WaterProof is the magazine of the Water Alliance, a partnership between government, research institutions and industry in the field of innovative and sustainable water technology. From its base, the WaterCampus in Leeuwarden, the Water Alliance builds on the ‘water technology innovation chain’; a process whereby new ideas from universities, laboratories and test sites are converted into worldwide marketable products. WaterProof provides regional, national and global information on developments, results and background in the field of water technology.
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Sports and entrepreneurship
By the time you read this, the Paris Olympics will be long past, and the European Water Technology Week 2024 (ETWT, 23–26 September) will be fresh in our minds. I am pleased to report that it was a great success; a photo collage is included later in this issue. It is impressive how, together with our WaterCampus partners such as Wetsus, CEW and CIV Water, we repeatedly manage to bring the crème de la crème in the fields of education, government and water technological activity to Leeuwarden for this multifaceted event. Numerous international relations, such as various cluster organizations also attended, this time from Europe as well as the US and Singapore.
As always, Water Alliance added an important business dimension to the EWTW through numerous workshops and parallel sessions, an exhibition floor and, of course, our innovation award, the Water Alliance WIS Award. This year, BubbleFlush proved a convincing winner.
Winning the WIS award seems to be a good indicator of success. Previous winners such as Wafilin Systems, Hydraloop, Samotics and Ferr-Tech are proof of that. However, they know better than anyone that success is also a matter of perseverance and longevity. Dutch Gold medalist in the Olympic marathon, Sifan Hassan, knows all about perseverance as well. Entrepreneurs could learn a lot from elite athletes. They understand that focus, proactivity, patience and endurance are important elements, as is working together as a team. That goes without saying in a team sport, but even individual athletes work together with a personal coach, medical staff and their family, with whom a lot of coordination is needed. There is a clear parallel with entrepreneurship. If you want to be successful in water tech, you need more than knowledge. It is also impossible to be equally good at everything. That is precisely why we are here as Water Alliance; for any water-related business that wants to go further. With our network, we can help you develop, test and showcase innovations, open up markets and tell your own story. This edition of WaterProof has numerous examples of that, too. I hope you enjoy reading this issue and wish you all the best in both business and sports.
Hein Molenkamp Managing Director, Water Alliance
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Photo: Marcel J. de Jong
A FOOTHOLD IN ATLANTA
Signing an MoU (memorandum of understanding) is a common first step in strengthening international relations. Water Alliance often uses it when paving international roads for Dutch water technology, as was the case on 10 June this year. Hein Molenkamp, director of Water Alliance, signed an MoU with CEO Melissa Meeker of The Water Tower water hub in Gwinnett County, near Atlanta, Georgia (USA). What is the purpose of an MoU, and what could come of it, specifically? Hein Molenkamp explains.
Molenkamp and Melissa Meeker signed the statement during a roundtable discussion in the presence of none other than King of the Netherlands Willem Alexander and his wife, Queen Máxima. Accompanied by then-minister Mark Harbers of the Ministry of Infrastructure & Water, the royal couple paid a working visit to Atlanta and New York in June. The idea of signing this MoU was born from consultations between Molenkamp and Consul General Jaap Veerman of the Dutch Consulate in Atlanta In preparation for that meeting. But what is the purpose of an MoU, and what else could come of it? “I am pragmatic, so when making new contacts with clusters, I am especially supportive of doing things together”,
says the Water Alliance director. “If an MoU can reinforce this, it is part of our strategy. Clusters like Water Alliance also have constituent companies looking for innovative technology. Cluster-to-cluster relationships are often a good way for Dutch technology suppliers to find trading partners and expand internationally. International networking is all about establishing and maintaining new relationships and learning the customs of other cultures. You have to know what is going on in various places in the world and have a genuine interest in it. What issues are people facing? What are their ambitions? What can Water Alliance do to promote a desire to deploy Dutch water technology innovations? At Water Alliance, we
work to accelerate the implementation of those innovations every day. When a warm contact is established at a good time, an MoU is a good means to further underscore and develop shared ambitions.”
An MoU is an international written policy agreement that is not legally binding on the parties to that agreement. The lack of legal obligation also makes it a bit more non-committal. “However, at the same time, that also makes it more accessible to take it on together”, Molenkamp argues. “Organizations that value each other and see potential for cooperation often sign an MoU. It can mark the beginning of a stable, long-term relationship, where you actively stay in contact with each other and from
which joint projects can emerge over time. We have built many relationships that way, in Canada, the US, Asia and certainly within Europe, and there are now many examples of concrete business relationships that have arisen from that later.”
