With deregulation of the water industry expected in 2017, this year is an important year for those working within the industry and planning for the future. The Water Event, taking place on 15-16 September at the NEC in Birmingham, will provide visitors with the knowledge and understanding they need to go into the future fully informed. The Water Theatre seminar programme will play a pivotal role in educating visitors, providing advice from leading industry figures and case studies from those already preparing and planning for the future including Sainsbury’s Supermarkets Ltd, Nestle, House of Fraser and News UK.
Business Stream, Scotland’s largest supplier of non-domestic water and wastewater services, is headline sponsor of the Water Theatre and will be holding a drinks reception on Tuesday 15 September to reveal the findings of its white paper ‘Fortune Favours the Bold: When does being bold in business deliver success?’ As part of the seminar programme, Business Stream will also be demonstrating to visitors what can be achieved by switching water supplier and how to prepare for the future of the open market, with a case study jointly presented with its new client House of Fraser.
Fred Pearce, a global water expert and author of the ‘When the Rivers Run Dry’, will hold a closing keynote session on Wednesday 16 September looking at the obstacles and decisions we must make as water users and suppliers to secure the future of the World’s more vital resource.
Among the headlines sessions delivered by thought leaders in commerce and industry will be:
Carlo Galli, Technical & Strategy Advisor, Water Resources Corporate Operation at Nestle will outline the company’s water strategy and the obstacles it has overcome and the achievements it has made;
Jose Davila, Commercial Director at United Utilities will provide a water competition update;
Andrew Bainbridge, President of the Major Energy Users Council and Karma Ockenden, Chair of the MEUC Water Competition Action Group, will hold a working lunch to discuss business information for non-household water and waste water customers;
Sarah Mukherjee, Director of Environment at Water UK, will talk through a number of case studies from leading UK examples of successful waste water management projects followed by a joint panel discussion.
There will also be a number of panel discussions including a supplier panel which includes representatives from Thames Water, Severn Trent, Waterscan and Business Stream who will discuss ‘Water for today, tomorrow and beyond April 2017’. A customer panel looking at getting the most out of the water supply will include Claire Yeates, Director of Waterscan, Lugano Kapembwa, Energy Environment Manager at News UK, Tuval Rockman, Environment Resources Manager, Property at Sainsbury’s Supermarkets Ltd and Stuart Read, Procurement Category Manager at Bernard Matthews.
The Water Event will feature a range of exhibitors with relevant services and advice for large industrial and commercial end-users. Significant organisations and new companies signed up for 2015 include British Water, Anglian Water, Hunter Apparel Solutions Limited, Thames Water, Bugfish, Dart Valley Systems Limited, Water Direct, Utility People, Kelda Water Services Retail Ltd, Propelair, Source for Business, Waterscan Ltd, and Severn Trent, which will be hosting a VIP area on the show floor.