.
At Veolia, we’ve attempted to tackle this challenge by creating select Technology Incubators whose purpose is to lead the commercialization of these new ideas while leveraging our existing distribution infrastructure. It’s an acknowledgement that these innovations need commercial help to get them to market. After all, this is the manifestation of impact.
Collaboration is key.
At BlueTech, we saw companies working together to achieve extraordinary results. One great example was the 100+ Accelerator, a coalition of giants that would generally consider themselves competitors and has put that aside for the greater good to invest in smaller companies that can make a difference. Success needs partnership and collaboration.
We must continue to engage with early adopters as partners in innovation. Collaborating this way would curb a critical industry issue: Risk.
The risk of implementing a new solution is considered significant in the water industry. The r isk could mean any number of things, like career risk for the person who chose a particular product or budgetary risk if the ROI isn’t quick enough.
To allow innovation to thrive, we need to de-risk. This may come via insurance policies or sandboxing new technologies and solutions with several potential customers to reduce the risk for the one that dares to be first in line for full implementation.
BlueTech was a great reminder that we’re all pulling from the same side of the rope as we strive to find new solutions that solve our global water challenges. At Veolia, we are eager to partner with new prospects and other innovative companies to make a more significant impact in creating new, sustainable solutions.