For Water Alliance, an MoU is a great fit with a Dutch government programme called WTEX10. Funded by the Dutch Ministries of Infrastructure & Water and Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, Water Alliance aims to establish and develop those first crucial contacts and to raise awareness of Dutch water technology in its wake. “We will be making this MoU with the people in Georgia more concrete in the coming years”, Molenkamp stated.
“For example, The Water Tower’s CEO Melissa Meeker visited the EWTW 2024 in Leeuwarden from 23–26 September, and we are organizing a matchmaking meeting during Weftec in New Orleans in early October this year. Many Dutch and American companies go there, making it a hotbed for one-on-one business contacts. After Weftec, we will
also visit The Water Tower in Gwinnett County, Georgia, with a government delegation from Leeuwarden. The Water Tower is developing similarly to the WaterCampus in Leeuwarden. Both sides want to learn from each other and strengthen each other.”
Consul General Jaap Veerman of the Consulate General of the Netherlands in Atlanta loves seeing these kinds of developments. “Getting to know each other and engaging in a dialogue about mutual challenges and opportunities for cooperation is the beginning of everything, including business”, he says. At the WaterCampus in Leeuwarden, Water Alliance is demonstrating how government, knowledge institutions and entrepreneurship can cooperate and what dynamics result from that; Veerman emphasizes that he finds it positive that experiences and networks are also being shared with a cluster organization in the south of the US, which is following more or less the same approach. “And it is particularly nice that Water Alliance also directly represents over two hundred water tech companies from the Netherlands in doing so”, Veerman says. “Emerging opportunities for collaboration can be seized faster that way. The recent visit to Atlanta and Savannah by the Dutch King and Queen catalyzes the further development of the MoU and helps further shape the cooperation. The highly water-related programme and the publicity surrounding the Royal visit also garnered interest from other actors in the Georgian water sector in what the Netherlands has to offer in terms of knowledge and innovation. Water Alliance is at the forefront of deepening this collaboration and capitalizing on opportunities.”
‘SIGNING AN MoU IS PART OF A STRATEGY’
Consul General Jaap Veerman
UMCG MAKES STRIDES WITH CIRCULAR RAINWATER
WE CAN REUSE UP TO 30 MILLION LITRES
The global freshwater shortage is one of the biggest problems facing humanity. The problem is becoming increasingly acute, even in water-rich countries like the Netherlands. At the same time, solutions are also being developed in the Netherlands. For example, Johan Bel, chair of the Expertgroep Circulair Water (affiliated with the Water Alliance), is involved in an ambitious project in which the renowned Universitair Medisch Centrum Groningen (UMCG) will collect and reuse around thirty million litres of rainwater annually.
UMCG is, by Dutch standards, a large hospital and uses around 200 million litres of water every year. Cooling towers and machines use around fifteen percent of those 200 million litres to cool equipment and rooms. That fifteen percent of the hospital’s total consumption can soon be saved by collecting rainwater in three large water tanks, according to calculations by technical policy consultant Bas Alblas. “UMCG has a roof area of 38,065 m². Calculating with the figures from 2023—a wet year—over
38 million litres of rainwater will land on our roof. With the amount of rainfall from a dry year, such as 2018, we can still collect around 23.5 million litres of rainwater. This is a rough calculation—I haven’t included evaporation, for example—but these amounts of rainwater will soon enable us to reduce our drinking water consumption by ten to fifteen percent.”
The three large water tanks will be housed in UMCG’s basement. The first tank is already complete, with the
second and third to follow in 2025 and 2028, respectively. The tanks are huge by Dutch standards. “We are lucky to have these spaces available; there is very little structural work needed to prepare them for water collection. Building large tanks or reservoirs for water collection is very expensive”, Alblas says.
FLUSHING TOILETS
Once the reservoirs are all in use by 2028, UMCG will have taken a big step toward achieving the goals set out
in the Dutch National Plan of Action to Save Drinking Water. By 2035, large consumers such as UMCG must reduce their water consumption by twenty percent annually compared to the period of 2016–2019. Reducing water consumption is part of UMCG’s ambitious goal of becoming circular and climate-neutral by 2035.
TAPS
“But we are doing more”, Alblas says. “For example, we are assessing the number of taps at UMCG. It is best to have as few taps as possible, which are used to their fullest potential. This avoids the need to flush unused taps for legionella and infection prevention. When buying new appliances, we also look at how waterefficient they are.”
Excellent
showcase
Johan Bel, owner of the company
My Water Factory and chair of the Water Alliance’s Expertgroep Circulair Water, is involved in the project.
“In early 2022, we were approached by Nathanaël Groothuis from Deerns [independent Dutch engineering firm specializing in technical consulting and engineering; active in various locations around the world, ed.], the company UMCG had hired to design the rainwater system.
Nathanaël had previously attended one of our webinars on rainwater systems, and that got the ball rolling. “We consulted on the design and the products to be used, such as filters and the pump system, and those ended up in the specifications.
Lammerink Groep took on the work and ordered the products from us early this year.” The entrepreneur is proud of this project. “Of course I’m proud”, Bel says. “It’s great that a highprofile organization like UMCG is taking the lead in making their water system more sustainable and showing how easy it is to save an enormous amount of drinking water by collecting and using rainwater. This is an excellent showcase for us and sets an example which many other organizations will hopefully follow.”
Johan Bel
Beautiful aerial view of the UMCG hospital in Groningen
INTELLIGENT GREENHOUSES: 20,000 HEADS OF LETTUCE IN THE DESERT
FOOD SECURITY IN EVERY CLIMATE OF THE WORLD
Since 1953, Dutch company Van der Hoeven has offered a range of services for complex greenhouse projects, including consulting, design, engineering, project management, construction and operation. The company also offers intelligent and sustainable greenhouse solutions that make smart use of energy and water for environments considered difficult or impossible for growing crops.
It could have been a scene in a science fiction movie: in the midst of a desolate, bonedry desert landscape, a few greenhouses produce 20,000 heads of lettuce a day. JessieLynn van Egmond smiles. For Van der Hoeven’s sustainable development manager, this is not fiction but reality. “We excel in complex projects in places where horticulture couldn’t work before”, she says. “We are also specialised in integrating various waste streams into our greenhouses. Circularity is incredibly important to us.”
By reusing water streams in the greenhouse, a modern greenhouse farm can reduce the use of water and fertiliser to a minimum, she explains. “This can be done by recirculating and treating irrigation water, capturing plant transpiration and using sustainable water sources. The aim is to ensure that the only water that leaves the greenhouse is inside the produced vegetable or fruit. We also use residual water streams from other industries as inputs for the CO2, energy and the little bit of water and nutrients we need.”
On a national level, most of Van der Hoeven’s customers are growers. Internationally, it is primarily investors and larger market players.
“Unlike in our early years, our customer base is not necessarily only people with green thumbs. As such, we have expanded our service to include greenhouse operation and the delivery of turnkey projects, offering our customers an even more comprehensive service.”
COVID was a wake-up call for many countries, says JessieLynn. “I say wake-up call, but it was really more of a shock: when the world was upside down, many countries realized how dependent they were on imports and how vulnerable
you are when that import is not possible. That awareness gave high-tech greenhouse farming a huge boost. People all over the world realized that food security and growing locally has a lot of benefits.”
Jessie-Lynn’s background is in water. She worked as a professor’s assistant in the Water Management department at the Delft University of Technology (in the southwest of the Netherlands) where she wrote about wastewater treatment and microplastics for the university. “Water is incredibly important, but it is not an infinite resource. That is why we continuously recirculate it in our greenhouses. We also critically examine our sources. Of the four input streams a greenhouse needs, three—energy, water and CO2—are already obtained from wastewater or alternative sources, but this is not yet the standard.” To find out why not, she set out to talk with leaders in the water, waste and energy sectors. Each time, the answer was the same: the technology is there; the only thing missing is collaboration.
“To encourage collaboration, we have developed a platform that showcases the opportunities that arise when waste, water and food come together. We call it Circular City Greenhouses. By thinking outside the box—outside your own bubble—you can achieve great things that are good for people, for the planet and your business.” With a growing world population and increasingly extreme weather conditions, protecting our planet and providing food security is becoming increasingly important, Jessie-Lynn says. “Being able to contribute to that with our high-tech greenhouses is invigorating.”
Jessie-Lynn van Egmond:
“The way you produce food directly influences your productivity, water needs and energy demand. Van der Hoeven focuses on high-tech greenhouses, such as semiclosed, closed and hybrid greenhouses. High-tech greenhouses have active ventilation, comparable to adiabatic and mechanical cooling in buildings which enables full control over the temperature and humidity inside the greenhouse for the grower. This is achieved by recirculating the greenhouse air as much as possible, including the energy and CO2 contained within. This high level of ventilation control makes the climate in these greenhouses more homogenous than in lower-tech greenhouses, allowing optimal performance of the crop and ensuring high yields and high quality with minimal resources.”
Jessie-Lynn van Egmond: “This is beneficial for the crop, as it can absorb CO2 and evapotranspire more efficiently—basically grow better—while this form of climate control also enables reduced energy, water and CO2 consumption.”
Jessie-Lynn van Egmond
PURGATORIA’S ICABUS SIEVE TESTED IN PRACTICE
Frans Durieux
ICABUS is an invention by Frans Durieux, owner of the company Purgatoria in Veessen, a village around 25 kilometres south of the city of Zwolle. ICABUS is a sieve technology that can extract cellulose from toilet paper from sewage. Thanks in part to a grant of €460,000, the company can conduct a year of demonstration tests at the Aa en Maas water board in Den Bosch (in the south of the Netherlands), with participation from three water boards in the east of the country. “It looks really good”, Durieux says.
Water Alliance previously had contact with Durieux after the summer of 2023. “If the first ICABUS project is successful, other water boards will follow”, he said at the time. The company has now reached that point, Durieux acknowledges. “We will soon be testing the ICABUS for a year with the water boards of Aa and Maas, Rijn and IJssel, Vallei and Veluwe, and Vechtstromen. When the year is up, we will report for several months. It’s all about try before you buy, but the idea is that the Aa en Maas water board will take over the plant after this year.”
Acknowledgement
test possible. The grant is from the ERDF [European Regional Development Fund, ed.] through Oost NL. The latter party was also crucial in securing financing.”
Abroad
THE GRANT ENABLES US TO DO A YEAR’S WORTH OF RESEARCH!
The water boards involved acknowledge the added value of the sieve in removing cellulose fibres from wastewater. Durieux is both positive and grateful for that. “I am extremely grateful to Ferdinand Kiestra of Aa and Maas”, Durieux continues. “He has been a driver within the water board to make this demonstration
A good network is essential to making strides, and that is where Water Alliance comes in. “I met two interested parties from Portugal and Scotland at the Water Alliance innovation stand at the Aquatech exhibition in Amsterdam last year. It looks like we will be doing a project with the Scottish party, set for execution in 2025. In that respect, our Water Alliance membership has been crucial. After years of investing, we are on the cusp of tangible developments with the ICABUS, both at home and abroad”, says Durieux.
UNLIKE OTHER FINE SIEVES COMMONLY USED TO REMOVE CELLULOSE FROM TOILET PAPER FROM SEWAGE IN THE NETHERLANDS, ICABUS USES A PATENTED ANGLE WITH OPENINGS THAT ARE 9 TO 25 TIMES LARGER. AS A RESULT, THE ICABUS IS MORE ECONOMICAL, MORE ROBUST, EASIER TO CLEAN AND CHEAPER TO MAINTAIN. IT IS A SIMPLE, SMART AND SUSTAINABLE SOLUTION. FINE SIEVES CAN BE USED TO INCREASE THE CAPACITY OF A WWTP, TO RECOVER PULP FOR CIRCULAR OR ENERGETIC APPLICATIONS, OR TO COUNTERACT AMMONIUM PEAKS CAUSED BY A ‘FIRST FLUSH’, FOR EXAMPLE.
Photo: Lucas Kemper
AND THE AWARD GOES TO... BUBBLEFLUSH!
BubbleFlush, an innovation from company
TranZero of entrepreneurs Dennis Luiten (1973) and Hidde Reitsma (1974), has won the WIS Award 2024. The company from Zoetermeer (not far from the city of The Hague) won both the audience prize and the jury prize in an exciting final during the European Water Technology Week (EWTW) on September 25th in Leeuwarden. The WIS Award is the innovation prize that the Water Alliance awards annually to a company with a remarkable water innovation. The prize includes marketing support worth 10,000 euros. Winning the prize has proven to be an important step towards international expansion for the winners in recent years.
“With the BubbleFlush we want to transform the cleaning industry into an ecologically responsible way of cleaning toilets,” said Dennis Luiten, who quickly won over the audience during the final with his flamboyant presentation. “Every year, billions of liters of chlorine and other harmful cleaning products are produced and end up in nature via the toilet. With the BubbleFlush this is no longer necessary.”
During the final, Luiten showed the audience and jury a device in the shape of a kind of toy gun, with which he believes any toilet can be cleaned sustainably.
“The BubbleFlush uses an age-old powerful natural phenomenon: cavitation. Imploding bubbles that effectively remove all dirt and limescale,” says the entrepreneur. The basic principle is therefore a form of ‘ultrasonic cleaning’, which is based on moving sound in a conductive medium such as water and cleaning fluid. “It is very important that it is much healthier for the environment and people,” Luiten emphasized. “Working with chemicals every day is just as bad as smoking a pack of cigarettes a day. That is why we first focused on the cleaning industry and
related companies, in the Netherlands, but also in many other countries. So that is a B2B approach; We may also be able to enter the private market later.”
The BubbleFlush device.
A packed house in Leeuwarden.
EUROPEAN WATER TECHNOLOGY WEEK
The European Water Technology Week (EWTW) took place in Leeuwarden (the Netherlands) from September 23 to September 26. A common thread in many presentations and discussions during the EWTW was the challenge of how to speed up the introduction of innovations to the market. A challenge that most of the more than 200 members (largely SMEs) of the Water Alliance also face. Given the urgency of the world’s water problem, things are still moving too slow, but there was also some good news during the EWTW.
For example, Professor Cees Buisman of Wetsus pointed out the increase in scale that is already visible in Europe when it comes to the reuse of domestic wastewater. Recovery is only possible if yellow, black and gray wastewater are kept separate as much as possible. Buisman knows what he is talking about, because Wetsus and various affiliated companies (including Desah) have gained a lot of experience in recent years with decentralized wastewater treatment plants in, among others, Sneek (Netherlands) and Helsingborg (Sweden), where separate systems are already used. The scale is increasing, as became clear during the EWTW. Years ago, there were 200 homes in Sneek, 2,000 homes in Helsingborg and in Leeuwarden there are now concrete plans for connecting 4,000 homes.
Mayor Sybrand van Haersma Buma proudly talked about this in his opening speech. On and around the shunting yard of the Leeuwarden train station, a district is being built under the name ‘Spoordok’ where decentralized sanitation will play a leading role. The ‘black water’ is processed decentrally, and the resulting sludge can be returned to agriculture, so that nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphate remain in the food cycle and essential trace nutrients such as zinc are not lost. More about this in a later edition of WaterProof.
Mayor Sybrand van Haersma Buma
Professor Cees Buisman
The Water InnovationTechnology Chain
The WaterCampus brings together a complete chain of innovation for water technology, from first idea, research, specialized laboratories, various demo sites, launching customers to commercial international applications by commercial companies. Indeed from knowledge to business. It is driven by the idea that technological development and innovation is needed to develop new markets and create new business opportunities.
BUSY DAYS IN TORONTO
“IWA is an international event”, says Hein Molenkamp. “Many people from the international water sector attend both the congress and the exhibition. Various cluster organizations we often collaborate with as Water Alliance were also in attendance. An important event for us to attend.” Molenkamp moderated a workshop at the congress titled ‘Blueprint for a Circular Water Smart Society’. During the workshop, several international speakers highlighted the topic of circular water in the built environment. Speakers included Tom Arnot of the University of Bath on behalf of Water Europe, Melissa Lubitz of Hydraloop Inc., Bonita Matthew of Foresight Canada and Maretta Zwamborn of KWR.
Another topic on the agenda was the Water4All project, an EU funding programme for scientific research and innovation development with an ambitious goal: to address water challenges related to climate change and help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. A secondary goal is to boost EU competitiveness and growth. “It is a great programme”, says Project Manager Rixt Sinnema. “It is partly funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme, a major funding programme for research and innovation. The partnership will last for seven years, starting in 2022. We made sure to highlight the programme, as did chairman Bjorn Kaare Jensen from Denmark. We also took the opportunity to highlight the unique formula of the WaterCampus Leeuwarden.”
New call
Another reason to take the stage was a new ‘call’ from Water4All, which opened in September 2024, inviting consortia to sign up for research and innovation projects. “It is a great opportunity for anyone who wants to do further research or is involved in innovation”, says Sinnema. “The theme is ‘Water for Circular Economy.’ There are many funding opportunities. To those interested, I would say: be sure to check out the website!” [URL below this publication, ed.]
Danes and Dutch sign MoU
There was also a lot of networking in Toronto. This was possible in places like the NL-Lounge, jointly hosted by NWP and Water Alliance, where drinks were organized together with KWR on Monday afternoon. “These are often good moments to establish and expand contacts”, says Molenkamp. “When we see opportunities to cooperate with other clusters, we try to concretize that during events such as the IWA. For example, we signed an MoU with Water Valley Denmark. This MoU also underlines the two cluster organizations’ cooperation within the Water4All project. Bjørn Kaare Jensen, chairman of the Water4All programme, attended the signing of the MoU by Hein Molenkamp, director of Water Alliance, and Ulla Sparre, CEO of Water Valley Denmark.
“An MoU (memorandum of understanding) is a common first step in strengthening international relations”, Molenkamp says. “The Water Alliance uses it regularly when
paving international roads for Dutch water technology. It is a confirmation between parties that you see opportunities together and intend to build on that in the future.”
Molenkamp also visited several organizations in Toronto with Consul General Harman Idema and his team, and Water Envoy Meike van Ginneken. These visits included meetings with The Waterfront Toronto, Toronto Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) and Toronto Water.
HEIN MOLENKAMP AND RIXT SINNEMA WERE PRESENT IN CANADA ON BEHALF OF WATER ALLIANCE
Hein Molenkamp and Rixt Sinnema in Toronto
Ulla Sparre (left), Bjørn Kaare and Hein Molenkamp
WATER4ALL OPENING CALL
ENTREPRENEUR RENÉ BETGEM:
‘GETTING THE ESTABLISHMENT ON BOARD IS QUITE HURDLE’THE
When the rain shower phenomenon became popular in the Netherlands, around the year 2000, entrepreneur René Betgem bought one. The result? A high gas bill, as his daughters spent countless hours under the pleasant shower. Betgem felt that had to change. He invented the Greenshower, now better known as the Upfall Shower.
Betgem owns Almere-based Badwereld, only a stone’s throw from Amsterdam. He is a visionary who has worked in the sanitaryware industry for thirty years, with a strong interest in wellness products. From 2003 to 2008, he worked on a luxurious, water-saving system. Betgem about the invention: “I wanted to develop a water and energy-saving shower system, where the savings were achieved by circulating, filtering and reusing water. I brought the Greenshower— the prototype—onto the market in 2008. Five years later, that became the Upfall Shower.” The first Upfall Shower was sold in 2013. More than a decade later, over 2,000 have been sold. The system is manufactured in the Netherlands with European components.
Plug and play
reservoir, filtering dirt and hair, after which a UV lamp cleans the water. The system only contains eight litres of water upon startup; while showering, several litres of water are added every minute, and the rain shower has a flow rate of 35 litres per minute. While a normal rain shower needs sufficient pressure to achieve a good flow, this is not necessary with the Upfall, as it takes care of the pressure itself.
THE SHOWER CAN BE INSTALLED ANYWHERE; IT’S A SIMPLE MATTER OF PLUG-ANDPLAY
The Upfall Shower consists of a hand shower and a large upcycle rain shower with a diameter of forty centimetres. The system is actually quite simple, Betgem explains. “It’s a plug-and-play system. The shower can be installed anywhere and works with any hot water supply. Because the Upfall Shower is primarily comprised of existing parts, maintenance and service are uncomplicated. You can order the parts from anywhere in the world and clean the system weekly with a cap of cleaner. A bottle a year is enough, on average.” The Upfall Shower pumps used water up from the
Obstacles
Despite the revolutionary concept, Betgem encountered plenty of obstacles on the journey to his water-saving invention: “It takes a long time to make a change and start a revolution, especially when dealing with government. Getting the established order on board is difficult, including in construction and at water companies. It’s slow going, while, on average, a household can cut its water consumption in half with the Upfall Shower. It would be great if we could offer the upper echelon more of an opposing view with Water Alliance—of which I am a member—as well as from my participation in the affiliated expert group Circulair Water.”
BUT, HOW DOES IT WORK?
THE UPFALL SHOWER WORKS ON ANY WATER SUPPLY (BOILER, CENTRAL HEATING, HEAT PUMP, INSTANTANEOUS WATER HEATER) AND REQUIRES NO TECHNICAL MODIFICATIONS. DURING USE, WATER FILLS THE RESERVOIR AND IS THEN SUCKED UP. A MICROFILTER REMOVES ANY DIRT. THE WATER IS PUMPED UP THROUGH A UV FILTER TO DISINFECT IT. HOT WATER IS ADDED TO REFRESH THE WATER AND KEEP IT AT TEMPERATURE. THIS CIRCULATION PROCESS REPEATS ITSELF. THE SYSTEM DRAINS AFTER SHOWERING.
‘THE UPFALL SHOWER SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCES WATER AND ENERGY CONSUMPTION’, SAYS BETGEM.
‘WE
Gert-Jan Maasdam (right)
Richard van Delden and Gert-Jan Maasdam first met at Wavin Group. With a shared passion for sustainability and troves of relevant experience, the pair founded Blue North Partners early this year. Based in Amsterdam and Zeist, the company’s mission is to accelerate the growth of necessary innovations in sustainable water and climate resilience. “This is sorely needed because despite governments and businesses noticing the urgency regarding climate and water, everything is moving too slowly”, Maasdam says.
While Van Delden focuses on sustainable water and wastewater technology in the Netherlands, Maasdam operates the global side of Blue North Partners. “Making buildings more water efficient, reusing water, making areas climate-proof, water neutrality—these are the topics in which we want to make a difference in the water and climate sector. There is already a lot in the works, in the Netherlands and Europe, but also in India, Mexico and parts of Latin America. We come up with an innovation to solve one of the above problems. We think big but act small. We select high-potential companies that can solve a problem with proven innovations. Belgium’s IPEE and FieldFactors from Delft are great examples. We help those kinds of companies—or pioneers—by opening doors, establishing partnerships and obtaining the resources, financial or otherwise, to get the job done.”
Digital technology
Blue North Partners has a broad sales market. These can be water issues in industry (e.g., wastewater), within tech companies (e.g., cooling water), or at airports or other places where a lot of toilets are flushed, for example. “Digital technology is always involved, whereby the goal is to intelligently and proactively control water systems”, Maasdam continues. “We have just won a major project with London Stansted Airport, where we are working with our partner IPEE to significantly reduce the airport’s sanitary facilities’ water consumption. We aim to fill our portfolio with successful projects within five years, although our primary focus is on innovative companies and pioneers who need our help to grow. If that
succeeds, there will be impact, and together we can achieve scalable successes in climate-proofing our environment.”
Water Alliance member
Lastly, Maasdam addresses the company’s Water Alliance membership: “We joined Water Alliance because it is a perfect match with our DNA. I am also joining the Expertgroep Circulair Water. We share the goal of putting the Dutch water sector on the map internationally. It fits like a glove”, concludes Maasdam.
‘DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY PLAYS A LARGE ROLE IN ALL OUR SOLUTIONS’
IPEE MAKES SENSOR-CONTROLLED TOILETS THAT ONLY FLUSH WHEN WATER CONTAMINATION IS DETECTED. A SMART SENSOR AUTOMATICALLY ADJUSTS THE RINSE RATE TO THE DEGREE OF CONTAMINATION, SAVING UP TO 62% OF THE WATER. THE UNIQUE EXTERIORMOUNTED SENSOR ALSO MEASURES AND PREVENTS SEWER BLOCKAGES. IPEE’S TOILETS ARE ALREADY IN USE AT BRUSSELS AIRPORT, IN KINEPOLIS CINEMAS, IN PREMIUM HOTELS AND MAJOR HOSPITALS IN SINGAPORE.
FIELDFACTORS HAS DEVELOPED A CIRCULAR WATER INNOVATION WITH BLUEBLOQS THAT ALLOWS LARGE AMOUNTS OF RAINWATER TO BE REUSED IN URBAN AREAS. BLUEBLOQS COMBINES BIOFILTRATION, UNDERGROUND WATER RETENTION AND CONTROL TECHNOLOGIES IN A MODULAR SYSTEM FOR TREATING, STORING AND REUSING RAINWATER. BLUEBLOQS CAPTURES 95% OF THE RAINWATER THAT FALLS ON SITE, TREATS IT AND STORES IT UNDERGROUND, MAKING FRESHWATER AVAILABLE FOR REUSE.
